By Linda Bolton linda@mckenziebanner.com

  
Carroll County Circuit Judge Creed McGinley sentenced 19-year-old Brandon Rankin of Huntingdon to 40 years in prison after he pled guilty to second degree murder by aiding and abetting Tuesday, January 30, in the death of a pregnant 17-year-old Huntingdon woman. He also received two years for accessory after the fact (a Class E Felony) in the death of Bobby Petty II, 33, of Huntingdon, which will be served concurrent with the first sentence. Both homicides occurred in 2004.

Rankin was charged in the September 24, 2004 shooting death of Jessica Julius at her Colvett Road home and the death of Bobby Petty, who was shot in his McCall Street home on November 12, 2004. Julius was a Huntingdon High School senior at the time.

Prosecutors had originally sought life without parole for a first-degree murder charge against Rankin in the Julius murder.

An additional charge of aggravated burglary and theft of Chuck Spivey’s residence on September 4, 2004, was dropped as part of the agreement, according to Defense Attorney Matt Maddox, who appeared with his client in court.

“I’m glad to have the whole case behind us, so Ms. (Glenda) Julius will be able to put the criminal justice part of this case behind her” said District Attorney General Hansel McCadams. “I’m sure she will still be dealing with the emotional part of her daughter’s death.”

McCadams noted that 40 years is less than Rankin would have received if a jury had found him guilty of first degree murder, but more than what he would have received if a jury had found him guilty of second degree murder.

“This is what we call a “Hicks Plea,” whereby the defendant agrees to take a greater sentence than what he would have received if the jury had found him guilty of second degree murder,” he said.

Maddox added, “The resolution worked out well for the state and the defendant, even though no lengthy sentence for any defendant would normally be agreeable. But the case needed to be resolved and needed to come to an end for the victim’s family.”

The notification that Rankin would accept the plea bargain came Tuesday morning only minutes before the state was scheduled to appear in court at 9 a.m. Tuesday to hear motions to suppress statements made by Rankin.

It was never determined who the shooter was in the Julius murder. If the case had gone to trial, the state planned to try to prove that Rankin pulled the trigger, while Rankin contended that Simmons was the shooter.

Rankin will be sent to West Tennessee Correctional Center in Henning, where he could spend the remainder of his sentence or he could be transferred to a state prison. He will be eligible for parole after serving 34 years.

During a 2005 preliminary hearing, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Agent Chris Carpenter said he arrived at the Julius home and found the victim lying face down at the door of the rural home. Julius’ mother is employed at Raceway Convenience Store in McKenzie as a night manager and was at work when her daughter’s body was found by Jessica’s brother during the early morning hours. The young woman was 22 weeks pregnant with a female fetus, believed to be the baby of Adam Mann of Huntingdon, who was sentenced in the murder. The agent said Mann indicated the child was his.

Mann and Jerome Wesley Simmons each entered guilty pleas in November 2006 to amended charges of two-counts of second-degree murder in the Julius and Petty murder cases. In their plea agreements, Mann and Simmons had agreed to testify against Rankin if his case went to trial.

Simmons, 20, of Huntingdon, who was also charged with accessory after the fact, received a sentence of 40 and two years to run concurrently. He will be eligible for parole 34 years from November 2004, said McCadams.

Mann, 26, who was also charged with aggravated burglary of Spivey’s residence, was sentenced to 17 years for each homicide and four years in the burglary, all to be served concurrently. He will be eligible for parole in 14 ½ years.

In the 2005 hearing, TBI Agent Joe Walker said Rankin provided information that led to Simmon’s arrest in the cases. Rankin told authorities Simmons shot and killed Julius as Rankin drove the automobile to the scene, turned around, and picked up Simmons after the homicide. Simmons and Rankin then traveled to Mann’s home where the gun was disassembled, he said. The parts were disposed in a creek or elsewhere.

Details of the Julius homicide surfaced when Rankin was captured shortly after an armed robbery at Bill’s Florist in Huntingdon, where he reportedly demanded money from owner Bill Gwaltney at gunpoint. Rankin was captured within minutes of the robbery by Huntingdon Police Officer Walter Smothers. He was charged as a juvenile in connection to the robbery and entered a guilty plea in Carroll County Juvenile Court.

A screw from the gun used in the Julius murder was allegedly given to Rankin by Mann for “good luck,” according to earlier testimony by Huntingdon Police Department Investigator Johnny Hill, who repeatedly interviewed Rankin. Hill said Rankin broke down and cried during questioning about the Petty murder and at one time said, “I think I just admitted to being an accessory to murder.” The investigator testified he recalled seeing a screw hanging around Rankin’s neck upon his arrest for the armed robbery. Hill said both Rankin and Simmons said Mann had pointed guns at them to enforce his authority.

In the preliminary hearing, TBI Agent Chris Carpenter said Simmons and Rankin were concerned about gang retaliation and that Mann or others would assassinate them in connection with the cases. Carpenter said Mann did not want Julius to deliver the baby. Julius was killed because she was reportedly carrying Mann’s child, according to Carpenter.

The interrelated cases of the homicides of Julius and Petty, the burglary of Spivey’s residence, and the armed robbery of Bill’s Florist in Huntingdon were investigated through a collaborative effort of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Carroll County Sheriff’s Department, and the Huntingdon Police Department

Petty called 911 to summon help for himself following the 7:13 a.m. shooting. A Carroll County Sheriff’s Department dispatcher called Huntingdon Police Department, stating that a man had been shot at 299 McCall Street, which is part of Drew Court housing project in Huntingdon.

Petty remained conscious enroute to the hospital and was able to speak to medical personnel, but went into cardiac arrest as the ambulance entered the hospital’s parking lot. He was pronounced dead in the hospital emergency room a short time later.

In a January 2005 hearing, Maddox attempted to prove Rankin suffered from a mental deficiency, scoring 35 out of 100 on a Global Assessment Function to determine his ability to function as an adult. The score would indicate Rankin is developmentally disabled, said Maddox, who had subpoenaed two doctors from the Western Mental Health Institute to interpret their findings of Rankin. Rankin was only evaluated 1.5 hours during the multi-week stay at the Timber Springs facility, said Maddox. Maddox said the doctors avoided subpoena service.

The 2004 homicides were part of a string of homicides in the county, which included Julius, Laura Denise Tegethoff and her one-year-old son, Jayden Ford, Betty Crocker, and Petty.

Charles Gadlen Jr., 26, of Huntingdon pled guilty in the homicides of Tegethoff and the Ford child. He received a life sentence without parole for first-degree murder in the death of Denise and 25 years for the second-degree murder of Jayden. Both sentences are to be served consecutively.

Bobby Crocker pled guilty to second-degree murder in the October 2004 death of his ex-wife Betty Crocker. Judge McGinley sentenced Crocker to 30 years in prison in March 2006.

Arrests and convictions have been made in every case.

Janie Sue Grooms-Lindsay, age 55 of Atwood, who disappeared on October 10, 2004, has still not been located. She was last seen at Wal-Mart in Huntingdon on the day of her disappearance.

A duck, surrounded by a picturesque winter setting, looks for food in the snow at McKenzie City Park.
 

BRRRRR! Gordon Browning Genealogical Library associate James Choate (left) and McKenzie Park and Recreation Director Ricky French shovel and sweep snow from the steps of the Browning Library. An accumulation of one to two inches of snow blanked most parts of Carroll County Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Snow blankets the historic cannon in downtown Memorial Park.

Snow-covered cattails and foliage banked Carroll Lake Thursday morning.

Water dripping from logs at Shomaker Lumber Company in McKenzie created hundreds of icicles.

Snow flocked area foliage following last week’s snowfall.

A winter storm passed through Carroll, Henry, and Weakley counties late Wednesday afternoon blanketing the area with 1-2 inches of snow, causing slick roadways in some areas, and closing schools in all three counties. A second round of snow early Friday morning closed schools for a second day and caused delayed classes Friday morning at Bethel College, where students reported in at 10 a.m.

Paris Special School District Superintendent Dr. Paul Doyle had already announced the closing of those Henry County schools on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, after illness caused high absenteeism at Rhea Elementary and Paris Elementary schools.

Motorists were advised to be prepared for snow-covered roads and limited visibility. However, relatively few accidents were reported, according to law enforcement agencies and wrecker services.

David Ferguson of D & D Service Center in McKenzie, who provides wrecker service, said only three calls were received Wednesday night when two vehicles slid off the roadway and a tractor-trailer jackknifed on Highway 22 Bypass in Huntingdon. All three accidents were minor, with no injuries, he said.

Kee’s West End Service Center in Huntingdon received six wrecker calls for minor accidents – four calls Wednesday night when vehicles slid into ditches and two additional calls following the Friday morning snowfall.

A Carroll County sheriff’s dispatcher and local police department officials said officers responded to only a few minor accidents as the result of slick roadways.

Randy Carter, superintendent of Tennessee Highway Maintenance Department in McKenzie which services Benton, Carroll, Decatur, Henry and Weakley counties, said state employees began pre-storm maintenance Tuesday by spreading a salt brine mixture on roadways. Once the snow began, only a salt mixture was used, he said.

Carroll, Henry, and Weakley counties had heavier snow accumulation than Benton and Decatur, but all had some snow, Carter noted.

State highway crews worked throughout the nights Wednesday and Thursday in an effort to keep the highways as clear as possible, he said.

McKenzie plumber Donald Tolbert said he received very few calls as a result of night time temperatures dipping into the teens.

“I had only a couple of people with frozen pipes since Wednesday,” he said.

MHS Homecoming Queen Anna Trull.
 

MCKENZIE (January 30) Prior to the Big Sandy game, senior Kendall Smith, son of Larry Joe and Tiffany Smith, crowned senior Anna Trull as homecoming queen.

Trull, the eighteen-year old daughter of Dennis and Suzanne Trull, is a four-year member of the Lady Rebels basketball team, a one-year member of the track team and of the Lady Rebels Softball team. She is a four-year member of the Beta Club and has served as a class officer for the past four years. Trull is a member of D.E.C.A., Library Club, Tennessee Tomorrow, F.T.A., Spanish Club, and Pep Club. She currently serves as president of F.C.A. and president of the M-Club. Trull was awarded the Wendy's Heisman award and was selected Most Athletic by her senior class. Trull is a member of the First Baptist Church of McKenzie and plans to attend Bethel College on a basketball scholarship for the next four years majoring in elementary education.

MHS Homecoming Royalty from left - Josie Jarrett, Jill Taylor, Queen - Anna Trull, and Anna Smith.

Other royalty were:

Senior Anna Smith, daughter of Rhonda and Doug Swafford, is a member of the M-Club, D.E.C.A., Pep Club, F.C.A., and a four-year member of the MHS cheerleading squad. Smith plans to attend college and pursue a career in pharmaceutical sales.

Senior Jill Taylor, daughter of Billy and Missy Taylor, is the president of the Leo Club, vice-president of F.T.A., and secretary of the Beta Club. Taylor is also a member of F.C.A., Library Club, Pep Club, and M-Club. Taylor was also selected as a nominee for Miss MHS of her senior class. Taylor is a four-year member of the Lady Rebel basketball team and a three-year member of the Lady Rebel softball team. Taylor plans to attend Murray State University and major in nursing.

Junior Josi Jarrett, daughter of Jerry Jarrett and Cindy Jarrett, is a member of the M-Club, D.E.C.A., F.T.A., Pep Club, and a three-year member of the MHS cheerleading squad. Jarrett plans to attend college and major in education.

The escorts were:

Senior Carson Rider, son of Lance and Hollye Rider; Senior Justin Rogers, son of Peggy and Walter Lindley and Peggy Rogers; Senior Julian Tucker, son of Leann Dudley; Senior Josh Rich, son of Celia Allen; Senior Darius Riding, son of Teresa Collins; and Senior Derrick Hubble, son of Doris Orey.