Tiptoe through the tulips — Tiny Tim would have been 90 today.
In today's report: Our survey of the 2022 county primary elections continues with the Republican contest in the 7th District school board race. Sherri Garrett, a nurse and grandmother who has become a familiar face in the last two years as part of the group fighting pandemic mandates, is contending with Steve Triplett, a former pastor and Crown College graduate turned Chick Fil-A general manager. Both say they want to boost student achievement and opportunities, while holding the school system accountable. We get to know both of them.
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The mother of Anthony Thompson Jr. filed a civil rights lawsuit in federal court yesterday over her 17-year-old son’s shooting death last year during an encounter with Knoxville Police Department officers.
Chanada Robinson claims in the lawsuit that officers weren’t properly trained and didn’t follow proper procedures when they entered a restroom at Austin-East Magnet High School to arrest Thompson and one of them shot him during an ensuing confrontation.
The City of Knoxville, Knox County, Knox County Schools and four individual KPD officers are listed as defendants. Gralyn Strong, a friend of Thompson’s who was in the restroom during the incident, is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
The lawsuits allege police did not have probable cause or a warrant to arrest Thompson or Strong; that KPD failed to properly train the officers; and that the officers and school officials ignored policies involving police actions at schools.
On April 12, 2021, following a complaint from Thompson’s girlfriend that he had been physically abusive to her earlier in the day, the officers located Thompson in a restroom at Austin-East. According to body-worn camera video, the officers confronted Thompson, who had a pistol concealed in the front pocket of his jacket. The gun discharged as the officers moved to take Thompson into custody, and Officer Jonathan Clabough fired his weapon twice, killing Thompson and wounding Officer Adam Willson. Clabough then turned and apprehended Strong, who was behind him.
After an investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, as is standard procedure for a shooting involving a KPD officer, Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen determined the shooting was justified and declined to press charges. All en's decision sparked protests throughout the city.
Robinson’s lawsuit alleges police violated Thompson and Strong’s Fourth, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendment rights, and that she was deprived of her right to the care, custody and society of her child.
The lawsuit requests a jury trial and seeks unspecified damages, including reimbursement for Thompson’s funeral costs, and an order mandating training for officers and school personnel, as well as other requirements.
In statements issued to local media, the City of Knoxville, KPD and the school system declined to comment on the pending litigation.
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We checked in with Knox County Property Assessor John Whitehead yesterday to hear more about this year's countywide reappraisal. As we reported Monday, Whitehead's office last week mailed out letters on distinctive yellow paper with new property appraisals.
Many property owners are seeing increases, a reflection of the hot housing market of the past few years. Whitehead said that countywide, the cumulative appraised value of real estate rose by about 40 percent.
So how exactly does the assessor's office go about reappraising every residential and commercial piece of property in the county? Whitehead said it's a five-year process but a lot of the work gets done in the final year before the recalculation. He said his staff used actual prices from 10,000 recent sales, which are plugged into 172 neighborhood maps covering the county. They review the sizes of each property and structure and also look at aerial photographs.
"So we had a lot of information," Whitehead said. "But the main thing that drives it is just the sales in the area."
Under state law, both the City of Knoxville and Knox County will have to adjust their property tax rates downward so that they continue to produce the same amount of revenue using the new valuations. Local governments aren't allowed to benefit in terms of increased tax revenue from the regular reappraisal.
Whitehead said his office also tracks new construction and major renovations, relying on building permits issued by the city and county. The assessor's office makes annual adjustments to the tax base to reflect new construction, so that a piece of property with a new apartment building on it is appraised for more than when it was a vacant lot. And the city and county receive increased tax revenues from the new development.
That is different from the current broad reappraisal, which largely reflects inflation and demand in the housing market. Whitehead said property owners are welcome to appeal their appraisal. You can find information about how to do that here, but don't dawdle — appeals must be filed by April 29. Whitehead said it helps to have specific information about the property in question.
"We welcome them to appeal it," he said of disgruntled property owners. "But when they appeal it they need to bring something that shows that the value's wrong. They just can't come in here and say, 'The value went up' — we know it went up, we put the numbers on there."
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The Knox County school board is preparing for its first-ever federal court-ordered public mediation session. The board will meet at 9:30 A.M. on Monday, April 18, at the Sarah Simpson Professional Development Technology Center, 801 Tipton Ave.
The board is mediating with the plaintiffs whose lawsuit against the school system led a federal judge to impose a mask mandate in county schools through most of the current school year. Federal mediation sessions are typically private, but because this one involves an entire elected body that is subject to the state's Open Meetings Act, the board will have to meet in public to discuss any issues raised.
According to the meeting notice sent out by the school system, no recording devices of any kind — including phones — will be allowed in the meeting.
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Speaking of the Knox County primary elections: Early voting starts tomorrow, April 13, at 10 locations around the county. You can find information on polling locations and hours right here. Early voting will continue through April 28. The primary election day is May 3.
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Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon will deliver her State of the City address on Friday, April 22, at the future site of the city’s Public Safety Complex at the former St. Mary’s Hospital campus in North Knoxville.
For the past two years, the COVID-19 pandemic has prevented the traditional in-person State of the City address and luncheon.
Kincannon will unveil her proposed fiscal year 2022-23 budget during the luncheon, which will begin at noon. Guests can pre-register for the lunch by calling 311 by Thursday, April 14.
Scheduled to open by the end of the year, the Public Safety Complex will be the new home of the Knoxville Police Department, Knoxville Fire Department, Municipal Court and other public safety functions.
Parking is available near the site and can be accessed via Huron Street and Oak Hill Avenue. Accessible parking is available at the surface lot at East Oak Hill and Huron. The site also is readily accessible via KAT Route 21.
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Technical appraiser jargon. |
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