A Murfreesboro teenager drowned Sunday while swimming at Normandy Lake.
Daxton Flannery18, of Shelbyville told Coffee County Sheriff’s Deputy Kelly Smith that he and four others were wading in the lake near Barton Springs Boat Ramp and then decided to attempt to swim across the lake.
As they started to swim the water temperatures caused them to become fatigued and they decided to turn back.
One of the swimmers, Todd Zills, 18, of Greerson Court, Murfreesboro, started to go underwater and he began to yell for help. Several boaters and swimmers attempted to rescue him but were unable to reach him in time.
Officers of the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency and members of the Coffee County Rescue Squad responded to the area and assisted in the recovery of Zills’ body.
Zills was a senior at Shelbyville High School

A Fayetteville man was arrested Friday by Franklin County authorities on 17 counts of animal cruelty. Arthur Joe Gifford of 14 Riverton Drive was arrested but released after posting a $4,500 bond. He is to appear in Franklin County General Sessions Court May 17.

Monday at approximately 12:45pm a Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Special Deputy was transporting a body to the State Medical Examiner’s Office when the vehicle was struck by an oncoming vehicle. The crash occurred on I-24 just past the Beech Grove exit in Rutherford County. According to reports, the oncoming vehicle stuck the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office vehicle in the rear causing the sheriff’s vehicle to roll and exit the interstate into the median. The operator of the Sheriff’s Office vehicle Special Deputy L.J. Smith was later transported to Southern Tennessee Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries. The operator of the second vehicle was released at the scene. The Tennessee Highway Patrol in conducting the investigation.

The first of three workshops on agricultural marketing to restaurants and grocery stores is Thursday in Chattanooga.
The workshops will focus on packaging, pricing, invoicing, certification or audit requirements, insurance requirements and other needs of these potential customers.
They continue Friday in Nashville and Saturday in Memphis. The workshops are coordinated by the University of Tennessee Extension Center for Profitable Agriculture and funded, in part, by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture.

TDOT is concerned about a growing number of deaths on Tennessee roads. The state is well above last year’s numbers.
The car crash death toll is 288 since the beginning of 2012. That’s 27 more deaths compared to the same period last year.
TDOT and the THP are starting a new campaign they say will target behaviors that make accidents worse like texting or not wearing a seatbelt.
To get the word out, the electronic road signs will start carrying messages about safety, including a tally of how many people have died in crashes.

Arnold Air Force Base Services Youth Programs will host a Miss AEDC Pageant for ages 5-18 at Arnold Lakeside Center May 5.

The event is open to the public and will be held from 12-6 p.m. Cost to enter is $25 and each division winner will receive a crown, sash and flowers. Second, third and fourth place winners in each division will receive flowers. All entries will receive a participation certificate.

There will also be a People’s Choice winner who will receive a goody bag and sash. Divisions include Little Miss AEDC for ages 5-8, Preteen Miss AEDC for ages 9-11, Junior Miss AEDC for ages 12-15 and Miss AEDC for ages 16-18.

Participants will need to provide a copy of their birth certificate or driver’s license upon registration to ensure entry into the appropriate division. Little Miss and Preteen divisions will be judged on poise, beauty and personality. Junior and Miss divisions will be judged on poise, beauty, personality and onstage question.

Each participant is allowed one person backstage to assist in getting ready, but they must return to the front before the pageant begins. Participants should arrive no later than 30 minutes prior to start time with hair and makeup complete. There will be a designated area for changing into dresses.

Cost to attend the event is $5 and Arnold Lakeside Center will have a deli buffet for $8 ($5 for age 10 and under). Any attending may vote for the People’s Choice winner for only $1 per vote. Deadline to enter the pageant is May 3. Call Holly Jones at 454-3415, to register or for more information.