Is Middle/Eastern TN Scary? (Knoxville, Cookeville: sales, apartment complex, crime rate)

[Siberia]

From The Crossville Chronicle...just a couple selected recent stories via their online site local story section:

http://www.crossville-chronicle.com/local

BREAKING NEWS:
• Meridian resident escapes flames of house fire
• Suspect in sexual assault of boy described as also being a victim
• Crossville man indicted in apartment complex stabbing
• Family safe following Lake Tansi blaze
• Man claims robbery at knifepoint; couple questioned
• Probe under way in death of no-show defendant
• UPDATE: Four-count indictment charges doctor with providing pot to kids
• Motion for acquittal, new trial in Stone murder case denied
• Judge sentences Oakes to four years in Stone murder
• Readers sound off on school overcrowding
• Execution murder plea bargain troubles judge
• Defendant to pay jury costs after failing to appear for meth trial
• $1,100 fine given in drunken driving case
• Stabbing victim gives vague description of attacker
• 35 mailboxes targeted by vandals
• Arson believed cause of fire that destroyed Daddy's Creek Bar
• Woman charged with knife assault on three men
• Judge serious about skipping school
• What's the best way to solve elementary school overcrowding?
• BIGGEST NEWS OF THE YEAR: Tornado, murder, Moses top the list
• Bond denied Hughes in shooting death case
• Grinch breaks into church, steals presents
• Persinger pleads to sexual battery
• Judge: Wife was primary aggressor; assault case tossed
• Defendant in utility district theft charged with probation violation
• Shotgun assault leads to attempted murder charge
• Body discovered in storage shed that of missing woman
• $8 million price tag for CCHS updates
• State seeking death penalty in mother-daughter murders


Is the crime out of control in middle/eastern TN? A 19 year old girl slashes 3 men with kitchen knife? A guy shoots a 4 year old and her mother at a church parking lot...and reloads while multiple witnesses watch in order to execute the mother after having killed the 4 year old daugher...all the while the 8 year old daugher is watching along with the witnesses? Cocaine issues in rural American TN (rural drug usually is meth and weed)?

I know every area in america has crime issues, it just seemed like big city crime in a smaller rural area, at least from the stories at the chronicle. Is crime an issue in middle/eastern TN? The "crime ratings" seem to suggest below national ratings for many TN areas, yet the stories suggest otherwise...especially when considering rural areas.

[jbrockmoore]

Hello. Where did you get this information? What are the dates of these supposed events? We have lived here (Maryville, south of Knoxville) 4 years now and I can assure you I have not heard of any of these supposed crimes. This "mis"information is outrageous! We moved here from Flint, Michigan and you can't begin to even compare the two crime rates. Other than many busts for crack cocaine and other drugs, the crime rates are very low. Check the City Data forum for Maryville or any other TN city and you will find that the information listed is what you can expect here. No, this is not a high crime area, and we love living here and would never leave. Hope this helps!

[hiknapster]

Actually, I checked out that website and it looks legitimate. The events took place in one month. Who knew Crossville was so exciting? Geesh!

Knoxville has crime, but it is not bad; I guess because it is such a small city. The big news lately is the carjacking of a young couple that we had. They killed the guy and raped and killed the girl. Very scary.

I drive to work in the early morning hours and it has really made me think.

By the way, I think they got the guys. We have a good police force.

[Fern]

It's true. The Crossville Chronicle is the local newspaper (3 issues per week) and the crime problem is just as the article suggests.

I moved here because of the low taxes and housing prices but I have to say that I'm having some serious doubts about my choice. The crime problems listed are just the tip of the iceberg; overall I've found the people of this area to be ignorant, sullen, unfriendly (particularly to "snowbirds" and "carpetbagggers" who are bringing their yankee / eastern ideas here) and in almost every way a proof that the common stereotype of the southern rube is way too close to the truth.

[obsolete29]

I think it's important to keep things in perspective. This is your idea of crime being out of control? Same fires during winter, school over crowding and skipping school?

• Meridian resident escapes flames of house fire
• Family safe following Lake Tansi blaze
• Readers sound off on school overcrowding
• $8 million price tag for CCHS updates
• What's the best way to solve elementary school overcrowding?
• Judge serious about skipping school
• Probe under way in death of no-show defendant - Believed to be natural causes.

Some relatively minor crime:

• UPDATE: Four-count indictment charges doctor with providing pot to kids
• 35 mailboxes targeted by vandals
• Man claims robbery at knifepoint; couple questioned
• Crossville man indicted in apartment complex stabbing
• Defendant to pay jury costs after failing to appear for meth trial
• $1,100 fine given in drunken driving case
• Stabbing victim gives vague description of attacker
• Woman charged with knife assault on three men
• Arson believed cause of fire that destroyed Daddy's Creek Bar
• Grinch breaks into church, steals presents
• Judge: Wife was primary aggressor; assault case tossed
• Defendant in utility district theft charged with probation violation

Now onto the real crime:

These three points are all about the same murder that happend in 2004:
• Motion for acquittal, new trial in Stone murder case denied
• Judge sentences Oakes to four years in Stone murder
• Execution murder plea bargain troubles judge

This is what it is. A domestic dispute that went too far. You'd have to understand who goes camping in clifty though:

• Bond denied Hughes in shooting death case

• Shotgun assault leads to attempted murder charge
• Body discovered in storage shed that of missing woman
• State seeking death penalty in mother-daughter murders

Of the serious crime, you have 4 murders, an attempted murder and a body. It's still pretty serious but hardly the crimewave that the original poster tries to make it out to be.

[hiknapster]

I just looked up the stats on city-data because this really intrigues me.

Crossville has a population of 10,424 but a crime index of 751.

Knoxville has a population of 173,890 but has a crime index of 578.

The national average is 581.

That is AMAZING!

JBrockmoore:

For your comparison:

Flint has a population of 118,551 and a crime index of 887.

Maryville has a population of 23,120 and a crime index of 204.

I think little Crossville has issues!

[Siberia]

Originally Posted by jbrockmoore

Hello. Where did you get this information? What are the dates of these supposed events? This "mis"information is outrageous!

I posted the Crossville Chronicle web page, and the link takes you directly to the "local" section for recent news.

Originally Posted by obsolete29

It's still pretty serious but hardly the crimewave that the original poster tries to make it out to be.

I'm looking for feedback, and my intentions was to neither sugar coat nor amplify what I have read for this small town, middle TN located city on the Interstate between Nashville/Cookeville and Knoxville, TN. The one point I would have to disagree with is your considering of "ARson" and "stabbing" incidents as "minor crime". Sure meth, mailboxes busted up, and even the common DUIs are not major crime...but when the blood flows red, and the buildings are destroyed by fires through planned intent...that I consider much more serious.

What I'm trying to understand is why such a rural area is having crime instances typically found in larger, metro areas. Cocaine is not the typical small town drug of choice....meth and weed are more typical. Execution style killings in broad daylight, and multiple knife stabbings and slashings in short periods of time (one by a 19 year old girl non-the-less) are not typical of a small, farm based, rural town setting. I have both lived in rural areas, large cities, and there inbetween...and yes I agree that the news at Crossville, TN doesn't sould like current day New Orleans, but it is more typical of what one would find in a city of over 1 million citizens.

One issue may be the chronicle regurgitating old news...I believe you have pointed some of this out. The other is that perhaps the chronicle is covering a huge area in terms of square miles...this might be the case but many of the defendants and victims have "crossville" addresses.

I'm trying to understand the area better as I have been told Crossville is a good place for retirement folks, although I am even confused on this issue as the working class don't get taxed in TN, only those who live off interest income (like CDs) and stock dividends (typical of retirement folk). Also, a 9.5% (or 9.75?...can't remember) sales tax seems high for a retirement area.

I'm not trying to cause a stir here, I'm trying to get information on this area. Please don't take my direct approach to posting as a slam to TN, or Crossville...I'm talking about one small city of thousands, that happens to have some news that I find strange. By no means is this the total of either the city, and for sure not a good indicator of the entire state. The reason I posted I"s Middle/East TN Scary" was to find out if those near Knoxville and other areas near Crossville have had similiar, strange occurances when it comes to crime in small rural areas. So far, it seems to be isolated to the crossville area, and perhaps even an isolated year for crossville itself. One month, or one year is by no means an indication of the future, and I am curious if such has occurred for a longer period of time. This is why I have posted...

[Siberia]

Originally Posted by hiknapster

I just looked up the stats on city-data because this really intrigues me.

Crossville has a population of 10,424 but a crime index of 751.

Knoxville has a population of 173,890 but has a crime index of 578.

The national average is 581.

That is AMAZING!

Actually the national average is showing 325.2. Thank you for pointing out this data, as I have been looking at other databases that are not as accurate (Moderator cut: url listed crossville as 4/10 versus 3/10 national average...but I'm guessing it was old data). I'm guessing 2005 wasn't great either due to the multiple murders, which had not happened but once from 2001 to 2004. Also look at the rapes in 2004 versus 2003...10x higher. And Arson in 2004 versus 2003 was 6x higher. Huge population change? Also, housing cost went up $40,000 in 2005 versus 2004. Again, large influx of people?

Per City-data.com:


Crime in Crossville by Year

2001 2002 2003 2004

581.8 718.4 815.4 751.0

City-data.com crime index (higher means more crime, U.S. average = 325.2)

[JMT]

I have to admit that I was surprised but also not surprised by all this. I have never understood why Crossville is such a popular place for retirement, and this recent crime spree indicates that all is not well up there on the plateau.

Crossville boosters will talk about their many golf courses, but you know, there are beautiful golf courses everywhere.

LauraC posted something earlier which showed various statistics for popular towns in Tennessee that are often mentioned in this forum. It showed that Crossville's population is the poorest and also the least educated, and I guess the high crime rate is indicative of that.

[hiknapster]

Sorry about that. I messed up the national average.

I'm really tired after staying up late to watch the game last night.

Something very weird is going on in that town.

I think that someone posted pictures here of Crossville and I really didn't like the looks lof it. Still, it didn't look like crime central.