Wooded Rapist case evidence can be used

By Kate Howard • THE TENNESSEAN • November 20, 2008 Evidence in the case against the man suspected as the Wooded Rapist was obtained legally and will be presented in the trial, a judge ruled this week. Attorneys last month argued that the evidence should be thrown out against Robert Jason Burdick, who faces 27 criminal charges in three counties that range from aggravated rape to aggravated burglary. A search warrant was granted to detectives who developed Burdick as a suspect after they determined he had been peeking in car windows with a flashlight in a Brentwood neighborhood. Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Seth Norman ruled there was enough evidence in the affidavit to connect Burdick's actions that night with the crime patterns of the Wooded Rapist. Through the years as police investigated a string of attacks, they labeled the perpetrator the Wooded Rapist because the assaults occurred near wooded areas. Burdick is now suspected in at least 13 rapes reported between 1994 and 2008 in Davidson, Williamson and Wilson counties. A search of his home found five guns, boxes of ammunition, ski masks, tools to open locks, night vision binoculars, black and camouflage clothing, a device to drive away dogs and an anti-barking device, knives and cameras, according to court files. Gary Tamkin, an attorney with the Metro public defender's office, had argued that the case presented in the affidavit to obtain the search warrant wasn't strong enough to link Burdick to any rapes; therefore, the search was illegal.

Brush Pick-up Is Coming! Leaf Pick-Up Is Coming!

Starting Monday, December 1, 2008 Metro Public Works is will be collecting yard brush in "Route-4" for approximately ten days or until the area has been completed. Route 4 includes District 29. Please have your brush out for collection by the following dates: December 1, 2008 You can review details for each route on Public Work's Website by clicking on this link: http://www.nashville.gov/recycle/brush.htm Also, Leaf Collection for area 4 begins December 11th. There will be only one rotation for leaf removal this year. Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the staff at Public Works by call ing 862-8716 or calling me at 589-2003. Gratefully, Vivian

A Metro Nashville Tradition for Celebrating the Season!

Sponsored by: Mayor Karl Dean Metro Public Works Metro Beautification and Environment Commission Nashville Electric Service NewsChannel 5 To enter your House go to the following link for more information: http://www.nashville.gov/beautification/holiday_lights.htm

Davidson County crime log from Nov. 10-12

These are the most serious calls handled by the Metro police, listed by time, crime reported and address. Some reports may be unfounded. Police calls are listed by police precinct or town. When police cannot immediately determine the location of a crime, the address given is that of the police station or hospital where the crime was reported. Nov. 12 Antioch11:32 p.m., residential burglary, 200 block British Woods Drive Donelson 3:14 p.m., holdup/robbery, 500 block Donelson Pike 4:10 p.m., residential burglary, 8200 block Stewarts Ferry Parkway Priest Lake 5:30 p.m., residential burglary, 1200 block Twin Circle Drive 5:39 p.m., residential burglary, 2900 block Mossdale Drive Una 3:55 p.m., residential burglary, 1500 block Doubletree Lane Nov. 11 Antioch 12:41 a.m., nonresidential burglary, 2300 block Murfreesboro Pike 4:22 a.m., shooting, 2500 block Johnson Ridge Road Donelson 3:03 p.m., holdup/robbery, 500 block Donelson Pike 7:01 p.m., residential burglary, 1300 block Lincoya Bay Drive 10:20 p.m., residential burglary, 1300 block Lincoya Bay Drive Hermitage 11:07 a.m., holdup/robbery, 5700 block Old Hickory Boulevard 5:43 p.m., residential burglary, 4300 block Valley Grove Drive 5:44 p.m., residential burglary, 5100 block Singing Hills Drive Priest Lake 4:57 p.m., residential burglary, 3400 block Daisy Trail Nov. 10 Donelson 2:44 p.m., residential burglary, 3000 block Lincoya Bay Drive Hermitage 3:44 a.m., cutting/stabbing, 800 block Murfreesboro Pike 5:20 a.m., cutting/stabbing, 700 block Spence Lane

Crime Report: Police recruiting office opens today at Hickory Hollow

NASHVILLE Metro police will cut the ribbon today on a new recruiting office in an unlikely place: the Hickory Hollow Mall in Antioch. The office, adjacent to the food court, will provide a dual purpose, police say: provide information to young people about a career with the Metro police and give South Precinct officers a place to do their paperwork. The mall has increasingly been a focus of police resources. Officers working on gang enforcement frequent Hickory Hollow on weekends, and police say they've seen improvements in the area. — KATE HOWARD kahoward@tennessean.com

Blood Drive scheduled at Summit Medical Center

Summit Medical Center will hold a Red Cross Blood Drive at 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 24. Those participating should be at least 110 pounds and in general good health. Appointments should be made. Call 316-3130 or visit www.givelife.org.

Special election on English requirement is set for Jan. 22

Voters also will weigh in on a second referendum to allow more opportunities to change the Metro Charter By Michael Cass • THE TENNESSEAN • November 18, 2008 If you're going through a little election withdrawal, take heart: There are just 45 days until early voting starts again in Metro Nashville. The Davidson County Election Commission voted Monday to call a special election for Jan. 22 to hold referendums on two proposals to change the Metro Charter. Early voting will start Jan. 2. Voters will decide whether Metro should do business in English only, a controversial idea that has taken a long and winding road to the brink of becoming law. They'll also weigh in on a proposal to give voters more opportunities to amend the charter, an idea that grew out of the English-only fracas. But there was a little drama before the election commission voted. Commission Chairman Eddie Bryan asked Metro Councilman Eric Crafton if he'd be open to holding the English-only vote at the next general election in August 2010. Bryan said he had made that offer previously, but Crafton vehemently insisted it had been his idea the first time around. This time, though, he rejected the offer, saying there was an underlying reason for the proposal. "They were trying to give themselves time to mount a campaign" against the English-only plan, Crafton said in an interview after the meeting. In any case, election Commissioner Patricia Heim said she didn't think the commission could move an election from the date requested by the thousands of people who signed Crafton's petition. The Metro Council approved an English-only measure more than 18 months ago, but then-Mayor Bill Purcell vetoed it. Crafton hoped to hold a referendum on Nov. 4, but a series of courts ruled for Metro's position that the vote couldn't be held that early under the charter's requirements. Later in the meeting, Bryan and Heim raised another question: Could multiple petitions generate charter amendment votes on the same ballot? Nicki Eke, a Metro attorney, said her office decided that was legal because the charter says, "An amendment or amendments may be proposed … upon petition filed with the metropolitan clerk." The use of the plural "amendments" indicated more than one petition could be filed for a single election, Eke said. Bill could be $350,000 Jim Roberts, an attorney for the English-only proponents and leader of the drive to let voters change the charter at least once a year, shot the proceedings with a small video camera. He said after the meeting that passage of his amendment would create greater accountability in government. Critics have said it would lead to government by referendum, undermining the charter. Early voting will take place at just one site, the election commission's headquarters in the Metro Office Building, 800 Second Ave. S. It will run through Jan. 17. Election Administrator Ray Barrett said the special election would cost between $300,000 and $350,000.

Antioch businesses become targets of crime

WKRN NEWS CHANNEL 2 Posted: Nov 18, 2008 08:11 AM CST Updated: Nov 18, 2008 09:53 AM CST Owners of two businesses in the Nashboro Village area of Antioch became crime victims early Tuesday morning. A burglar got inside S & E Hair & Beauty Supply located at 2275 Murfreesboro Road just before 3 a.m. Police said the thief took the cash register with about a week's worth of profits. A short time later, police also discovered a break-in at a Greek restaurant next door called Gyros, Kababs, Subs and More. Officers were not sure what had been taken. Police did not release any information about possible suspects, and are still investigating. Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 74-CRIME.

Metro begins picking up leaves

By Nancy DeVille • THE TENNESSEAN • November 14, 2008 Got leaves? If so, Metro Public Works crews will haul them off during its fall leaf collection that begins Tuesday, Nov. 25. Public Works workers will travel the existing 12 brush routes to collect bagged leaves left at the curb or in alleys. Residents should use paper or plastic bags and have bagged leaves out for pickup by the first day of collection in their area. The leaf collection is provided for residents in both the Urban Services District, where Metro arranges trash pickup, and the General Services District, officials said. The service does not include satellite cites such as Belle Meade which has a contractor that provides once a week, year round chipper service, brush and leaf collection for its residents, said Beth Reardon, the city manager. Belle Meade residents are asked to put their brush, limbs and bagged leaves at the street for pickup on their collection day, which is either Monday, Wednesday or Friday. The city of Forest Hills has a chipper service that picks up brush year round, but during the months of November and December, the city's chipper service picks up bagged leaves for residents. Bags should contain leaves only. Residents can simply leave their bagged leaves at the edge of the road for pickup. Davidson County residents can also take bagged leaves to Metro's Bordeaux mulch facility at 1400 County Hospital Road free of charge, but plastic bags are not accepted. EarthMatters Tennessee, at 1001 Gale Lane, allows residents to bring leaves to its George W. Carver Food Park at 10 a.m.–2 p.m. each Saturday for disposal. The nonprofit organization also offers a pick up service for a donation. The organization is looking to collect 10,000 bags this year. "We are retraining people how to think," said Sizwe Herring, executive director of EarthMatters Tennessee. "Leaves are not trash, and we shouldn't treat them as such." At EarthMatters Tennessee the leaves are used during their educational programming to teach youth and residents about the process of composting. "We make about 30,000 pounds of compost each year," Herring said. "If the city did it on a much bigger level, we could do a lot to help affect positive green change in Nashville." Besides bagged leaf collection, there are other ways to dispose of leaves. They can be mulched in place by a lawn mower or piled up in the yard for composting. Raked leaves should not be placed into the street where they may clog up storm drains or cause other problems, Public Works officials said.

Police recruit vigilant neighbors

By Charles Booth • THE TENNESSEAN • November 14, 2008 Deb Duncan keeps a close watch on what happens in her Hillbrook neighborhood in South Nashville. If something seems odd or suspicious, she isn't shy about contacting neighbors. "I've knocked on a neighbor's door at 11 or 12 o'clock at night," she said. "And we alert each other by e-mail or phone." So far this year, crime is down in South Nashville, but the area has seen a 21.7 percent increase in residential burglaries. That's why the Metro police South Precinct is looking to recruit more vigilant neighborhood residents like Duncan. "Obviously, you have to be our eyes and ears in what we can't see and where we can't be," Commander Mike Alexander said. He was speaking at a community meeting hosted by the precinct Thursday night. It's one of the many examples of how the department is trying to build relationships with area residents. Those relationships, Metro Councilman Parker Toler said, may be the key to reducing crime in this community. "We cannot solve every problem as far as crime is concerned," he said. "But some of the bad incidents, if we know more about them, then maybe on the front end we can solve some of them." In the past year, 14 new neighborhood watch groups have formed in South Nashville. That means the department is now working with about 80 such groups in that area alone. "Any time we add a neighborhood watch group, we feel good about that because the trust and the partnership is increasing," Alexander said. Duncan has seen firsthand the success of these groups. Since she helped found the Hillbrook Neighborhood Association about a decade ago, she has remained in close contact with South Precinct officers. "We've had nothing but a proactive response from them," she said. "We had some issues where we had a house with a lot of high traffic. We worked with (the precinct), and the situation has been resolved."

Some stores closing before Christmas

By Naomi Snyder • THE TENNESSEAN • November 17, 2008 It's going to be a liquidation Christmas this year. Several national retailers, including Circuit City and Linens 'N Things, have filed for bankruptcy protection and will close stores. Some locally owned shops are closing, too, and selling off or liquidating merchandise. Normally, retailers try to wait until after the holidays to file for bankruptcy. Not this year. They simply are running out of money too fast. "Many retailers were trying to hold on until January,'' said Britt Beemer, founder of America's Research Group, a retail research firm. "When September and October came, it weakened them so much, there was no way they could withstand those kind of sales declines." A stock market free fall, rising unemployment and sinking consumer confidence helped push national consumer spending down 3.1 percent in the third quarter, the worst performance in 28 years, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. "Sales have completely fallen off a cliff,'' said Taylor Condra, the director of operations for the 61-year-old family-owned furniture business Cresent Enterprises here. Although the Gallatin-based company is closing its two retail locations, one in Nashville and one in Cool Springs, it has not filed for bankruptcy protection. The family intends to continue manufacturing furniture overseas and importing and selling it in the U.S. The retail stores hadn't been profitable for two years and sales significantly dropped off during the last two months, Condra said. His company will start its liquidation sale Friday. Waller Furniture in Madison also is closing up shop and liquidating the store. Also, Daniel Gordon, owner of Island Sports inside the Shoppes at Home Depot on Bell Road, said he decided to close his retail store when its lease expired because sales were slow and it was too hard to compete against larger sporting goods chains. Climate 'very stressful' He called the current economic climate "very stressful" for small-business owners. "You put all your money in it, all your savings, and then watch it disappear," Gordon said. He held a clearance sale over the weekend, but will continue to sell standard school clothing for Metro students via a Web site only. "We're going to reorganize," he said. "Our main focus will be online." Bankruptcy only option Add to the retail hit list Linens 'N Things, which filed for bankruptcy protection last May and is in the midst of closing all its stores. There are four in Middle Tennessee, in Brentwood, Goodlettsville, Murfreesboro and Clarksville. The New Jersey-based housewares company initially tried to close some stores and find a buyer, Beemer said. But with few buyers willing to step up in an economic downturn, Linens 'N Things had no luck and no other choice. Circuit City filed for bankruptcy protection a week ago after announcing plans to close one-fifth of its stores, or 155 locations. Only the stores that are closing will have liquidation sales. That includes outlets in Spring Hill and Antioch in Middle Tennessee. The company said it filed for bankruptcy protection because vendors had lost confidence that they'd be paid if they shipped products to Circuit City. "Operating under the protection of Chapter 11 (part of the bankruptcy law) will provide the company's vendors with assurances that they'll be paid for merchandise the company receives post-filing so the company can be sufficiently stocked for the holiday … season," Circuit City said in a statement. Harvard Law School professor Lynn LoPucki keeps a database of major bankruptcies. Five retailers with assets of more than $250 million have filed for bankruptcy so far this year, up from two last year and none the year before, according to LoPucki's database. However, 2008 hasn't topped the year 2000, when 12 major retailers filed for bankruptcy, many of them grocery store chains such as Big V Supermarkets and Eagle Food Centers. LoPucki's figures show that January tends to have more retail bankruptcy filings than any other month of the year. "As long as there's a Christmas ahead, there's still hope,'' LoPucki said. More closures to comeThis year, though, there has been a surge in store closings before the holidays. The International Council of Shopping Centers estimated last month that 2008 will see 148,000 store closures, the largest spike since 2001. It projects an additional 73,000 store closures in the first half of 2009.Beemer predicts even more bankruptcies in the spring, if Christmas fails to save several struggling retail chains. Consumers may benefit in the short run from all the liquidations sales, but they'll end up with fewer shopping options later, he said. "I believe we'll see more bankruptcies next spring than we've seen the last five years combined,'' Beemer said. "There are a lot of retailers who are going to have an extraordinarily bad Christmas."

16 McGavock Students Charged in Truancy Sweep

More news of success regarding the efforts to reduce truancy. Below is the information provided by our Hermitage Flex Officers. As always, great work! Gratefully Vivian. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Hermitage Flex officers conducted a truancy sweep of McGavock High School today. Officers charged 16 McGavock students with loitering during school hours for attempting to leave the campus while school was in session. Three adults were charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor. During the truancy initiative, an officer in one unmarked vehicle watched for students who appeared to be skipping school. Uniformed officers then made investigative stops of those who appeared to be in violation. The truancy operation is the latest in an on-going effort between the police department, Juvenile Court, and school officials to see that students are in school and remain there until dismissal.

Holidays Dates for Metro Offices

To help you plan for the holidays when doing business with Metro Government, Metro Offices will be closed November 27 and 28, and December 24 and 25. Some offices will be opened on the day after Christmas, December 26 and on New Year's Eve, December 31. Green Ribbon Committee meetings continue Mayor Dean's Green Ribbon Committee held two public meetings this week to get community input on making Nashville the "greenest city in the Southeast." Three more are scheduled as follows. For resident of Southeast Davidson, I hope that you can attend the meeting that will be held at Mt. View Elementary. Two other meetings are listed for your convenience. Gratefully, Vivian 10:30 am - noon Saturday, Nov. 15 Green Hills Library, 3701 Benham Ave. 5:30 - 7 pm Thursday, Nov. 20 Mt. View Elementary School, 3820 Murfreesboro Rd. 10:30 am - noon Saturday, Nov. 22 Inglewood Library, 4312 Gallatin Rd.

District 29 Office Hours for November/December 2008

Hello District 29 Residents: Please join me for my monthly office hours at the First Tennessee Bank-Nashboro, 2360 Murfreesboro Road from 10 am to noon. I am honored to discuss and help resolve your concerns and receive your ideas about District 29, City of Nashville and Davidson county. If you need to provide your concerns to me or you need to speak with me sooner, you can call me at 589-2003 or email me at vivianwilhoite@comcast.net. For matters that you believe need my immediate attention, please call me instead of emailing. I thank you for the opportunity to serve you. Gratefully, Vivian. District 29 Office Hours, First Tennessee Bank-Nashboro Saturday, November 29, 2008 10 am to 12 noon Saturday, December 20, 2008 10 am to 12 noon See you

Hermitage Police Officers Consistently Fight For Safer Schools

Hi District 29 Neighbors and Friends: Commander Richter's Hermitgate Flex A Unit continues to have great success in dealing with truancy and other offenses occurring at Antioch High School. The hard work and continous effort will surely change the mind set of the offenders and they will eventually get the message that we will not put up with these types and other similar activities at our schools. I believe that these efforts have decreased such activities at Antioch High School and I know, like you, look forward to seeing their success in their written data reports. Thank you Commander Richter, the officiers of the Hermitage Flex A Unit and to the staff of Antioch High School for their collaborative efforts to provide our children and families with a safe, learning environment. Keep up the good work! Read about their success below. Gratefully, Vivian Today the Hermitage Flex A-Team spent the first portion of the shift focusing on truancy issues at Antioch High School (1900 Hobson Pk). While focusing on truancy today, the A-Team was able to charge 11 individuals with 12 misdemeanor offenses. The types of charges and number of each are as follows: (10) Loitering During School Hours, (1) DL Required, and (1) Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor. Next, the team remained in 535 zone for the majority of the shift. This is currently a hot zone due to increases in residential burglaries. While in 535 zone, the team focused on traffic enforcement which yielded these results in addition to the truancy portion: 4 misdemeanors, 3 traffic arrests, 1 outstanding warrant arrest, 2 drug arrests, 1 business check, 1 Terry stop, and 1 community contact.