3 nabbed by Burchett face charges
Fourth teen didn't take part in burglaries, detectives say
By MATT LAKIN AND DON JACOBS, [email protected]; [email protected]
November 17, 2006
One of the teenagers nabbed at gunpoint by state Sen. Tim Burchett won't face charges, but the Knox County Sheriff's Office said three others have been charged with burglary.
Burchett, R-Knoxville, said he caught the four boys Wednesday breaking into a warehouse at 2000 Amherst Road where he keeps motorcycles and spare parts.
He said he held them at gunpoint with a 9 mm Glock pistol, marched them to a nearby parking lot and fed them chocolate-chip cookies until KCSO deputies arrived.
Burchett said he got tired of repeated break-ins at the warehouse and suspected teenagers might be involved.
He staked out the spot Wednesday after learning Karns High School had closed for the day because of plumbing problems.
Burchett called 911 just before noon.
"There's somebody breaking in my warehouse right now," he told a Knox County E-911 dispatcher. "My name's Tim Burchett. I'm a state senator. I'm just telling you that so you don't think I'm a nut. I'm going to jump on them. I'm going to pop 'em."
"You're talking about shooting them?" the dispatcher asked.
"No, no, I'm not an idiot," Burchett said. "I know the law. I mean pop 'em - I mean catch them."
The oldest teenager, 18-year-old David Wayne Bates of Knoxville, faces two charges of burglary. One of the charges relates to Wednesday's break-in and another to a break-in at the warehouse Sunday, according to court records.
The other boys' names weren't released because of their ages. Investigators determined one boy, a 14-year-old, didn't take part in the burglaries, KCSO spokeswoman Martha Dooley said.
Authorities gave different accounts about the other two teenagers. Dooley said a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old admitted to the break-in and were charged - one with four counts of burglary and another with two counts of burglary. She said reports didn't indicate which boy faced which charges.
Larry Gibney, director of Knox County Juvenile Court services, said one boy - the 15-year-old - had been charged with four counts of felony theft and three counts of burglary. He appeared Thursday morning before Juvenile Court Judge Tim Irwin and was ordered held at the Richard L. Bean Juvenile Services Center until a delinquency hearing, which hasn't been set, Gibney said.
Dooley said investigators believe three dirt bikes were stolen at various times from the warehouse. One ended up as part of a shop class project at Karns High, and detectives found another at one of the boys' homes Wednesday, she said.
Investigators haven't found the third dirt bike yet, she said.
Matt Lakin may be reached at 865-342-6306. Don Jacobs may be reached at 865-342-6345.
Fourth teen didn't take part in burglaries, detectives say
By MATT LAKIN AND DON JACOBS, [email protected]; [email protected]
November 17, 2006
One of the teenagers nabbed at gunpoint by state Sen. Tim Burchett won't face charges, but the Knox County Sheriff's Office said three others have been charged with burglary.
Burchett, R-Knoxville, said he caught the four boys Wednesday breaking into a warehouse at 2000 Amherst Road where he keeps motorcycles and spare parts.
He said he held them at gunpoint with a 9 mm Glock pistol, marched them to a nearby parking lot and fed them chocolate-chip cookies until KCSO deputies arrived.
Burchett said he got tired of repeated break-ins at the warehouse and suspected teenagers might be involved.
He staked out the spot Wednesday after learning Karns High School had closed for the day because of plumbing problems.
Burchett called 911 just before noon.
"There's somebody breaking in my warehouse right now," he told a Knox County E-911 dispatcher. "My name's Tim Burchett. I'm a state senator. I'm just telling you that so you don't think I'm a nut. I'm going to jump on them. I'm going to pop 'em."
"You're talking about shooting them?" the dispatcher asked.
"No, no, I'm not an idiot," Burchett said. "I know the law. I mean pop 'em - I mean catch them."
The oldest teenager, 18-year-old David Wayne Bates of Knoxville, faces two charges of burglary. One of the charges relates to Wednesday's break-in and another to a break-in at the warehouse Sunday, according to court records.
The other boys' names weren't released because of their ages. Investigators determined one boy, a 14-year-old, didn't take part in the burglaries, KCSO spokeswoman Martha Dooley said.
Authorities gave different accounts about the other two teenagers. Dooley said a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old admitted to the break-in and were charged - one with four counts of burglary and another with two counts of burglary. She said reports didn't indicate which boy faced which charges.
Larry Gibney, director of Knox County Juvenile Court services, said one boy - the 15-year-old - had been charged with four counts of felony theft and three counts of burglary. He appeared Thursday morning before Juvenile Court Judge Tim Irwin and was ordered held at the Richard L. Bean Juvenile Services Center until a delinquency hearing, which hasn't been set, Gibney said.
Dooley said investigators believe three dirt bikes were stolen at various times from the warehouse. One ended up as part of a shop class project at Karns High, and detectives found another at one of the boys' homes Wednesday, she said.
Investigators haven't found the third dirt bike yet, she said.
Matt Lakin may be reached at 865-342-6306. Don Jacobs may be reached at 865-342-6345.
I would probably get in trouble, but then, I'm no senator.
