Indictments unsealed for 7 facing charges

Posted: Tuesday, June 15, 2010 9:01 pm

By CHRIS MENEES
Staff Reporter
An Obion County teenager has been released on bond after being indicted for murder in the February shooting death of his father.
Clifford Joseph “C.J.” Putman, 18, was indicted last week by the Obion County grand jury on a charge of second-degree murder.
He appeared for arraignment Monday in Obion County Circuit Court and was released on a $10,000 bond, according to Circuit Court Clerk Harry Johnson.
Putman, who turned 18 in late April, was previously arraigned in early February in juvenile court, where a juvenile petition was initially filed to charge the then-17-year-old boy with a delinquent act, authorities said. In April, his case was transferred from juvenile court to adult court and was to be presented to the next term of the grand jury, which convened last week.
The indictment was one of five — out of a total of 51 indictments — that remained sealed, or secret, when The Messenger published the indictments last week and it became public Monday following arraignments.
The charges in the case stem from the shooting death of Putman’s father, 40-year-old Vernon Dale Putman Jr., at about 11 p.m. Jan. 28 at the family’s home at 1809 Wade Wiley Road, southwest of Union City.
Obion County Sheriff Jerry Vastbinder reported the morning after the shooting that it appeared the incident started out as a family dispute between the elder Putman and his teenage son. He reported the elder Putman allegedly became more irritated, picked up a rifle and had the teenager kneel down on the floor, at which time he allegedly pointed the gun at the boy. He did not fire, however, and allegedly then turned the weapon and pointed it at his wife of 20 years, Polly (Eakin) Putman. The gun reportedly misfired and Mrs. Putman apparently fled to the back of the residence.
According to the sheriff, Putman allegedly got another gun, went outside and fired several rounds into a car. When he came back into the home, the teenager allegedly shot Putman twice.
Putman, who had worked as a towboat captain, was pronounced dead at the scene. No other injuries were reported.
Goodyear theft case
In a separate case, three people were indicted for theft in connection with the alleged taking of scrap metal from Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. in Union City.
Randy D. Mitchell, Larry D. Ladd and James L. Hawkins were all indicted on a charge of theft, according to the indictment list.
The Obion County Sheriff’s Department indicated the alleged theft case was presented directly to the grand jury following an internal investigation by Goodyear and then further investigation by the sheriff’s department.
Sheriff’s department Chief Deputy Kent Treece said Goodyear initially conducted an internal investigation into the alleged theft of some scrap metal after receiving an anonymous letter from a former associate alleging there was property that belonged to Goodyear being taken off premises by employees and a salvage/recycling company run by Mitchell.
Treece said Mitchell apparently had a contract with Goodyear for its recyclable materials, but at some point, several thousand dollars’ worth of scrap metal allegedly was hauled out with the recyclable materials and was found stored at a Rutherford warehouse owned by Mitchell’s company.
Once company officials located the material, they contacted the sheriff’s department for further investigation, which revealed it apparently was Goodyear property and was not suppose to go out to the recycling company, according to Treece.
Other indictments
The remaining sealed indictments from the grand jury’s June term, now disclosed to the public, also include:
• Stacey Edward Carr Jr. — fraudulent use of a credit card.
• Kevin A. Cates — violation of bad check law.
• Cathy Ann Tate — possession of a controlled substance with intent (two counts).
Staff Reporter Chris Menees may be contacted by e-mail at cmenees@ucmessenger.com.
Published in The Messenger 6.15.10