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FRIDAY » FEBRUARY 22, 2013 » GALLATIN, TENNESSEE » SERVING SUMNER COUNTY SINCE 1840

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‘He should’ve gotten more’

Moore, 18, gets two life sentences for parents’ deaths By Dessislava Yankova Gallatin News Examiner

An 18-year-old man received two life sentences in prison Tuesday for his involvement in the murders of his parents at their Cottontown home. Morgan Moore was facing charges of two counts of firstdegree murder, theft up to

$60,000 and aggravated arson in the deaths of his parents Gary Moore, 54, and Tammy, 51. The parents were shot up to seven times before they were robbed and burned inside the bedroom of their home in October 2011. Moore’s friend Chase Vinson, 22, and his brother Chad Vinson, 40, are also charged in connection with the shooting deaths. On Tuesday, Feb. 19, Moore pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree murder for the death of his father and one count of criminal responsibility

for a first-degree murder for the death of his mother. Criminal Court Judge Dee David Gay sentenced him to life in prison on each charge to be served si-

Moore

multaneously. In Tennessee, a defendant sentenced to life in prison has to serve 51 years before being eligible for parole. Counting the 16 months Moore has already

served since his October 2011 arrest, he will be at least 68 before he can see the parole board.

‘He killed my parents’

Moore’s oldest brother, Justin, 28, said Wednesday he was satisfied with the verdict. “I think he should’ve gotten more – he should’ve gotten the death penalty,” he said. “He killed my parents. He killed two innocent people.” Justin Moore, a Maryland resident who works in security and networking for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, did not

attend Tuesday’s court hearing but said he expected his brother to confess. “No, I didn’t want to go down there,” he said. “If they actually had the trial, I would’ve come.” Moore said he thought his brother was troubled but never could have envisioned he would act so violently. “I was told he had a rough lifestyle and drug habits,” he said. “I don’t think he was in his right mind when he did it.”

» MOORE, 3A

Duncan proposes change to Union name

BACK ON THE JOB

Board member wants school to honor black educator By Jennifer Easton Gallatin News Examiner

so the animal control officer and the technician both pried his mouth open and got him off me,” Beadles said. “My first thought is that he was going for my throat, but I had turned quick enough to keep that from happening.” As the dog dropped to the floor, Beadles kicked it to keep it from coming at her again, and the others also tried to shove the dog away. The animal lunged at her again, this time getting its teeth into her side, near the rib cage area. The jail inmate was finally able to grab the

Bethpage school board member Will Duncan is proposing to change the name of Union Elementary STEM and Demonstration School in honor of the late B.J. Hall, a long-time educator and leader in the African-American community. Duncan, at the Feb. 19 school board meeting, gave an emotional presentation, saying changing the name of the school would right a wrong done to the African-American community when, in 2002, a new elementary school was named in honor of former Director of Schools Benny Bills. Duncan said he has nothing against Bills, nor is the move intended as a personal attack toward the former schools director. “Renaming the schools would give the black community justice,” he said to the board TuesDuncan day. “Do right toward us. I think we deserve it.” Benny Bills Elementary, on Union School Road near Dobbins Pike, was set to be named Union Elementary when it opened in 2002, according to a 1999 building program that included Station Camp High School. The then six-member school board later voted to name the new Union school for Benny Bills, who served as an elected superintendent of schools from 1976-88 and an appointed schools director from 2005-11. The board at the same time voted to establish Merrol Hyde Magnet School in honor of Merrol Hyde, who was an elected superintendent from 1988-92 and an appointed director from 1997-2004. Duncan claimed the then sixmember board, of which he was a member, vio-

» DOG, 3A

» UNION, 3A

Tanya Beadles returned to work at the Sumner Spay Neuter Alliance after being bitten by an American bulldog several times on Valentine’s Day. SHERRY MITCHELL/GALLATIN NEWS EXAMINER

Nonprofit worker survives aggressive attack by dog By Sherry Mitchell Gallatin News Examiner

A dog attack inside a Gallatin nonprofit sent one woman to the hospital last week where she was later admitted overnight for an infection related to the bites. Tanya Beadles, 38, was working her shift Feb. 14 at Sumner Spay Neuter Alliance, when an American bulldog was brought in to be neutered by Sumner County Animal Control, which owns and shares the same building. The organization on Union School Road provides lowcost sterilization services for cats

and dogs. Beadles said she was with a veterinarian, an animal control officer, an inmate assigned to animal control, and a Volunteer State Community College student technician when the attack occurred. The vet had just finished checking the dog’s heart rate. “I had my hand on his collar and had gone to squat down to restrain him so he could get his pre-med and he just lashed out and grabbed hold of my chin,” Beadles said. As she was rising up, the bulldog was still holding onto her mouth. “Everyone knew not to pull him,

City Council approves Fairvue plan Chloe Drive to be opened, Potter divider uncertain By Josh Cross Gallatin News Examiner

Despite concerns from neighboring residents, a split Gallatin City Council approved proposed changes to a planned development adjacent to Fairvue Plantation with few amendments. For the final reading of the plan Tuesday, the council voted 4-3 in favor of a major amendment to a plan for 27 acres of land that would be the site of The Retreat at Fairvue. Originally the land was supposed to be a residential hospice center,

but now Goodall Builders plans to build 130 multiunit condominiums on the property. As part of the approved plan, Chloe Drive will be opened up and connect to Noah Lane, despite objections from current Chloe Drive residents. Some Fairvue residents had wanted the council to require the developer to build a brick wall behind the homes on Potter Lane instead of a proposed aluminum fence with landscaping, but the council did not act on the request, though it approved a wall should one be built. “The vote is what it is and certainly we want to honor in our hearts the vote of the council,” said Earl Fischer, president of

the Fairvue Home Owners Association. “We’re disappointed, of course, and we worked hard to try to have the outcome differently.”

Safety meetings subject to sunshine – for now By Jesse Hughes For the Gallatin News Examiner

Changes, vote divide council As discussion on the ordinance began, AtLarge Councilor Julie Brackenbury proposed an amendment to keep Chloe Drive closed and require the developer to build an 8-foot-high masonry wall behind the homes on Potter Lane. The amendment was later split up into two amendments with the first pertaining to the wall behind Potter Lane and the second relating to

» FAIRVUE, 2A

Open government experts say a committee appointed to come up with stricter school safety measures is subject to laws governing public meetings, but county leaders argue the discussions should be private to protect classrooms. Sumner County Emergency Services Chairman Jim Vaughn updated the county Legislative Committee Feb. 11 on the Ad Hoc Committee on School Safety and Implementation, which he co-chairs with Sheriff Sonny Weatherford. The 16

233,000 people in Sumner County read our newspapers and use our websites every week. GallatinNewsExaminer.com

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members of the committee were appointed by commission ChairDecker man Merrol Hyde in January and have not yet met. Vaughn said county leaders are working to change the state Sunshine Laws to close the school safety committee meetings. “We’re a little concerned – I’m a little concerned – about the fact that we are going to be

discussing specifics about school security in a public forum,” he Vaughn said. The change would apply to both the Open Meetings Act and the Open Records Act, he added, so that documents related to the meetings are not available to the public. Kent Flanagan, executive director of Tennessee Center for Open Gov-

» SUNSHINE, 2A