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Turner to serve month for 15 pounds of marijuana
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A local businessman caught in a gambling and drug sting will serve one month in jail while his son, who fled the scene of the raid, will serve no jail time.
The businessman, Billy Wayne Turner, 56, reported to jail last week to begin service of his 30-day sentence on charges of possession of marijuana. He will be on probation for two years once he is released from jail and must pay $2,000 plus court costs.
His son, Joshua Turner, 23, was granted a two-year judicial diversion and must pay $2,000 plus costs for possession of marijuana. He can have his record erased if he avoids any more trouble during his two years on probation.
The men were arrested after an agent of the sheriff’s department sold them 15 pounds of marijuana. They paid the undercover agent $7,500 with lawmen moving in after the sale to arrest them.
Investigators say there was evidence drugs were being dealt out of their pool hall on Cadillac Lane called Billy’s Break and Rack, prompting the reverse sting operation. A closer look at the poker machines inside the business revealed there were reset buttons on the back which allowed them to be used for gambling purposes. However, gambling charges were dropped as part of the plea deal.
The sentences were the result of plea bargains negotiated through a special prosecutor as the office of District Attorney General Lisa Zavogiannis was recused because the wife of the Billy Wayne Turner and mother of the younger Turner was an employee of the district attorney’s office at the time of the busts. She has since left employment with the DA’s office.

Local farm partnership brings fresh beef to Warren County Schools
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Warren County Schools has beefed up lunch menus this school year through a new community partnership. Thanks to a collaboration between the district’s School Nutrition Department and Barton Creek Farms, students at Warren County High School, Warren County Middle School, West Elementary, Eastside Elementary, and Dibrell Elementary are enjoying locally sourced, farm-fresh beef in their lunches as part of a pilot program.

The initiative, spearheaded by Terri Mullican, Director of School Nutrition, has already shown great promise in its first few months. The partnership with Barton Creek Farms, located in Rock Island, Tennessee, ensures that the beef served is not only local to Warren County but of the highest quality. Barton Creek Farms specializes in farm-to-fork beef, with grass-fed and grain-finished cattle. Each calf is born and raised in Rock Island and goes through USDA-inspected processing, ensuring it meets the strictest safety and quality standards.

“When the opportunity arose to provide fresh, local beef, we knew it was a no-brainer,” Mullican said. “The fact that it’s a product from right here in our community makes it even more special. We can’t wait to implement it district-wide.”

Barton Creek Farms delivers fresh ground beef to the district monthly, and the nutrition

department incorporates it into homemade recipes such as lasagna, meatloaf, chili, and tacos.

As of now, the beef is being served at five schools, but the ultimate goal is to expand the program to all ten lunch-serving schools in the district.

The pilot program originated from a conversation between Mary Roller of Barton Creek Farms and Mullican. Roller, recognizing the farm’s potential to support local schools, reached out to gauge the district’s interest in serving local beef to students. Around the same time, a Warren County school board member contacted Mullican to share information about a similar partnership in neighboring Dekalb County, which helped push the initiative forward.

The timing worked in the district’s favor, as the nutrition department was able to fund the purchase of the beef using existing resources, eliminating the need for additional funding. Now that the pilot program is enjoying a successful run, the department has budgeted to extend the partnership district-wide for the 2025-26 school year.

Dr. Grant Swallows, Director of Schools, praised the program’s economic approach to student nutrition.

“This pilot is a perfect example of how we can use local resources to continue providing nutritious, healthy meals for our students,” he said. “We are grateful for partnerships like this one that benefit both our students and our local community. We always strive to support our local businesses when we can because our community is so good to us.”

In addition to working with Warren County Schools, Barton Creek Farms also partners with local restaurants to offer farm-fresh beef on their menus. The farm’s offerings include ground beef, steaks, roasts, and custom cuts by the quarter, half, or whole cow, meeting diverse consumer needs.

As the program continues to grow, the district hopes to expand its focus on farm-to-school meals, benefiting students’ health and connecting them to the agricultural roots of the community