Driver hits ditch to avoid stopped train

A Shelbyville woman told police she was forced to drive into a ditch to miss a train pulled across Railroad Avenue after dark without warning lights Monday, city police said.

Train cars were being moved into Sanford Corp. by Bedford Railroad Authority, a representative at the scene told police. The representative said he was on one side of the tracks acting as a spotter but no one was on the other side of the train.

The investigating officer's report noted no signs were posted concerning train movement. Permanent railroad crossing signs, without flashing lights, are posted at the crossing.

Tracks along and across Railroad Avenue are part of a branch line used for access to nearby factories and long-term storage of train cars.

The car's driver told police she was driving approximately 45 mph, which is the posted speed limit, when she saw the train.

No damage was apparent to the vehicle's body, the report said, but the driver and railroad representative agreed the car would be towed to a body shop.

Dog stolen

A Labrador retriever and its igloo-type dog house were stolen from the back yard of a Smith Street home Monday, police were told.

The owner, who is in the process of moving, said he fed the dog at 8:30 a.m. and was contacted later at work by a city animal control officer about a report the dog had been abandoned.

Animal control personnel told police the dog was at the home at 3 p.m. The dog was gone when the owner arrived to pick it up after getting off work, police said.

A neighbor told the owner someone in a blue and green truck left with the dog and house.

Jail intake

The following were arrested since Tuesday by the Shelbyville Police Department, Bedford County Sheriff's Department, Tennessee Highway Patrol or 17th Judicial District Drug Task Force. They are only charged; guilt or innocence will be determined by the courts.

* Vendor Savoy Ingram, 50, Warners Bridge Road; violation of probation; held, $2,500 bond

* Kermit Eugene Mears, 45, Glendale Road; violation of probation; released, $2,500 bond

* Anthony Maurice Potts, 33, Tullahoma; violation of probation; released, $2,500 bond

* David Michael Rogers, 22, Union Ridge Road; statutory rape; held, $25,000 bond

* Melanie Smith, 49, Fairfield Pike; domestic assault; released, $2,500 bond

* Misty Parker Spence, 30, Maplewood Drive; DUI; released, $1,000 bond

* Jose Javier Torres-Ojeda, 22, Choctaw Drive; driving on revoked/suspended license, financial responsibility; released, $1,500 bond