Although a city cop resigned after testing positive in a mandatory drug test after an accident, sixty-seven other cops still take police cars home, as well as five dozen other municipal employees at a time when tax revenue is down and first-aid supplies are not being replenished. But on the list of 127 names of government employees using public vehicles for personal commuting, only one female name shows up.
 

By GEOFF DAVIDIAN
Putnam Pit editor

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. March 2, 1999 -- If you are like me, you can hardly afford car insurance payments let alone the cost of maintenance of a second family vehicle. But you and other tax payers are paying for more than 120 city employees to take cars home at night and on weekends.

When he was director of the Drug Task Force, Bob Terry ran the shakedown for Bill Gibson that confiscated vehicles, which were then auctioned off to pay his overtime. Now that he is Cookeville's Police Chief,  Terry is still riding at the public's expense --  along with nearly six dozen other police and five dozen other government workers, who drive city-owned cars from home to work and back.

Do you get a car from work?


 

Is your employer liable for accidents you have on the way to work and back?


 

Why do government employees get cars to drive home when there is a shortfall of revenue?


 

Why not sell just one car and fill the first-aid kits in city hall?


 

Who gets the perks?
 

    Well, first off, there's City Manager Chatty Jimmy Shipley, whose enlightened management style has cost the city tens of thousands in legal fees defending civil rights suits. Is that the kind of job performance that warrants a perk?

    Then there's:
 

• Electric Company


Tony Peek, Carl Alred, Ed Greenwell, Clyde Ford, Timmy Morris and "on-call" vehicles (5) are rotated among several employees
 

• Fire Department


Gene Schmid, John Kendrick, Bruce Womack, Gary Goolsby, Earl Cowan, Roger Fuqua, J.C. McDaniel
 

• Gas Department


Jimmy Daniel, Wayne Dulworth, Jeff Mills, Jere Mason, Randy Hensley, David Long, "on-call" person (various)
 
 

• Human Resources Department


Jim Burchett, Jerry Houston
 

• Leisure Services/Public Facilities Department


Brad Chambers, Jim Smith, Ralph Chaffin, Tim Bohannon, Alan Boles, Bobbi Nabors (tournament weekends), "on-call" for building maintenance (various)
 

• Planning and Codes Department


Jeff Littrell
 

• Police Department


Chief Terry, White, Elrod, Honeycutt, Bennett, Byers, Cravens, Greenwood, Evans, Glover, Dyer, Raines, Brown, Polston, Winfree, Stewart, Clement, Taylor, Whited, Pleming, Ward, Giezentanner, Drossman, Matt, Maxwell, Gooding, Martin, Whitsell, Green, Loftis, Ramsey, Langford, Johnson, Dukes,
Sircy, Bilbrey, Weiker, Bean, Demming, Key, Wiley, Webb, Marcrom, Jones, Franklin, Woodcock, Harrington, McClain, Sealy, Terry (det.) Lane, Boman, Gragg, Randall, Lee, Hall, Birdwell, Spurlock, Lenna, Lamb, Malouf, Roberts, Williams, Bush, Stout, Young, Anderson and Fox
 

• Public Works Department


Wayne Bandy, Fred Litchford, Tom Dyer, Tim Lee, Ray Stallion and an "on-call" person that rotates among various employees
 

• Water Quality Control Department


Roger Mayberry, Ralph Jackson, Barry Turner, Tom Graham, Roger Phillips, Floyd Germain, George Presley, Greg Key and 2 vehicles for water/sewer
servicers "on-call" that rotate among various employees.

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