March 2024. Blues Vol 40 No. 3

AROUND THE COUNTRY MEIGS

AROUND THE COUNTRY MEIGS COUNTY, TN. Meigs County Deputy Robert Leonard died when his vehicle crashed into the Tennessee River. BIRCHWOOD, TN. (WDEF)- A woman is dead and a Meigs County Deputy was initially missing after authorities say he drove into the Tennessee River Wednesday Feb 14th. District Attorney Russell Johnson, who represents Meigs County, says that shortly before 10 p.m. Wednesday night, Meigs County Deputy Robert Leonard had made the arrest of a woman and had radioed that he was enroute to the Meigs County Jail. However, dispatchers lost contact with him, and the last communication anyone received from Leonard was a text to his wife that said just, “Water.” Authorities were able to triangulate his location to Blythe Ferry, and eventually located his police vehicle in the river. General Johnson said, “So we’ve got a person in the back of the vehicle, we think it was the female subject that was arrested, we don’t have an identification or confirmation on any of that. We have a lot of mud in the front seat but no body in the front seat.” General Johnson says the driver side front window was open, which Hamilton County Sheriff Austin Garrett says could have made the situation worse. Sheriff Garrett said, “He could’ve been driving with the window down, could’ve got the window down when he first went into the water, we don’t know any of that, those are all just theories. I can tell you this, with the window down, the car is going to sink much faster.” The following day, District Attorney Russell Johnson announced that the body of Meigs County Deputy Robert Lenoard has been recovered. He was found by Meigs County EMS and Rescue Squad along with Hamilton and Monroe County dive teams with assistance from THP and TBI crews at 6:40 Thursday evening. He was found submerged in the Tennessee River not far from where his car was removed. Johnson said Deputy Leonard was from New York and had just moved to Meigs County with his family, and may have been unfamiliar with Blythe Ferry Road. Blythe Ferry Road descends down towards the river past the Cherokee Removal Memorial Park. It used to be the only connection between Cleveland and Dayton before the Tri-County Veterans bridge was built and now is popular with local fisherman as a boat ramp. Deputy Leonard had only served with the Meigs County Sheriff’s Office for two months. He is survived by his wife and three children. DEPUTY ROBERT LEONARD For the Department, who had just transferred Deputy Leonard from the Cleveland State Police Academy, they fear this will be a difficult ending for an already small department. Malone said, “It’s a hard time for us here. Please forgive me. This is something we don’t ever deal with here in Meigs County. We’re a small, rural county. Deputy Leonard was only here for a couple of months, but he had become a part of our family.” General Johnson says he is continuing an investigation into this incident, and is receiving help from multiple agencies including the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. 44 The Blues - March ‘24 The Blues - March ‘24 45