ADA Butler Addresses Clifton Commission Regarding Violence and Drugs at Prison

The Clifton City Commission met in regular session on Monday, July 27, 2026, at City Hall in Clifton. Commissioners in attendance were Mayor Mark Staggs, Vice Mayor Tammy Prince, Commissioner Michael Francis, and Commissioner Dwight Thompson. Also present were City Manager Kristeen Duren, Assistant City Manager/City Recorder Samantha Haines, and various department heads. Commissioner Jeff Letson was absent.

Mayor Staggs called the meeting to order. The minutes from the June 15 special meeting, the June 22 regular meeting, and the June 29 special meeting were unanimously approved.

Old business was discussed first. City Manager Kristeen Duren verified that the second reading of the Water/Sewer Rate Increase was passed in the June 22 meeting.

Ms. Duren then explained an item that will be on the agenda for approval at the August meeting. It is proposed that the city will charge $30 per tank inside city limits to fill any type of water containment up to 300 gallons. The charge for those outside city limits will be $45 per tank up to 300 gallons. This will be on the agenda for the next meeting.

The next item under old business on the agenda was the Election Resolution, which City Manager Duren confirmed was passed in the last meeting. There will be three seats, each with a four-year term, on the ballot for the Clifton City Commission in the election on November 3, 2026. Those who are seeking to qualify to be on the ballot for those seats must meet the qualifying deadline of August 20, 2026, at 12 noon.

The final item under old business was a CDBG Administrative Services Resolution, which City Manager Duren confirmed was approved in the last meeting.

The first item under new business was a Codification Resolution. City Manager Duren stated that this resolution was in reference to the city’s municipal code that is prepared by Municipal Technical Advisory Service (MTAS). Ms. Duren said the city’s municipal code should be reviewed and updated every ten years, and the last time that was done for Clifton’s code was 2017. She also said it could take up to a year to get done. The MTAS charge is based on the city’s population, which is currently 2,651 (including the TDOC inmates housed in Clifton). The charge, based on the stated population, is $4,800, with 50% due when MTAS is ready to begin the review and the remaining 50% due upon delivery of the first draft of the code. The resolution was unanimously approved.

Next under new business was Debt Management Policy. MTAS has requested an update on the city’s debt management and recommended that it be updated every three years. City Manager Duren confirmed that it had not been updated in several years. The city manager confirmed that this has nothing to do with authorizing any new debt, only the policy and procedure to follow when new debt is acquired. The policy was unanimously approved.

The first guest to speak to the commission was John McDonald, who is the projected winner of the Wayne County Executive race. Following the August election, McDonald is expected to take office as the new Wayne County Executive on September 1. Mr. McDonald said he appreciated the support he has received from Clifton and is looking forward to working with them. He said he was excited about the new water plant that is under construction, and expressed that his door will always be open for Wayne County residents and county officials. Mayor Staggs brought up a letter received by everyone who lives in the Beech Creek community. He said the letter stated that Beech Creek was contaminated in some way, and asked Mr. McDonald if he knew anything about that. McDonald said that Beech Creek has always had sulfur water, and he thought he heard a rumor that there was now some contamination from mercury, but he could not confirm exactly which contaminant was mentioned in the letter.

Mr. McDonald gave a brief update on the newly renovated Beech Creek Fire Hall, which was heavily damaged by the tornado that came through the area on March 31, 2023. The Fire Hall is now officially open once again, and the playground is finished and ready for children to enjoy.

Next to address the commission was Ms. Jessica Siems, Nurse Practitioner, who operates Bethesda Clinic in Clifton. Ms. Siems stated that she is seeking to purchase property owned by the city for a new clinic. The property she wants to purchase includes two lots located behind Bethesda Clinic’s current location. City Manager Duren explained that there are several steps involved with the city selling this or any city property. First, the property would have to be appraised. There would then be a resolution to declare the property as surplus, and someone must be designated to handle the sale. The commission would then decide whether to sell the property as advertised, to sell it by auction, or to sell it after soliciting sealed bids. She confirmed that the property could not be sold to any board member or employee of the city. Mayor Staggs said that discussion of the sale and the different options would be put on the agenda for the August 2026 meeting.

Mr. Kevin Willey was next to address the commission. Mr. Willey introduced himself as Municipal Manager for Republic Services, the company that recently acquired RaeKar and began providing garbage collection services to the City of Clifton under the terms of the current contract on July 1. Mr. Willey said he was looking forward to working with the City of Clifton. Commissioner Thompson asked if Republic Services was still using the solid waste facility in Decaturville, Tennessee for disposal, and Mr. Willey confirmed that they were.

Robert Gentry with Gentry Drilling briefly addressed the commission next. He explained that his company does residential drilling and said that it is usually difficult to hit good water anywhere on Beech Creek.

Departmental reports were next on the agenda. City Manager Duren began by reporting that the Fiscal Year 2025-2026 Budget was completed and had been sent to the State Comptroller’s Office for approval. She then informed the commission that Clifton Beautification/Code Enforcement letters were sent out regarding necessary property clean-ups, and some progress had been made toward several properties becoming compliant.

Ms. Duren continued by saying that she was working on the road adoption list so that it can be approved by the commission and submitted in order to get state street aid.

City Manager Duren went on to say that Ms. Shelly Bridges, Finance Director for the City, had ordered signs for Perry Landing including “No Diving” and “Swim At Your Own Risk.”

City Manager Duren said she had received the acceptance letter for the HART Grant, which is sponsored by Healthy Active Rural Tennessee (HART). This grant is a competitive funding opportunity that supports local health and active lifestyle initiatives across eligible rural and suburban counties. Grant funds may be used to support projects targeting physical activity and community wellness infrastructure, and to fund local community projects aligned with state rural health priorities. Ms. Duren said she had not received the contract yet but would notify commissioners when it arrives. The amount of the grant is $59,400.02.

The city manager then said she had submitted a request for the last funds from the Winter Storm Fern grant. She said the 75% federal match amount for the grant that the city was able to recoup was $51,971.37.

City Manager Duren said the Airport Authority met recently and discussed the property on Jerry Prater Road, and the assessed value of the property is $3,400. She said that after reviewing the $16,000 purchase price in comparison to the assessed value, the Airport Authority agreed to just keep the property.

Ms. Duren said she recently met with Airport Authority Chairman Clyde Carroll to work on the Airport Capital Improvement Plan to get it ready to send to the State.

The Solar Light Project has now gone out a second time for bids. City Manager Duren said the first bid notice listed some incorrect materials, but that has been corrected.

The city manager reminded everyone that the second Saturday of the month is the “Fly-In Breakfast” and invited everyone to come enjoy it. She said that would be a great opportunity to see the new “No Smoking” picnic tables and benches paid for through a JECDB grant.

City Manager Duren then gave the report for Main Street Clifton for Ms. Shawnee Iacono, Main Street Director, who was unable to attend the meeting. Ms. Duren confirmed that the Horseshoe Riverbend Festival was scheduled for September 12, 2026, and issued a call for volunteers at the event. There has already been $23,250 raised in sponsorships for the event. Republic Services will be donating a roll-off container and several disposable trash cans for the event. Posters and banners are being printed, and the t-shirt design has been approved.

Commissioner Jeff Letson (who was not at the meeting) recently contacted Ms. Iacono about a formal recognition of the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001, the day of the deadly terrorist attacks on our country. Ms. Iacono recommended that the city formally acknowledge the anniversary on September 11, 2026, and suggested that the Horseshoe Riverbend Festival formally acknowledge the anniversary on the day of the festival, September 12.

The Clifton Historical Society recently met and presented “The Day the Dam Broke,” which was a day in 1973 that no one who lived in Clifton at the time has forgotten. At that time, Clifton and many other locations along the Tennessee River were already experiencing heavy flooding when a prankster called Clifton City Hall and said Pickwick Dam had failed. The prankster went on to say that huge flood waters were headed straight for Clifton. Many residents had already evacuated the city before it was discovered to be a terrible prank. Mr. Larry Jeter and Mr. Autry Gobbell gave their excellent recollections of that day to over 80 people in attendance. City Manager Duren said the next presentation from the Clifton Historical Society will be about the 1986 Clifton Lady Lions girls’ basketball team that won the State Tournament. She said this presentation is scheduled to be held at the high school.

Ms. Duren went on to say that volunteers are needed for the Horseshoe Riverbend Beauty Pageant.

Tennessee RiverLine will hold a “Beat the Heat” event, a fun day at City Park with lots of water activities, next month. The actual date will be announced soon. City Manager Duren said this would be a great day to enjoy kayaking on the river as well. She said that at the request of Tennessee RiverLine, the city submitted a letter of support for the RiverLine program. Tennessee RiverLine is in the process of applying for a “Make Rural Tennessee Healthy Again” grant, from which Clifton will receive a portion of the funds. This grant will pay for things such as trail planning, wayfinding signage, paddle-craft rentals, marketing, etc. There is no match amount for the grant.

City Manager Duren said that all applications for the Downtown Improvement Grants were accepted and letters to proceed will soon be issued.

Mayor Staggs then asked Assistant District Attorney General Patrick Butler to speak before departmental reports continued. ADA Butler began by stating emphatically that he was not trying to get rid of the CoreCivic South Central Correctional Facility prison in Clifton, but he has several concerns about things that are happening there.

Mr. Butler said that Wayne Countians were told when the prison first opened in the late 1980s-early 1990s that it would only be a medium-security facility housing non-violent offenders. Although Wayne Countians still had concerns, this seemed to ease minds somewhat.

ADA Butler said one concern he had was the amount of illegal drugs coming into the prison. He said that Police Chief Steve Wilson informed him that over the last two months, the City Police Department was made aware of and seized over $1 million in drugs that were being introduced into the prison. According to Mr. Butler, criminals have devised a way to operate drones that drop the drugs onto prison property to be retrieved by inmates. He said what makes it even scarier is that these criminals are staging their operations at Clifton’s City Park. Mr. Butler went on to say that there are two main gangs within SCCF that run all the illegal operations, including drugs.

The violence occurring seemingly every day at the prison is the primary concern of ADA Butler. He gave an example of a death penalty case he is now prosecuting. He said the offender was in prison in another county on a first-degree murder conviction when he was transferred to SCCF. When he arrived at SCCF, he was put into a cell with an inmate serving an 8-year sentence for drug crimes. This inmate had already been approved for parole and was awaiting release, which was to happen soon. On the day he was supposed to be released, he was beaten, stabbed, and ultimately murdered by his cellmate. That offender now faces a possible death sentence for this crime.

Another incident ADA Butler spoke of was related to under-staffing at the prison. One female Correctional Officer was in a situation where she was locked down by herself (no other officers) with 128 inmates. One inmate became violent and body-slammed the female officer onto a concrete floor. She was transported to Vanderbilt by LifeFlight with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and suffered spinal cord damage The grand jury has since indicted that inmate on an attempted murder charge.

In addition to the violence, ADA Butler expressed his concern for not only Clifton residents but also Police Chief Steve Wilson and his officers. The Clifton Police Department is responsible for responding to calls at the prison, along with calls about drug activity in the city that is related to the prison. Since the City PD is responsible for these calls, they must potentially deal with members of drug cartels and other violent offenders.

ADA Butler closed by saying he didn’t want something terrible to happen in regard to the prison that would cause people to ask, “Why didn’t we know?” He recommended that the city, county, and all interested or possibly affected citizens get together and discuss the situation at the prison in more detail and contact CoreCivic with their concerns.

Departmental reports resumed with Parks and Recreation Director Eddie Simmons reporting that his department was caught up on mowing, and the area around the airport had been bushhogged. He said a crew from the Boot Camp had come out to help, and he planned to ask for them to come again.

Fire Chief Mike Chilcott stated that one new officer had earned certification. He said the grant-funded items for the Fire Department were coming in slowly. He reported that last year the department responded to 75 calls, with the majority being to set up LifeFlight landing zones, most of which were for the prison.

Police Chief Steve Wilson reported that his department had been very busy. One unit, a Ford Explorer, was out of service and would be put up for sale on govdeals.com. Chief Wilson said his officers recently completed water rescue training with TWRA, and Perry County Sheriff Nick Weems requested that Chief Wilson teach some more classes for his officers.

Public Works Director James Evans reported that fire hydrant flushing was scheduled for the next week. He also gave a brief update on the new water plant and said the construction of the clear well was progressing quickly.

Public Comments/Commissioner Comments were the final item on the agenda. Commissioner Tammy Prince simply stated that she would not be running for re-election to the commission.

Commissioner Thompson discussed the intersection of Vine Street and Pillow Street, stating that the goal is to ultimately connect that section of sidewalk to the Clifton Marina. City Manager Duren confirmed that state street aid funds were all tied up at that time.

Lastly, Mayor Staggs mentioned that some street signs were messed up with one hanging upside down. He said he would fix that one himself if necessary.

With no further business to come before the commission, the meeting was adjourned.