DA’s Office and KPD Shutter Doors of Forty-Fifth Nuisance in Knoxville

On Thursday, August 14, 2014, Officers with the Knoxville Police Department Repeat Offender Squad and the District Attorney General’s Office closed 1501 Vermont Avenue under the state nuisance law. This residence was closed by order of Judge Steve Sword based on KPD’s investigation into repeated prescription drug sales occurring in the house.

According to the petition filed by District Attorney General Randall E. Nichols, KPD officers used undercover agents to purchase prescription drugs from individuals inside the house on five separate occasions within the past three months. Additionally, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics Unit executed a search warrant at the residence in 2010. In short, General Nichols charges that this residence is a haven of criminal activity and a danger to the surrounding community. The property will remain closed until further order of Judge Sword.

This nuisance injunction marks the forty-fifth closure by the District Attorney’s Office and Knoxville Police Department in their ongoing collaboration to make neighborhoods safer from the activities that affect the safety and quality of life of residents in this community. The State will continue to seek nuisance injunctions for problem properties as crime data show an estimated eighty-five percent reduction in crime and calls for service in areas after the nuisance closure of a property.

If you have any questions, please contact Sean McDermott at 865-215-2515 or Sean.McDermott@knoxcounty.org. For more information about the District Attorney’s Office, visit our website at dag.knoxcountytn.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.