Woman threatens deputies serving warrant
Oct. 18—A Lake Tansi woman who allegedly brandished a knife and threatened to shoot officers attempting to take her into custody on a probation violation warrant was arrested without anyone getting hurt Saturday evening.
Susan Denise Stokes, 56, was on probation for attempting to run down her boyfriend in his vehicle in August 2020. On Saturday, a deputy sheriff and Lake Tansi officer attempted to serve a probation violation warrant issued for Stokes failing to meet terms of her supervision.
They found Stokes at a residence off Arrowhead Dr. and made contact to take her into custody. Stokes allegedly told the officers she was not going back to jail again and bolted into her residence.
There was a report that inside the residence, Stokes threatened to do bodily harm to the officers who had chased her to the threshold. Once the threat of shooting police was issued, the officers backed out of the residence and called for assistance.
Additional deputies raced to the scene and eventually the Crossville/Cumberland County Special Weapons and Tactics unit responded to the scene.
After about an hour of telephone negotiations were met without success, the decision was to put a form of chemical gas into the structure to force the woman out.
SWAT team members rushed in and apprehended the woman, who was not hurt in the incident.
Evidence was gathered from the scene and the woman was jailed on charges of felony aggravated assault and resisting arrest in addition to the probation violation warrant. She will appear in General Sessions Court at a later date.
Stokes pled guilty in May 2021 to aggravated assault, resisting arrest and evading arrest and received a two-year sentence to be served at 30% as a Range I offender.
The charges stem from an incident when Stokes attempted to run over her then boyfriend, Gary Phillips, on Natchez Trace during a domestic dispute. When responding deputies arrived in the area, Stokes fled in the boyfriend's vehicle and was finally apprehended at an address on Davisson Rd.
The Tennessee Department of Corrections has an automatic "kick-out date" of inmates facing two years or less and Stokes was released on supervised probation.
The violation of order of protection warrant accuses Stokes of violations of the order allowing release on supervised probation. A hearing will be held on that charge in Cumberland County Criminal Court.
Next violation of order of protection docket day is Nov. 1.
She will be held in custody at least until that date.
Michael Moser may be reached at mmoser@crossville-chronicle.com
