Re: THP STATEMENT ON SMOAK FAMILY INCIDENT

By David McCloud

January 10, 2003

I am from the Knoxville area & travel to Nashville many times in the course of the year and am pretty familiar with the Cookville area & it's reputation for it's agressive law enforcement both by THP and CPD. I might mention I work with law enforcement personel on a daily basis and have the upmost respect for them & the job they do. In this particular case there is no excuse for the Keystone Cop mentality that happened in this incident. I don't know how long Officer Hall had been on the job or what traning or lack of training he may have had but it certainly wasn't enough. He should be terminated immediately along with any of the dispatchers who had anything to do with this incident. There is NO excuse for such a lack of common sense. Had it been me or my wife, and it been our pet we would have been lying along side it dead also.
I hope the coffers are deep in Cookville because if I were on the jury the Powerball lottery would look small compared to what I would give this family.