Knoxville man suffers serious leg injuries in chain-reaction crash

April 30--KNOXVILLE -- A 22-year-old Knoxville man trapped between two vehicles Wednesday morning in a chain-reaction crash on Callahan Drive sustained serious leg injuries.

The Knoxville Police Department identified the injured driver as Britt Guess. Guess was taken to the University of Tennessee Medical Center, according to a news release sent by KPD Sgt. Scott Noe.

Guess' condition was not immediately available Wednesday morning.

The crash was reported at 1:06 a.m. on Callahan Drive near the intersection with Charlie Weaver Way.

Noe said Guess was driving a 1999 silver Acura when he ran out of gas on the four-lane, median-divided section of Callahan Drive. Guess was accompanied by Elizabeth VanCleave, 21, of Mascot, whom police described as Guess' fiancee.

The driver of a red 2002 Toyota Tacoma identified as Timothy Long, 47, of Knoxville stopped behind the Acura to see if he could assist the couple. A few moments later, Noe said, a PT Cruiser crashed into the back of the truck, propelling it into Guess, who was trapped between the Acura and the Tacoma.

VanCleave was in the grass away from the sidewalk and was uninjured, according to Noe. The drivers of the Tacoma and PT Cruiser were also uninjured, police say.

Court records state the Acura and the Tacoma were stopped in the right lane of the westbound lanes of Callahan Drive.

"Both vehicles were observed to be in a well lit area with between approximately a 1/4-1/2 mile straight road before reaching the vehicles stopped position," court records state.

Police identified the driver of the PT Cruiser as 33-year-old Jennifer Roberts, of Powell. Roberts was arrested and charged with careless driving, driving on a suspended license and not having proof of insurance. She was released from jail after posting bond Wednesday morning.

According to court records, Roberts was arrested about 8 a.m.Aug. 30, 2013, on Interstate 75 on charges of driving without a license, failure to obey traffic control devices and failure to yield to an emergency vehicle. About 1 a.m. the previous day, records show, Roberts was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia.

On Dec. 3, 2013, Knox County General Sessions Court Judge Patricia Long accepted a plea deal dismissing all the charges except the offense of driving without a license. Long fined Roberts $10 and court costs on the driving without a license charge, according to court records.

Roberts also was involved in an incident about 9:50 p.m.April 19, 1999, in which she was charged with public intoxication by a chemical substance, records show. Roberts was a passenger in her own vehicle, which her boyfriend had control of at the dead end of Facade Lane in North Knox County, according to records.

Roberts' boyfriend was charged with drunken driving. Roberts told officers she had smoked pot. Rather than leave Roberts at a dead end road in an intoxicated state, officers opted to arrest her.

Records show the public intoxication charge was dismissed the next day by Knox County General Sessions Court Judge Charles Cerny upon payment of costs.

More details as they develop online and in Thursday's News Sentinel.

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