The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Sunday, January 21, 2018 06:32 PM

Carson Newman Students May Have Saved Dandridge Police Officer's Life Friday Night

JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. (SOURCE: WVLT) - The Jefferson County District Attorney's office released the names of the passengers of a serious car accident on Monday involving a Jefferson County officer late Friday night.

Sergeant Scott Winstead of the Jefferson County Police Department and Lucas Trent with Carson Newman College Security were in one vehicle. Police said Kelly L. Livesay and Brittany L. Brown were inside the car that hit the cruiser. Brown passed away in the crash.

In a post to its Facebook page, the department said its thoughts are with Sergeant. Scott Winstead, his family and the Jefferson City Police Department Saturday, and asked the public to pray for the Sergeant and his family.

The post said Sgt Winstead was involved in a serious motor vehicle accident when his patrol car was struck by a speeding vehicle. The Tennessee Highway Patrol said the crash happened at the intersection of Branner Avenue and East King.

Several nearby Carson-Newman University students noticed that Sgt. Winstead's cruiser had caught fire after being hit. They immediately extinguished the flames while helping several other officers pull Sgt. Winstead and a C-NU Department of Public Safety officer Lucas Trent from the vehicle. Police said their heroic actions likely saved both officers.

Mark Treadway was one of those students.

"My roommate actually came inside and started yelling for me to get up; it kind of freaking me out a little bit," said Treadway.

Treadway ran outside to the crime scene and found Sgt. Winstead trapped inside his cruiser.

"He said don't let me burn up in this car," said Treadway. "My girlfriend actually ran and got the fire extinguisher and brought it to me and put that fire out pretty quick-me and another guy," he continued.

Austin Adams, Treadway's roommate, said he was in shock but fought through the trauma to rescue both officers

"I was helping pull Officer Winstead out of the driver side door," said Adams. "[Officer Trent] was almost sitting directly on top of Officer Winstead from obviously the way the car got hit," he added.

According to the Jefferson City Police Department, the SUV that hit Sgt. Winstead was wanted by police in connection to a disturbance call at a residence on West Ellis Street. The driver and passenger inside fled police when officers tried to stop them at the home.


Sgt. Winstead was transported to the University of Tennessee Medical Center by Lifestar where he remains hospitalized with serious injuries. The C-NU officer is also hospitalized at UT Medical Center. Both officers are expected to survive, according to investigators.

Authorities said one male occupant in the SUV was also transported to UT Medical Center and one female occupant was found to be deceased at the scene.

Sgt. Winstead, a 25 year veteran of the department, is assigned to Carson-Newman University as the supervisor of police operations. He posted to Facebook Sunday might: