September 20, 2011
Fifteen months ago, I made a promise to my dying teenage son, Henry. I told him I would do everything possible to make sure that no other young people in our community were hurt as he had been. Today, with the indictments and arrests of Yolanda Harper, Laurie Pelot Gooch and Randall Houser on multiple felony drug trafficking charges, that promise has been kept.
These important arrests are possible only because of the dedication, expertise, and bravery of specific law enforcement professionals within the Knoxville Police Department (KPD). Over the past several months, I have had the privilege of being aware that these real life heroes were undertaking the work required to turn preliminary information into the credible evidence needed to take these dangerous drug dealers out of our neighborhoods. Even as KPD’s investigators carefully moved their criminal investigation forward, they always took the time to listen to the information I had to offer and to share information with me as appropriate. At all times during this operation, KPD treated our family with the the utmost compassion and respect.
Today’s developments mark a major turning point in my advocacy to see that predatory adults who target young people in our community when they are at their most vulnerable are held criminally liable for their deadly activities. Through their strategic work in this case, the leadership of KPD has made it clear that ALL crime victims deserve equal protection under the law and that drug dealers who prey on this community’s at-risk adolescents will not be tolerated.
On this emotional day for our whole family, we would like to offer special thanks to Knoxville Police Department Chief David Rausch, KPD Deputy Chief Gus Paidousis, KPD Public Information Officer Darrell Debusk, and most especially KPD Investigator Jeremy Maupin. My personal gratitude to these men is not something I can even put into words.
There will be more to say at a later time, and we expect further developments in the weeks ahead, but for today I ask that all Knoxvillians join our family in honoring these law enforcement professionals for the important work they have accomplished with such integrity. Thanks to their efforts, our families are safer today than they were yesterday.
-Katie Allison Granju
Knoxville, TN