NEWCOMB, Tenn. — A man and a woman are in custody after a deputy responded to reports that a young juvenile had been left unattended in a truck with a loaded shotgun while the two were intoxicated, the Campbell County Sheriff's Office said.
The CCSO said Deputy Raymond Surber was dispatched to Wooldridge Convenience Center in the Newcomb community on Sunday after people reported a man and woman appeared to be incapacitated in the bed of a truck. The deputy was told a young juvenile was unattended inside the truck, according to CCSO.
When Surber arrived, he said he noticed Joshua Simpkins standing next to the driver's door holding a cooler with a blank stare on his face. The deputy said it appeared the man was lethargic, slurring his words and unsteady on his feet.
Surber found Bridgett Simpkins lying in the bed of the truck on her back, saying he tried to wake her up multiple times. After no success, he called for an ambulance. He then administered the overdose-reversal drug naloxone to the woman, who woke up after 30 to 45 seconds. The woman was removed from the truck, checked by emergency medical services and then arrested, according to CCSO.
The CCSO said the man gave Surber permission to search the truck. The deputy said he found a small clear bag with brown powder residue in the passenger seat and a pill bottle in the center console. The CCSO said the man's name was on the bottle and it contained what he believed to be methadone, which is typically prescribed to treat opioid use disorder. The CCSO said the bottle was not labeled to say it contained methadone.
The deputy also found a loaded 12-gauge shotgun on the back floor of the truck near where the juvenile was seen, the CCSO said. The juvenile was released to a family member at the scene.
Joshua Simpkins was charged with possession of a firearm while under the influence, public intoxication and child abuse, neglect, or endangerment, according to the CCSO.
The CCSO said Bridgett Simpkins was charged with possession of a firearm while under the influence, possession of a schedule II controlled substance, public intoxication and child abuse, neglect, or endangerment.
The two were booked into the Campbell County Jail without bond and have a court date scheduled on May 10.
