Marcus Grisby
Two men awaiting trial for armed robbery have been arrested after an assault Wednesday morning. Charged were Joshua Michael White, 22, of Lavergne, Tn., and Marcus Grisby, 21, of University Street.
Police were called at 5:45 a.m. by Jalisa Silvers, 23, who said she and her boyfriend, Loren Atkinson, 25, were being attacked by two men. She said they had barricaded themselves in a room to protect themselves until police arrived.
When police got on the scene they could hear yelling inside.
After several minutes, Ms. Silvers appeared at a front bedroom window and busted the glass, then crawled out. Police said Ms. Silvers "had little on and appeared in distress." She had a large fist-shaped bruise on her arm and bruises on her neck.
Atkinson came out after her. He had trauma on his face and arms. He said one of the men had hit him in the face with a pistol.
Police said they could not get the men inside to come out. After several hours, the mother of Atkinson came to the scene. Police found White and Grisby asleep.
Both said Ms. Silvers and Atkinson had been in a fight and they tried to break it up. They said Atkinson was high on pills and had "gone crazy" and attacked Ms. Silvers. They said they did not know why the couple barricaded themselves in a bedroom.
The pair said they did not come out because they were too drunk.
Atkinson said Grisby kept a gun in a vent in a hallway next to his room. A gun was found by police there.
Ms. Silvers said it was "Wildcat" who assaulted her and hit Atkinson with the gun. She identified "Wildcat" as Grisby.
Atkinson said there had been a feud over someone trying to steal his shoes, and the feud turned physical.
Another man who came out of the house, Kenneth Nathaniel Jones, was not charged.
Grisby and White were arrested in January when Justin Toro said he was robbed at gunpoint by two black males near 612 Oak St.
He said one was around 6'1" with a big nose and a low fade haircut wearing a maroon jacket. The other one was around 6'3" with a large afro, wearing a white hoody with red letters and red sweat pants.
They jumped out of some bushes, and the one with a maroon hoody put a gun to his back.
He said they took an IPhone, a Social Security card, a TennCare card and an expired driver's license.
He said the man with the afro called himself "G" and mentioned that he was a Gangster Disciple and the one with the low fade called himself "Mac" and "Blood".
Grisby was earlier charged in a second armed robbery. Officers were flagged down by Michael Bradley, who said two days earlier he was leaving a friend's apartment in the 800 block of McCallie Avenue and starting to get in his car when Grisby appeared and opened the passenger door.
He said Grisby pointed a gun at him and told him to give up his wallet and everything else he had on him. He said the gunman took $300 from his wallet and threw it down.
The victim said he tried to follow the robber, but lost him.
He told police he had previously seen his picture on a wanted poster after a robbery he committed on Jan. 6. He said UTC had distributed the poster.
Atkinson entered a guilty plea to attempted robbery in 2010 and got a four-year suspended sentence.
Joshua White