Photos

Jennifer Lynn Boyance

A Briarcliff neighborhood woman was arrested Monday night for allegedly assaulting a police officer who came to her home to check on her welfare.

The alleged assault came after the woman was involved in a traffic accident and after several people had contacted the Police Department and reported a woman stumbling along Melton Lake Drive.

Oak Ridge police reports said 45-year-old Jennifer Lynn Boyance of 121 Baypath Drive was charged with simple assault about 11 p.m. and taken to the Anderson County jail.

Boyance reportedly scratched Officer Dustin Henderson on his arm and neck, and when he tried to put handcuffs on her, she and Henderson fell into a wall, causing damage to the wall.

Henderson had gone to the Boyance home to check on her and her sons, ages 4 and 8, after her 18-year-old babysitter called the Police Department to let officers know Boyance had returned home.

A short time earlier on Monday, several motorists on Melton Lake Drive called the Police Department and reported a woman walking and stumbling along the shoulder of Melton Lake Drive. When officers arrived, the motorists told them the woman ran into a nearby yard and wooded area.

Officers went into a yard on Artesia Drive and found sandals, balls of yarn and a crochet manual, as well as a purse with its contents, including keys, a cellphone and a passport reportedly belonging to Boyance. They then contacted the Boyance home but learned Jennifer Boyance was not there, reports said.

The babysitter told officers she would call the Police Department when Boyance returned. Reports said the babysitter called Julian Boyance, who was out of town, and he told her to allow the officers to check on his wife and children. She reportedly told police officers Boyance smelled of alcohol and had trouble standing when she took off her jacket.

When Henderson came to the house, Boyance reportedly came down the stairs “yelling and demanding the police leave her residence.“ Henderson reported she tried to shove him out of the house, which is when he was allegedly scratched.

Boyance was arrested in August for driving under the influence and later charged on a warrant for failure to appear in court. Those cases are currently set for a hearing in General Sessions Court on May 3.

Reports said Julian Boyance told officers his wife was supposed to be attending an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting on Monday night.

Jennifer Boyance was also involved in a two-vehicle crash on Monday. Reports said she was driving her minivan about 6:30 p.m. and pulled out from Central Avenue onto Oak Ridge Turnpike into the path of a minivan driven by 73-year-old Donald Edward Busch of Crossville. Boyance, as well as Busch and his passenger, Alta Wynell Busch, 71, were all properly restrained, but the Busches sustained minor injuries and were taken to Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge for treatment. Boyance was not cited for failure to yield the right of way.