Knoxville, TN (TLS). The city of Knoxville, Tennessee, tucked neatly beside the Tennessee River in the beautiful Smokey Mountains, is normally a quiet southern city that has a crime rate that should make it the envy of the world.
Knox County is home to deeply religious mountain folk who love their churches, their guns, and their bluegrass music. One would think that such a setting would produce more than its share of violent crime, particularly that which involves guns.
One would be quite wrong in making that assumption.
Gun violence is rare here, although the vast majority of the population owns them. Character, honor, and Christian values permeate the culture here, keeping a valuable check on any innate human tendency to engage in destructive behavior.
Every now and then, however, violence does shake the foundation of this mountain paradise. Knox County is known for ending the year with only one murder for the record books--for the entire year. Thus, when those rare murders creep into the community, you can be sure it becomes the talk of the town.
This murder, however, has all the trappings of a Hollywood tabloid scandal.
This story involves a young married school teacher, her husband, and an 18-year-old high school student. Quiet rumors of an affair made their rounds in this close-knit southern city, except in this case the nature of the affair was enough to send shock-waves racing through town like a live-wire in a bathtub.
This affair involved the ultimate taboo in a town that loves Jesus and its Gospel Music. The teacher allegedly was involved with one of her students.
30-year-old Erin McLean was in her final semester at the University of Tennessee, studying for a graduate degree in education. She met 18-year-old Sean Powell in the Fall of 2006 while doing a teaching internship at West High School in Knoxville. Powell dropped out of school in November of 2006 for unknown reasons, and moved to Nashville where he stayed with his formerly estranged mother, Debra Flynn.
It was at this time that a text message allegedly appeared--from Erin McLean to Sean Powell, stating, 'Come home, baby. I love you. You are beautiful.'
Flynn stated that her son admitted to the affair.
Apparently, the plea of the text message on that cell phone worked. On the evening of March 10, 2007, Erin McLean's husband, Eric, dialed 911 to report an intruder in their home. Seven minutes later Erin called 911 herself, stating that her husband had just shot Sean Powell outside--in the car that Powell was driving.
At this point Eric McLean fled the scene in his car, later leaving the vehicle at the high school where his wife taught. Police later found McLean 6 miles away walking along a railroad track, allegedly still carrying the shotgun he used to kill Sean Powell.
Eric McLean's attorney acknowledges that his client killed Powell, and thus, his defense at the trial will focus on WHY Eric shot Sean Powell to death.
Did he catch his wife and her 18-year-old lover in the act? Or did Sean Powell come to the home to see Erin and confront her husband--a meeting that resulted in a deadly argument?
These questions will be answered at the trial.
Sources close to the investigation state that Eric McLean had been aware of the affair between his wife and Powell, and that in a moment of rage he snapped.
As for Erin McLean, she moved to Nashville to stay with relatives along with her children. She has also hired her own attorney, although police have not charged her with any criminal wrongdoing. At the time the affair began, Powell was well-beyond the age of consent in the state of Tennessee.
Needless to say, this trial will focus on the biggest scandal these mountains have seen in many a year. Apart from the rarity of this sort of thing in these parts, this case will raise several tragic issues--the growing phenomenon of teacher-student sexual liaisons, the lack of clearly-stated guidelines that are strictly enforced by school systems regarding the professional wall that exists between educators and students, and the internal psychological dynamics of a spouse that is so thoroughly enraged by the fact that his wife was having an affair with a student that he loses control and kills her lover.
Thus, this trial will be of great national significance.
Monday, March 19, 2007
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Local discussion board is here:
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It appears that Sean was a troubled kid, and Erin basically used him and betrayed her husband who had given up a lot for her.
Female teachers need to learn that they must keep a professional distance from their male students. No, the affair was not a crime. This boy was 18. However, it obviously caused problems for all involved.
Young female teachers do get a considerable amount of attention from their teenage male students. The boys do pursue the teachers. A friend of mine had a problem with this when she was teaching as a 23 year old graduate assistant when one of her 18 year old freshman students developed a crush on her. She handled this correctly by telling her superiors in the department. They had a little "chat" with the student about the inappropriateness of this and the problem ended.
Unfortunately, not all teachers know how to or want to behave in the same responsible manner. They flirt back. Sometimes it leads to a relationship, sexual or even non-sexual, that the boy is not ready for. Other times, the boy takes the flirting more seriously than intended. When the teacher rejects him, the jilted boy may resort to false accusations as retaliation. The teacher is now in trouble and the authorities have a long list of inappropriate communication to use against her.
In this particular case, it ended in murder.
Likewise, not all teachers get the same support from their superiors that my friend did. There is an attitude that "boys will be boys". These cases are laughed off, and yes, some are more serious and more troubling than others. However, this is a very serious problem that does need to be dealt with as such. This involves dealing with the boys as well as the teachers.
what a way to ruin so many lives,
Sean ended dead at 18...
Eric in jail at 31....
Erin ...well... no words...maybe a worldsize remorse for life...
And the kids???, who cares about them???, from now they are the kids of a man who killed his wife lover, their father is a murder, their mother is a ...whore? slut? bitch? ... whatever, imagine the stamp in their hearts..., in their memories....
Eric's parents??, Erin's parents??, Sean parent's??, no words....
Statement by Scarlett Powell:
Sean’s family members are hoping you can understand; to us this is not a story but our little boy that we had to lay to rest and release into God’s care. Words are hard to speak regarding the loss we feel for our son, Sean. The moment Sean walked into our home, he held our attention -- like every room he ever entered. Sean was charming, handsome, athletic, smart, and one of a kind. He struggled to overcome his pain from his early childhood. Since we were his fifth foster home at the tender age of six, he had been displaced many times in his short life. We hoped to assist him to feel wanted and loved which Sean desperately needed, but mostly we wanted to keep him safe and out of harm’s way.
On March 10, 2007, shortly after 5:00 pm, my husband and I were laughing and rejoicing the victory of the battles in raising all our children, and we could see all our children on the right page, not perfect but happy and proud they were making the right choices for themselves. Then the events changed; Sean came home from work around 7:30 pm and took a shower to go out with his girlfriend Erin Myers – a part-time student at Pellissippi State who we believed to be around twenty years old and who worked so much that Sean had to hook-up with her when he could. Around 8:15 pm, Sean who was standing in the living room speaking with his father. I remember looking at Sean, who was wearing a pair of khaki shorts and a red tee-shirt, while I had on a black tee-shirt with the same color and style of shorts which I thought to myself “That’s pretty cool – we have on similar outfits”. Sean asked his dad if he had any cash because he would get paid on Monday and his dad said, “Well honey, all I have is three dollars.” Sean ran into the kitchen and wrote down the amount and signed his name.
I owe Dad $3
Sean Powell
Then, I jumped up and said I would look for some cash in my pocketbook and found $5 and handed it to Sean. Sean said he would write it down. I stated, “You do not have to do that.” Sean stated, “I want to do it.”
+ Mom $5
I told Sean that I appreciated that and said, “I love you and don’t forget to call me if you are late and I will stay up waiting for you – 1, 2, or even 3 am.” “Call me if you plan to stay the night with someone.” I said, “Sean – the rules aren’t that bad, are they?” He replied, “No Mom – they are pretty easy, I love you too”.
It was our last conversation on earth together, and the knowledge of his clothing was the only way I could identify Sean’s body. Now we go to Sean’s grave and throw down a blanket to be close to him. We cannot see his face or hold his hands, but we know he’s looking down on us and protecting us. I know Sean wishes he heard my words to lock his car door even when he was sitting out in his car listening to the radio and smoking a cig, but yesterday is dead and we can not go back and change things. Tomorrow is unknown and today is the only chance we have to make a choice. It can be a good one or a bad one, but either way we have to deal with the consequences.
Now we know Erin Myers and Mrs. Mclean, Sean’s English Intern teacher, is the same person. We listen to the news regarding a love-triangle, but how can anyone put love into this situation? Love does not put someone in harm’s way. We are asking people to step forward with any information regarding this relationship which to me has not been proven sexual but only manipulative, please contact the local Knoxville Police Department.
We have more information, but honestly; we want to grieve and reflect on Sean’s life. We want to remember all the smiles and laughter and only the good things Sean experienced in his short life. We wake up each day telling ourselves that we are not God or the Judge so we do not have the authority to set the punishment but in that wisdom knowing we do not have the burden of having to forgive but only accept that God’s plans are greater than ours.
While this is not intended to condone the death of Sean Powell, I believe it shows that this boy had more than enough chances to avoid a disaster. He can’t claim “victim” to me. I see him as a co-conspirator right up beside Erin where their only thought was their own selfish pursuit of pleasure at the expense of Eric and the children. Self gratification, moral bankruptcy, deceit, and lust all come to mind. If Erin had acted in a professional manner and taken her position seriously as an authority figure / teacher, then this young man would still be alive today. If Erin had been a faithful wife and not betrayed her husband, then Sean Powell would still be alive today.
1) If Sean had not gone to the McLean house where he had absolutely no business going, then he would be alive today.
2) If Sean had not forced his way into that house Saturday night, then he would be alive today.
3) If Sean had listened to the owner of that home and left when the owner demanded that he get out of his home and off his property, then he would be alive today.
4) If Sean had not been involved in an adulterous affair with the husbands wife, then he would be alive today.
5) If Sean had not taunted the husband and tried to humiliate him by trying to romance the wife right in front of the husbands face, then he would be alive today.
6) If Sean had left the house, got in his car and driven off when the husband finally called 911 for assistance in removing Sean from the property, then he would be alive today.
7) Everyone has a breaking point, even the most humble, kindest people you know. You step in and destroy everything in a persons life that they love and cherish, especially their family. Rub it in their face and you are playing with fire. Sooner or later it’s going to bite you. John Wayne said it best – “You ____ with the bull, and you get the horns!” Sean was obviously not aware of this principle and he paid the price. Once pushed past the breaking point, the mind shuts down – you see a blur or some see in red. The physical instincts of self preservation take over. Many have little to no memory of the incident. You will not know what your breaking point is until you come face to face with it. You push someone past this point at your own risk. Sean now knows this – all too late.
Three strikes and you are out. Sean was given a few extra swings before being called “out.”
It is hard to be quiet, but the investigation is on-going and we are put in a situation where we feel the facts should come out during the hearing with the jury members. If information is released prior to the hearing, the defense attorney could better prepare his client. The defense attorney wants to get his client off with reasonable doubt at any cost so we do not want to assist. We want justice.
The preliminary hearing can be purchased for around $7.00 from the court house along with the search warrants for the house and car. In the tape you will find Sean stating to Eric, “I’ll go wait or sit out in the car” (I can’t remember which one right now) and Eric replied, “That’s cool”. Detective Boatman testified Eric’s statement given that no other words or contact was made prior to the shooting after Sean left the house so Eric shot Sean with a high-powered rifle with a seven pound trigger without any confrontation. Was it with intent, malice, and in cold-blood? We believe yes. As parents, we feel for Eric’s parents. To worry and protect your son is sanity, but I wish they would not disrespect Sean or our family. No matter how you spin this – everyone has lost and Eric should take responsibility for his actions.
http://web.knoxnews.com/pdf/0322mcclean_house.pdf
http://web.knoxnews.com/pdf/0322mcclean_car.pdf
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