Dobyns-Bennett's Jonavan Gillespie (0) puts up a shot against Volunteer at the Tribe Athletic Complex on December 16, 2022 in Kingsport, TN. Photo: Todd Brase
Dobyns-Bennett's Jonavan Gillespie (0) puts up a shot against Volunteer at the Tribe Athletic Complex on December 16, 2022 in Kingsport, TN. Photo: Todd Brase
Todd Brase
Dobyns-Bennett's Jonavan Gillespie returns an interception for a touchdown in the Indians' 55-7 blowout win over William Blount.
KINGSPORT — A deputy arrested Dobyns-Bennett High School’s standout student-athlete Jonavan Gillespie on charges of driving under the influence, according to the Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office.
Gillespie, 18, is a senior guard on the Dobyns-Bennett boys basketball team and a wide receiver on the football squad.
The Sheriff’s Office sent a deputy to an address on Winesap Road in Kingsport about 10:30 p.m. Saturday to investigate a report of juveniles drinking alcohol, according to an incident report obtained by the Times News.
The report states the deputy conducted field sobriety tests, which Gillespie did not perform well.
The deputy arrested Gillespie on suspicion of DUI and took him for a blood sample to be collected at a local hospital. He was released from the Sullivan County Jail at 4:43 p.m. Sunday on a written promise to appear in court.
The Indians open the state tournament Wednesday against Memphis East in the Class 4A quarterfinals at 12:30 p.m. EDT inside the Murphy Center.
D-B coach Chris Poore did not comment on the issue when contacted on Monday.
During the basketball regular season, Gillespie averaged 18.2 points per game, which was third on the team, and was tied for first in the area with a trio of 3-pointers made per game.
Earlier this season, Gillespie broke the school record for 3-pointers made in a career and also surpassed 1,000 career points.
On the gridiron, Gillespie finished the regular season with 616 receiving yards, which led the Indians and was third for the area. He also had three interceptions on defense.
In last season’s Class 4A stunning state semifinal basketball win over Bartlett, Gillespie kept the Tribe in the game with 27 points — including a school record 5-for-5 on 3-point shots.
He was named to last season’s all-tournament team at the state and was named the Region 1-4A most valuable player nearly two weeks ago.
Times News reporter Cliff Hightower contributed to this story.
I graduated from Abingdon ('13) and King University ('17). I am an Eagle Scout. I love to run, write historical pieces and do anything outdoors related. I've been a sports writer since May 2017.
