TBI returns to 24th Judicial District, local law enforcement reacts
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HENRY COUNTY, Tenn. — Almost 24 hours after the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation suspended its services to District 24 things are getting back to normal. This all came after a heated situation between the TBI and District Attorney Matt Stowe. Sheriffs and police chiefs in District 24 said they were left in limbo after Wednesday decision by the TBI and Stowe, which could have cost them thousands. But now they said they will sleep easy. “This is what we wanted,” Henry County Sheriff Monte Belew said. “Christmas came early, so ‘Merry Christmas’.” Sheriff Belew said he is breathing a sigh of relief after the TBI announced it would be resuming services to the 24th Judicial District. “We need to get back to business as usual and get some convictions on people that deserve to get convicted in this district,” Belew said. This comes after the TBI said they pulled out of the district on Wednesday at DA Matt Stowe’s request. “Anyone who was there is going to know that I did not set out to throw the TBI out of my own district,” Stowe said. In a statement, TBI Director Mark Gwyn said, “We value our relationship with Stowe and are thankful we were able to reach a compromise on these issues.” “There is no solution like this without face-to-face communication,” Sheriff Belew said. “Talking it out is the way to do it and resolve it out.” Belew said he is happy everything worked out, but in the end the tension does not help anyone. “We’re all in the same game,” Belew said. “We’re wearing different uniforms and we do different things but ultimately we’re all in the same game and we can’t work against one another.” According to the TBI, District Attorney Stowe has also submitted a request for a special prosecutor to take over the Holly Bobo case but here is no word yet on who that may be.
