Author: Associated Press

Great Smoky Mountains National Park to assess storm impact

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (AP) -- Officials at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will begin assessing the impact of Tropical Storm Florence's remnants. Park officials say in a statement areas of the park that straddle Tennessee and North Carolina will be…

Former college football player convicted of killing ex-girlfriend

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A former Division III college football player convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend says he never intended to cause her any physical harm. William Riley Gaul spoke Friday at his sentencing hearing, four months after jurors found…

Country music star’s son-in-law dies in Florida fall

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A Nashville prosecutor who was the son-in-law of country music star Alan Jackson has died in a fall in Florida. Citing a Davidson County District's Attorney's Office release, 28-year-old Ben Selecman died Wednesday. He was at…

14-year-old Tennessee boy charged in fatal shooting

SPARTA, Tenn. (AP) -- Authorities say a 14-year-old Tennessee boy has been arrested in the killing of a 47-year-old man. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said in a statement that the boy is charged with voluntary manslaughter in the fatal…

Man charged in death of 2-year-old child

COLUMBIA, Tenn. (AP) -- Police say they have charged a Tennessee man with killing a 2-year-old child. Rutherford County Sheriff Mike Fitzhugh said in a statement that 26-year-old Timothy Lee Brooks Jr. of Columbia was arrested Thursday. The Columbia Police…

More than 400K evacuate South Carolina coast

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (AP) -- South Carolina officials say more than 400,000 people have evacuated the state's coast and more than 4,000 people have taken refuge in shelters as Hurricane Florence approaches. State Transportation Department Secretary Christy Hall said Thursday that…

Tennessee man pleads guilty in woman’s killing 24 years ago

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- A Tennessee man has pleaded guilty in the killing of a college student during a robbery 24 years ago. The Shelby County district attorney's office said Tuesday that 41-year-old Phanhsay Phanivong pleaded guilty to second-degree murder…

US Senate hopefuls in Tennessee tout plans to curb debt

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Two rivals in Tennessee's open U.S. Senate race are touting plans to curb the $21 trillion-plus national debt, with Democrat Phil Bredesen saying his idea could balance the budget within six years. The former governor and…

USDA announces $643K for 6 opioid projects in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Federal officials have announced $643,300 for six projects aimed at opioid prevention, treatment and recovery. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the projects are part of $10.7 million for 85 initiatives across 22 states through the…

Pence to headline fundraiser for Blackburn’s US Senate bid

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Vice President Mike Pence will headline another Tennessee fundraiser for Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn in her Senate bid. An event invitation says the Knoxville fundraiser will be Sept. 21. Attending will cost $1,000 per person;…

Tennessee World War II pilot’s remains IDed, will be buried

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Military officials say they've accounted for the remains of a Tennessee World War II pilot killed more than 70 years ago. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency says remains of Navy Reserve Ensign Harold P. DeMoss were…

5 hospitalized after nightclub shooting in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Authorities say five people were hospitalized after an early morning shooting at a Memphis nightclub. Memphis police said on Twitter that four people were shot early Monday at the Purple Haze nightclub. Police said one person…

Bredesen seeks votes from women in Tennessee Senate race

GERMANTOWN, Tenn. (AP) -- Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn could make history by becoming the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate in Tennessee. She is running against Democrat Phil Bredesen, a former Tennessee governor who says he always has…

Doctor challenges Tennessee’s lethal injection protocol in lawsuit

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A doctor says in a lawsuit challenging Tennessee's three-drug lethal injection protocol that a man executed last month experienced "torturous effects." In the state Supreme Court filing Thursday, expert Dr. David Lubarsky concluded based on witness…

Rapper Mac Miller dies at age 26

  LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Mac Miller, the platinum hip-hop star whose rhymes vacillated from party raps to lyrics about depression and drug use, has died at the age of 26. A family statement released through his publicist says Miller…

Actor Burt Reynolds dies at 82

  NEW YORK (AP) -- Burt Reynolds, who starred in films including "Deliverance" and "Boogie Nights," has died at age 82, according to his agent. Check back for more information as it becomes available.

Bloody footprints lead to man’s arrest in East TN killing

OOLTEWAH, Tenn. (AP) -- Investigators say bloody footprints at the scene of a killing in East Tennessee have led them to arrest a man whose shoes match the stained steps. News outlets cite court documents as saying the prints discovered…

BlueCross of Tennessee will stop covering OxyContin in 2019

NAHSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee's largest health insurer will stop covering OxyContin prescriptions as part of an effort to combat opioid addiction. BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee's Natalie Tate tells The Tennessean the company will encourage doctors to recommend two alternatives…

Senate bid: Bredesen tax break; Blackburn undisclosed credit

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Phil Bredesen has written his city a six-figure check and removed his properties from a state program that provided him $520,600 in property tax breaks since 2011 for producing hay. The Tennessean…

Shelby Co. jail refuses ICE request on detaining immigrants

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Non-citizens suspected of living in the U.S. illegally won't be held in a Tennessee jail past their scheduled release dates, despite federal requests to keep holding them. But the Commercial Appeal reports that the Shelby County…

Man confesses slaying of wife to undercover officer

CLEVELAND (AP) -- It took an undercover officer from a small village police department in Ohio to provide the final clues used to persuade a 73-year-old man to finally say he killed his wife of 53 years. Philip Snider pleaded…

Tennessee inmate charged in death of cellmate

WAYNESBORO, Tenn. (AP) -- A Tennessee prison inmate has been charged in the death of his cellmate. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said in a news release that 39-year-old Billy Earl McIllwain was transported to the Wayne County Jail on…

TBI: Undercover officer shot man who hit him with vehicle

GREENBRIER, Tenn. (AP) -- The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says an undercover officer shot and injured a suspect who struck him with a vehicle. News outlets report Greenbrier police officers were conducting an undercover drug operation Friday when a subject…

Tennessee to halt Labor Day weekend highway lane closures

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee is halting lane closures on interstates and state highways during the Labor Day Weekend. The state Department of Transportation says lane closures will pause from noon on Friday until 6 a.m. on Tuesday. Department Commissioner…

East TN man gets 50 years in slaying of pregnant woman, fetus

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- An East Tennessee man has been sentenced to 50 years in prison for the shooting death of a pregnant woman and her fetus. News outlets report 28-year-old Brandon Scott Donaldson was sentenced Thursday following a re-trial…

TVA to build $300M control center in East TN

GEORGETOWN, Tenn. (AP) -- The Tennessee Valley Authority says it'll build a $300 million system operations center in the state as part of upgrades to its power grid, but some residents have complained the federal utility hasn't been transparent. Aaron…

Tennessee Dem Sen. Harris to resign, begin county mayor term

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee Senate Democratic Minority Leader Lee Harris is resigning to take office as a county mayor. In a letter to Gov. Bill Haslam, Harris said he would resign his legislative seat Friday. He takes office as…

Officials: Pest infestation closes Memphis high school for days

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Officials say a pest infestation has closed a high school in Memphis for three consecutive days. Shelby County Schools tells news outlets in a statement that classes at Kirby High School would be canceled again Thursday.…

Tennessee tourism: $20B spent in 2017, $1.8B in tax revenue

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- State officials say a record-setting $20.8 billion was spent on tourism in Tennessee last year, a 6.3 percent increase from 2016. Gov. Bill Haslam revealed Tuesday that Tennessee brought in $1.8 billion in state and local…

Shelby Co. man sent to prison in daughter’s 2012 death

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Prosecutors say a West Tennessee man has pleaded guilty in his 6-month-old daughter's death, which was initially believed to have been caused by a traffic accident. The Shelby County district attorney's office said Monday that 29-year-old…

TVA announces study to decide future of coal plants

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) -- The Tennessee Valley Authority has announced a new study to help it decide the future of coal fired plants in Tennessee and Kentucky. The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports TVA President Bill Johnson announced last week…

1st debate set for Sept. 25 in US Senate race in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The first U.S. Senate debate between Democratic former Gov. Phil Bredesen and Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn is set for Sept. 25. Blackburn's campaign announced Monday that she will participate in the debate at Cumberland University…

Innocent Tennessee man opened door, was fatally shot

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Police say an innocent man in Tennessee was shot and killed after he heard gunfire and opened the door of his apartment to look outside. Nashville Police say 59-year-old Glen Young was rushed to the hospital…

Sex harassment suit against ex-school officer settled $15k

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) -- A sexual harassment lawsuit against a former school resource officer in Tennessee has been settled for $15,000. According to The Daily News Journal , lawsuits accuse John Heath in his former roles as a Blackman Middle…

Jesse Jackson, Biden honored by National Civil Rights Museum

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Former Vice President Joe Biden, civil rights leader the Rev. Jesse Jackson and philanthropist J.R. "Pitt" Hyde III are this year's recipients of the National Civil Rights Museum's Freedom Awards. The Memphis-based museum announced in a…

Tennessee opioid summit to feature Senate, gov’s race rivals

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Democratic former Gov. Phil Bredesen and Republican U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn will participate in a summit on the opioid crisis as they compete for a critical open U.S. Senate seat in Tennessee. The Healthy Tennessee event…

Witnesses testify in police surveillance trial in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Witnesses will be taking the stand during a federal trial in a lawsuit about police surveillance of protesters in Memphis. The American Civil Liberties Union claims in its suit that the Memphis Police Department violated activists'…

Waffle House shooting suspect ordered to mental facility

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A Tennessee judge has ordered the suspect in a deadly Waffle House shooting be placed in a mental facility to treat his schizophrenia in hopes that he becomes fit to stand trial. On Wednesday, Davidson County…

Nashville’s police union sues to block vote on oversight

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The police union in Tennessee's largest city is suing to block a referendum establishing an oversight board. The Tennessean reports the Nashville Fraternal Order of Police filed a lawsuit Tuesday. Metro Charter rules stipulate measures need…

Manhunt underway after fatal Tennessee robberies

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Police in Tennessee are looking for two men who they believe could be responsible for a string of recent robberies and shootings in the Nashville area. News outlets report that a surveillance image released Friday shows…