Author: Associated Press

Police: Narcotics detectives, dog, find huge heroin stash

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Nashville police say they found nearly 17 pounds of heroin in a fire extinguisher in the back of someone's car and a police dog helped them make the bust. Metro Police tweeted that the heroin was…

Tennessee governor to make Europe economic development trip

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe are heading to Europe on state business. A news release says the trip from Friday until May 11 aims to strengthen ties…

Parents charged in boy’s beating death in Memphis

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Authorities say a woman and her boyfriend have been charged with murder in the beating death of their 7-year-old son in Memphis. The Shelby County district attorney's office says 42-year-old Michelle Williamson and 39-year-old Daryl Lee…

It ain’t tea, babe: Bob Dylan embraces Tennessee whiskey

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Music icon Bob Dylan is partnering with a distillery to make whiskey at a 140-year-old Tennessee church and bottle it under the name Heaven's Door. News outlets report Dylan has partnered with Angel's Envy Bourbon co-founder…

Recreational boat builder expanding into Lake County

RIDGELY, Tenn. (AP) -- Officials say Excel Boat Company is investing $9 million in a manufacturing facility in Lake County. Gov. Bill Haslam said Monday that the boat builder plans to create nearly 200 jobs with the 100,000-square-foot facility in…

Smoky Mountains partner contributes $2.3M to national park

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (AP) -- A retail partner of Great Smoky Mountains National Park says it had its second-best year for sales and best year for membership income in 2017. The Great Smoky Mountains Association operates the park's visitor center bookstores…

Nashville Predators honor hero in Waffle House shooting

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The Predators gave Nashville a chance to give the man who wrestled an AR-15 rifle away from a gunman at a Waffle House a standing ovation. James Shaw Jr. met with Nashville coach Peter Laviolette before…

2 law enforcement veterans nominated marshals in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Two law enforcement veterans have been nominated to be U.S. marshals in Tennessee. President Donald Trump on Thursday nominated Denny Wade King to serve in the Middle District of Tennessee and Barrett W. Rich in the…

Truck cuts cable, slowing connection for some student tests

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee education officials say a dump truck has cut a major fiber cable and temporarily affected internet connectivity during student online testing, which has already experienced problems. Department of Education spokeswoman Sara Gast says the main…

Wietecha wins 6th-straight St. Jude marathon in Nashville

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee runner Scott Wietecha has clinched his 6th-straight marathon win at the St. Jude Rock 'n' Roll Nashville Marathon and ½ Marathon, an event that drew about 30,000 registered runners across multiple events. A news release…

Romaine lettuce outbreak update: 98 people sick in 22 states

NEW YORK (AP) -- The food poisoning outbreak linked to romaine lettuce has spread to three more states. Health officials on Friday said they now have reports of 98 cases in 22 states, with the addition of Mississippi, Tennessee and…

Tomb of President Andrew Jackson vandalized in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Officials at Andrew Jackson's historic home in Tennessee say the seventh president's tomb has been vandalized and marred by profanities. Andrew Jackson Foundation President and CEO Howard Kittell said the vandalism was discovered early Friday at…

Visitation held for woman killed in Waffle House shooting

GALLATIN, Tenn. (AP) -- Hundreds of people have gathered at a church visitation service in Tennessee for a 21-year-old student killed in the weekend shooting at a Waffle House. A line of people who came to greet the family members…

Romaine lettuce outbreak update: 98 people sick in 22 states

NEW YORK (AP) -- The food poisoning outbreak linked to romaine lettuce has spread to three more states. Health officials on Friday said they now have reports of 98 cases in 22 states, with the addition of Tennessee, Mississippi and…

BREAKING: Bill Cosby convicted of sexually assaulting woman

NORRISTOWN, Pa. (AP) -- Bill Cosby has been convicted of drugging and molesting a woman in the first big celebrity trial of the #MeToo era. A jury outside Philadelphia convicted the "Cosby Show" star of three counts of aggravated indecent…

Tennessee lawmakers conclude annual legislative session

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee lawmakers have concluded their annual legislative session. The Republican-led House and Senate adjourned late Wednesday after passing legislation aimed to shield teachers from the recent student testing snafu. Lawmakers were at an impasse for seven-plus…

Tennessee lawmakers OK making locals help detain immigrants

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee lawmakers have passed legislation to require state and local law enforcement to detain immigrants for deportation at the request of federal officials without requiring warrants or probable cause. The Republican-led House and Senate passed the…

Waffle House suspect’s ex-bosses asked feds to help him

SALIDA, Colorado (AP) -- The co-owner of a Colorado crane company that once employed the Waffle House shooting suspect said they urged the Secret Service to try to help him after he was arrested at the White House last year.…

Tennessee lottery looking for dog photos for game tickets

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The Tennessee Education Lottery has a new game coming soon and is looking for photos of dogs to put on the tickets. The lottery's "Dog Days of Summer" Facebook contest began Monday and runs through May…

Former bus driver gets 4 years in crash that killed 6 children

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) -- An ex-Tennessee school bus driver who was at the wheel in a wreck that killed six children has been sentenced to four years in prison for criminally negligent homicide. Media reported that a Chattanooga judge sentenced…

Bond revoked for suspect in Waffle House attack

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A Nashville judge has revoked the bond of a man accused of killing four people at a Waffle House restaurant. Court records show that a judge struck the $2 million bond for Travis Reinking until a hearing…

Tennessee Senate passes bill for monument to unborn

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The Republican-led Tennessee Senate has passed a bill that calls for a monument to unborn children to be placed on the state Capitol grounds. The Senate's 23-3 vote Monday sends the legislation back to the House,…

Spokesman: George HW Bush hospitalized with blood infection

HOUSTON (AP) -- A family spokesman says former President George H.W. Bush has been hospitalized in Houston with an infection, just after attending the funeral of his wife Barbara. Jim McGrath says on Twitter that the 93-year-old Bush is "responding…

2 young children killed in Memphis townhouse fire

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Two young children have been killed in a townhouse fire in Memphis. Memphis Fire Lt. Wayne Cook tells news outlets that the children killed in the Saturday fire were between 2 and 3 years old. An…

Waffle House suspect still being sought; residents on alert

  UPDATE: The man wanted in a deadly weekend shooting at a Waffle House restaurant near Nashville has been captured, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. See the updated story here. Earlier story: NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Police are…

Tennessee gets $26 million from feds for veterans home

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee officials say the state has received $26 million from the federal government to build a new veterans home. Gov. Bill Haslam says the grant from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs will be used to…

4 dead in Nashville Waffle House shooting

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Police in Nashville say four people are dead after a shooting at a Waffle House restaurant early Sunday. The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department says the gunman was a white man with short hair who was wearing…

House passes bill for monument to unborn

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The Tennessee House has passed a bill that calls for a monument to unborn children to be placed on the state capitol grounds. If passed by the Senate and signed into law, private funds would be…

Pilot killed in crash of single-engine plane in Tennessee

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) -- Authorities say one person has been killed in a single-engine plane crash in Tennessee. The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports that a two-seat plane crashed near an airstrip while taking off at the municipal airport in…

Haslam signs 7-day liquor sales bill

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennesseans will be able to buy liquor on Sunday after Gov. Bill Haslam signed a law allowing seven-day sales of wines and spirits. The law allows liquor and wine sales every day, with the exception of…

TN House passes bill for monument to unborn

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The Tennessee House has passed a bill that calls for a monument to unborn children to be placed on the state capitol grounds. If passed by the Senate and signed into law, private funds would be…

Democratic leader seeks to make pot legal under federal law

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The top Senate Democrat says he now supports making pot legal under federal law. New York Sen. Chuck Schumer says he'll introduce a bill taking marijuana off the federal list of controlled substances — in effect decriminalizing…

Man who dressed as superhero sentenced on child porn charges

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Federal prosecutors say a Tennessee man who dressed as Spider-Man and washed windows at a children's hospital has been sentenced to more than 100 years in prison on child pornography charges. A statement from U.S. Attorney…

Tennessee lawmakers grill education commissioner over TNReady test

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- State lawmakers have spent the afternoon grilling Tennessee's education commissioner over a new problem with the state's assessment test. One lawmaker called for Education Commissioner Candice McQueen to step down over the latest debacle with the…

West TN man charged with murder in opioid overdose

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Prosecutors say a West Tennessee man faces a murder charge after he sold heroin laced with the powerful opioid fentanyl to an acquaintance who died. The Shelby County District Attorney's Office says the case of Blake…

Former first lady Barbara Bush dies at age 92

HOUSTON (AP) -- Former first lady Barbara Bush has died. She was 92. A family spokesman says she died Tuesday. The snowy-haired Mrs. Bush was one of only two first ladies who was also the mother of a president. The…

Tennessee lawmakers fuming over new assessment test problems

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee's student assessment test has had more problems, and state lawmakers are fuming. State education officials announced on Tuesday that there appears to have been a deliberate attack on the computer system of the company that…

Tennessee restaurant foots team’s bill after school shooting

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) -- The track team from a Kentucky high school where a deadly shooting happened got a warm welcome at a Tennessee restaurant. The manager at an Olive Garden in Chattanooga decided to cover the team's food bill…

2 Tennessee officers charged with helping transport heroin

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Two police officers in Tennessee have been charged with helping transport what they thought was a large amount of heroin. Memphis Police Director Michael Rallings said Friday that 41-year-old Kevin Coleman and 25-year-old Terrion Bryson have…

20 Tennessee parks to hold public meetings

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Twenty of Tennessee's state parks are holding public meetings where community members can comment on current and future park improvement projects. State officials say the parks plan a series of public meetings on April 19 and…

Policy on bullying eyed after Mississippi boy hangs himself

SOUTHAVEN, Miss. (AP) -- A month has passed since a 12-year-old boy hanged himself after being bullied at school in Mississippi. While Andy Leach's family waits for answers, experts say the school district's bullying policy lacks key elements, such as…

Legislature gives final approval to moving James K. Polk

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Nearly 170 years after President James K. Polk died, the Tennessee Legislature is urging that his remains be exhumed and taken to a fourth resting place — but it might take a while longer before the…

More than 10,000 apply for free-tuition program for adults

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Gov. Bill Haslam has announced that more than 10,000 adults have applied to Tennessee Reconnect, the state's new program that allows adults, no matter their age, to go to community college or technical schools tuition-free. Haslam…

Texas man wanted in deaths of woman, child found in Middle TN

FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) -- A Texas man identified by police as a suspect in the slayings of a woman and her young daughter has been captured in Middle Tennessee. Thirty-seven-year-old Paige Terrell Lawyer was being held Monday at the…