Author: Associated Press

Racist recordings of ex-Pilot Flying J head to be released

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Secret recordings capturing the ex-president of the country's largest diesel fuel retailer using racial slurs and profanely criticizing his own board of directors and his boss' football team and fans will be unsealed and released publicly.…

Land Between the Lakes to reopen most campgrounds Friday

GOLDEN POND, Ky. (AP) -- Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area says it plans to open most campgrounds and attractions on Friday but will have some flood-related limitations. A camping closure order was put in place on Feb. 28.…

Tennessee panel kills bill to outlaw child marriage

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A Republican-led Tennessee House panel has killed a bill to ban child marriage because a socially conservative lobbyist argued it interferes with his state legal challenge of same-sex marriage. The House Civil Justice Subcommittee voted Wednesday…

Attorney general: Tennessee whiskey barrels not tax exempt

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee's attorney general says the state constitution doesn't exempt whiskey barrels from property taxes. Attorney General Herbert Slatery's opinion comes as Jack Daniel's and others push barrel exemption legislation. That bill says the constitution already exempts…

Nashville mayor Megan Barry resigns following affair

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Nashville Mayor Megan Barry has resigned after admitting she had an extramarital affair with her lead bodyguard and shortly after pleading guilty to a felony theft charge. When Barry first admitted Jan. 31 to having an affair…

Members of Congress lay wreath at site of King assassination

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- About a dozen members of Congress have laid a wreath and held a prayer service at the site where the Rev. Martin Luther King was assassinated in Tennessee. They opened a three-day "Congressional Civil Rights Pilgrimage"…

2 Trump gun proposals divide Tennessee governor GOP field

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee's leading Republican gubernatorial candidates have mixed feelings or aren't taking firm stances on President Donald Trump's ideas to ban bump stocks and bar people under 21 from buying semi-automatic guns. U.S. Rep. Diane Black said…

All charges dismissed for 23 Middle TN stores in marijuana candy case

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) -- Authorities have dropped all charges in connection with "Operation Candy Crush," a sting that targeted Tennessee stores accused of selling candy and other products containing a form of marijuana. District Attorney General Jennings H. Jones said…

Aid available for Las Vegas shooting victims from Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- State officials are reaching out to tell Tennesseans who attended the deadly Las Vegas concert shooting that they may qualify for financial aid. According to the state Office of Criminal Justice Programs, financial help under Nevada's…

Middle TN crime scene cleanup crew member charged with theft

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Investigators say a member of a crime scene cleanup crew has been charged with stealing money from a Middle Tennessee home. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says Christopher Bianchi was a member of a crew that…

Trial begins in deadly Chattanooga school bus crash

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) -- A prosecutor says an East Tennessee school bus driver was on his cellphone and driving 20 mph over the speed limit when he caused the crash that killed six elementary school students. Johnthony Walker is being…

FedEx bucks corporate trend, sticks with NRA

NEW YORK (AP) -- One more company is finding itself embroiled in an intensifying discussion about guns in the United States after the school massacre in Parkland, Florida. While more than a dozen major U.S. companies have ended business partnerships…

Lawsuit comes to trial in East TN derailment case

MARYVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A trial is beginning in a lawsuit filed against a railcar owner by some Tennessee residents who were forced to evacuate after a 2015 train derailment. News outlets report railroad company CRX and several evacuees have…

New East TN cathedral set for dedication on Saturday

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The dedication of a new $30.8 million East Tennessee cathedral is set for this week. The Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in Knoxville will be dedicated in an invitation-only Mass on Saturday. Expected…

Middle TN superintendent charged with assault in student emergency

FRANKLIN, Tenn. (AP) -- A schools superintendent in Middle Tennessee has been charged with assault in connection with an encounter with a high school student. Franklin police said in a statement that Franklin High School staff, officers, paramedics and a…

‘God understands’: Quotes from the Rev. Billy Graham

MONTREAT, N.C. (AP) -- The Rev. Billy Graham died Wednesday at age 99. He was the most widely heard Christian evangelist in history. Here are some quotations from the man who transformed American religious life through his preaching and activism.…

Complaints question Harwell’s PAC help, $3.1M self-loan

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Two campaign finance complaints question House Speaker Beth Harwell's help from a political committee and a $3.1 million self-loan to her Republican gubernatorial campaign. One complaint says a December…

10 Tennessee sites included in new US civil rights trail

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- State officials say 10 Tennessee landmarks are being included in a new civil rights trail. Gov. Bill Haslam and state tourism commissioner Kevin Triplett plan to announce the Tennessee sites on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail…

Panel says MTSU can’t strip Confederate name from hall

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) -- A Tennessee panel has voted against letting Middle Tennessee State University strip the name of a Confederate general from one of its buildings. According to The Tennessean, the Tennessee Historical Commission on Friday denied the request…

New US marshal confirmed for East Tennessee

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A new U.S. marshal has been confirmed for East Tennessee. The Knoxville News Sentinel reports he is David Jolley, a longtime law enforcement officer who has some experience as marshal. He served as U.S. marshal for…

St. Jude hospital announces plans for research center

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- St. Jude Children's Research Hospital has announced plans to build a $412 million advanced research center. The project unveiled Monday is a key part of a $1 billion capital expansion at the Tennessee hospital known for…

Fincher dropping out of race for Corker seat in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Former U.S. Rep. Stephen Fincher says he's dropping out of his race for the Senate and thinks incumbent Bob Corker should change his mind and get in the race. Fincher has been opposed by U.S. Rep.…

Memphis man could get 6 years in prison for 55th conviction

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Prosecutors say a man with 54 prior convictions has been found guilty of stealing $10 to $15 in change from a car. The Shelby County district attorney's office says 48-year-old Ernest Ervin was found guilty Wednesday…

2 guilty of conspiracy in Pilot Flying J case

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) -- Three of four former employees of truck stop chain Pilot Flying J who have been on trial since November have been convicted in connection with a rebate scam. News outlets report former company President Mark Hazelwood…

State replies to appeal by Tennessee teen with life sentence

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Attorneys for the state of Tennessee say it wasn't unconstitutional to imprison a woman for life without parole after she killed a man who solicited her as a teenage prostitute. A legal response filed Wednesday in…

2 charged in death of aspiring Tennessee rap artist

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Prosecutors say two people have been arrested and charged in the shooting death of an aspiring Tennessee rap artist in 2010. The Shelby County district attorney's office says Brandon Hodges was indicted and arrested this week…

President Trump: Nation ‘joined together’ after shooting

PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) -- President Donald Trump said the nation is "joined together as one American family" after a shooting at a Florida high school that killed 17 people. In a national address from the White House on Thursday, Trump said…

UPDATE: Sheriff: 17 dead in Florida school shooting

UPDATE:  PARKLAND, Fla. (AP) -- A sheriff says 17 people have died in the shooting attack on a South Florida high school. Sheriff Scott Israel of Broward County says the 19-year-old suspect is in custody and that investigators are beginning…

Report: Confederate statues move followed open meetings law

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A Tennessee comptroller's report says Memphis officials followed state open meetings law when they sold two parks to a nonprofit, which removed three Confederate statues. The report Wednesday also says Memphis followed municipal law by selling…

Tennessee bill would limit licensing denials of ex-offenders

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A bill in Tennessee would limit the ability of state licensing boards to deny occupational licenses based on the criminal history of applicants. Republican Sen. Kerry Roberts of Springfield, Democratic Senate Minority Leader Lee Harris of…

Middle TN firefighter dies, 4 injured in partial collapse after blaze

LAWRENCEBURG, Tenn. (AP) -- A Tennessee firefighter was killed and four others injured when part of a home collapsed after a blaze. Lawrenceburg Fire Department Chaplain Chad Moore said 38-year-old fire engineer Jason Dickey died Monday after becoming trapped with…

Tennessee group hopes to plant 250K trees this month

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A Tennessee organization is working on a statewide event to oversee 25,000 volunteers planting 250,000 trees later this month. The Tennessee Environmental Council says its Tennessee Tree Project was created to plant 1 million native trees…

ATV crashes into Amish buggy in East Tennessee, injuring 8

DUNLAP, Tenn. (AP) -- Authorities say a collision between an all-terrain vehicle and an Amish buggy has left eight people injured. Sequatchie County Sheriff Ronnie Hitchcock tells WRCB-TV that a juvenile drove into the buggy carrying a teacher and children…

Animal behaviorist Temple Grandin to speak at UT Martin

MARTIN, Tenn. (AP) -- An internationally known autism advocate and animal behaviorist is coming to Tennessee. The University of Tennessee at Martin says Dr. Temple Grandin will speak Tuesday in the Skyhawk Fieldhouse on campus. The sold-out lecture, "Developing Individuals…

Appeals court says Tennessee’s $250 DUI fee unconstitutional

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- An appeals court has ruled that a state law that gives a $250 fee to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation for each DUI conviction obtained using a blood or breath test is unconstitutional. Tuesday's ruling by…

Body found in impounded van 7 weeks after Memphis shooting

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Police say a dead man's body remained undetected in an impounded van for seven weeks. Memphis Police Department Director Michael Rallings called Monday's belated discovery "unacceptable" and said an internal investigation has been opened. Rallings said…

Tennessee officials announce $400K in agriculture grants

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Tennessee officials have announced more than $400,000 in grants to help new and expanding agriculture and food businesses, particularly in rural counties. Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner Jai Templeton and Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe released…

Body pulled from East TN creek amid search for Alabama man

LOUISVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- An East Tennessee sheriff says a body has been recovered from a creek near the car of a missing college student from Alabama. Blount County Sheriff James Berrong tells news outlets the body was pulled Monday…

6 charged in death of man exhumed from Middle TN backyard

WINCHESTER, Tenn. (AP) - Six people have been charged in connection with the death of a man whose remains were exhumed last month from a Middle Tennessee backyard. Winchester police said in a release the Franklin County grand jury met…

TVA appeal: Judge wrongly ordered ash cleanup

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- An appeal by the nation's largest public utility says a federal judge abused his discretion by ordering a massive coal ash cleanup at a Tennessee power plant. The Tennessee Valley Authority argues the Clean Water Act…

Grand jury: East TN man accused of shooting officers killed himself

KINGSPORT, Tenn. (AP) -- A grand jury has upheld the state's determination that a man accused of shooting and wounding two police officers in East Tennessee died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. District Attorney General Barry Staubus tells The Kingsport…

Sanitation workers’ strike recalled in Memphis, other cities

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Sanitation workers who went on a strike that brought Martin Luther King Jr. to Memphis, Tennessee, 50 years ago are being remembered as courageous men who made important contributions to the civil rights movement. A handful…

Nashville mayor admits affair with ex-security detail chief

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Nashville Mayor Megan Barry says she had an extramarital affair with the former head of her security detail. In a news release Wednesday, the mayor said she accepts full responsibility for the pain she caused her…

Train carrying GOP lawmakers to policy retreat hits truck

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republican lawmakers and aides say a train carrying them to a policy retreat in West Virginia has struck a truck. Congressman David Kustoff of Memphis tweeted that he was on the train and was not injured. I…

Judge: Memphis nonprofit must preserve Confederate statues

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A judge says a Tennessee nonprofit must preserve and cannot sell statues of three Confederate-era leaders removed from Memphis parks in December. The Commercial Appeal reports that Davidson County Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle barred Memphis Greenspace…

FedEx to give wage increases, bonuses to workers

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- FedEx says it'll be giving wage increases, bonuses and make a voluntary $1.5 billion contribution to the company's pension plan, citing recent tax reform legislation. The package delivery company follows others doing the same, including Home…

Kentucky community grapples with cause of school shooting

BENTON, Ky. (AP) -- Stunned by a deadly school shooting, a grief-stricken Kentucky community is struggling to understand how one of its own could have unleashed such terror. Police haven't publicly identified the 15-year-old accused of opening fire Tuesday at…