Author: Associated Press

Witnesses: Tennessee streaker tossed items, pulled alarm

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A Tennessee man has been arrested after witnesses say he threw personal belongings from the balcony of his apartment complex, pulled the fire alarm and frolicked naked on the street Wednesday evening. The Knoxville News-Sentinel reports…

Tennessee man sentenced in Kentucky jail kickback scheme

PADUCAH, Ky. (AP) - A Tennessee businessman has been sentenced to nearly three years in prison in connection with a conspiracy involving jail construction in Kentucky. The U.S. attorney's office said U.S. District Judge Thomas B. Russell sentenced 60-year-old Ronald…

Tennessee city begins employee student loan repayment plan

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A Tennessee city is starting a new program that will help employees repay their student loans. The city of Memphis said Thursday that beginning July 1, eligible city workers will receive monthly contributions of $50 for…

Whitwell police chief charged with theft, misconduct

WHITWELL, Tenn. (AP) - The police chief of a small southeastern Tennessee city has been indicted on multiple charges including tampering with evidence, theft of property and official misconduct. Media outlets report that 46-year-old Whitwell Police Chief James Rodney Easterly…

Former US attorney to investigate Tennessee school system

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A former federal prosecutor will lead a team of lawyers to investigate allegations of illegal activity within Tennessee's largest school system. The Commercial Appeal reports (http://memne.ws/2rUv5sG ) that the Shelby County Schools in-house attorney Rodney G.…

‘Epic week’: Hockey, country music collide in Nashville

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Country music is always a big draw in Nashville, but the convergence of a major sports championship with one of the city's biggest music events is reaching its crescendo this weekend in Tennessee's capital city. The…

Memphis man indicted in hit-and-run death of bicyclist

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A grand jury in Tennessee has indicted a man on vehicular homicide charges in the death of a bicyclist in 2015. Antrone Williams of Memphis was indicted on Friday in the death of 26-year-old Justin Townsend.…

Woman gets probation for raping her dying boyfriend’s son

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A former Department of Children's Services paralegal who admitted to using her state email to seduce her dying boyfriend's teenage son has been sentenced. The Knoxville News Sentinel reports (http://bit.ly/2sL0my) 58-year-old Mary Lisa Woods was sentenced…

Haslam signs Tennessee law enhancing immigrant sentences

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee judges will have the authority to enhance sentences for defendants in the country illegally at the time of their crimes, under a bill the governor has signed into law. According to the General Assembly's website,…

Remains of World War II soldier returning home to Tennessee

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- The recently identified remains of a soldier killed in Europe during World War II are returning home to Tennessee. Army Pfc. Reece Gass of Greeneville was serving with the 3rd Armored Division in Belgium when enemy…

Fired FBI Director Comey wanted leak of memo, special counsel

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former FBI Director James Comey says he asked a friend to leak the contents of his memo about meetings with President Donald Trump. Comey says in his hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee that he felt that releasing…

East Tenn. man convicted for impregnating child twice

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A jury has convicted a man for impregnating a girl when she was 10 years old and again when she was 11. District Attorney General Charme Allen's office says the jury found 34-year-old Trendell Ray Brady…

Vanderbilt receives anonymous $10m gift for communal living

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Vanderbilt University has received an anonymous $10 million donation to expand communal living residence halls where faculty members live alongside students. The university says the $10 million provides momentum to expand the College Halls program. The…

Tennessee Rep. Blackburn confirms bid for 9th term in House

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Republican Marsha Blackburn has confirmed she will seek another term in the U.S. House of Representatives. The Tennessean reports (http://tnne.ws/2rIGLi8 ) that Blackburn's bid for a ninth term puts an end to speculation in some circles…

Police: Toddler fatally shot 7-year-old cousin in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Police in Tennessee say a toddler apparently shot a 7-year-old cousin to death at an apartment. Nashville police said in a news release that Harmony Warfield died at a hospital after being shot Tuesday. The statement…

350 losing jobs as South Carolina fuel pump plant closes

ANDERSON, S.C. (AP) - A company that makes automotive fuel pumps is closing in South Carolina next year, eliminating the jobs of almost 350 employees. The Anderson Independent Mail reported (http://bit.ly/2sfMq1K) that Associated Fuel Pump Systems Corporation north of Anderson…

Lee nets $1.3M in first fundraiser for Tennessee gov’s bid

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Lee has raised $1.3 million for his campaign at his first major fundraiser. The Franklin businessman held the Tuesday evening event at a barn owned by Christian music star Michael W. Smith.…

Tennessee campaign finance panel fines former lawmaker $465K

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee campaign finance officials have imposed a nearly $465,000 fine on a former lawmaker who was expelled from the General Assembly last year amid a series of sexual harassment allegations. The Tennessean reports (http://tnne.ws/2sEsral ) that…

Senate panel OKs Trump pick Hagerty as ambassador to Japan

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has approved Tennessee businessman William F. Hagerty as President Donald Trump's ambassador to Japan. The bipartisan voice vote readies Hagerty's nomination for a vote by the full Senate. The nomination eased through…

Trump signs measure naming federal courthouse for Thompson

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - President Donald Trump has signed legislation naming Nashville's new federal courthouse after former Sen. Fred Thompson, the late actor who appeared in the TV series "Law & Order" and at least 20 movies. Tennessee's congressional delegation…

Memory foam maker Sinomax celebrates opening of 1st US plant

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Memory foam maker Sinomax Group is opening its first U.S. manufacturing facility in Tennessee. The 500,000-square-foot plant will formally open its doors in the Nashville community of La Vergne on Tuesday. The facility is expected to…

Tennessee officials shut down fair’s rattlesnake show

BRISTOL, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee officials have cancelled a fair's snake exhibit for failing to adhere to state code. The Bristol Herald Courier reports (http://bit.ly/2rPgWPd ) that the Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency cancelled the West Texas Rattlesnake Show at the…

New Mexico AG sues discount chain over obsolete motor oil

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas is suing the discount chain Dollar General for false advertising and unfair trade practices for selling what he describes as obsolete motor oil. The lawsuit was filed late Monday in…

Flight delayed, another diverted after plane runs off runway

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) - Officials at a Kentucky airport say a commercial passenger flight was delayed and another diverted when a small private plane veered off a runway after landing. Blue Grass Airport spokeswoman Amy Caudill says the runway at…

MTSU president: Fall enrollment grows despite challenges

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) - The president of Middle Tennessee State University says the institution anticipates enrollment growth this fall. The Daily News Journal reports (http://on.dnj.com/2syMU01 ) that President Sidney A. McPhee addressed the university's board of trustees on Monday in…

Communications Director Smith to leave Haslam administration

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Communications Director David Smith is leaving Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam's administration to start his own consulting business. Smith joined the governor's Cabinet in 2015 after previously serving as press secretary for Haslam's first term. He was…

US health chief ‘in a receiving mode’ on health bill ideas

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - President Donald Trump's health chief has told health professionals in Nashville that the administration is "fully in a receiving mode" for suggestions to improve a push to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. In his…

Kentucky supplier recalls more than 22,000 pounds of beef

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture says a Kentucky-based food distributor has issued a recall on more than 22,000 pounds of ground beef and other beef products due to possible E. coli bacteria contamination. USDA's Food Safety…

Chattanooga officials warn of weather effects on trees

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) - Officials in Chattanooga say the number of large trees falling on power and communications lines has risen significantly following last summer's drought and weather fluctuations in the last few years. The Chattanooga utility EPB said in…

Police: 3 bodies found at rural Indiana home; man sought

SALEM, Ind. (AP) - Police say the bodies of three people have been found in a southern Indiana home and they're looking for a man considered a person of interest in the investigation. State police say the Washington County sheriff's…

High court limits seizure of assets from drug conspiracies

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Supreme Court is limiting the government's ability to seize assets from people who are convicted of drug crimes but receive little of the illegal proceeds. The justices ruled Monday that a Tennessee man convicted for his…

Identities released of 2 men who died in Smoky Mountains

GATLINBURG, Tenn. (AP) - Officials says a Pennsylvania man and a hiker originally from the Czech Republic have been identified as victims who died recently in separate incidents at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The National Park Service say…

After big attendance drop, Bonnaroo at a crossroads

MANCHESTER, Tenn. (AP) - The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee is at a crossroads as organizers deal with last year's plummeting ticket sales while engaging in talks to extend their agreement with Coffee County. The Knoxville News Sentinel…

Girl Scout cookies are feeding the homeless in Tennessee

EAGLEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - More than 5,000 boxes of Girl Scout cookies were transformed into food for homeless children through a partnership between a troop and a school district. After a banner year of cookie sales, troop leaders from the…

High schools in Tennessee’s largest system being audited

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - High school transcripts from Tennessee's largest school system are being audited for irregularities after a grading dispute at a school. Tennessee's Department of Education said in a statement Monday that the independent audit of Shelby County…

Haslam hitting road for ceremonial Improve Act signings

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) -- Republican Gov. Bill Haslam is hitting the road to hold bill signing ceremonies for his highway and bridge funding program called the Improve Act. The governor officially signed the bill into law within days of the…

Intoxicated boaters, but no deaths on Memorial Day weekend

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- State officials are reporting no boating fatalities during the Memorial Day weekend holiday, though there were a number of people who were operating their watercrafts while intoxicated. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency says this is the…

Media group sues state to release outsourcing records

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A media group has filed a lawsuit to get the state of Tennessee to release records about its attempt to outsource services at Fall Creek Falls State Park. The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Davidson County…

Alan Jackson to perform free concert for hockey fans

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Legendary country singer Alan Jackson is going to play a free outdoor concert in Music City in advance of the Nashville Predators first home game in the 2017 Stanley Cup Final. The Grammy Award-winning singer and…

Police: Man charged with DUI in Tennessee flees hospital

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A man who police say crashed a car into a north Tennessee house allegedly "walked off" from the hospital where he was treated. Knoxville Police Department Sgt. John Shelton tells the Knoxville News Sentinel (http://bit.ly/2rIVo7B) that…

Contractor picked to guard Nevada National Security Site

LAS VEGAS (AP) - Federal officials say a subsidiary of a Virginia defense contractor will be paid up to $203 million over five years to provide security at a vast former nuclear proving ground north of Las Vegas. The announcement…

Magistrate recommends against throwing out Pilot statements

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - A federal magistrate is recommending against throwing out statements two executives made to federal agents when they raided the headquarters of a truck stop chain owned by the family of Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and…

Tennessee House speaker asks AG to consider suing drug firms

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Tennessee House Speaker Beth Harwell is asking the state attorney general to consider suing painkiller manufacturers for their role in the ongoing opioid crisis. Harwell's letter Thursday asks Attorney General Herbert Slatery to review a lawsuit…

Report on response to Tennessee wildfires expected in July

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The National Park Service says it expects to release a review in mid- to late July of its response to a November wildfire in Great Smoky Mountains National Park that turned deadly. The Knoxville News Sentinel…

Nashville police taking applications for teen driving class

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - The Nashville Police Department is once again offering a free driver awareness class for teenagers that will be taught by police officers. The department announced this week that registration has begun and the course is open…

Tennessee man charged with killing girlfriend

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) - A Tennessee man who was arrested two months after his girlfriend's body was found in her apartment has been charged with premeditated murder. The Shelby County district attorney's office said Tuesday that 32-year-old Joshua Fisher has…