A man hunt is underway after nine cars are shot into on I-75 in London, Kentucky.
The interstate was shut down Saturday night after shots were fired into the vehicles on both the north and southbound lanes.
Five victims were seriously injured and there is no word on their condition.
The Laurel County Sheriff’s Office says they are searching for a person of interest, 32-year-old Joseph Couch. As of yesterday (Sunday morning), the search for Couch is ongoing.
Police say do not approach Couch as he is considered armed and dangerous.
Anyone with information regarding Couch’s whereabouts is asked to contact the London-Laurel County 911 Center by calling 911 or 606-878-7000.
CARTER COUNTY – An investigation by special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Medicaid Fraud Control Division, Adult Protective Services, and the Tennessee Department of Disability and Aging into reports of the abuse and sexual exploitation of a vulnerable adult has resulted in an arrest.
In August, after receiving a referral from Adult Protective Services, TBI special agents began investigating allegations of sexual exploitation involving a physically and intellectually disabled adult male in Carter County. During the investigation, agents learned that Selena Catherine Silver (DOB: 5/12/68), who was employed as a caregiver at the time, began a sexual relationship with the victim and provided him with controlled substances and other illicit drugs.
Today, agents obtained an arrest warrant for Silver, charging her with Abuse of a Vulnerable Adult, Sexual Battery by an Authority Figure, Sexual Exploitation of a Vulnerable Adult, and Stalking. She was arrested and booked into the Carter County Jail on a $10,00 bond.
The charges and allegations referenced in this release are merely accusations of criminal conduct and not evidence. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted through due process of law.
NOTE: The TBI’s Medicaid Fraud Control Division receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $8,983,614.75 for federal Fiscal Year 2023-2024. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $2,994,538.25 for Fiscal Year 2023-2024, is funded by the State of Tennessee.
KNOXVILLE —The John Sevier Hunter Education Center in Knoxville is hosting the 3rd annual Kickoff to Hunting Season event on Saturday, October 5 from 9 am to 1 pm. The event is geared towards getting hunters ready for the fall hunting season. Everyone is welcome, whether experienced hunters or those new to the sport and wanting to learn. The event also welcomes and encourages families to attend. Participants will have the opportunity to hear from TWRA staff and experienced hunters with tips on how to prepare for hunting this fall. Those attending are also welcome to bring one firearm and one bow for sighting in and practice.
The class includes:
A session on hunting Tennessee’s public lands and how to access them utilizing new technology such as some of the newest hunting apps.
A Q&A session with local TWRA officers who will discuss any new changes to Tennessee’s hunting laws and answer any questions the public may have.
A session on how to use some of the newest hunting equipment like tree saddle hunting and expert advice on hunting techniques.
Official Boone and Crockett scorers will be onsite to discuss how to score white-tailed deer. Attendees are allowed to bring ONE deer head per person to have it officially scored.
The 100 yd benchrest rifle range will be open and hunters may bring ONE hunting rifle, either a centerfire or a muzzleloader, to sight-in.
Archery pro-staff will be onsite to provide technical assistance to bowhunters who need bow tuning or help with their archery gear. No broad heads allowed; field tips only.
Range Safety Officers will be present to assist with the sighting-in process if help is needed.
TWRA flurry machine to enjoy shooting clays thrown in multiple directions. The cost of admission is $8.00, which is the type 222 range daily permit. The admission fee will be waived for sportsmen license holders and those holding appropriate big game hunting licenses. All ranges will be staffed by certified Range Safety Officers to ensure safety. For any further assistance or questions, contact John Sevier Range Manager Chad Gann at 865-594-6279. Seating is limited to 50 participants.
The Knox County Sheriff’s Office Juvenile Detectives, Major Crimes Detectives, and Patrol Officers responded to various threats Friday at Halls Middle and High Schools in North Knox County.
The following arrests have been made as a result –
A 14-year-old Halls High School Student was arrested around noon this afternoon for threats of mass violence; he was taken to Richard L. Bean juvenile detention facility. Due to the suspect being a juvenile, no other information or details will be released.
An 18-year-old Halls High Student was arrested for threats of mass violence. Charles McCarter was arrested and taken to the Roger D. Wilson Detention Facility later in the afternoon.
Additional threats are being investigated. In response to those threats, several additional resources assisted with the initial investigation, including the Knox County Sheriff’s Hazardous Device Unit, Multiple K-9 Teams, the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Tennessee Homeland Security, the Knoxville Police Department, and the Knox County Schools Security Division, and Dr. Jon Rysewyk KCS Superintendent.
“I can’t stress enough, as I have said many times before, WE WILL TAKE EVERY THREAT AGAINST OUR SCHOOLS SERIOUSLY. There WILL be consequences for this behavior, and as long as I am the Sheriff, it will not be tolerated in Knox County.
I want to thank everyone who responded so quickly. We are grateful for our partnership with the Knox County School Security Division, The Knoxville Police Department, and The Tennessee Highway Patrol. I commend our Patrol Officers assigned to our schools and our Juvenile and Major Crimes Units for their tireless efforts in keeping our schools safe. We appreciate the cooperation of the Halls faculty and the parents. Please talk to your kids and let them know who their friends are and what they are doing online. If you need help, reach out!”
-Tom Spangler, Sheriff
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) Juvenile detectives with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office Friday afternoon arrested a 14-year-old Halls High School Student.
KCSO officials say the student was arrested around noon for making threats of mass violence.
It comes the same day as the teen charged in a Georgia high school shooting appeared in court for the first time.
In a release, Knox County Sheriff Tom Spangler doubled-down on his department’s pledge to take every threat against KCS schools “seriously,” adding that there will be consequences for this type of behavior.
“I can’t stress enough as I have said many times before, WE WILL TAKE EVERY THREAT AGAINST OUR SCHOOLS SERIOUSLY. There WILL be consequences for this type of behavior and as long as I am the Sheriff it will not be tolerated in Knox County.” – Tom Spangler, Sheriff
Sheriff Tom Spangler is making his thoughts clear about threats to Knox County schools. (Courtesy: Knox County Schools)
Knoxville, TN Millions of dollars in federal funding is headed to Knoxville, aimed at improving a stretch of Chapman Highway.
The money is coming from the Biden administration’s Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) program, a pool of more than $1 billion for grants to local governments who are improving roads.
Knoxville’s receiving $17.8 million in funding to improve one of the city’s most-used thoroughfares through its own project: SAFER Knoxville 2.0. Specifically, the three-phase project will focus on the stretch from Blount Avenue to Woodlawn Pike.
“We’re doing significant improvements at Augusta quarry which is a really popular place. We’re doing a lot of improvements to urban wilderness and connectivity, we want people to move around in ways other than cars if that’s something they’re interested in and that invitation rings a lot truer when they can do so safely,” Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon said.
According to state data, Chapman Highway saw 33 deadly or serious crashes from January of 2022 to July of 2024. Of those, seven were deadly (with eight total deaths) and 59 people were injured. Also, seven of those crashes, including four of the deadly ones, involved pedestrians.
That’s what the city is hoping to reduce. According to federal documentation on the funding, SAFER Knoxville 2.0 will focus on “high speeds, drivers failing to yield to people walking and biking and inconsistent pedestrian facilities.”
“By 2040 we want to have zero people die on the streets of Knoxville, every single person who dies on our streets or walking on our streets is an avoidable death, in my view, and we cannot rely on individuals to fix that,” Kincannon said.
So what will that look like? The same documents said the city is looking to build a sidewalk on the west side of Chapman Highway, install new pedestrian signals at intersections and throw in a median.
Not all the money for SAFER Knoxville 2.0 is coming from SS4A, however. The City of Knoxville is planning on contributing the rest, bringing the total cost of the project to $22,250,000.
Knoxville wasn’t the only group getting funding in East Tennessee, either. Fentress County, Dandridge and Knoxville’s Community Development Corporation are also on the list.
The money is coming from the Biden administration’s Safe Streets and Roads for All (SS4A) program. (Courtesy: WVLT)
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) Country music superstar Blake Shelton is coming to Knoxville!
Shelton’s “Friends & Heroes 2025” tour will play Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center on February 28, 2025. His performance will include special appearances by Craig Morgan, Deana Carter, Trace Adkins and Emily Ann Roberts.
American Express Card members can purchase tickets before the general public beginning Tuesday, September 10 at 10:00 a.m. The general on-sale will begin Friday, September 13 at 10:00 a.m.
“The ‘Friends & Heroes’ Tour is one of my favorite tours because as a fan, I can’t think of a cooler concert to see,” Shelton said. “I get spoiled every night seeing these icons come out and do four or five of the biggest hits of their storied careers. And then get introduced to new talent like Emily Ann. I can’t wait.”
If you can’t make it to the Knoxville show, Shelton’s tour also stops by Lexington and Atlanta.
Shelton’s “Friends & Heroes 2025” tour is slated to stop in Knoxville on Feb. 28, 2025. (Courtesy: Food City Center)
Grainger County, TN (WOKI) A Morristown man suspected of killing and dismembering two people in Bean Station last spring has now been indicted.
The Grainger County District Attorney’s office confirms Aaron White was indicted on August 28 on two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of abuse of a corpse.
White was arrested in connection to a double homicide that happened in May. According to investigators, White killed 49-year-old Jon Atkins and 32-year-old Deven McDaniel, whose bodies were discovered along Rocky Springs Road in Bean Station on May 25.
The DA says White’s next court appearance is set for December.
Aaron White was accused of killing two men in Grainger County before dismembering their bodies. (Courtesy: Grainger County Sheriff’s Office)
Sevier County, TN (WOKI) The Sevier County Sheriff’s Office is asking for help finding a missing man.
SCSO officials say 26-year-old Shawn Odell was reportedly last seen in Kodak Wednesday morning. The office has not released a description of Odell at this time.
Those with information are asked to call Detective Sergeant Graham Brantley at 865-868-1748.
Sweetwater, TN (WOKI) An shooting investigation is underway following a home invasion Thursday morning in Monroe County.
Officials with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office say deputies were called to a home on Brunner Road in Sweetwater early Thursday morning after the break-in, which prompted the investigation.
MCSO says a person was forced from the home before deputies arrived on the scene, adding that the person had tried to reenter the home, but was shot and killed by the homeowner.
The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the shooting.
Monroe County Sheriff’s Office officials said deputies were called to a home on Brunner Road in Sweetwater early Thursday morning after the break-in. (Courtesy: WVLT)
