UPDATE: KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knoxville Police Crime Scene Technician Cody Lawson remains hospitalized after undergoing surgery for injuries sustained during an overnight shooting on Jones Street.
According to Knoxville Police, Lawson, a member of the department’s Forensics Unit since February 2023, was struck in the arm and suffered significant injuries when gunfire erupted at the scene of an earlier shooting investigation.
Preliminary findings indicate 35-year-old Joey Rudd fired multiple rounds at a Knoxville Police officer who encountered him in a wooded area while canvassing the scene. During the gunfire, Lawson was struck and injured.
Police said no KPD officers fired shots during either the initial encounter with Rudd or his subsequent arrest.
Rudd has been charged with four counts of attempted first-degree murder and four counts of employing a firearm during the commission of a felony. Investigators said additional charges are pending.
KPD Chief Paul Noel said the incident highlights the dangers officers and support staff face every day.
“This incident demonstrates the substantial risk our officers and staff take every day and every shift. It is only by the grace of God that Cody or one of our officers was not killed today, and I am profoundly grateful for that,” Noel said. “Nonetheless, Cody has a long road of recovery ahead. We will support her, her family and her colleagues in the Forensics Unit however we can along the way, and we ask that the community uplift Cody in the days, weeks and months ahead.”
Lawson continues to recover as the investigation remains ongoing.
ORIGINAL STORY; Knoxville, TN (WOKI) – A Knoxville Police Department Crime Scene Technician was wounded while processing a shooting scene in South Knoxville early Monday morning, and the suspect is now facing multiple attempted murder charges.
According to the Knoxville Police Department, officers responded around 11 p.m. Sunday, July 12, to reports of shots fired into an occupied home in the 2300 block of Jones Street. No injuries were reported in that incident.
Just after midnight, officers and members of KPD’s Forensics Unit were processing the scene and searching for evidence when police say 35-year-old Joey Rudd opened fire from a nearby wooded area. A Crime Scene Technician was struck by the gunfire and was removed from the area before being transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Officers converged on the woods following the shooting and found Rudd hiding nearby. Police say he surrendered and was taken into custody without further incident.
Following an investigation, Rudd was charged with four counts of attempted first-degree murder and four counts of employing a firearm during the commission of a felony.
The investigation remains active, and KPD says additional information will be released as it becomes available.
Source: Knoxville Police Department
