Sevierville, TN (WOKI) A former Sevier County golf coach who worked at Northview Academy in Kodak has been charged with statutory rape.
Sevierville Police Department officials say 38 year-old Jennifer Paige Blanchard was arrested in Seymour on Tuesday, the charge stemming from her time working at the school.
Police report the victim, now an adult, said Blanchard sexually assaulted them when they were a student in 2017.
The investigation, which began in June, is ongoing.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) If you’re worried about having enough money to pay utility bills this winter, you’re not alone, and there are programs out there to help.
The “Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program,” or LIHEAP can help pay up to $800 on your utility bill, one time per year.
Senior citizens struggling to keep faulty heaters going can also get help to repair or replace them according to experts with the Knoxville-Knox County Social Services.
Those experts say the demand for assistance has increased dramatically already this heating season.
“We’re just seeing more people in need right now,” said Director for Knoxville-Knox County Community Action Committee Social Services Misty Goodwin. “Rent is skyrocketing in Knoxville right now. People are not able to keep up with that. We see and hear from a lot of single parents who are raising their children who are just not able to make ends meet every month.”
Goodwin said so many people are in need right now, they’re seeing double to triple the number of applications they normally do this time of year. She said with their year starting on October 1, they typically have about 1,000 to 1,500 applications by now; but this year, they already have over 3,000 applications.
Some good news . . . Goodwin said the department has extra funding this year, and they’re hoping it will be enough.
If you need help getting started, Goodwin said to call social services at (865) 546-3500.
Donations from the public, monetary or in the form of heaters for seniors, are also welcome.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) A 40-year-old Oliver Springs man is facing charges including aggravated kidnapping and domestic assault following a shooting in a parking garage at East Tennessee Children’s Hospital.
The incident occurred Wednesday night, November 1. Matthew Green was reportedly shot in the leg by his son after allegedly assaulting his wife.
He was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
His son had given Green multiple warnings to stop the assault on his mom before the shooting.
Charges against Green were already pending out of Oak Ridge, and he has a warrant out of Roane County for aggravated assault.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) A Powell caretaker is charged Wednesday, November 1 with elder abuse and domestic assault after fighting with a man under her care.
According to a police report, officers responding to a domestic call at a home on Cate Road found the victim who reportedly told them that Kathy McCroskey and he had gotten into a fight. During that fight, McCroskey tried to hit the man, until he locked himself inside his bedroom and called police.
Police also found signs consistent with a struggle inside the home and injuries to the victim’s arms and face.
Clinton, TN (WOKI) A Clinch River Community School student was taken into custody Tuesday, October 31 for bringing a track and field starter pistol to school.
Officials with the Anderson County Schools report that the student was removed from the school within five minutes of administration learning that the individual had the pistol.
The student was not identified.
“While this incident is not something we ever want to have happen in our schools, we are extremely thankful for the way that our employees as well as the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office responded to this threat,” said Director of Schools Dr. Tim Parrott.
The situation at the school is all clear.
Austin-East Magnet High School is temporarily placed on lockdown as officers investigate a report that a weapon was on school grounds.
Knoxville Police responding yesterday but a weapon was not found, it was determined that the report was not credible.
No word on suspects or any charges in this incident.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol is investigating a serious crash in Scott County involving a deputy who hit a Fire truck.
It happened yesterday (Tuesday )on U.S. Highway 27 near Wolf Creek Road in Robbins. Deputy Michael Hanson was involved in a head-on collision with a Whitley City fire truck. Scott County’s Sheriff says the deputy was on duty and lost control of the cruiser, smashing into the fire truck. Deputy Hanson was taken to the hospital to be treated for a broken leg.
An investigation is underway following a fatal shooting in East Knoxville.
Deputies with the Knox County Sheriff’s Office called to a shooting in the 8500 block of Old Rutledge Pike last (Tuesday) night and found a man suffering from multiple gunshot wounds who was pronounced dead on the scene.
The suspect was taken into custody by KCSO without incident.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) UPDATE: A suspect is taken into custody by the Knox County Sheriff’s Office Tuesday, October 31 after an extended chase in the Inskip area.
KCSO officials say 30-year-old David Lamar Joseph was found and arrested after abandoning his vehicle near the Knox Landing Apartments on E. Inskip Drive.
KCSO says deputies responding to the Walmart on Walker Springs Road on the report of car burglaries tried to detain Joseph who fled the scene in a car, prompting a brief patrol car chase and subsequent search by helicopter.
Joseph faces a slew of charges to include evading arrest, and possession of fentanyl, cocaine and a gun and has two outstanding warrants for violation of probation on narcotics charges.
ORIGINAL STORY: A suspect is in custody following a chase Tuesday afternoon, October 31 by Knox County Sheriff’s Office deputies along Clinton Highway.
KCSO officials say their search for a “person of interest” began as a chase around noon on Clinton Highway. They report that the suspect was taken into custody at Knox Landing Apartments on Inskip Drive without incident but that Inskip Elementary was on lockdown due to law enforcement activity in the area.
KCSO says its Organized Crime Unit is in charge of the scene and investigation.
