Vonore, TN (WOKI) A former KCSO lieutenant is charged with DUI following a traffic stop in Monroe County.
Officials say Charles Seth Miller quit his job at the Roger D. Wilson Detention Facility on August 16th, the same day he was arrested in Vonore.
A state trooper says he found 22 empty or partially empty cans of alcoholic beverages inside Miller’s car during a traffic stop on Highway 441.
According to an arrest warrant, Miller also reportedly had a handgun in the car at the time of the arrest, and the trooper struggled to extricate him from the vehicle.
Miller is facing charges of driving under the influence, implied consent, possessing a handgun while under the influence, resisting arrest and open container offenses.
Charles Seth Miller was stopped on U.S. Highway 441 in Vonore by the Tennessee Highway Patrol for erratic driving, the warrants said. (Frankly Media)
Nashville, TN (WOKI / WVLT) Tennessee has unveiled new designs for drivers licenses and ID cards.
The new design features Tennessee’s state capitol and flag. It also has waves and patterns printed in very fine lines which cannot be scanned or easily reproduced (see photo below).
Officials said the new credentials are made with a sturdy polycarbonate composition. They include elaborate overlapping of data and graphics and laser-engraved elements that will show if the document has been altered or is fraudulent.
Additionally, the back of the card contains a machine-readable barcode with applicable classes, endorsements, and restrictions. A mini ghost image repeated from the photograph is encoded as an element for automated validation to help reduce identity theft.
State officials say this does not mean you have to go out and get the drivers license right now.
“The current one that [you] have is valid until the expiration date. If [you] do come in to get a renewal, or a replacement or a duplicate, then [you] will get the new license” said Tennessee Department of Homeland Security Spokesperson Marlo Mason speaking with WOKI news partner WVLT.
In addition to a new design for licenses and IDs, new self-service kiosks are being rolled out to reduce wait times at Driver Service Centers.
“We are excited about the added flexibility and convenience the new self-service kiosks will provide for Tennesseans,” said TDOSHS Commissioner Jeff Long. “Citizens can complete many Driver Services transactions at one of these new kiosks, which will help reduce wait times at Driver Services Centers.”
In addition to new a new design for licenses and IDs, new self-service kiosks are being rolled out to reduce wait times at Driver Service Centers. (Courtesy: TDOSHS)
(WOKI) There is a rare super blue moon set to grace the skies this week.
NASA defines the term supermoon “as either a new or full moon that happens when the moon is within 90% of perigee, its closest approach to Earth.”
The moon will be closest to Earth for this orbit Wednesday morning at 11:55. According to NASA, the moon will appear full for three days, from Tuesday to Friday morning.
“About 25% of all full moons are supermoons, but only 3% of full moons are blue moons,” according to NASA.
The last time two full supermoons graced the sky in the same month was in 2018. It won’t happen again until 2037.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) The Knoxville Police Department and East Tennessee Valley Crime Stoppers are working to apprehend those responsible for metal thefts in Knoxville.
The first is a bronze statue of two children reading stolen from Tank Strickland Park on Asheville Highway. Officials with East Tennessee Valley Crime Stoppers say it could be sold almost anywhere, even on Facebook Marketplace.
Knox County officials say a monument was stolen from a Knoxville park (Courtesy: Knox County)
“They could have it taken to be melted down, taken to some flea market or something out there,” said Stacy Payne with East Tennessee Valley Crime Stoppers. “It could even show up on Marketplace. Keep an eye out. If you see something like that, it should stick out to you.”
Police are also looking looking for a suspect in another metal theft; a man was seen on camera robbing a Kingston Pike pawn shop, taking thousands of dollars in gold and silver.
(Courtesy: KPD)
“You’re looking at seven to eight thousand dollars worth of coin. He’s got it out there somewhere. Someone knows some information,” Payne said.
(Courtesy: KPD)
If you have any information on these thefts, you are asked to call Crime Stoppers. You can also report tips here.
Anderson County, TN (WOKI) An Oak Ridge man was found guilty Monday, August 19 of several counts in a grisly Anderson County rape and murder case.
Sean Finnegan faced several charges, including first-degree murder, rape and abuse of a corpse.
The charges stem from a 2020 investigation, during which police said Finnegan and his girlfriend, Rebecca Dishman, held 36-year-old Jennifer Paxton inside their home, torturing and raping her for days before finally killing her.
The jury reconvenes Tuesday morning at 10:00 a.m. for the sentencing phase of the trial; Finnegan could face the death penalty.
Sean Finnegan, 56 (Courtesy: Anderson County Sheriff’s Office)
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) Human remains found two decades ago in Knoxville have finally been identified.
The Knox County Regional Forensic Center identifying the remains Monday morning as Brian A. Sanderson.
Sanderson was found in 2003 near I-275 at the Woodlawn entrance ramp.
Knoxville Police responded and a team from UT assisted in the recovery at the time.
In 2008, investigators submitted a DNA sample to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, or NamUs, which is a national database for missing or unidentified persons.
The Forensic Center took the body in 2017, determining the remains were those of a white man around five feet tall between 40 and 60 years old.
In 2022, KCRFC got in touch with Othram, a company that tests DNA to help in cold cases.
“We work diligently every day to try to identify every decedent and connect them with their next of kin, regardless of how long they’ve been here,” said Chris Thomas, the center’s chief administrative officer. “We want the families to have closure.”
Othram matched the remains to Sanderson.
The case goes back to November of 2003, when the Knoxville Police Department began investigating after someone noticed a body on I-275 at the Woodlawn entrance ramp. (Brian Sanderson, circa 1967. Photo credit: Knox Co. Regional Forensic Center)
Cumberland County, TN (WOKI) UPDATE: A woman missing from Cumberland County has been found dead.
Officials with The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation report 69-year-old Roxanne Gallagher was found dead Saturday afternoon in Lake Cumberland in Kentucky.
TBI had issued a Silver Alert for Gallagher earlier this month after she was last seen in late June on Dogwood Road.
ORIGINAL STORY: The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation issued a Silver Alert Friday afternoon for a missing Cumberland County woman.
TBI officials say 69-year-old Roxanne Gallagher was last seen in late June on Dogwood Road wearing a blue shirt and jeans. They say she has a medical condition that may impair her ability to return home without assistance.
Gallagher is described as being 5′2′ tall and 130 pounds with blue eyes and blonde hair.
Roxanne Gallagher, 69 (Courtesy: TBI)
TBI adds that Gallagher may be driving a maroon 2000 Buick LaSabre with TN license plate BGR-9782. Anyone with information is asked to call the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office at 931-484-6176 or TBI at 1-800-TBI-FIND.
(Courtesy:TBI)TBI said 69-year-old Roxanne Gallagher was found dead Saturday afternoon in Lake Cumberland in Kentucky. (Courtesy: TBI)
