Knoxville, TN (WOKI) Longtime football coach Monte Kiffin has died.
During his six decade career, Kiffin coached with eight NFL teams and seven universities, including the University of Tennessee. In 2009, he was an assistant coach for the Vols under his son Lane Kiffin.
Monte helped Nebraska win back-to-back national titles in 1970 and 1971. He also lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a Super Bowl win in 2002.
According to his family, Kiffin passed away peacefully Thursday at his home in Oxford, Mississippi; he was 84.
In 2009, he was an assistant coach for the Vols under his son Lane Kiffin. (Courtesy: WVLT)
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) An investigation is underway following a deadly crash Thursday afternoon on I-40.
Knoxville Police Department officials say the crash happened around 4:15 p.m. on I-40 West in the Cedar Springs area near Pellissippi Parkway.
KPD says the driver of a white SUV slowed down due to traffic and was rear-ended by a black pickup truck. Two other vehicles were struck after the initial collision, according to officials.
The driver of the SUV, an adult man, was pronounced dead at the scene, and the driver of the pickup truck sustained minor injuries.
No other injuries were reported.
The Knoxville Police Department described the crash as “serious.”
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) The suspect in a deadly Knoxville shooting has been found dead in Florida.
Knoxville Police Department officials providing the update say 40-year-old Kevin Matthews was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound Thursday at a hotel in Jacksonville.
KPD says prior to locating Matthews, the U.S. Marshal Service had tracked him across multiple states; officials say Matthews shot himself as USMS personnel approached the hotel room where he was located.
Matthews was the suspect in a shooting that killed Zachery Herrera and John Goosie at The Pint House on Merchant Drive on July 2.
Another man, Stephen Davis, was charged in connection to the shooting; he is facing aggravated assault and parole violation charges.
Kevin Matthews, 40, was the suspect in a shooting that killed two people at the Pint House on Merchant Drive. (Courtesy: KPD)
Knoxville, TN (WOKI / WVLT) A former punter for the University of Tennessee who went on to play in the NFL has died.
Neil Clabo played at Farragut and UT before moving on to the NFL where he where he spent three years with the Minnesota Vikings before retiring after the 1977 season.
According to his family, Clabo passed away Wednesday morning at the age of 71 after a battle with Alzheimer’s.
“Neil truly enjoyed his time here on earth. He loved his friends and family immensely and would give you the shirt off his back,” Neil’s sister, Jill, said.
Arrangements for Clabo have not been announced.
Neil Clabo passed away Wednesday morning at the age of 71 after a battle with Alzheimer’s, according to his family. (Courtesy: WVLT)
Lafourche Parish, LA (WOKI) A suspect in a nearly 40-year-old Louisiana cold case has been arrested in East Tennessee.
Officials with the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office say deputies helped Louisiana authorities Wednesday arrest Judith “Judy” Weiser.
Weiser and Russell Lee are charged in the murder of 22-year-old Paula Boudreaux back in 1986. Her remains were found a few years later outside of New Orleans; she was unidentified until last year.
Lee was taken into custody in Missouri on Tuesday.
According to the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office, once Boudreaux’s remains were identified, Lee and Weiser became persons of interest after detectives revealed Lee was in relationships with both Boudreaux and Weiser at the time of the murder.
Investigators determined that Lee and Weiser killed Boudreaux, dismembered her body and dumped the remains in Slidell, a town of less than 30,000 outside of New Orleans, according to the sheriff’s office.
Both Lee and Weiser were charged with second-degree murder and obstruction of justice with bail set at $1.1 million each. Police in Louisiana said they will be taken and booked into the Lafourche Parish Correctional Complex.
The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office helped Louisiana police take Judith Weiser into custody on Wednesday. (Courtesy: CCSO)
Early voting starts tomorrow (Friday) for this year’s August 1st election.
This is the election to vote for the U.S. Senate and House races along with State Senators and Representatives.
You can vote in person at several early voting locations across Knox County.
State/Federal Primary, County General, Town of Farragut Election
Early Voting begins Friday, July 12 Election Day: Thursday, August 1
NEW EARLY VOTING LOCATIONS FARRAGUT/WEST KNOX Knox County Election Commission – west office 109 Lovell Heights Road (behind Synergy Car Wash on Kingston Pike)
EAST KNOX COUNTY Carter Elementary School 8455 Strawberry Plains Pike
GIBBS/CORRYTON Gibbs Ruritan Club 7827 Tazewell Pike
The Knoxville Fire Department is investigating an early morning fire in Fountain City.
Crews called to the 2300 block of Fair Drive and the resident told firefighters his dog woke him up barking then his alarm went off but he didn’t smell any smoke.
KFD crews discovered a small fire in an office in the basement of the home and quickly put it out.
The home has suffered moderate smoke damage and some fire and water damage in the basement.
No Injuries were reported. The American Red Cross is assisting the occupant.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) A Tazewell pain clinic owner is sentenced to more than four years behind bars for his role in operating a pill mill in both Tennessee and Florida.
According to District Attorney Charme Allen, 63-year-old Clyde Tipton was sentenced to 50 months in prison Monday; he will be on supervised release for three years when he gets out.
He is the last person to be sentenced in the pill mill case, which resulted in about 140 people receiving federal criminal convictions.
As part of Tipton’s plea agreement, Allen says he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to launder money and two counts of conspiracy to defraud the United States and pay healthcare kickbacks.
There were four clinics in and around Knoxville, each of which was a pill mill, that were connected to several other locations in Hollywood, Florida. (Credit: Frankly Media)
Morristown, TN (WOKI) A double murder suspect at the center of a manhunt out of Grainger County is now in custody.
Officials with the U.S. Marshals Service announcing Wednesday afternoon that 34-year-old Aaron White was reportedly found at his Morristown home.
White is a suspect in 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 U.S. Marshals, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and East Tennessee Valley Crime Stoppers had all offered rewards for information leading to White’s arrest.
U.S. Marshals Service officials Wednesday confirmed that the reward will go unawarded.
Morristown man charged in Grainger County double murder caught, U.S. Marshals say. (Courtesy: TBI)
