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A Fentress County man convicted of vehicular homicide and vehicular assault must serve his time in prison. The Tennessee Appellate Court upheld Johnny David Key’s eight and four-year concurrent sentences for a June, 2016 accident. His vehicle collided with a woman killing her and injuring another person. Key argued his clean record should have factored into his sentencing, making him ... Read More »

The Tennessee Corrections Institute has re-certified the DeKalb County Jail for another year. This month’s decision followed the county’s agreement to develop a plan of action for addressing deficiencies. As part of the plan, the county must comply with the state’s request to form an adhoc committee to begin discussions on meeting needs at the jail. That committee meets January ... Read More »

The Monterey Law Committee has recommended an ordinance preventing residents from leaving dogs outside for more than 12 hours. Vice Mayor Starlett Wessels said enforcement of the rule would be left up to neighbors. “Nobody is going to have a stop watch. But if I’ve got an animal behind my house that I see perpetually chained then I have the ... Read More »

The UCHRA has found some solutions for its struggling nutrition program. Mark Farley is the Executive Director of the UCHRA. He said the nutrition program deficit continues to decrease as more county senior centers begin serving hot meals. “Not only are the seniors getting a good meal, but we’re seeing those senior centers being benefited because of it,” Farley said. ... Read More »

There’s a new natural area to explore in the Upper Cumberland’s diverse outdoors. The Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area acquired 16.7 acres of land, which includes the Double Arch tract. Nature Conservancy director Gabby Lynch said this is a significant addition. “It’s called ‘Double Arch’ because there’s a sandstone arch that comes out of the ground that’s ... Read More »

A massive renovation project at a Cookeville public housing complex will wrap up next month. Chris Cassetty is the Director of Operations for Highlands Residential Services. He said crews have completed about 85-percent of the work at Walnut Village. “We have 80 total units over there and we have completely renovated and moved tenants back into 68 of the 80,” ... Read More »

The Tennessee Department of Agriculture announced the discovery of Asian Longhorned ticks in Putnam county. Agricultural University of Tennessee Extension agent Wayne Key said the foreign ticks could make people sick. “The thing about these ticks is, outside of the United States, the ticks has been shown to carry anaplasmosis and a couple of other viruses,” Key said. “As of ... Read More »

A Pickett County native will soon open a new medical center in Byrdstown. Mayor Sam Gibson said Dr. James Thompkins has decided to build the 15,000 square foot facility on West Main Street. “They purchased land and started from scratch,” Gibson said. “They’ve done the dirt work and now the building is going up. You give them a couple more ... Read More »

White County’s new Findlay Elementary School officially opens January 6th. Director of White County Schools Kurt Dronebarger said this facility will help more than just the elementary students. “It really has built kinda three buildings for one for us,” Dronebarger said. “We get a brand new state of the art elementary school that we’re very proud of, we get to ... Read More »

Smithville Police have charged a caregiver with stealing a debit card from a one of her elderly patients. 47-year-old Natasha Gail Judkins faces a charge of theft of property over $1,000. Officials said her husband, 51 year old Shayne Allen Judkins, faces the same charge after the couple allegedly used the card to make purchases for themselves. A warrant accuses ... Read More »