Latest News

An Overton County judge has handed down a 37-year prison sentence to a child rapist. Earl Junior Pike, Jr. entered a guilty plea Wednesday to the offense of Rape of a Child and Aggravated Sexual Battery. The investigation began October of 2018 when authorities received allegations that Pike committed sexual offenses against a seven-year-old female. A press release said the ... Read More »

A Putnam County inmate faces a new charge for allegedly possessing drugs inside the jail. Authorities charged Harley Rene Brown on Sunday with introduction of contraband into a penal facility. Arrest warrants indicate that officers conducted a strip search of Brown and found 14-grams of a crystal like substance. Brown remains behind bars on $2,000 bond. She arrived at the ... Read More »

A high-speed pursuit landed a Cookeville man behind bars Tuesday. The Tennessee Highway Patrol charged Noah Douglas Hall with reckless endangerment and evading arrest. Warrants indicate that the pursuit began when State Troopers clocked Hall’s vehicle going 99 mph on Interstate 40. The defendant allegedly drove between two vehicles before taking the Old Baxter Road exit and pulling into a ... Read More »

The Putnam County Regional Planning Commission continued discussions Tuesday about possibly creating a set of county zoning regulations. Commissioner Phil Wilbourn said it’s something he wants to pursue, despite the negative feedback he’s receiving. “I think we oughta have something in our hands, whether it’s one or two pages, so be it,” Wilbourn said. “I just think it’s a matter ... Read More »

Smithville authorities have arrested a man for allegedly stealing a truck from the city garage. 38-year-old David Nathan Conaway faces three counts of burglary and one count of theft of property over $1,000. Arrest warrants accuse Conaway of entering the gated area of the city garage at 3 a.m. September 14. He managed to get inside the facility after entering ... Read More »

Another Monterey store will soon be selling beer. The town’s Beer Board on Monday approved a permit to allow beer sales at the Family Dollar Store on Commercial Avenue. Mayor Bill Wiggins noted that the store’s application met all requirements to be granted a license. Family Dollar becomes the fourth business in Monterey to sell beer since voters approved a ... Read More »

The Department of Environment and Conservation has announced a 30-percent discount on winter camping at 30 state parks. A total of seven Upper Cumberland state parks will offer the discount from now until the end of February. Some of the participating parks include Edgar Evins, Cumberland Mountain, Fall Creek Falls, and Pickett Memorial. Campers can register online or by phone ... Read More »

Cookeville will consider awarding a bid on Thursday for a South Willow Avenue water improvement project. Water Quality Control Director Ronnie Kelly said the work will come before a scheduled TDOT project. “The state’s going to do a repaving of Willow from around State Street to across the interstate to Gould Drive,” Kelly said. “Sort of like we did on ... Read More »

A Cookeville man faces an arraignment hearing later this month for a first-degree murder charge. Authorities have accused 28-year-old Andrew Ray Price of fatally stabbing Kelsey Lamb on May 22. The Putnam County Grand Jury returned indictments last month charging Price with first-degree murder, aggravated assault, domestic assault, theft and evading arrest. During a court hearing this week, a judge ... Read More »

Three water tanks in Monterey will receive some updates in the near future. Consulting engineer Nathaniel Green said tank inspectors have identified a few problems with the structures. “One of the items on two tanks was that the temperature inside the top of the tank was reaching an excess of 140-degrees Fahrenheit,” Green said. “About 120-degrees is the maximum that ... Read More »