Tennessee News Archives

Amy Serna joined hundreds others on Thanksgiving night outside a Tennessee Toys R Us ready to battle for some Midnight Black Friday bargains.

The Knoxville trial of a third suspect in the torture slaying of a young couple is set to begin Tuesday.

Market Center Management Co. on today announced plans to build and operate a $250 million Nashville Medical Trade Center on the site of the city's existing convention center.

Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen is expected to make an announcement Monday regarding an investment linked to health care in downtown Nashville.

A jail in eastern Tennessee is seeing the number of federal inmates kept there shrinking, resulting in falling revenues for the facility.

Investigators in eastern Tennessee are still puzzling over the death of a woman found shot to death in a home in Knoxville 22 years ago.

From Staff Reports Originally published: November 23. 2009 3:01AM Last modified: November 22.

MEMPHIS - With rising unemployment among those infected with HIV, a growing number of uninsured, and the increasing cost of antiretroviral medication, Tennessee's AIDS Drug Assistance Program has reached capacity and forced officials to establish a waiting list for services.

Checks from the federal government to hundreds of Tennesseans really were in the mail - but were returned as undeliverable.

Tennessee House Speaker Kent Williams says there's no consensus among lawmakers about whether to call a special legislative session next month to delay a workers' compensation law.

Gov. Phil Bredesen will not consider clemency for a Nashville man set to be executed early next Wednesday.

Tennessee Rep. Larry Turner is dead at the age of 69. House Speaker Pro Tempore Lois DeBerry told The Associated Press she was informed by the Memphis Democrat's wife that he died Friday morning after a long battle with an unspecified illness.

NEW YORK The Associated Press has named six news editors to oversee expanded multistate territories and has assigned four interim regional photo editors as part of a restructuring of U.S. news management to ensure the continuing strength of the news cooperative's state reports.

Now that the holidays are officially here, with this being Thanksgiving week, I keep getting calls and e-mails from people who want to know about discounts on Gaylord Opryland tickets to see the Radio City Rockettes and tickets to ICE! featuring A Charlie Brown Christmas by Charles Schulz.

Gov. Phil Bredesen says putting together next year's state budget will be the most difficult of his eight years in office.

State prison officials say two southern Middle Tennessee inmates escaped, burglarized a convenience store and then returned on their own.

A man who has won repeated delays in his trial for the 2002 dismemberment slayings of a teenage couple in East Tennessee must defend himself in the death penalty case, after the state's high court denied his application to appeal.

A package for Tennessee's governor turned out not too jolly for staffers at the Capitol.

Now that Gov. Phil Bredesen has heard a series of proposals for severe budget cuts at state agencies, he's preparing for what he calls the "painful" task of crafting a spending plan.

Millions of Americans got an early jump on their Thanksgiving travel Wednesday, with many opting to drive or take trains and buses instead of shelling out more money for flights amid a sour economy still hitting household budgets hard.

Now the difficult decisions begin. State officials have suggested releasing nonviolent felons and closing group homes for children.

Gov. Phil Bredesen is seeking federal farm assistance for 16 Tennessee counties hurt by excessive rain and flooding in September and last month.

A federal judge is sentencing a man who firebombed a mosque in Tennessee to 14 years in prison.

Today's Highlight in History: Today's Highlight in History: On Nov. 24, 1859, British naturalist Charles Darwin published "On the Origin of Species," which explained his theory of evolution by means of natural selection.

Today is Tuesday, Nov. 24, the 328th day of 2009. There are 37 days left in the year.

MURFREESBORO - Former Tennessee Education Commissioner Lana Seivers will become the new dean of the College of Education at Middle Tennessee State University.

NEW YORK Carol Hudler has been named president and publisher of The Tennessean in Nashville.

Nashville police have arrested the man suspected of dragging an officer with his car last week.

A federal judge is sentencing a man who firebombed a mosque in central Tennessee to 14 years in prison.Senior U.S. District Court Judge Robert L. Echols sentenced 23-year-old Michael Corey Golden on Monday.

Tennessee Children's Services Commissioner Viola Miller says proposed additional cuts by Gov.

Here's Gov. Phil Bredesen complaining about those terrible unfunded federal mandates again.

Gov. Phil Bredesen kicked off budget hearings Monday for a state spending plan that the Democrat said he anticipates will be the toughest to assemble since he came into office in 2003.

In what could be a tough call for many, General Motors Co. has offered work at a plant just outside Lansing to 840 of the 2,000 workers who will lose their jobs when GM closes its factory this week in Spring Hill, Tenn., about a half hour south of Nashville.

Law enforcement officers in Tennessee are targeting rural areas for motorists and passengers not wearing seat belts.

Gov. Phil Bredesen has announced that an Aeronautics Grant in the amount of $10,000 has been approved for the Murfreesboro Municipal Airport.

See Rock City and you can see 1 million lights. Rock City Gardens is preparing for its 15th annual Enchanted Garden of Lights beginning Friday and running through Jan.

A veteran from Tennessee who admitted sending child pornography on the Internet and asking two Kentucky women to help set up sexual encounters with children has been sentenced to 12 1/2 years in prison.

WASHINGTON -- Sixteen Tennessee postal stations remain on the chopping block, according to a newly revised list of possible closings released on Friday by the U.S. Postal Service.

Salaried employees at DENSO Manufacturing Tennessee Inc. will have their pay cuts restored in January.

Students attending Tennessee's public colleges and universities can plan on a tuition hike of at least 5 percent next fall, plus fewer course offerings, as a result of further cuts in state appropriations for the campuses, higher education officials said today.

A judge in Middle Tennessee ordered all state child welfare workers in his county to show proof of recent home visits and disclose their case loads.

Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett says he is redoubling efforts to remove dead people from voter registration rolls around the state.

The lawyer for a former Knox County motel employee charged in the 2008 murder of a young Alabama woman says he was illegally detained.

Phil Bredesen says another tax hike to shore up Tennessee's unemployment trust fund appears unavoidable.

Tennessee's consumer-based tax system is fourth most regressive among the states, meaning that lower-income families here pay a higher share of their income in state and local taxes than do more affluent households, according to a new national study released today.

A solar design and installation company says it has put in service the largest solar electric system of its kind in the state.

The family of a 9-year-old Middle Tennessee boy said he died from complications from the swine flu.

TennCare officials say they will be forced to cut some enrollee benefits if Gov.

Tennessee first-year coach Lane Kiffin offered an explanation for those questioning his recent claim about his football team's spotless police record.

A spending bill for veterans programs and military construction projects approved by the Senate could bring more than $100 million to Tennessee.

Actress Kristen Stewart wanted to make the right fashion statement when attending a screening of "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" in Knoxville.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates gathered with mourners on a cold, windy morning in a tiny northeast Tennessee community to bury Army Spc.

State health officials said more than 33,000 calls have been received at a toll-free line created more than three years ago to help Tennesseans quit smoking.

Gov. Phil Bredesen says he won't choose sides in the Democratic gubernatorial primary contest.

Alabama corrections officials say a work release inmate who escaped from the Decatur center has been found in Tennessee but is refusing to sign an extradition waiver.

MTSUa s Black History Month Committee is accepting nominations for unsung heroes to be honored at the annual Unity Luncheon, which is slated for Feb.

Tennessee has plenty of legendary people and places, but a new exhibit at the Tennessee State Library uncovers the truth about the state's best-known myths and tales.

Call for times, clinic locations and who is eligible. Availability is subject to change.

Contractors clearing the rock slide blocking Interstate 40 near Tennessee plan to begin hauling away debris today, the N.C. Department of Transportation said.

The top two systems on June's list of the Top 500 supercomputers swapped places on the latest list, released Monday.

As state agencies start to unveil their plans to slash spending today, viewers can follow the proceedings online.

Cancer survivors in Middle Tennessee will offer a symbol of hope today to other people battling the disease.

The Albert Gore Research Center at MTSU extends an invitation to preview the opening of the records of the Tennessee Folklore Society during the editorship of the late Dr.

"When the nation's economy shows a strong improvement, Tennessee will likely follow, but there's usually a good distance of time between national and state economic trends." October collections were $31.7 million less than the budgeted estimate.

A report in the USA Today - which is often to newspapers what Highlights magazine is to homework - has a story tracking the ever expanding salaries for athletic programs at the expense of academics.

State Rep. Stacey Campfield was escorted from a University of Tennessee football game following a dispute with police over a Halloween mask.

Gov. Phil Bredesen and other elected officials are dedicating a new underground meeting hall at the governor's mansion in Nashville.

Photo Courtesy: Getty Images The White House released the following prepared remarks of the President's speech today the Fort Hood Memorial Service: "We come together filled with sorrow for the thirteen Americans that we have lost; with gratitude for the lives that they led; and with a determination to honor them through the work we carry on.

Three University of Tennessee freshmen players charged with attempted armed robbery will not play with the Volunteers at Mississippi.

Republican Pat Marsh won the election. Republicans are trying to gain support for an antiabortion-rights amendment to the state constitution.

Gov. Phil Bredesen will honor Tennessee's veterans Tuesday with a special ceremony at War Memorial Plaza.

Two Shreveport apartment complexes, two in Lafayette and one in West Monroe must pay to make themselves accessible to disabled people as part of the settlement of a federal anti-discrimination lawsuit.

Stripping down to bikinis, cuddling strangers in railway stations and dragging buses with their hair, thousands of people across the globe attempted to break curious world records Thursday.

When Ricky Butler went to sleep on a rural, East Tennessee roadside, he didn't have to worry about comfort but apparently he was feeling insecure.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the new Hemlock Semiconductor plant in Clarksville means new jobs for middle Tennesseans looking for work.

Three freshman Tennessee football players are charged with an attempted armed robbery.

Gov. Phil Bredesen said Tuesday that Tennesseans should expect many of his administration's investments in green energy to fail, but he urged economic development officials to promote the state's efforts, saying those that work will lay the foundation for future growth.

Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen says he's open to measures such as furloughs and contract freezes to soften state employee layoffs.

As a tribute to our statea s military veterans, the Tennessee Department of State plans to dedicate the 2009-2010 Tennessee Blue Book to all the Tennesseans who have been killed in combat during the War on Terror.

Investigators have charged an East Tennessee juvenile with attempting to kill his mother by stabbing her and forcing her to ingest toxic substances.

Two rock slides in East Tennessee have closed US Highway 64 in both directions and traffic is being rerouted.

Tennessee general fund tax collections have missed projections by $88 million through the first quarter of the budget year.

Gov. Phil Bredesen said Tuesday that a private investment deal is back on track following discussions between the company and the head of a legislative panel that questioned a state-backed biofuels initiative in East Tennessee.

A Davidson County Judge has ruled TN Sec. of State Tre Hargett can use paper ballot machines as required by the state's Tennessee Voter Confidence Act .

'We still don't have a final bill in the Senate - it's being drafted behind closed doors - but for the sake of argument we'll use the Senate Finance Committee's health care reform bill, which is expected to be the driving force behind a final product.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has announced emergency bridge repairs are needed on I-81 over 11E in Greene County .

MEMPHIS - Memphis has fired coach Tommy West, saying the school wants to do in a different direction after the season.

As the gubernatorial election results from Virginia rolled in Tuesday night, I swear I sensed Murfreesboro shiver.

NASHVILLE- Tennessee tourists and locals alike know to visit Graceland, Dollywood and the Ryman theater, but what about the authentic etouffee at Papa Boudreaux's Cajun Cafe in Santa Fe, or the blood-stained floors of the Lotz House, which once served as a Civil War hospital in Franklin? These and many other lesser-known sites will be highlighted ...

The way local governments in Tennessee finance new schools, roads and other public projects would require more disclosure and fewer risky transactions under draft rules expected to be rolled out next week.

David Oatney explains why that is : One of the reasons that Tennessee can still boast that someone from a very ordinary middle class background can run for office is that loopholes such as the ability to create personal political action committees that can donate more than $2,000 to a candidate still exist.

Go hear music in Leiper's Fork, the community where stars such as Wynonna Judd and Michael McDonald live.

The Justice Department has settled its lawsuit in a Tennessee case involving whether housing complexes discriminated on the basis of disability.

Local governments in Tennessee are spending millions of dollars annually to lobby other government bodies in Nashville and Washington, according to an upcoming report from a group that tracks public spending in the state.

One piece of equipment TDOT will test this winter is a 14 foot snow plow, which has the ability to clear an entire travel lane in one pass.

Shelby , Davidson , Knox , and Hamilton 24 inmates were convicted in East Tennessee 22 inmates were convicted in Middle Tennessee 43 inmates were convicted in West Tennessee Oldest on Death Row: John Henretta, 2/12/43, 66 years old Convicted in Bradley County Youngest Female on Death Row: Christa Pike, 3/10/76, 33 years old Convicted in Knox County ...

The tax man is looking for more than 6,200 workers in Tennessee and Georgia. But the Internal Revenue Service isn't trying to collect more taxes.

When the nation's 28 Democratic governors were asked to send a letter to congressional leaders last month expressing their support for health care reform, seven refused to sign the letter and even some who did complained that the pending reform plans could hit them with budget-busting expenses.

Gov. Phil Bredesen branded a legislative attack on the BioFuels Initiative he launched two years ago as "ridiculous" and "outrageous" Thursday and said it endangers an unannounced "very large investment in East Tennessee." "I'm more than irritated about it, I'm mad about it," Bredesen told reporters at a news conference when asked about the Fiscal ...

Westbound traffic on Interstate 24 is still partially blocked and the area is expected to be cleared by 5 p.m. Interstate 24 westbound, near the Briley Parkway exit, remains shut down due to a chemical spill that happened at 10 a.m. Motorists should avoid I-24 until it re-opens at 2 p.m., according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.

A crash on Interstate 65 has slowed traffic coming into Nashville from the south.

Lawmakers said they feel they were duped into spending $70 million of taxpayer money on a plant that isn't living up to its promises.

An additional $10,000 is being added to the reward money being offered to you for information leading to the arrest and conviction of 64-year-old Jim Mullins' murderer.

" U.S. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn., said today in remarks on the Senate floor that the results of Tuesday's elections in Virginia and New Jersey reflect Americans' strong concerns with many of the current policy debates in Washington, including health care.

While faced with a continuing state budget crunch that likely will mean laying off more state employees, Tennessee legislators have received a $14-a-day increase in their compensation for expenses.

Starting next year, lottery players will have two high-jackpot lottery games to play in Tennessee.

Labor Commissioner Jim Neeley today announced the state of Tennessee has received $12,055,644 in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Labor to enhance the state's Trade Adjustment Assistance Program.

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The Internal Revenue Service says about 70 percent of Tennesseans have filed their tax returns electronically in 2009.

Gov. Phil Bredesen said the influx of federal stimulus money has "concealed" the extent of Tennessee's budget woes and he is asking state departments to plan for six percent spending cuts when he holds budget hearings later this month.

Supporters of blocking public access to the names and addresses of Tennesseans with handgun carry permits appear to have a hard time keeping their hands off the records.

The U.S. Geological Survey reports three small earthquakes within hours of each other in East Tennessee, including a magnitude 3.0 earthquake that shook enough for people to notice Sunday.

The attorney for a woman charged with kidnapping a Tennessee newborn said Monday his client has tried to commit suicide since she's been locked up and that certain medications for her mental health are being withheld.

An Army Special Forces soldier was arrested Monday after a pair of hunters found about 100 pounds of explosives outside his home near Fort Campbell.

State health officials know at any given time how many ventilators, masks, antiviral medications and other flu-related resources are available in Tennessee.

Some Tennessee Republican lawmakers are trying to put the state at the forefront of a national state sovereignty movement, but one Democratic leader says their effort is 'lunacy.' In a meeting last month that was first reported by The Commercial Appeal, a recently created legislative committee voted to send a letter to other state Legislatures ...

This weekend, don't forget to set your clocks back one hour. And, a new study shows Tennesseans could certainly use the extra sleep.

A dispute over the future of a congregation in the Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee is heading to court.

An increase in suicides in Tennessee has officials thinking of new ways to reach specific demographics.

Letalvis Cobbins, the first defendant convicted in the Christian-Newsom murders, is imprisoned apart from other inmates in West Tennessee.