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The Daily Times
Dates set in case of man charged with killing deputy
A Blount County Circuit Court judge has set important court dates in the case of Kenneth Wayne DeHart Jr., the Alcoa man charged with the death of Blount County Sheriff’s Deputy Greg McCowan. Legal teams on both sides of the issue won’t meet to pick a date for a trial until Dec. 13. A hearing to determine whether prosecutors will seek punishments such as the death penalty or life without parole is scheduled for Oct. 11. ...
Blount school board approves nearly $1 million for capital projects
The Blount County Board of Education on Thursday, April 4, approved spending nearly $1 million on capital projects, prompting one member to remark on the district’s efforts to keep aging buildings operating. With voice votes, the board approved: • A $347,800 contract with HSC LLC for replacing heating, ventilation and air conditioning controls at Eagleton College and Career Academy; ...
Resilient: Turnaround Achievement Awards celebrate rising student
In the past they may have been failing all their classes. They might have been the loudmouth acting out or the student so withdrawn they never spoke. Friday morning, April 5, they were the center of a celebration at the Capitol Theatre in Maryville honoring the new paths they have chosen. The 2024 Turnaround Achievement Awards honored students from public middle and high schools, and the family members, teachers, coaches, pastors and others who supported them through tough journeys. The annual breakfast event is sponsored...
Christy Martin: Forgotten buttercup women
Searching for information on women in the early settlement period of our area is a daunting task. There are few documented accounts of them. They were productive in childbearing and expanded the population in each successive generation in Blount County. The women kept the body and soul together of their families. If you go in search of information about them, you will find very little. Their lives were difficult. For women in the 1700s and 1800s the number one cause of death was related to...
Fatal accident in Walland
A 65-year-old Florida woman and an 83-year-old Tennessee man were killed in a crash on April 4 at the intersection of U.S. 321 and West Miller Cove Road. According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol’s preliminary report, the vehicle was traveling westbound on U.S. 321 when it ran off the road, striking a rock and two trees and caught fire. Blount County Fire Protection District responded with seven trucks and reported...
Livestream for solar eclipse offered by Adams Publishing Group
Adams Publishing Group is providing a livestream of Monday's solar eclipse. The stream will begin at 1 p.m. and will last until 4 p.m. To view the livestream, visit https://www.thedailytimes.com/eclipse/ or click on the "Eclipse News & Livestream" ad on our website at thedailytimes.com
TDOT lists Blount road projects
The Tennessee Department of Transportation included four Blount County road projects in its construction report for April 4-10. Alcoa Highway between W. Hunt Road and North Hall Road: On April 7, motorists should be alert for possible lane closures between the hours of 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. as crews relocate I.T.S devices. Pellissippi Parkway ramps to Alcoa Highway North and South: On April 8 through April 12, motorists should...
Father and son arrested after reported fight with Blount County Sheriff's deputies
A Walland father and son face numerous felony charges after a reported fight with Blount County Sheriff’s deputies. Joseph Shane Todd, 38, Cold Springs Road, was charged with criminal conspiracy, assault against a first responder as well as offenses including resisting arrest. Gage Hunter Todd, his son, 18, Cold Springs Road, has been charged with resisting arrest and assault against a first responder. According to the police report, a BCSO...
Southern charm: New medispa opens in historic home in Maryville
A 1920s Craftsman-style house in Maryville is now home to one of Maryville’s newest small businesses. Southern Belle Aesthetics held its ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday morning at 806 Broyles Ave., Maryville. Tammi Ford with Blount Partnership welcomed them to the neighborhood. Owner Katie Buckner is a Blount County native, graduating from William Blount High School. She said her business officially opened last August in a smaller space just down...
‘A dream come true:’ Greenback Heritage Museum Grand Reopening set for Saturday
After several years of planning, fundraising, hard work and delays, the new Greenback Heritage Museum is officially opening its doors with a ribbon cutting Saturday, April 6. Greenback Mayor Dewayne Birchfield will cut the ribbon at 1 p.m. Visitors will be invited to tour the museum from 1 to 5 p.m., and on Tuesday, April 9, the museum will be open during regular hours, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The museum has been closed since Jan. 2 while volunteers moved the holdings from the former museum location next door and set up displays in the new, much...
A timeline of the DeHart case thus far
If everything goes according plan, Kenneth DeHart Jr. will appear in Blount County Circuit Court for the first time today, April 5. The 42-year-old Alcoa man, who is accused of shooting and killing Blount County Sheriff’s deputy Greg McCowan during a traffic stop, faces an indictment of 21 charges and is scheduled to appear at 9 a.m. What to know Ryan Desmond, Blount County district attorney general, told The Daily...
Settlements close dispute between Blount Memorial Hospital, Blount County
Blount Memorial Hospital and the Blount County government have settled litigation and a lengthy controversy over hospital ownership and governance. Blount Memorial and the county have agreed to end a legal fight that started when the hospital filed a state lawsuit against the government in 2022. That fight, which came amid county attempts to change the makeup of the hospital board and hospital efforts to sell certain properties, escalated into federal litigation in June 2023, when Blount Memorial brought a lawsuit against the county and...
Pellissippi State Community College launches trades partnerships with Blount employers
Both students and one of the biggest industries in Blount County could benefit from new partnerships meant to merge work in the skilled trades with higher education. Working in manufacturing, a field that employs thousands of people across the county, and pursuing a college degree are often viewed as mutually exclusive acts. One new program, announced Wednesday, April 3, would instead pair college education with work for some of Blount County’s largest employers. ...
Transition center plans forwarded to Blount County Board of Commissioners
Three new transition facilities to serve people with substance abuse and mental health conditions could begin operations in the next year, with further county approval. With an 8-0 vote during a called meeting Tuesday, April 2, the Blount County CARES (Corrections and Recovery Saves) Committee sent to the county commission for approval plans to convey up to 5 acres of county property in the Bungalow community to the nonprofit McNabb Center, which has obtained state funding to build the facilities. Five members of the committee...
North Cusick lane shift date moved
The planned temporary narrowing of North Cusick Street to two lanes has been moved to April 11. Beginning at the Korean War Memorial Bridge and ending at Hannum Street, all traffic will be shifted to the northbound side of North Cusick Street, with one lane in each direction. The main entrance to the Blount County Public Library off North Cusick Street will be limited to a right turn only to enter and to exit. This lane shift is expected to be in effect for one day only while the Maryville Water and Sewer Department repair a failing sewer pipe. For more information call the Maryville Engineering and Public Works Department or the Water and Sewer Department at 865-273-3300.
APD seeks leads in vandalism case
The Alcoa Police Department is asking the public for information regarding an ongoing vandalism case at the Ardmore Apartments site. Investigators say five juveniles are the primary suspects. According to a release from APD, officers initially responded to the site on Ardmore Alcoa Way Monday, April 1 after construction workers found signs of vandalism in multiple buildings. Damage included destroyed appliances and light fixtures, flooding through the floors of multiple apartments and paints on carpets, hardwood floors, walls and drains. ...
Great Smoky Mountains National Park to host eclipse viewing locations
On Monday, April 8, a total solar eclipse will be visible across a swath of the United States stretching from Texas to Maine. Great Smoky Mountains National Park lies outside the path of totality but will experience an 86 to 87% obstruction of the sun during the event. In the national park, the moon will begin its intersection of the sun's orbit at 1:49 p.m., the obstruction will reach its maximum extent at 3:08 p.m. and the event will conclude at 4:23 p.m. ...
DeHart faces 21 charges in Circuit Court
Kenneth Wayne DeHart Jr. now faces 21 charges ahead of his first appearance in Blount County Circuit Court. The charges, which include felonies and misdemeanors, range from first-degree murder to a traffic infraction. A Blount County grand jury handed down an indictment on DeHart Monday, April 1 — weeks after TBI special agents charged him with fatally shooting Blount County Sheriff’s Deputy Greg McCowan and injuring fellow Deputy Shelby Eggers during a Feb. 8 traffic stop. The 42-year-old Alcoa man remained at large for five...
Retiring Maryville College art professor Gombert honored with alumni exhibition
An alumni art exhibition Monday, April 1, at Maryville College honored art professor Carl Gombert, who is retiring at the end of this academic year. Professor emeritus Mark Hall and design professor Adrienne Schwarte arranged the exhibition, with 30 of Gombert's former students invited to show their works in order to honor their mentor. Gombert’s “Last Lecture” will take place at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 17, in the Harold and Jean Lambert Recital Hall of the Clayton Center for the Arts, on the MC campus. A reception will follow in the William Baxter Lee III Foyer. Both events are free and open to the public. Gombert also will deliver a portion of the May 3 baccalaureate sermon, which also is open to the public.
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The Daily Times, an award-winning daily newspaper in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, has served Blount County, Tennessee, readers since 1883. The Daily Times is a family-owned newspaper based in Maryville, Tennessee, near Knoxville, providing quality news and information to the communities it serves, with an emphasis on local news in the Blount County area.
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