Local News
The spirit coordinator for Austin Peay’s cheerleading team has left. It comes after an investigation into the team’s involvement in hazing and underage drinking. The university says it has finished its investigation into the allegations and those involved will be disciplined. A new spirit coordinator is expected to be hired and then the team will once again be restored by the athletics department.
Authorities in Hendersonville are identifying a woman killed during last Friday’s storms. Officials say 81-year-old Joan Kay Tutor, known as Kay to loved ones, died after being struck by a falling pine tree. Kay’s pastor says she was walking across the street into a neighbor’s yard to help them move fallen branches when the accident occurred. Sumner County EMA Director Ken Weidner says the area was hit especially hard by the severe weather, seeing wind gusts up to 70 miles per hour.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is using federal grants to make progress on a backlog of rape kits in the state. Officials sent five-hundred-50 kits to a Florida DNA lab to be processed yesterday. While the private firm is handling the initial analysis of genetic material, the results must be reviewed by TBI scientists under federal guidelines. The bureau says they plan to outsource the analysis of up to one-thousand rape kits by the end of the year if they can secure adequate funding.
Police in Clarksville are searching for a vehicle that was caught on camera near the scene of a deadly shooting last Friday. Authorities report a dark-colored SUV is connected to the death of a 14-year-old male. The juvenile was shot in the chest at a home on Oakmont Drive around 6:30 p.m., according to officials. Anyone who may have information related to the incident is asked to contact Clarksville Montgomery County Crime Stoppers.
The Tennessee House is discussing a bill that deals with shelters during storms. The legislation would make it clear that churches and other charitable organizations would not be liable for something that happens to someone seeking refuge from a storm at their location. There is a bill in place, but this would clarify the position that churches don’t need to worry about liability when they act as shelters.