Morristown, TN (WOKI) UPDATE: In the latest update from the Morristown Police Department, Brayan Lopez was reportedly found safe Friday afternoon.
ORIGINAL STORY: Investigators with the Morristown Police Department are asking for help to find a missing teen.
Officials are searching for 16-year-old Brayan Lopez who was reported missing by his parents Friday morning. He was last seen at home Thursday night around 11:00 p.m.
Investigators and family are concerned for his safety.
Brayan is approximately 5’9” tall and weighs approximately 150 pounds. He has brown hair and brown eyes. Please see the attached photo.
Brayan was last seen wearing black shorts and a black or grey shirt. He has a heart tattoo or drawing on his forearm.
The MPD is asking anyone with information concerning Brayan Lopez’s location to contact police immediately through the dispatch center at 423-585-270.
Scott County, TN (WOKI) A former Scott County Sheriff’s Office Deputy pleads guilty Thursday to an assault charge but will not see the inside of a jail cell.
Officials with the Oneida Police Department say 27-year-old Rachel Thomas was taken into custody and charged with assault in July of last year after she punched her mother. OPD says Thomas’s mother was trying to stop her from leaving the house while drunk.
Thomas received judicial diversion for the charge, which means she won’t spend any time in jail and her record will stay clean.
Officials add that Thomas is no longer with the department.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) Knoxville historian and civil rights activist Robert ‘Bob’ Booker has died.
Booker, considered a powerful voice not just in Knoxville but across the state, was an author, historian, civil rights activist and even a state legislator.
He grew up in East Knoxville, graduating from Austin High School before joining the military. Booker spent three years in the Army stationed in France and England. He graduated from Knoxville College on the G.I Bill in 1962 with a degree in education. At the college, he spent two terms as president of the student body and organized sit-ins to advance desegregation in Knoxville.
Booker died Thursday, February 22, 2024; he was 88.
Nashville, TN (WOKI) Cell phones could soon be banned in Tennessee classrooms.
A new bill, HB 2758/SB 2809, making its way through the General Assembly would prohibit students from displaying, using or accessing an electronic device, like a cell phone, during instructional time unless that device is authorized or provided by the school for instructional purposes.
“As introduced, requires LEAs and public charter schools to prohibit students from displaying, using, or accessing an electronic device during instructional time unless the electronic device is authorized, or provided to the student, by the LEA or public charter school for instructional purposes; requires local boards of education and public charter school governing bodies to develop and adopt a policy to implement the prohibition.”
The measure was introduced back in January by Representative Rebecca Alexander, R-Jonesborough, and Senator Jon Lundberg, R-Bristol. Since then, it’s passed on two considerations in the Senate and has been recommended for passing by the K through 12 Subcommittee to the Education Administration.
Nashville, TN (WOKI) A new bill could see Tennessee implementing digital identification cards and driver’s licenses.
The bill, HB 2792/SB 2661, aims to establish and implement a secure digital license system for Tennesseans. Digital driver licenses and photo identification licenses would be issued upon request.
The measure was introduced by Rep. Mary Littleton, R-Dickson, and Sen. Dawn White, R-Murfreesboro, on Jan. 31. Since then, it’s been assigned and discussed in committees and subcommittees.
The Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security says a program is in the works for Tennesseans to use a digital version of a state ID and/or driver’s license.
No timeline has been given for the program’s launch.
Knox County leaders are looking to honor the life of fallen U.S. Army Specialist Jeremy Daniel Evans.
Evans was killed in a rollover crash during a military training exercise in Alaska back in October.
He was a Gibbs High School graduate and now county Commission wants to rename part of East Emory Road to Specialist Jeremy Daniel Evans Memorial Highway.
Early morning widespread wireless service interruptions for many AT&T customers are ending as many are now seeing their service return.
Several East Tennessee E 911 agencies confirming the nationwide outage with Jefferson County and Knox County saying their E 911 centers are operational.
Verizon and T-Mobile customers are also reporting service issues but in connection with calling A T & T customers.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Coming off a slow night offensively in Tuesday’s win over UNC Asheville, No. 7/9 Tennessee had the bats working at full capacity in Wednesday’s 16-0 run-rule drubbing of ETSU at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Vols (3-1) finished with 13 base hits and blasted four home runs, three of which came in an 11-run third inning that busted open a 1-0 game.
Freshman infielder Dean Curley got the starting nod at shortstop and burst onto the scene in his UT debut, going 2-for-3 with a walk, three runs scored and three RBIs, all of which came on a three-run homer in that aforementioned 11-run third inning. The California native also added a triple in the sixth inning.
Two other Vols finished with multiple hits on the night as Hunter Ensley led the way with a 3-for-3 day, scoring two runs and driving in a pair of runs. Christian Moore also scored two runs and had two RBIs on two hits from the leadoff spot.
Making his UT debut, redshirt junior Colby Backus provided an exclamation point on the win with a three-run blast in the bottom of the sixth inning, his first-career homer at the Division I level.
While the bats were on fire, the pitching was just as dominant, holding the Buccaneers (3-1) to just one hit on the day, a bloop single with two outs by Nick Iannantone in the sixth inning to break up the no-hit bid.
Tennessee used five different pitchers to stifle the ETSU lineup, three of which were true freshmen in Matthew Dallas, Dylan Loy and Brayden Sharp. Dallas got the start and tossed three no-hit frames with just one walk and three strikeouts before handing the ball off to Loy, who struck out two in one scoreless inning to record his first-career win.
Marcus Phillips, Sharp and JJ Garcia pitched the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, respectively, to close out the victory.
UP NEXT: The Vols host UAlbany for a three-game set starting on Friday at 4:30 p.m. All three games will be streamed on the SEC Network+ and ESPN app and feature a live audio stream on UTSports.com and the UT Athletics app.
STAT OF THE GAME: The Vols exploded for 11 runs in the bottom of the third inning, their most in an inning since plating 15 in the bottom of the fifth during a 23-1 victory over Alabama A&M almost exactly one year ago to the day (Feb. 22, 2023). UT recorded 10 of its 13 total hits in the inning, five of which went for extra bases, and tallied 10 of the 11 runs with two outs.
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) One family pet is dead, but the residents are safe following a house fire Wednesday afternoon in South Knoxville.
Officials with the Knoxville Fire Department say firefighters arrived shortly after 3:00 p.m. to a house at 2230 Knollcrest Lane to find fire coming from the front corner of the home. Six people, two adults and four children, were home at the time but were able to evacuate without injury.
(Courtesy: KFD)
Officials say one pet dog was unable to escape and succumbed to its injuries. No other injuries were reported, and fire officials have not yet determined the cause of the blaze.
