Tennessee Lieutenant Governor Randy McNally survives the vote of no confidence from the state’s Republican party.
The caucus voted 19 to 7 in his favor. McNally says he’s “always been honored humbled and grateful for the support from his colleagues”.
McNally says he’s ready to finish the legislature’s work this session.
McNally has been was under scrutiny following social media comments he made on suggestive Instagram photos using his official state account.
A teen is arrested after hitting a Knoxville Police Officer while driving a stolen vehicle.
19 year-old Quben Montgomery was seen by police in that vehicle who attempted to pull him over at Pinnacle Park Apartments by parking his cruiser in front of the car and stepping out when Montgomery reportedly hit the cruiser which hit the officer.
Montgomery was charged with being a felon in possession of a handgun, aggravated assault on a first responder, evading arrest at risk of death or injury and theft.
A teen is arrested after hitting a Knoxville Police Officer while driving a stolen vehicle.
19 year-old Quben Montgomery was seen by police in that vehicle who attempted to pull him over at Pinnacle Park Apartments by parking his cruiser in front of the car and stepping out when Montgomery reportedly hit the cruiser which hit the officer.
Montgomery was charged with being a felon in possession of a handgun, aggravated assault on a first responder, evading arrest at risk of death or injury and theft.
Tennessee women’s basketball seniors Jordan Horston and Rickea Jackson have received Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention accolades, the media organization announced on Wednesday.
Horston, a 6-foot-2 guard, received that distinction for the second straight season, while Jackson, a 6-2 small forward was a first-time recipient.
A top-five finalist for the Cheryl Miller Award, Jackson paces Tennessee with 19.6 ppg. and chips in 6.2 rpg. in all games, while tallying 21.4 ppg. and 6.4 in league play this season. Horston, meanwhile, ranks second for the Lady Vols in scoring at 15.5 ppg. and leads UT in rebounding at 7.1 in all games while posting 13.9 ppg. and 7.5 rpg. vs. SEC foes.
Jackson has 16 20-point scoring efforts to her credit this season, while Horston has seven. Horston has carded eight double-doubles in 2022-23, while Jackson has produced four. Jackson has hit double-figure point totals in 30 of her 32 games, while Horston has fired in 10 or more points in 27 of 32 games completed.
Horston (16) and Jackson (16) are tied at No. 8 in career 20-point games at UT. Jackson’s total of 16 this season ranks as the ninth best single-season tally in school history.
The duo will lead No. 4 seed Tennessee into the NCAA Tournament First Round on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET, as the Lady Vols play host to No. 13 seed Saint Louis at Thompson-Boling Arena. The game will be televised on ABC.
-UT Athletics
As the pandemic-created public health emergency comes to a close, millions of Americans could soon lose coverage.
The federal government is soon going to stop auto-enrolling Medicaid recipients.
The move could leave an estimated 18 million people without coverage.
TennCare is soon going to auto-enroll Tennesseans who qualify for Medicaid.
However, if they fail to do that, they will mail people renewal forms and suggest recipients do a number of things to make sure the process is smooth.
1. Verify your address with TennCare, so you do not miss important information from TennCare. You can update your contact information online from your https://tenncareconnect.tn.gov/ account or by calling 855-259-0701. If you don’t have a TennCare Connect account, you can create one https://tenncareconnect.tn.gov/create-account and link the account to your case.
You can also manage your communications preferences by opting in for text and email alerts.
2. (Beginning in April) Find your renewal date. Your renewal date is due once per year. Find your renewal date online from your https://tenncareconnect.tn.gov/ account or by calling 855-259-0701.
3. Open and respond to all mail from TennCare. You must complete all the steps by your renewal date, or your coverage will end. There are several ways to complete a renewal form:
Online at https://tenncareconnect.tn.gov/ . If you don’t have an account yet, you can set one up now!
Call TennCare Connect for free at 855-259-0701 to renew your coverage over the phone.
In person, you can visit the Department of Human Services (DHS) in your county to drop off your paper documents or use the kiosk to complete your renewal online. To find your county office, visit the https://www.tn.gov/humanservices/for-families/supplemental-nutrition-assistance-program-snap/office-locator-family-assistance.html.
Mail your completed and signed Renewal Packet to:
TennCare Connect P.O. Box 305240 Nashville, TN 37230-5240
Fax your completed and signed Renewal Packet to 855-315-0669. Be sure to keep the page that says your fax went through.
Connect to coverage. If you are no longer eligible for TennCare, it is important to quickly get other health insurance. Ask your employer if they offer health insurance or visit https://www.healthcare.gov/ to find affordable health care coverage.
Losing Medicaid is a Qualifying Life Event, and allows people to sign up during a special enrollment period.
Officials with TennCare say the process will be over the course of a year and will start the first week of April.
Authorities are still looking for a man wanted on violation of federal probation.
64 year-old Omar Smith is believed to be in the Knoxville area and could be staying in homeless camps and is known to carry a gun.
He is 5’5″ with a medium build. If you have any information, you are asked to call Crime Stoppers at 865-215-7165.
East Tennessee Valley Crimestoppers asking for help to find two people wanted for a variety of crimes in several East Tennessee counties.
Tony and Krystal Hardin are a married couple well known to law enforcement, having a criminal history that spans over twenty years.
Charges against the couple range from Aggravated Assault, Evading arrest, Theft, vandalism, reckless driving and more. They may be in a Blue 2015 Chrysler Town and Country or a 2015 white Honda Odyssey.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crimestoppers at 865-215-7165.
Advance Knox Seeks Community Input on Transportation Projects. During what is being called Priorities Week, Knox County is launching the third and final round of community input for Advance Knox where the community is being asked to weigh in on proposed transportation projects.
There will be five in-person and two virtual meetings where attendees will be able to prioritize projects and make comments. Residents can attend any workshop convenient for them.
Meeting dates, times, and locations for in-person workshops are as follows:
Senior Santiago Vescovi and sophomore Zakai Zeigler each earned all-district honors from the USBWA and NABC, the organizations announced Tuesday.
The duo earned All-District IV honors from the USBWA and second-team All-District 20 from the NABC.
Vescovi, who earlier this month became just the fifth Vol since 2000 to earn multiple All-SEC first-team selections from the league’s coaches, is Tennessee’s team leader in scoring (12.9 ppg), minutes (32.9 mpg) and 3-point makes (83) entering the NCAA Tournament.
For the second straight year, Vescovi finished SEC regular-season play as the league leader in 3-point percentage, shooting .387 (46 of 119) from beyond the arc during conference games. He also finished second in the league in 3-point makes per game with 2.71.
On the defensive end, Vescovi finished eighth in the league with 1.7 steals per game during conference play.
The senior ranks third in Tennessee history in career made 3-pointers (274) and 29th in program history with 1,292 career points.
In his second season on Rocky Top, Zeigler continued his stellar play that made him a fan favorite as a freshman.
The second-team All-SEC selection finished conference play averaging a league-leading 6.5 assists per game with 111 total assists—29 more than the next-highest-ranking assist-maker despite having played just 16 full games and suffering a torn ACL just three minutes into the Feb. 28 game against Arkansas.
Zeigler also ranked second in the conference in assist/turnover ratio with a 2.92 mark, and defensively, ranked sixth in the league with 1.8 steals per game—which earned him his second straight SEC All-Defensive team selection.
Zeigler is one of 10 national semifinalists for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year.
Fourth-seeded Tennessee opens NCAA Tournament play Thursday in Orlando, Florida, against No. 13 seed Louisiana. Tip off is set for 9:40 p.m. ET on CBS.
-UT Athletics
The Department of Children’s Services is investigating the Principal at Campbell County High School.
WVLT reporting that Benjamin Foust is under investigation by DCS and because the investigation is ongoing, they are not able to provide details about what they are looking into.
WVLT says the school system is not aware of any investigation but DCS did confirm it.
The LaFollette Press reporting that Foust has been suspended by the school system and is being represented by an attorney.
