ETSU Officials Seeking $500,000 in State Funding for Prescription Drug Abuse Research
An East Tennessee lawmaker is trying to get more research funding for East Tennessee State University’s Center for Prescription Drug Abuse Treatment and Prevention. ETSU graduate Rep. Gary Hicks, R-Rogersville, filed an amendment to the appropriations bill requesting $500,000 from the state “for the sole purpose of funding to support research for the center to help combat the opioid epidemic in the region and state.” On Thursday, ETSU President Brian Noland said if the fundin
2 Insurers in Tennessee Reduce Opioid Prescriptions
Knoxville News Sentinel USA TODAY NETWORK - TENNESSEE Two of the state’s largest insurers say they’ve made significant reductions in the number of opioid drugs prescribed. In February, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee reported a 6 percent decrease in the number of opioid prescriptions per plan member, per month. And Cigna announced last week it’s reduced opioid prescriptions overall by 25 percent — a year earlier than it had originally planned. Cigna set the goal of reducing
House Panel OKs, Advances Medical Cannabis Bill
Over the objections of law enforcement and health officials, a second House committee approved a bill Wednesday that would legally allow some Tennesseans to use medical cannabis. The measure, sponsored by Rep. Jeremy Faison, RCrosby, would give those suffering from roughly a dozen maladies a legal defense if they are arrested and prosecuted for having cannabis, provided they have a doctor’s note prescribing the product. The House Criminal Justice Committee advanced the legisl
Jury Deems Heroin Supplier Guilty in Fatal Overdose of West Knoxville Woman
A jury on Thursday convicted a drug dealer of second-degree murder for selling to a middleman heroin that proved deadly for a West Knoxville woman. A jury in Knox County Criminal Court on Thursday deemed Kenyon Reynolds, 43, criminally responsible for the July 2015 heroin overdose death of Jessica Lyday, 30. In addition to the second-degree murder conviction, Reynolds also was found guilty of related charges including possession of heroin within 1,000 feet of Rocky Hill Eleme
As Opioid Death Toll Keeps Growing, New Local Group Offers Support for Those Left Behind
The website of the Office of the District Attorney General has a real-time tracker for suspected overdose deaths in Knox County. “Right now, we are losing 20-30 Knox Countians ... monthly, leaving 20-30 families behind that don’t know where to turn or what to do,” said Katie Allison, who lost her son Henry Granju in 2010. “A lot of people may not want to talk to someone they know or their clergy,” said Allison. “But people need a safe, private place to talk about their loved
Man Charged in Fatal Overdose Confesses
An alleged heroin dealer accused in the fatal overdose of a West Knoxville woman insisted on taking the witness stand Wednesday against his attorney’s advice and, at times tearful and other times yelling, confessed to the lion’s share of the allegations against him. “I want to clear the record,” Kenyon Reynolds told jurors soon after taking to the witness stand in Knox County Criminal Court Wednesday. “I want to be truthful. I want to get it all out … I want to clear it up. A
DA: Drug Dealer Convicted in Woman's Overdose Death
A Knoxville man will spend at least three decades behind bars after being convicted in the death of a woman who died of a drug overdose. A jury convicted Kenyon Demario Reynolds, 43, of Second Degree Murder, Sale and Delivery of Heroin in a Drug Free School Zone, Possession with Intent to Sell or Deliver Heroin in a Drug Free School Zone, Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Dangerous Felony, and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon. According to prosecutors, Knoxvil
Sheriff Candidates Tough on Opioid Abuse
Knoxville News Sentinel USA TODAY NETWORK TENNESSEE The politically charged 2018 election cycle may have started months ago, but Tuesday night’s Knox County Sheriff candidate forum was the first time campaign signs met campaign shirts and two candidates went back and forth debating in earnest. The crowd for Lee Tramel and Tom Spangler filled the public meeting room of the still-new Knoxville Public Works Center. Early voting to determine who will replace term-limited Sheriff
Knoxville 'Drug Den' Ordered Closed under Nuisance Law
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) - The Knox County District Attorney General's Office and the Knoxville Police Department on Thursday closed a home it called a "haven for drug use and drug distribution" that it says was the scene of two overdoses. The home at 1617 Fay Street was ordered closed until the state nuisance law. According to Gen. Charme Allen's office, one person overdosed and died at the home last July, and another person overdosed in October, but EMS was able to revive th
As Opioid Death Toll Keeps Growing, New Local Group Offers Support for Those Left Behind
The website of the Office of the District Attorney General has a real-time tracker for suspected overdose deaths in Knox County. “Right now, we are losing 20-30 Knox Countians ... monthly, leaving 20-30 families behind that don’t know where to turn or what to do,” said Katie Allison, who lost her son Henry Granju in 2010. “A lot of people may not want to talk to someone they know or their clergy,” said Allison. “But people need a safe, private place to talk about their loved