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President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the Palace Hotel during the United Nations General Assembly, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
AssociatedPress
North Korea

North Korean leader Kim called Trump a what? A 'dotard'

Dotard is a translation of a Korean word, “neukdari,” which is a derogatory reference to an old person.

Updated Today at 11:19 AM
Criminal Court Judge Lisa Rice
bcampbell
homicide

Decade old mental health records inadmissible in Johnson City murder trial

Ten-year-old mental health records of a man gunned down by a neighbor last year won’t be admissible at trial, but a judge still could allow more recent documents to say the victim was violent.

Updated Today at 8:51 AM
Tennessee gubernatorial candidate and House Speaker Beth Harwell speaks Thursday to the Johnson City Press editorial board.
nbaker
Tennessee Governor Race

Gubernatorial candidate Harwell: Juvenile justice reform will likely be issue for next governor

Tennessee House Speaker Beth Harwell may carry over her work on a legislative task force examining juvenile justice reform into the governor’s mansion should she win voters’ approval next year.

Updated Yesterday at 11:21 PM
Tennessee Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe speaks at Thursday's breakfast forum at The Bramble in downtown Erwin
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Tennessee Economic and Community Development

State economic development commissioner comes to breakfast in Erwin

Tennessee Economic and Community Development Commissioner Bob Rolfe paid his first official visit to Erwin on Thursday as guest speaker for a breakfast forum hosted by the North East Tennessee Regional Partnership and Joint Economic Development Board of Unicoi County.

Updated Yesterday at 11:20 PM
Hands On! Executive Director Andy Marquart speaks to Johnson City commissioners during Thursday's meeting. The commission approved purchasing the Hands On! downtown building for $500,000.
zvance
Johnson City Commission

City Commission caps busy meeting with $762,500 in real estate purchases

Johnson City commissioners unanimously approved two real estate purchases totaling $762,500 during Thursday’s monthly meeting.

Updated Yesterday at 11:18 PM
Andrew Heyward, left, and Jeremy Lewis
javento
ETSU Football

$15 cab ride costs ETSU two players; Heyward, Lewis suspended for game vs. Mercer

A $15 cab ride will cost the the East Tennessee State football team two players, including a defensive starter, when it plays host to Mercer on Saturday afternoon.

Updated Yesterday at 10:07 PM
Covington waived preliminary hearing in Sessions Court.
jthompson
Carter County Criminal Court

Covington murder trial scheduled for September 2018

ELIZABETHTON — The first-degree murder trial for Demetrius Deshawn Covington, 28, has been scheduled for one  year from now.

Updated Yesterday at 9:35 PM
Rusty Barnett is chairman of the Carter County Commission and a reader on two of Hampton Elementary Schools bedtime story videos.
jthompson
Carter County School Board

Carter schools providing bedtime stories online

ELIZABETHTON — The Carter County School System has placed additional emphasis on reading for the past two years and math for this year. On Thursday, the Board of Education was briefed on two innovative programs.

Updated Yesterday at 8:51 PM
FILE - In this April 1, 2015 file photo, former New England Patriots NFL football player Aaron Hernandez is led into the courtroom at Bristol County Superior Court in Fall River, Mass., for his murder trial in the 2013 killing of Odin Lloyd. Hernandez's lawyer said Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017, the former New England Patriots tight end's brain showed severe signs of the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy. (AP Photo/Brian Snyder, Pool, File)
AssociatedPress
Boston

Aaron Hernandez had severe CTE; daughter sues NFL, Pats

Former New England Patriots star Aaron Hernandez had a severe case of the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy, his lawyer said on Thursday in announcing a lawsuit against the NFL and the team for hiding the true dangers of the sport.

Updated Yesterday at 8:15 PM
Joshua A. White
not logged in
crime

Johnson City police: Man struggled with cops during car theft arrest

A man struggled with police Wednesday as they arrested him for stealing a vehicle, Johnson City police said in a news release.

Updated Yesterday at 8:11 PM
Jose Juan Buckles Jr.
JCP
crime

Unicoi man cashed same check twice, Johnson City police say

A Unicoi man successfully cashed the same insurance check twice — once online and again at a Johnson City check cashing service — resulting in his arrest Thursday, police said in a news release.

Updated Yesterday at 8:08 PM
President Donald Trump listens during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the Palace Hotel during the United Nations General Assembly, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017, in New York. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
AssociatedPress
United States government

Trump adds economic action to North Korea military threats

President Donald Trump added economic action to his fiery military threats against North Korea on Thursday, authorizing stiffer new sanctions in response to the Koreans’ nuclear weapons advances. He said China was imposing major banking sanctions, too, but there was no immediate confirmation from the North’s most important trading partner.

Updated Yesterday at 6:34 PM
FILE - In this Sept. 9, 2014 file photo, a poster offering a reward for information in the disappearance of Holly Bobo, is displayed in a store window in Parsons, Tenn. The case against Zachary Adams, a man charged with kidnapping, raping and killing Bobo is “absolutely full of holes” and based on “non-evidence,” a defense attorney said Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017. Jennifer Thompson delivered closing arguments Thursday in the trial of Adams in Savannah. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)
AssociatedPress
Christopher Swift

Attorney says man is innocent of kidnapping, killing student

The case against a man charged with kidnapping, raping and killing a Tennessee nursing student who disappeared from her family’s rural home six years ago is “absolutely full of holes” and based on “non-evidence,” a defense attorney said Thursday.

Updated Yesterday at 6:32 PM
Ronald Lynn Hudson
not logged in
crime

Police: Armed man set fire to Kingsport apartment, refused to leave

A knife-wielding city man has been arrested for allegedly threatening to stab residents of Ballis Tourist Home, setting fire to an apartment, then refusing to come out of the burning room.

Yesterday at 3:24 PM
A woman covers herself with a plastic bag as she makes her way to work as Hurricane Maria approaches the coast of Bavaro, Dominican Republic, Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2017. (AP Photo/Tatiana Fernandez)
AssociatedPress
Hurricane Maria

A stunned Puerto Rico seeks to rebuild after Hurricane Maria

The hurricane was still dumping rain overnight Wednesday in Puerto Rico, where crumbled red roof tiles lay scattered across many roads, and curious residents sidestepped and ducked under dozens of black power lines still swaying in heavy winds. But they posed no danger: Maria caused an island-wide power outage, with officials unable to say when electricity would return.

Yesterday at 1:56 PM