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Post by Sher on Aug 9, 2005 17:11:41 GMT -5
(CNN) -- A statewide manhunt is on in Tennessee for an escaped prisoner and his wife Tuesday after she sprung him from his armed escort in a hail of gunfire outside a courthouse in Kingston, authorities said.
One guard was shot and died from his wounds.
"There is a manhunt on for two individuals," and one or both of them may be wounded, said Kingston Police Chief Jim Washam.
Authorities are looking for George C. Hyatte, 34, and his wife, Jennifer Lyn Hyatte, 31.
Washam described George Hyatte as African-American, 5 feet 5 and 140 pounds, with black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his upper body. His wife is white, 5 feet 4 and 142 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes, he said.
The incident began about 10 a.m. as guards escorted Hyatte from the Roane Country Courthouse following a proceeding also attended by his wife, Washam said.
Washam said he did not know whether Hyatte was shackled.
As the armed corrections officers prepared to put Hyatte into a waiting van, "a dark-colored SUV appeared behind the van," Washam said. "Mr. Hyatte hollered, 'Shoot 'em!'
"She opened fire on the officers, hitting one in the abdomen," he said.
The other officer fired a shot, but the SUV sped off, stopping only to pick up Hyatte, who had run to another part of the parking lot, a witness said.
Guard Wayne Morgan was taken by helicopter to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, where he died at 11:10 a.m., said a hospital spokeswoman.
The guards were from the Morgan County Regional Corrections Facility.
Police found the abandoned blue Ford Explorer with blood on the driver's side about a quarter mile from the courthouse, Washam said.
The two "apparently then got in another vehicle," he said. Police were searching for a gold Chevrolet van witnesses said had been parked overnight near where the SUV was found.
"At this time, we're looking for them statewide," he said.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation described the vehicle as a late-model Chevrolet Venture van, gold with black trim.
The TBI said the couple may be en route to Hendersonville, where George Hyatte used to live. Hendersonville is 120 miles from Kingston.
Besides the TBI, Kingston police were being helped by the FBI, a Knox County SWAT team and the Oak Ridge Police Department.
"We'll bring these people to justice just as soon as we can," Washam said.
Hyatte escaped from county jail twice before, said Sheryl Jordan, chief deputy court clerk for Rhea County, 70 miles from Kingston. The first escape was in 1998; the second in 2002, she said.
Hyatte has been convicted of aggravated assault, aggravated burglary and burglary in the third degree, felonies dating to 1989. He was sentenced in 1998 to 36 months for the first of his prior escapes.
He began serving his latest sentence at the end of 2002 and was to have been released in July 2036.
Craig Gray told CNN affiliate WBIR-TV that he was leaving the courthouse with his 5-year-old daughter when he saw a prisoner being loaded into a van in the courthouse parking lot.
At that point, a Ford Explorer drove up, a woman at the wheel, he said.
"The Explorer pulled up, slung the door open and started firing," Gray said. "The other officer jumped in the van and come out the passenger side door and returned fire. She took off."
The SUV drove to a distant end of the lot, where the prisoner ran to meet her. "She picked him up over there and they took off," Gray said.
"This hasn't happened before," said Scott Stout, public information officer for Roane County Emergency Management Agency, referring to Kingston, a town of about 6,000 residents 32 miles west of Knoxville in eastern Tennessee.
The courthouse was locked down briefly, then reopened. Area schools remained locked down.
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Post by Sher on Aug 10, 2005 12:47:47 GMT -5
(CNN) -- A statewide manhunt is on in Tennessee for an escaped prisoner and his wife Tuesday after she sprung him from his armed escort in a hail of gunfire outside a courthouse in Kingston, authorities said. One guard was shot and died from his wounds. "There is a manhunt on for two individuals," and one or both of them may be wounded, said Kingston Police Chief Jim Washam. Authorities are looking for George C. Hyatte, 34, and his wife, Jennifer Lyn Hyatte, 31. Washam described George Hyatte as African-American, 5 feet 5 and 140 pounds, with black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his upper body. His wife is white, 5 feet 4 and 142 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes, he said. The incident began about 10 a.m. as guards escorted Hyatte from the Roane Country Courthouse following a proceeding also attended by his wife, Washam said. Washam said he did not know whether Hyatte was shackled. As the armed corrections officers prepared to put Hyatte into a waiting van, "a dark-colored SUV appeared behind the van," Washam said. "Mr. Hyatte hollered, 'Shoot 'em!' "She opened fire on the officers, hitting one in the abdomen," he said. The other officer fired a shot, but the SUV sped off, stopping only to pick up Hyatte, who had run to another part of the parking lot, a witness said. Guard Wayne Morgan was taken by helicopter to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, where he died at 11:10 a.m., said a hospital spokeswoman. The guards were from the Morgan County Regional Corrections Facility. Police found the abandoned blue Ford Explorer with blood on the driver's side about a quarter mile from the courthouse, Washam said. The two "apparently then got in another vehicle," he said. Police were searching for a gold Chevrolet van witnesses said had been parked overnight near where the SUV was found. "At this time, we're looking for them statewide," he said. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation described the vehicle as a late-model Chevrolet Venture van, gold with black trim. The TBI said the couple may be en route to Hendersonville, where George Hyatte used to live. Hendersonville is 120 miles from Kingston. Besides the TBI, Kingston police were being helped by the FBI, a Knox County SWAT team and the Oak Ridge Police Department. "We'll bring these people to justice just as soon as we can," Washam said. Hyatte escaped from county jail twice before, said Sheryl Jordan, chief deputy court clerk for Rhea County, 70 miles from Kingston. The first escape was in 1998; the second in 2002, she said. Hyatte has been convicted of aggravated assault, aggravated burglary and burglary in the third degree, felonies dating to 1989. He was sentenced in 1998 to 36 months for the first of his prior escapes. He began serving his latest sentence at the end of 2002 and was to have been released in July 2036. Craig Gray told CNN affiliate WBIR-TV that he was leaving the courthouse with his 5-year-old daughter when he saw a prisoner being loaded into a van in the courthouse parking lot. At that point, a Ford Explorer drove up, a woman at the wheel, he said. "The Explorer pulled up, slung the door open and started firing," Gray said. "The other officer jumped in the van and come out the passenger side door and returned fire. She took off." The SUV drove to a distant end of the lot, where the prisoner ran to meet her. "She picked him up over there and they took off," Gray said. "This hasn't happened before," said Scott Stout, public information officer for Roane County Emergency Management Agency, referring to Kingston, a town of about 6,000 residents 32 miles west of Knoxville in eastern Tennessee. The courthouse was locked down briefly, then reopened. Area schools remained locked down. KINGSTON, Tennessee (CNN) -- Tennessee police were alerting hospitals Wednesday to be on the lookout for a married couple who may be seeking medical attention after a deadly courthouse escape. "It was just a very brazen kind of 'Bonnie and Clyde'-type escape," said Mark Gwyn, director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. "When people are desperate and they have nothing to lose, this is what happens." On Tuesday, George C. Hyatte was on his way back to prison after a court appearance on a robbery charge. His wife, Jennifer Lyn Hyatte, drove up and fired at two corrections officers who were escorting him, said Kingston Police Chief Jim Washam. As the officers prepared to put Hyatte, 34, into a waiting van, "a dark-colored SUV appeared behind the van," Washam said. "Mr. Hyatte hollered, 'Shoot 'em!'" Jennifer Hyatte then "opened fire on the officers, hitting one in the abdomen," Washam said. The guard died from gunshot wounds, officials said. Wayne Morgan, 56, was a 28-year corrections department veteran and a husband with two children. The Hyattes drove off in the SUV, which police later found near the courthouse. The blue Ford Explorer had blood on the driver's side, which led investigators to believe that one or both of the Hyattes may be wounded. "We do believe, at some point, either George or Jennifer Hyatte will have to receive some medical attention," said Gwyn. "That's why we have all hospitals throughout the state on alert that, if someone comes in fitting George or Jennifer Hyatte's description, please call the local authorities or the TBI." Police said the couple may be traveling in a late-model gold Chevrolet Venture van with black trim that witnesses said had been parked overnight near the found SUV. The couple may be en route to Hendersonville, Tennessee, where George Hyatte once lived, the TBI said. Hendersonville is about 120 miles from Kingston. Police said George Hyatte is African-American, 5 feet 5 and 140 pounds with black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his upper body. Jennifer Hyatte, 31, is white, 5 feet 4 inches tall, 142 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes, police said. A former prison nurse, she met her husband in prison and was fired last August for having an inappropriate relationship with him, said Tennessee Department of Corrections spokesman Darrell Alley. She was caught smuggling food from a restaurant into the prison, and acknowledged to prison officials that it was for George Hyatte, Alley said. At the time, they were not married; she then called herself Jennifer Forsyth, Alley said. George Hyatte has escaped twice before from county jail, once in 1998 and again in 2002, said Sheryl Jordan, chief deputy clerk of the courthouse in Rhea County, 70 miles from Kingston. He has been convicted of aggravated assault, aggravated burglary and burglary in the third degree, felonies dating back to 1989. Proper protocol was followed for handling a prisoner with his escape record, according to Amanda Sluss, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Corrections. Hyatte was accompanied by two armed officers and was wearing handcuffs, a waist chain and leg irons, she said.
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Post by Sher on Aug 11, 2005 9:34:50 GMT -5
(CNN) -- A statewide manhunt is on in Tennessee for an escaped prisoner and his wife Tuesday after she sprung him from his armed escort in a hail of gunfire outside a courthouse in Kingston, authorities said. One guard was shot and died from his wounds. "There is a manhunt on for two individuals," and one or both of them may be wounded, said Kingston Police Chief Jim Washam. Authorities are looking for George C. Hyatte, 34, and his wife, Jennifer Lyn Hyatte, 31. Washam described George Hyatte as African-American, 5 feet 5 and 140 pounds, with black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his upper body. His wife is white, 5 feet 4 and 142 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes, he said. The incident began about 10 a.m. as guards escorted Hyatte from the Roane Country Courthouse following a proceeding also attended by his wife, Washam said. Washam said he did not know whether Hyatte was shackled. As the armed corrections officers prepared to put Hyatte into a waiting van, "a dark-colored SUV appeared behind the van," Washam said. "Mr. Hyatte hollered, 'Shoot 'em!' "She opened fire on the officers, hitting one in the abdomen," he said. The other officer fired a shot, but the SUV sped off, stopping only to pick up Hyatte, who had run to another part of the parking lot, a witness said. Guard Wayne Morgan was taken by helicopter to the University of Tennessee Medical Center in Knoxville, where he died at 11:10 a.m., said a hospital spokeswoman. The guards were from the Morgan County Regional Corrections Facility. Police found the abandoned blue Ford Explorer with blood on the driver's side about a quarter mile from the courthouse, Washam said. The two "apparently then got in another vehicle," he said. Police were searching for a gold Chevrolet van witnesses said had been parked overnight near where the SUV was found. "At this time, we're looking for them statewide," he said. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation described the vehicle as a late-model Chevrolet Venture van, gold with black trim. The TBI said the couple may be en route to Hendersonville, where George Hyatte used to live. Hendersonville is 120 miles from Kingston. Besides the TBI, Kingston police were being helped by the FBI, a Knox County SWAT team and the Oak Ridge Police Department. "We'll bring these people to justice just as soon as we can," Washam said. Hyatte escaped from county jail twice before, said Sheryl Jordan, chief deputy court clerk for Rhea County, 70 miles from Kingston. The first escape was in 1998; the second in 2002, she said. Hyatte has been convicted of aggravated assault, aggravated burglary and burglary in the third degree, felonies dating to 1989. He was sentenced in 1998 to 36 months for the first of his prior escapes. He began serving his latest sentence at the end of 2002 and was to have been released in July 2036. Craig Gray told CNN affiliate WBIR-TV that he was leaving the courthouse with his 5-year-old daughter when he saw a prisoner being loaded into a van in the courthouse parking lot. At that point, a Ford Explorer drove up, a woman at the wheel, he said. "The Explorer pulled up, slung the door open and started firing," Gray said. "The other officer jumped in the van and come out the passenger side door and returned fire. She took off." The SUV drove to a distant end of the lot, where the prisoner ran to meet her. "She picked him up over there and they took off," Gray said. "This hasn't happened before," said Scott Stout, public information officer for Roane County Emergency Management Agency, referring to Kingston, a town of about 6,000 residents 32 miles west of Knoxville in eastern Tennessee. The courthouse was locked down briefly, then reopened. Area schools remained locked down. KINGSTON, Tennessee (CNN) -- Tennessee police were alerting hospitals Wednesday to be on the lookout for a married couple who may be seeking medical attention after a deadly courthouse escape. "It was just a very brazen kind of 'Bonnie and Clyde'-type escape," said Mark Gwyn, director of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. "When people are desperate and they have nothing to lose, this is what happens." On Tuesday, George C. Hyatte was on his way back to prison after a court appearance on a robbery charge. His wife, Jennifer Lyn Hyatte, drove up and fired at two corrections officers who were escorting him, said Kingston Police Chief Jim Washam. As the officers prepared to put Hyatte, 34, into a waiting van, "a dark-colored SUV appeared behind the van," Washam said. "Mr. Hyatte hollered, 'Shoot 'em!'" Jennifer Hyatte then "opened fire on the officers, hitting one in the abdomen," Washam said. The guard died from gunshot wounds, officials said. Wayne Morgan, 56, was a 28-year corrections department veteran and a husband with two children. The Hyattes drove off in the SUV, which police later found near the courthouse. The blue Ford Explorer had blood on the driver's side, which led investigators to believe that one or both of the Hyattes may be wounded. "We do believe, at some point, either George or Jennifer Hyatte will have to receive some medical attention," said Gwyn. "That's why we have all hospitals throughout the state on alert that, if someone comes in fitting George or Jennifer Hyatte's description, please call the local authorities or the TBI." Police said the couple may be traveling in a late-model gold Chevrolet Venture van with black trim that witnesses said had been parked overnight near the found SUV. The couple may be en route to Hendersonville, Tennessee, where George Hyatte once lived, the TBI said. Hendersonville is about 120 miles from Kingston. Police said George Hyatte is African-American, 5 feet 5 and 140 pounds with black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his upper body. Jennifer Hyatte, 31, is white, 5 feet 4 inches tall, 142 pounds, with red hair and hazel eyes, police said. A former prison nurse, she met her husband in prison and was fired last August for having an inappropriate relationship with him, said Tennessee Department of Corrections spokesman Darrell Alley. She was caught smuggling food from a restaurant into the prison, and acknowledged to prison officials that it was for George Hyatte, Alley said. At the time, they were not married; she then called herself Jennifer Forsyth, Alley said. George Hyatte has escaped twice before from county jail, once in 1998 and again in 2002, said Sheryl Jordan, chief deputy clerk of the courthouse in Rhea County, 70 miles from Kingston. He has been convicted of aggravated assault, aggravated burglary and burglary in the third degree, felonies dating back to 1989. Proper protocol was followed for handling a prisoner with his escape record, according to Amanda Sluss, a spokeswoman for the Tennessee Department of Corrections. Hyatte was accompanied by two armed officers and was wearing handcuffs, a waist chain and leg irons, she said. COLUMBUS, Ohio - The couple suspected in a deadly Tennessee courthouse shooting was expected to be brought back to the state on warrants for first-degree murder on Thursday, authorities said. A tip from cabdriver Mike Wagers led police to George and Jennifer Hyatte, who were arrested without a struggle Wednesday night at a budget motel in Columbus, Ohio, authorities said. Wagers said he drove the Hyattes about 115 miles from Erlanger, Ky., to Columbus, and dropped them off at a budget motel. The fare was $185, he told The Associated Press. Jennifer Hyatte is accused of ambushing two prison guards Tuesday as they were leading her husband — a convicted robber — from a hearing in Kingston, Tenn., fatally shooting one before the couple sped away, authorities said. Wagers said he didn’t make the connection with the killing until he returned to Kentucky and a friend urged him to call the police. Authorities had announced that the couple’s van had been found in Erlanger. “I was at home relaxing, playing video games, when I heard I might be the one,” he said. He already had been dubious about the couple’s Amway story “because, to be honest, they weren’t very pushy about their product.” “The cover story they gave me didn’t really seem to wash too much,” Wagers told CBS’ “The Early Show.” “I could kinda see through that. But I had no indication that these guys were really dangerous or they were on the run.” 300-mile manhunt The Hyattes were arrested at the America’s Best Value Inn in Columbus after at least 25 officers surrounded their room, ending a more than 300-mile manhunt, authorities said. When police finally tracked the couple down at the motel, Deputy U.S. Marshal Nikki Ralston called their second-floor room and told them they were surrounded. “A female answered the phone,” Ralston said. “And I said, ’Hey, Jennifer.’ She said, ’Yes,’ and I knew it was her.” “I said you need to get George, both of you need to exit the hotel room and follow the directions of the officers who will be to your immediate right,” Ralston said. Motel guest Robin Penn, who was watching from across the parking lot, said Jennifer Hyatte was limping as she left the room with her hands up. George Hyatte then came out with his shirt pulled over his head, walked backward toward the stairwell, got on his knees and was handcuffed. “They really didn’t show any emotion at all,” Penn said. Inside the couple’s motel room, cans of Mountain Dew and Hawaiian Punch littered the night table, and bags of takeout food wrappers were on a desk. One of the two mattresses was pushed halfway off the box spring. Authorities said they also recovered weapons. George Hyatte was taken to the Franklin County jail, said John Bolen, a supervisor for the U.S. Marshals Service in Columbus. Jennifer Hyatte was treated for a bullet wound to the leg, then taken to the jail early Thursday, police said. Police believe she was hit by return gunfire from one of the two guards escorting her husband Tuesday. Blood in the motel Earlier Wednesday, outside a motel in Erlanger, authorities had tracked down a van the couple was believed to have used. The couple was gone, but authorities knew then that they were getting close. Blood had been found in the motel room, and an employee at a nearby restaurant told federal agents she had given directions that day to a couple she later recognized as the fugitives. George Hyatte, 34, had been in court to plead guilty to a robbery charge before the escape Tuesday. He was two years into a 35-year sentence for robbery and assault. The escape was at least the fifth time he had gotten away from law enforcement officials between 1990 and 2002. Jennifer Hyatte, 31, met her husband as a prison nurse and was fired last year for sneaking food to him. A few months later, she got permission from the warden to marry Hyatte, who has a long and violent criminal record. Her ex-husband, Eli Gourdin, told the Deseret Morning News of Salt Lake City that he last spoke with Jennifer Hyatte on Monday when she told him how excited she was that George was going to be released. “We don’t know George, we can’t judge George ...,” Gourdin’s current wife, Katie, told the paper for Thursday’s editions. “We only know what Jennifer’s told us. She’s very much in love with him.” Eli Gourdin said Jennifer Hyatte had custody of their three children, the oldest of whom is 12. The children have been staying with him for the summer, he said.
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Post by Sher on Nov 9, 2005 8:22:40 GMT -5
JACKSBORO, Tennessee -- A teenager shot and killed an assistant principal and seriously wounded two other administrators at a high school, officials said. The student was arrested.
"I don't know what he was thinking or what his motives were," said Sheriff Ron McClellan.
Campbell County High School assistant principal Ken Bruce was shot in the chest just after 2 p.m. yesterday and died soon after in hospital.
The suspect, Ken Bartley Jr., 15, was grazed in the hand by a bullet fired from his own .22-calibre handgun during a scuffle with the administrators and an unidentified teacher who helped wrestle the gun away, the sheriff's department said.
No other students were injured.
Principal Gary Seale was shot in the lower abdomen and assistant principal Jim Pierce was shot in the chest. Seale was in serious condition and Pierce in critical condition in hospital.
School will be closed the rest of the week and counsellors will be available to help students and teachers on Monday, schools director Judy Blevins said.
"This situation could have gotten much worse. It did not because our staff followed the (emergency) plan in place," said Mark Wells, of the Campbell County board of education.
Authorities were unsure if the suspect would be charged as a juvenile or an adult. He was being held in a juvenile detention facility.
The 1,400-student school, located about 50 km northwest of Knoxville, was locked down after the shooting. Students said Seale was able to get to the school intercom and order the lockdown after being shot.
"Knowing him, he probably did," the sheriff said. "He is a tough fellow and a great individual. That sounds like him. Whoever did it, did the right thing."
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