Woman killed in motel; 2 held
CROSSVILLE, Tenn. - Authorities in Crossville have arrested two men in the death of a woman at a motel.
According to WSMV-TV in Nashville, investigators said Paula Brenda Sue Selby, 41, of Crossville, was found dead in a room at a Budget Inn shortly before 8 p.m. Tuesday. Police said she had head injuries.
Authorities charged Travis Allen Brumbalough, 26, with first-degree murder and Franklin Dewey Adcox, 65, with evidence tampering.
Both men were held in jail in lieu of bond.
Landslide work to begin soon
GATLINBURG, Tenn. - Work to stabilize a landslide that knocked out about 200 feet of U.S. 441 through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park could begin as early as next week.
Park officials and the Federal Highways Administration this week assessed the damage to Newfound Gap Road that occurred when heavy rains caused a landslide on Jan. 16. The park said in a news release Wednesday that the first phase will include stabilization, removal of debris from the work area and creating a path for construction vehicles to access the slide.
U.S. 441 is the major highway over the mountains between Gatlinburg and Cherokee, N.C. Park officials said a timeline for when the road will be reconstructed cannot be determined until a design has been approved.
Election panel asks voting probe
PIGEON FORGE, Tenn. - The Sevier County Election Commission has voted to ask the district attorney's office to investigate people who improperly cast ballots in a problematic liquor-by-the-drink referendum.
Commissioners made the decision after earlier attributing voting mistakes to poll worker confusion. The referendum came on the same day as the general election, which produced the county's largest turnout ever. Nearly 300 people who did not live in Pigeon Forge were allowed to vote on the liquor issue.
A judge tossed the election results, and the commission has scheduled a revote for March 14.
Man crushed in forklift accident
CANTON, Ga. - Authorities in Cherokee County say a Little River Marina employee was killed in a forklift accident.
Sheriff's spokesman Lt. Jay Baker said authorities were called to the marina near Lake Allatoona in Canton about 11:20 a.m. Wednesday and found Josh Roberts, 21, of Woodstock, dead. Baker said the man was crushed by a forklift, although it is unclear what he was doing at the time of the accident.
Baker said the Occupational Safety and Health Administration -- a branch of the Department of Labor -- is investigating and foul play is not suspected.