Tennessee
Tennessee Senate approves measure allowing K-12 teachers to carry concealed guns
The Tennessee state Senate approved a measure Tuesday that would allow teachers and staff in K-12 public schools to carry concealed handguns on school grounds.
S.B. 1325 was approved 26-5 by state senators during a raucous floor vote, where The Associated Press reported protesters opposing the bill were heard shouting, “No more silence, end gun violence,” and “Kill the bill, not the kids.” The bill now heads to the state House for a vote.
The bill was passed by the state’s upper legislative chamber about a year after the mass shooting at The Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville, which left three children and three adult staff members dead.
If enacted, the bill would prevent the disclosure of which employees have concealed guns to parents of students and other teachers. The law allows the employees to carry a concealed handgun only if they met certain requirements, including having an enhanced carry permit and being authorized by the director of schools, the principal of the school and the chief of the local law enforcement agency.
The employee would also need to complete a background check and a psychiatric evaluation. It would require them to have successfully completed 40 hours in basic training for school policing as well as 40 hours of Peace Officer’s Standards and Training commission-approved training that is specific to school policing.
The law has faced immediate pushback from advocacy groups and Democratic lawmakers. The Tennessee chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action both condemned the legislation in statements.
“We should be listening to Tennessee law enforcement, teachers, superintendents and more who have spoke out against arming teachers,” Linda McFadyen-Ketchum, a volunteer with the Tennessee chapter of Moms Demand Action, said in a statement. “And, most importantly, we should be listening to Tennesseans, who are worried that their children won’t come home from school every day.”
Democratic state Sen. London Lamar said her child is “at risk” under this bill, the AP reported.
“This bill is dangerous, and teachers don’t want it. Nobody wants it,” she said.
Proponents of the bill said it would benefit rural communities that had limited law enforcement, per the AP.
“It’s time that we look at the facts of the bill, that we are not trying to shoot a student, but protect a student from an active shooter whose sole purpose is to get into that school and kill people,” Republican state Sen. Ken Yager said.
The Associated Press contributed.
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Tennessee
What To Know About Pitching Matchup For Tennessee vs. Cincinnati In Knoxville Regional | Rocky Top Insider
Tennessee baseball earned its 10th straight home regional win Friday night, knocking off Miami (Ohio) 9-2 in a drama free win at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
The Vols’ win sets the stage for a matchup against three-seed Cincinnati, who defeated Wake Forest 11-6 in Friday’s opener.
Right-handed pitcher Marcus Phillips is getting the ball for Tennessee after serving as a weekend starter his entire junior season. Phillips has posted a 3-4 record, 3.74 ERA and 1.27 WHIP entering the first NCAA Tournament start of his career.
The issue for Phillips has been managing the run game. SEC teams exploited Phillips’ slow delivery in the regular season with Kentucky stealing eight bases against him, Ole Miss stealing seven and two others stealing four.
Vitello wanted Phillips to be more persistent throwing over to first base while also varying his timing with runners on base. The junior has been much better with it his last two outings with neither Arkansas nor Alabama swiping a bag against him in a total of 8.1 innings pitched.
But that challenge gets much greater against Cincinnati. Arkansas and Alabama are two of the least aggressive teams on the base paths in the SEC. The Bearcats entered the weekend ranked 14th nationally in stolen bases this season.
Tennessee’s bullpen sits in a great spot behind Phillips. The Vols needed only seldom used relievers Austin Breedlove and Andrew Behnke against Miami (Ohio) and has top arms AJ Russell, Nate Snead and Brandon Arvidson fully ready to roll.
More From RTI: Everything Tennessee HC Tony Vitello Said Following NCAA Tournament Win Over Miami (Ohio)
Ace Liam Doyle helped preserve the Vols’ bullpen by tossing 6.2 innings against Miami (Ohio) Friday night. The Redhawks made him work early with the SEC Pitcher of the Year throwing 66 pitches to record his first nine outs and 38 pitches to record the next 11 outs.
“It was huge,” Vitello said. “It is about tonight, or at least was, but you do have a tournament, again, you’re in the middle of. For him to do that, not only—I’m sure he feels good about and it helped capitalize on the runs we were scoring in the middle of the game—but put us in a good position with our bullpen.”
Like Tennessee, Cincinnati has an easy decision to role with its second most used starter this season in the critical regional matchup.
“Yeah, Kellen O’Connor for sure tomorrow,” Cincinnati head coach Jordan Bischel said. ”You can put that one in stone, outside of a bus accident or something.”
O’Connor has started 11 games for the Bearcats this season, posting a 3-2 record, 4.61 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 66.1 innings pitched. A 5-foot-10 lefty, O’Connor has done a little bit of everything for Cincinnati this season.
The Cal State Bakersfield transfer came out of the bullpen three times last week in the Big 12 Tournament allowing a total of two runs in four innings pitched. His best outing of the year came in a complete game against Texas Tech back in April.
Right-handed reliever Michael Conte (2.14 ERA in 21 innings pitched) threw 34 pitches on Friday while right-handed pitcher Adam Buczkowski (5.68 ERA in 31.2 innings) threw 12 pitches.
JACKSON, Tenn. — Get ready to reel one in: Tennessee’s annual Free Fishing Day is Saturday, June 7.
According to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, on June 7, all state residents and visitors of any age may fish without a license in Tennessee’s public waters.
TWRA’s website states that additionally, youth ages 15 or younger may fish for free the entire week, beginning on June 7 and continuing through the following Friday, June 13.
TWRA says this free fishing opportunity has been ongoing in the state since 1991.
FROM TWRA:
Bobby Wilson Free Fishing Day and Free Fishing Week applies to Tennessee’s public waters, TWRA owned and operated lakes, and state park facilities. Some privately owned pay lakes continue to charge during this special day and week. Anglers will need to consult with those operators if there are any questions about a facility.
The day is named in honor of Bobby Wilson, who retired in 2022 after more than 40 years of service to the TWRA.
For more local news, click here.
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