KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — On Thursday, East Tennessee lost a deputy while he was in the line of duty. Greg McCowan, 43, was fatally shot while another Blount County Sheriff's Office deputy, Shelby Eggers, was wounded.
Eggers has since been released from the hospital, while McCowan's body was brought back to Blount County. He was the first Blount County Sheriff's Office deputy to die since William Daniel Nuchols in 1956. Nuchols died due to an automobile crash, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page.
The East Tennessee community lost several deputies and officers over the years. A brief list of the people who have died while in the line of duty is available below.
- Tucker Blakely (Knox County Sheriff's Office): Tucker Blakely was a Knox County Sheriff's Office deputy who was fatally shot in October 2023 while responding to a domestic call. His partner shot and killed the man accused of killing Blakely.
- Kenny Moats (Maryville Police Department): Kenneth Ray Moats was shot and killed while responding to a call about domestic violence at a Maryville-area home. The offender in the case was sentenced to life in prison.
- Chris Jenkins (Loudon County Sheriff's Office): Chris Jenkins was hit and killed by a tractor-trailer in February 2022 while removing a ladder from I-75. The driver of that tractor-trailer was charged with vehicular homicide.
- Jason Michael Scott (Loudon County Sheriff's Office): Jason Michael Scott died in March 2004 after he was shot upon arriving at a domestic disturbance in rural Loudon County. He was shot around four times by a 16-year-old boy, who later killed himself.
Several other law enforcement officers have died while in the line of duty in East Tennessee, and their stories can be read online through the Officer Down Memorial Page.