The groundbreaking for the new Forensic Center in Smyrna took place on August 28. County leaders, law enforcement representatives and emergency personnel gathered to celebrate a major step forward in forensic and investigative capabilities in Middle Tennessee.
“When a Tennessee health report commissioned by the governor says this facility is an ‘urgent’ need for the entire state and it would be ideally located in Rutherford County in the town of Smyrna, I’m going to pay attention,” said Rutherford County Mayor Joe Carr at the event.
The $15 million facility will be located at 206 I Street on a ten-acre campus off of Weakly Lane. It will increase the autopsy capacity in the county from 300 to 1,000, and reduce the strain on Nashville’s Middle Tennessee Regional Forensic Center which currently serves 60 counties. It is expected to be completed in 2027…