Kenneth Wayne DeHart Jr. made his first court appearance Thursday, Feb. 15 — a week after Blount County Sheriff’s Deputy Greg McCowan was shot and killed at a traffic stop on Sevierville Road. The 42-year-old Alcoa man was the subject of a five-day manhunt after law enforcement obtained warrants charging him with the shooting.
Three deputies wearing mourning bands brought DeHart into court Thursday, where he remained for only a few minutes. Others in camouflage lined the far wall, while a row of investigators stood opposite.
Blount County General Sessions Judge William Brewer appointed the office of the Blount County Public Defender to represent him and set his preliminary hearing for 9 a.m. Feb. 20.
A woman in the audience told DeHart she loved him as deputies led him away.
“I love you, too,” he replied.
Arrest
DeHart faces charges of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
Booking information shows he was brought to the Loudon County Correctional Facility after his highly-publicized arrest Tuesday. After days on TBI’s most wanted list, a joint task force made up of local, state and federal law enforcement finally tracked him to an empty house on Linden Avenue in Knoxville.