Prosecutors announced Friday, Sept. 13 that they would seek the death penalty for the Alcoa man charged with killing a Blount County Sheriff’s Deputy in February. The filing comes the same day his legal representation asked a judge to send the case back to General Sessions Court.
The deadline for such a filing was initially set for Oct. 11.
Kenneth Wayne DeHart Jr., 42, faces a range of 21 charges including first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder after a grand jury sent his case to Blount County Circuit Court. He was arrested after a five-day manhunt in February after law enforcement obtained warrants charging him with the shooting death of Blount County Sheriff’s Deputy Greg McCowan.
Fellow Deputy Shelby Eggers has testified in court that she stopped DeHart’s car — a silver Lexus — after she saw him cross the center line of Sevierville Road, and later smelled marijuana in the car. Attempts to get him out of the vehicle escalated, and Eggers and McCowan eventually used a taser on the driver before he pulled a gun. McCowan was fatally wounded — Eggers, who was hit in the leg, returned fire and was later treated and released from the hospital.