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DA: TBI will take over investigating KCSO, KPD officer shootings

It's long been practice for one agency to handle the officer-involved shooting of another. That's now changing.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — As evidenced Tuesday following a triple homicide at the Pilot Flying J Travel Center in East Knox County, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation now is handling shootings that involve the Knox County Sheriff's Office or the Knoxville Police Department.

It's been expected for months in law enforcement circles.

Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen, a longtime prosecutor, said she recognized that the policy historically has been for KPD to review KCSO-involved shootings and for KCSO to review KPD-involved shootings.

That's now changed. 

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"Recently, in order to have uniform consistency in the investigation of these incidents, Chief (Eve) Thomas, Sheriff (Tom) Spangler, and I have discussed using the TBI for all officer-involved shootings," Allen said in a statement.

Credit: WBIR
Idris Abdus-Salaam, the suspect in Tuesday's Pilot truck stop stabbings.

"We have decided to follow the majority of our colleagues across the state, and I will now request that TBI conduct all of our officer-involved shootings for both KPD and KCSO."

Early Tuesday, a man with a knife stabbed and killed three female employees at the Pilot on Strawberry Plains Pike in East Knox County.

A KCSO deputy was nearby. He arrived and found Idris Abdus-Salaam, 33, a truck driver from Durham, N.C., in the parking lot with a knife.

The unnamed deputy shot Abdus-Salaam multiple times in a confrontation. Abdus-Salaam died.

Veteran Knoxville criminal defense attorney Don Bosch represents the deputy. He declined to comment because of the ongoing investigation.

The TBI, which coincidentally has its local headquarters just down the road, responded to the scene. It's now handling the investigation, including the deputy's killing of Abdus-Salaam.

When threatened by an armed person, law officers have the authority to fire until the threat is removed.

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Last year KCSO by agreement looked into a fatal shooting involving a KPD K-9 officer who shot a man who had used his own Taser against him.

During a court hearing last fall related to the shooting, former District Attorney General Randy Nichols, now with KCSO, testified it was his understanding a shift was in the works to have the TBI take over local officer-involved shootings.

KCSO couldn't be reached for comment this week about the change.

KPD spokesman Scott Erland said Friday the department wouldn't comment about the shift.

As Allen noted to WBIR, the TBI has always investigated all in-custody deaths of inmates in Knox County.

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