Ring doorbell helps cops nab Tenn. escapee
The manhunt, which generated more than 430 tips and involved at least 400 law enforcement personnel from multiple agencies, came to an end only 10 miles from the prison. Closing in on the suspectRausch said hundreds of law enforcement officials flooded the area and Watson had nowhere to go. The officers that took him into custody were two women from the Tennessee Department of Corrections. He said Johnson's body received a law enforcement escort from Memphis to the funeral home in Nashville and that there are more plans to honor her. Johnson began her career with the Tennessee Department of Corrections in 1981 and served in multiple positions including as an officer and warden.
Tennessee inmate escapes from prison where official found dead
Authorities are searching for an inmate who escaped Wednesday from the West Tennessee State Penitentiary in Lauderdale County and is a person of interest in a homicide. LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Tenn. - Authorities in western Tennessee are searching for an inmate who escaped Wednesday, the same day a longtime corrections official was found dead in her home on the grounds of the prison. "Rest assured that we will find this offender and bring justice to the family of Debra Johnson," Commissioner Tony Parker of the Tennessee Department of Correction said. The West Tennessee State Penitentiary is in Henning, about 45 miles northeast of Memphis. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation added Watson to its Most Wanted list and tweeted pictures of his face and his tattoos.