Eighth Judicial District Attorney General, Jared Effler, has reviewed the findings of an investigation conducted by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation concerning the law-enforcement involved shooting death of Lloyd Michael Heatherly, which occurred on Chapman Crest Drive in the Fincastle community on July 25, 2018.  A 911 call made by the decedent, Lloyd Michael Heatherly, on July 25 at approximately 3:00 in the afternoon revealed an already-tragic scene and initiated law enforcement involvement at the home on Chapman Crest Drive.  In the audio recording of that call, Heatherly recites, “Yes, this is 116 Chapman Crest Drive.  I have just shot my wife and I’m fixin’ to shoot myself.  ‘Bye.”  Subsequent to the call, law enforcement officers from multiple agencies responded to the scene in a residential area of the county, east of La Follette, where they initially encountered Heatherly outside the residence and armed.  Later, he began to pace within the yard and verbally urged officers to shoot.  Despite numerous pleas from officers to drop the weapon, Heatherly engaged officers with his gun by pointing it at officers positioned close by who were attempting to employ their K-9 partner to subdue Heatherly.  At that point, several officers fired shots nearly simultaneously, striking Heatherly.  After the initial shots, he continued to reach for his weapon and shots were fired again.  Lloyd Michael Heatherly died as a result of the gunshot wounds he sustained.  Once the scene was secure, officers were able to enter the residence where they did, in fact, discover Rose Bud Heatherly, the decedent’s wife, inside the home where she had suffered a fatal gunshot wound.

Based on a review of the investigation, which included numerous eyewitness accounts in addition to the physical evidence and relevant recordings, General Effler has determined the officers involved acted with appropriate restraint and compassion, attempting to disengage the decedent by alternative means until the point he turned his weapon on officers at the scene.  It was only then, that deadly force was used.  The actions of the officers involved were objectively reasonable and completely justified under the extremely dangerous, volatile, and unfortunate circumstances they encountered.  (WLAF NEWS PUBLISHED – 08/17/2018-6AM)