| Sources |
- [S74] Atchley Funeral Home Records, Volume IV, 1987-1999, Larry D. Fox, (Smoky Mountain Historical Society), 27 Sep 1995.
Margaret Elizabeth Kear Price obituary
- [S51] The Seymour Herald, (www.smokymountainherald.com), 27 Mar 2006.
Kim Pierce, candidate for Sheriff
Kim Pierce is a candidate for sheriff of Sevier County in the May 2 Republican Primary.She is a lifelong Sevier County resident. Her parents are Jim and Jane Pierce of the New Center community.“I was a proud Rocket and attended Sevier County High and Walters State Community College,” she said. “My grandparents were Taylor and Margeret Price, and James Woodrow Pierce, and Lena Sutton Pierce, and my granny Edna Loveday Kear.”Pierce has more than 20 years combined law enforcement and EMS experience, and “my qualifications have come through hands-on experience.” She worked for the late Sheriff Carman Townsend where she received the following training: Tennessee Bureau of Investigation TIES/TCIC/NCIC certified; Tennessee Corrections basic jail operations; Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy; TEMA hazardous materials first responders course; vehicle extrication rescue training course; University of Tennessee Medical Center EMS education and OSHA standards; certified Emergency Medical Technician; CPR-certified; UT Lifestar Aero Medical Services head and spinal trauma; Med flight helicopter safety orientation; and specialized school in outlaw motorcycle club investigations.“I also received seven certificates for outstanding service from the late Sheriff Townsend and also achieved the rank of corporal,” she said.
Pierce is a 2004 graduate of East Tennessee Regional Law Enforcement Academy, making the deans list, and is within a few classes of completing her degree in public safety. “Im the best qualified because of my actual full-time experience,” Pierce said. “As a corporal, I was on scene in most all of the major cases that Sevier County has had drug seizures, rapes, homicides, murders, suicides, child abuse and neglect, and operations with the Tennessee Highway Patrol helicopter unit. During the Rocky Top murders I was in charge of transporting convicted murder suspect Kimberly Pelley. She was housed at Jefferson County Jail. I also provided courtroom security during the trial and her transport to the Tennessee Womens Prison. I have the experience and I have the training.“Drugs and crimes affect us all. We must all work together as a community.This means parents, teachers, EMS, fire and rescue, along with law enforcement, churches, youth organizations and concerned citizens; all getting involved,” she said.“One of my main goals is hiring more reserve officers and seeking volunteers from within our communities. And my number one concern is customer service.
We must be friendly and approachable. I will welcome your help.”
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 7 Jul 2008.
State official says county's fee to look up records is wrong
SEVIERVILLE - Kim Pierce says she's waiting for a reimbursement check after state officials told her she was improperly charged for looking at public records. She'll have to keep waiting.
Earlier this year, County Mayor Larry Waters announced a new fee structure for open-records access in his office.
Included is a $5 charge for courthouse staffers to find the requested document. It is that fee that should not be charged, according to Ann Butterworth, director of the office of open records ombudsman, a department created by a law that went into effect on July 1.
While state law allows local officials to set fees for copies of records, it prohibits charging simply to see those documents, which Pierce says the county's policy does.
"That's not legal for them to charge me or anyone just to see those records," Pierce said. "That's absolutely a violation of the law. I think it should make anybody who is a taxpayer angry. One time I went in there to request one file and I was charged $15 because it was in three different parts."
With Butterworth's opinion, Pierce, who is the Democratic candidate for sheriff in the Aug. 7 election, says she is demanding a refund for all the times she has been charged the fee. But Waters is asking county attorney Jerry McCarter to weigh in before he considers a refund.
Pierce has a state official to back up her complaint.
"The Tennessee Public Records Act provides for access by citizens of Tennessee to inspect public records during business hours, at no charge," Butterworth wrote in an e-mail dated June 24. "I am unaware of any legal basis for charging a 'retrieval fee.' Even if copies must be made of a record in order to remove or redact confidential information, if you do no wish to take or keep the copy of the redacted record, you are not obligated to compensate the custodian for the production of that copy."
Butterworth has no issue with the county's charge of 25 cents per page for copies a citizen keeps.
Waters has said the fee was instituted by the county's Records Committee because of a "high volume" of requests to see public documents. He said officials became concerned the requests would take up too much employee time.
"We had people coming in asking to see 120 pages, not just five or something," Waters said.
The changes to open records legislation do allow for a records custodian to charge for copies based on actual costs and for staff time that exceeds five hours based on the hourly wage of the employee doing the work, Butterworth said.
Pierce says her name is the only one that appears among the requests for public records. She insists she does not ask for an excessive number of documents at a time.
"That's simply not true," Pierce said. "My requests haven't been unreasonable."
According to Pierce, County Finance Director Cheryl Houston told Pierce she would send her a check to reimburse the fees when Houston had time. The promise was apparently made after Pierce presented a copy of Butterworth's official position.
However, when Pierce contacted Houston later to claim the check, Pierce says she was told Waters referred the matter to county attorney Jerry McCarter who would decide about a refund. Waters told Pierce and The Mountain Press he is waiting to see how changes to the new open-records laws might affect this situation.
Pierce says Waters is stalling, pointing out none of the changes in the new law allows for a finders fee to retrieve open records.
n dhodges@themountainpress.com
- [S4] Knoxville News-Sentinel (Tennessee), 20 Jul 2008.
Five have range of goals and experience in Sevier sheriff's race
Kim Pierce, 42, is known for her outspokenness on community issues and is running for sheriff based on her six years of experience as a deputy, during which she rose to the rank of corporal.
She left the department in 1991, losing her job "due to an election. A new sheriff goes in and deputies' terms end when the sheriff's term ends. I didn't get rehired."
That is why, she said, she places a high priority on getting civil service protection for the department - "to keep people who have experience and want to do their job."
Since leaving the department, Pierce said, she has been self-employed but has maintained her connection to the law enforcement field and has worked as a private process server.
She said this is her second run for sheriff and that she is seeking a degree in public safety.
During her tenure as a deputy, Pierce said, she "was pretty lucky and got to see and do a lot. I got a lifetime of experience in six years."
Pierce's No. 1 focus, she said, is to try to clear up mismanagement in government - what she refers to as the good-old-boy clique.
"I want to help all the people," Pierce said, "not just the rich and powerful."
- [S106] The Mountain Press, 1 Aug 2008.
Kim Pierce
o Age: 42
o Hometown: Sevierville
o Occupation: Self-employed
o Family: Mother Jane Pierce, father James R. Pierce, grandparents Margeret and Taylor Price, great-grandmother Edna Loveday Kear, Lena Sutton Bullard, James Woodrow Pierce
o Education: Sevier County High School; Walters State Community College within a few hours of a public safety degree; emergency medical technician; graduate Donelson Police Academy; 2004 graduate East Tennessee Regional Law Enforcement Training Academy; over 20 years combined law enforcement and EMS experience
Sheriff candidate bio boxes
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Abt 1966 - (~ 59 years)
