Duty Death: Jimmy Tennyson - [Maury County]
End of Service: 06/05/2017
By James Bennett
The Daily Herald
COLUMBIA, Tenn. — Maury County Sheriff’s Deputy Jimmy Tennyson died Saturday after a single-car accident Friday morning outside Columbia. He was 64.
Tennyson was a veteran deputy who ran for sheriff in 2014, losing by 416 votes in a five-candidate race to Sheriff Bucky Rowland. He was hired when Enoch George was elected sheriff in 1994, rose to the rank of captain and remained with the department after Rowland’s election.
“With absolutely broken hearts, we would like to update everyone on Deputy Jimmy Tennyson. We lost our friend and brother this morning to his battle for life,” the Maury County Sheriff’s Department said in announcing his death. “He passed with his family by his side. Please continue to pray for the Tennyson Family and MCSD family.”
The deputy’s funeral will be at 3 p.m. Tuesday at South Gate Church of Christ. Visitation will be at 3 p.m. Monday at Heritage Funeral Home.
“If you had a name ahead of the motto ‘To Protect and Serve’ on a patrol car, Jimmy Tennyson would be in front of it,” George told The Daily Herald on Saturday. “This man is going to be truly missed by Maury County. And I’m not the only person who feels this way. There are many, many, many people in Maury County who loved this man.”
Tennyson was working in his father-in-law’s body shop — Hunter’s Body Shop — when George hired him in 1994.
“When you talk to people, you get a feel about them and their desires in life,” George said. “He always exemplified the fact he was man of character, means and would be out to take care of people’s needs. He proved to me I was right.”
Tennyson started as corrections officer and dispatcher before becoming a deputy. George encouraged Tennyson to go to the police academy, and the deputy earned ranks of lieutenant and captain.
“During the time he was a deputy, he served criminal and civil process,” George said. “He was increased to lieutenant and was in charge of all of the patrol. When he became captain, he was over operations.”
Tears flowed as George explained his long-time friendship with Tennyson, who has worked as a student resource officer at McDowell Elementary School, Culleoka Unit School and Hampshire Unit School since the 2014 election.
“Not only was he an employee. He was a dear friend,” George said. “It’s hard for me to talk about him. I talked to him just about every week, sometimes two or three times a week since my retirement. He had a great sense of humor. He never met a stranger. He could talk to the best of them. He could talk to the poorest guy and help him. He could talk to the richest guy and help him.
“If he had not been in law enforcement, he could have been a comedian,” George continued. “He was very funny and jolly. He had a unique personality. He could mimic people. He could sound like them and make gestures like them.”
Tennyson lost control of his patrol vehicle at 7:30 a.m. Friday on Iron Bridge Road. He went down a 35-foot embankment and hit a tree, the Tennessee Highway Patrol said.
Emergency crews cut Tennyson from his car and transported him by ambulance to Maury Regional Medical Center. He was transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center by helicopter. Weather conditions prevented the helicopter from flying to the scene on Iron Bridge Road.
Tennyson was the second deputy to die in a car accident in the last 2 1/2 years. Deputy Darrell Perritt, 42, was killed on Nov. 4, 2014 as he pursued a DUI suspect.
“He proudly served Maury County for many years and will be greatly missed in our community,” the Columbia Police Department said on its Facebook page.
Spring Hill Police posted: “Rest In Peace, Deputy Tennyson. Thank you for your many years of service to Maury County.”
State Rep. Sheila Butt, R-Columbia, said she met Tennyson at a worship service years ago.
“I know he loved the Lord,” Butt said. “He had a servant’s heart. I rarely ever saw him without a smile on his face and a story to tell me.
“Our community was blessed by him in so many ways, and he will be missed. My heart goes out to his family and the Sheriff’s department. It’s during these difficult times that our community realized how very important we really are to one another.”
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©2017 The Daily Herald (Columbia, Tenn.)