Baseball Bat Murderer Pleads Guilty-as-Charged

District Attorney General Charme Allen’s Major Crimes Unit obtained a conviction today when Kenneth Wayne Smith, 23, pled guilty-as-charged to Second Degree Murder in the beating death of victim Jonathan Hackler. Smith received a sentence of fifteen years in prison without the possibility of parole.

In a plea hearing this morning before Judge Bob McGee, ADA Kevin Allen explained how Rural Metro paramedics responded to a call at 3006 Tazewell Pike and found Hackler unresponsive with severe trauma to his head. Hackler was transported to the University of Tennessee Medical Center where he died from his injuries. Knoxville Police Department Investigator Charles Lee discovered that Smith and Hackler were arguing with each other when they each armed themselves with a baseball bat. During the fight, Smith struck Hackler repeatedly in the head causing the blunt force trauma that ultimately killed him.

If you have any questions, please contact Sean McDermott at 865-215-2515 or Sean.McDermott@knoxcounty.org. For more information about the District Attorney’s Office, visit our website at dag.knoxcountytn.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.