A shooting in Jamestown, Tennessee, left 49-year-old Samuel Jennings dead on the morning of April 9, 2026. Deputies from the Fentress County Sheriff’s Office responded just before 9:00 a.m. to the 100 block of Whippoorwill Lane and found Jennings with an apparent gunshot wound; he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Investigators focused on a woman seen leaving the area and identified her as 5 feet 5 inches tall Jolina Upchurch, described as blonde and possibly wearing a red t-shirt. A warrant for criminal homicide was issued and the public was warned she should be considered armed and dangerous; residents near Whippoorwill Lane, Quail Run, and Crooked Creek were asked to lock their doors and avoid the area. After a day-long search involving the Fentress County Sheriff’s Office and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, Upchurch was taken into custody at about 6:00 p.m. on the evening of the shooting and has been charged with criminal homicide.

The motive and full circumstances of the killing remain under investigation. Does anyone in Jamestown have information about Jennings, his movements that morning, or about the area around Whippoorwill Lane?