Tommy Burks
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Tommy Burks | |
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Member of the Tennessee Senate | |
In office January 9, 1979 – October 19, 1998 | |
Preceded by | Vernon Neal |
Succeeded by | Charlotte Burks |
Constituency | 13th district (1979–1983) 15th district (1983–1998) |
Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives | |
In office January 5, 1971 – January 9, 1979 | |
Preceded by | James L. Lacy |
Succeeded by | Jerry Jared |
Constituency | 17th district (1971–1973) 42nd district (1973–1979) |
Personal details | |
Born | Fred Thomas Burks May 22, 1940 Cookeville, Tennessee, U.S. |
Died | October 19, 1998 Cookeville, Tennessee, U.S. | (aged 58)
Manner of death | Assassination by gunshot |
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse | Charlotte Gentry |
Occupation | Farmer |
Fred Thomas Burks (May 22, 1940 – October 19, 1998) was a
Biography
Born in
Burks was an energetic legislator who almost never missed a floor or committee session. It is reported that he would on some occasions arrive at a session having already gotten up on his farm, delivered a load of
Death
Burks was assassinated by his Republican Party opponent Byron Looper less than a month before the next election. Burks was shot and killed by Looper on Burks's own property. An eyewitness to the murder helped seal the conviction of Looper, who was, at the time, Putnam County Tax Assessor. Burks's widow, Charlotte, ran for his seat and won, becoming the first Tennessee State Senator to win as a write-in candidate and one of very few American politicians to win as a write-in candidate. She was reelected in 2002, 2006, and 2010. The gun used to kill Burks was found by a highway work crew near Hwy 111 and Interstate 40 and is believed to have been thrown out of Looper's car window along I-40, between Monterey and Cookeville, following the murder.
Interstate 40 through Wilson, Smith, Putnam, and Cumberland counties is named the "Tommy Burks Memorial Highway".