Firefighter had ‘hit list,’ said he’d shoot co-workers

A Corbin firefighter abruptly resigned his position Monday, under fire from supervisors and city leaders who claim he threatened to kill two co-workers in late August, and told others that he had a “hit list” he’d drafted containing the names of more city employees.
Tom Evans, 34, of Corbin, submitted a brief letter of resignation that was accepted by the Corbin City Commission Monday. Last Friday, the Commission had scheduled a personal hearing to hash out formal civil charges brought against him by Corbin Fire Chief Barry McDonald. After a closed executive session, City Attorney Bob Hammons said Evans’ attorney, David Hoskins, had asked for a postponement of the hearing. No one would say at the time exactly which employee was the subject of the hearing.
But documents, obtained by the News Journal through the Kentucky Open Records Act, detail the cause for concern.
On Sept. 2, 2008, McDonald issued a memo to Evans that said “I have probable cause to believe that you are guilty of conduct justifying dismissal or punishment.” Evans was suspended from duty without pay and ordered to not be any “any of the premises of the Corbin Fire Department.” He was also told to turn in his fire department badge, portable two-way radio, cell phone, identification card and all keys to city property.
In the formal civil charges against Evans, McDonald claims that on either Aug. 27 or Aug. 30, Evans told fellow firefighters Jack Partin and Anthony Horton that “when I get my new grips for my pistol I’m going to bring it to work and I got three eight round clips for it, that’s enough for everybody and a few extra if I miss some.”
The charges go on to say that Evans told McDonald and firefighters Mike Neal, Anthony Horton, Doug Brock and Jack Partin that he “had a hit list of persons working for the city.”
Evans was arrested by Corbin Police on Sept. 2 on a Knox County warrant sworn out by McDonald. He faces a single charge of third-degree terroristic threatening, a misdemeanor, and is currently free on $5,000 cash bond until the case is resolved. He was arraigned in Knox District court on the criminal charge Sept. 4 and pleaded not guilty. A pre-trial conference in his case is set for Sept. 30.
The open records request submitted by the News Journal also asked for any reprimands in Evans’ personnel file. None were provided.
Evans was a seven-year member of the Fire Department and had reached the rank of Lieutenant before his departure.