Kingsport man charged with second-degree murder in connection to 2022 overdose death

CHURCH HILL, Tenn. (WJHL) — A Kingsport man was arrested Monday and charged with second-degree murder in connection to a 2022 overdose death in Church Hill, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI).

A news release by the TBI said William Howard White was indicted by a Hawkins County Grand Jury following the March 2022 death of James “Jimmy” Taylor Barham, III.

On March 25, 2022, Barham was found deceased in his home on West Main Boulevard in Church Hill, and his death was determined through toxicology reports to be caused by the effects of fentanyl, alprazolam and ethanol.

The TBI said an investigation by its Upper East Drug Related Death Task Force (DRDTF), the Church Hill Police Department and the Kingsport Police Department discovered White was involved in distributing fentanyl, which caused Barham’s death.

On June 3, a grand jury returned indictments against White, charging him with one count of second-degree murder, one count of sale of fentanyl and one count of delivery of fentanyl, the release said.

He was arrested on Monday and booked into the Hawkins County Jail on a $150,000 bond, the TBI said.

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