Farmhand Says He Saw Suspect With Lawmaker Before Slaying

CROSSVILLE, Tenn. - A farmhand saw the man suspected of killing Tommy Burks approach the state senator on his farm and heard a "pop sound" before the man sped away, according to a police affidavit.

Wesley Rex said he saw Byron Looper drive alongside Burks' truck, the affidavit released yesterday said. After hearing the noise, Rex found Burks "slumped over in his truck with blood in his ear."

Burks died Oct. 19 from a single gunshot wound near his left eye.

Looper, 34, Burks' Republican opponent in the fall election, disappeared until early Friday. After returning to his home in Cookeville, Tenn., Looper was arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

According to the affidavit, Looper's car passed Rex as the farmhand drove down a dirt road on Burks' farm. Rex met with Burks, who was in his pickup truck, and the two spoke briefly. As he drove off, Rex said he saw Looper's car pull up next to Burks' truck.

He heard a "pop sound," looked in the rearview mirror and saw the car driven by Looper speed away, the affidavit said. Looper's car came up behind Rex, turned right and drove toward Crossville, the affidavit said.

Looper, the property assessor in Putnam County who legally changed his middle name to (Low Tax) earlier this year, already faces a trial in December on charges of theft and misusing his office. He was being held in jail without bond until his arraignment Thursday.

Investigators have not said whether Looper and Burks had any confrontations before the killing.

However, a producer for "The Daily Show" on cable television's Comedy Central network said yesterday that Looper made derogatory remarks about Burks during an interview three weeks before the killing.

Evan Cutler said he was unnerved by the 30-minute telephone interview, which was conducted for a series on politicians who change their names to attract voters.

The producer said Looper called Burks a "Neanderthal" and said he would expose the "old-boy" network in the Cookeville area.

"I couldn't believe how a guy who is the Republican candidate for a state Senate seat would talk this way about his opponent," Cutler told The Tennessean. "I didn't like it because I had talked with Tommy Burks, and he sounded like a genuinely nice guy."

Comedy Central decided not to use the story after Burks was killed.

Burks' widow, Charlotte, is running as a write-in candidate against Looper, whose name remains on the Nov. 3 ballot. Burks' name was removed,. and Democrats were not allowed to replace it because the death occurred within 30 days of the election.