Chase Wayne Mackey is scheduled for a sentencing hearing in the Cumberland County Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday, October 6th, 2026, following serious felony charges connected to a fatal August 2025 collision.

Mackey faces charges of vehicular homicide by intoxication and vehicular homicide by recklessness stemming from an August 14, 2025, crash on Bell Road. According to investigators, Mackey was driving a 2006 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck at an estimated speed of 80 mph when it lost control and struck a tree sideways.

The passenger, 19-year-old Zackary Ray Heylek, suffered fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Bobby Barker testified that Mackey smelled of alcohol and admitted to drinking at the scene. While a blood-alcohol test taken four hours post-crash showed a level of 0.07%, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation estimated Mackey’s blood-alcohol concentration was 0.15% at the time of impact.

Defense attorney Victor Gernt III previously raised questions regarding whether another vehicle may have run Mackey off the road, though troopers noted witness statements did not support the claim. Mackey is currently being held on a $500,000 bond as the case moves forward.