Teenager pleads guilty to attempted first degree murder after Chilhowie attack

A teenager pleaded guilty to attempted first-degree murder Wednesday after authorities said he attacked a gas station clerk in Chilhowie last year. 16 year old, Jose Rodriguez, entered an open plea, meaning he was not offered a plea deal. Rodriguez is accused of entering an Exxon gas station on Whitetop Creek Road on July 13, 2024, and attacking a clerk with a fixed-blade knife. Rodriguez was arrested in Tennessee about an hour after the alleged attack. Chilhowie police said Rodriguez, who was 15 at the time, was a runaway from Massachusetts. The court granted Commonwealth’s Attorney Phillip Blevins’s request to try Rodriguez as an adult. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 20.