The Brief

Tennessee officials say Sheriff Buford Pusser killed his wife in 1967 and staged it as an ambush.

A cold case review found evidence of domestic abuse and contradictions in his story.

Pauline Pusser’s family says the findings bring long-awaited closure.

Authorities said Friday that a late Tennessee sheriff—whose story inspired a Hollywood film about a lawman battling organized crime—killed his wife in 1967 and convinced others she had been murdered by his enemies.

Authorities acknowledged that the finding will likely shock many who grew up as Buford Pusser fans and watched 1973's "Walking Tall," which immortalized him as a tough but fair sheriff with zero tolerance for crime.

The movie was remade in 2004, and many officers joined law enforcement because of his story, accordi

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