An Overton County man has been sentenced to 17 years in prison and 23 years on probation in connection with an Amber Alert issued in 2011.

Allen Wayne Harness was captured in October of 2011 after an Amber Alert was issued by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation for then 12-year-old Cassidy Dailey of June Chapel Road.

Allen Wayne Harness allegedly assaulted his wife, Christy Harness. She went to Cookeville Regional Medical Center for her injuries and was later released. Harness, who is not supposed to be around any of their six children due to an ongoing Department of Children’s Services investigation, then left the residence with Dailey, his step-daughter.

Agents with the TBI, FBI, THP, U.S. Marshals, as well as other law enforcement agencies and the Overton County Sheriff’s Department all participated in the search for Harness and Dailey.

Dailey was found in Dalton, Georgia at a motel with Harness. A clerk working at the motel saw the Amber Alert and alerted local authorities. Harness was taken into custody without incident.

Harness had child neglect charges placed against him in July 2011. The Enterprise had a story regarding Harness in a previous edition.

According to a story in the Dalton Daily Citizen, Harness, 38, was initially charged by the Dalton Police Department after the Amber Alert.

Harness pled guilty in Whitfield County Superior Court before Judge David Blevins on two child molestation charges. He was initially charged with one count of child molestation and one count of aggravated child molestation, said Assistant District Attorney Scott Helton.

Helton said aggravated child molestation carries a prison sentence of 25 years to life while the child molestation charge has a minimum sentence of five years.

Public Defender Mike McCarthy’s office represented Harness.