Sofia Saric

1 week ago | timesfreepress.com | Sofia Saric

A former Hamilton County teacher accused of routinely and systematically sexually assaulting young boys in the privacy of his classroom stood trial Wednesday in Hamilton County Criminal Court. Duane Sanders, 47, is facing 15 criminal charges including aggravated rape of a child, continuous sexual abuse of a child and aggravated sexual battery. Sanders was a first grade teacher at Wallace A. Smith Elementary School in Ooltewah.

1 week ago | timesfreepress.com | Sofia Saric

Chattanooga's former police chief, Celeste Murphy, had not reached a plea deal as of Wednesday in the 17-count criminal case against her and is scheduled to stand trial in early 2026. Murphy, 56, is accused of illegal voter registration, false entries on official registration or election documents, false entries in governmental records, forgery, perjury and official misconduct. She appeared briefly via video call Wednesday in Hamilton County Criminal Court Judge Boyd Patterson's courtroom.

2 weeks ago | timesfreepress.com | Sofia Saric

A graduating senior at a Cleveland, Tennessee, high school announced on social media she was in a relationship with another young woman, and days later, she was suspended, banned from campus and excluded from participating in graduation, a lawsuit said. Morgan Armstrong and her parents filed the complaint Monday in Bradley County Chancery Court against Tennessee Christian Preparatory School -- a private school with annual tuition of about $10,500.

2 weeks ago | timesfreepress.com | Sofia Saric

The wife of an Ooltewah man has filed a lawsuit against Sullivan County and 11 members of its Sheriff's Office, alleging law enforcement was responsible for verbal taunts, psychological abuse and excessive force that ultimately resulted in his death. Mathew Stoddard died July 13, 2024, about seven weeks after a deputy placed his knee on Stoddard's upper back and caused an anoxic brain injury, the Tuesday federal complaint filed by his wife, Carlie Stoddard, said.

2 weeks ago | timesfreepress.com | Sofia Saric

A Chattanooga man was sentenced to 30 days in jail and probation for attempting to grope a 10-year-old child while employed at a local trampoline park and a sexual battery incident on the Southern Adventist University campus. Claude Finch, 27, received the suspended sentence Friday and will be on supervised probation for eight years instead of serving prison time as part of a deal with prosecutors, according to the Hamilton County Criminal Court clerk's office.