Latest news with #BlountCountySchools
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Yahoo
Blount County DA points out ‘inadequacy' of laws behind ex-PE teacher's sentencing
BLOUNT COUNTY, Tenn. (WATE) — Amid anger and frustration from residents, the District Attorney General over the prosecution of a former Blount County Schools PE teacher who was accused of inappropriately touching students has explained the reasoning behind the charges that were pursued and called the law over the crimes in question 'clearly insufficient.' Earlier this week, former Blount County Schools employee Joseph Dalton was given a sentence that could allow him to have the case expunged later after he pleaded guilty to five accounts of assault by physical contact. The judicial diversion, which is a type of probation for first-time offenders, requires Dalton to serve six months of supervised probation, undergo psychosexual evaluation, and comply with any resulting recommendations of that evaluation Mother of victim speaks out against former Blount County teacher's sentencing Early Saturday morning, Fifth Judicial District Attorney General Ryan Desmond issued a statement about the case, explaining how the case developed, why the specific charge against Dalton was chosen, and the difficult questions asked ahead of the prosecution. Desmond explained that he became aware of an incident where a young student felt like one of their teachers was acting inappropriately in late 2023, and he said it was the first time he had heard of that teacher. After this, he also heard concerns from others that there had been numerous similar allegations made against the teacher in the past, he wrote. Because of the concerns, Desmond said he had a criminal investigator obtain surveillance video from every class the teacher had participated in that school year. After reviewing the footage, Desmond said they located multiple concerning incidents where the teacher had physical contact with students that was inappropriate. The parents of the students were notified, and the investigation continued with statements and all possible related evidence being collected. An important aspect of Tennessee criminal law that Desmond explained was that laws on sexual battery require contact with the 'intimate parts' of a victim. He said no videos or evidence showed that the teacher had done that, and while the teacher's behavior was concerning, it did not qualify as sexual battery or any other sexual offense under current Tennessee Law. 'We then faced a question, if the conduct did not amount to sexual battery, should the case and investigation then be closed? I found this answer to be unacceptable. Instead, we carefully researched the law and found the only criminal offense that fit the facts and evidence before us. That criminal offense was assault through the 'offensive touching' of another,' Desmond wrote. Under Tennessee law, assault by offensive touching is a Class B misdemeanor, which has a maximum punishment of 6 months, Desmond explained. 'The children have to come first': Parents angered by sentencing of ex-Blount County PE teacher The next question Desmond's office faced was if it was worth it to prosecute the case knowing how minimal the sentence would be. The alternative, he said, was to do nothing. 'I was elected to protect the citizens of our community, and the right choice was clear. Considering past efforts by the school system to curtail this teacher's behavior had clearly not been effective, doing nothing was not an option I could accept,' Desmond wrote. Desmond explained that the decision to charge the teacher with five counts of offensive touching assault was not made lightly. Rather, he said the decision was made knowing that many would think the charges and sentence 'would be woefully insufficient,' but that prosecutors are only able to do what the law allows. If there were more serious charges that were supported by the evidence, prosecutors sought those charges, Desmond wrote. He ended his statement saying: I understand people believe the sentence for these crimes is insufficient. I do not disagree. I would certainly support any effort by the legislature to amend the law to address scenarios wherein a person in a position of trust has inappropriate contact with children in their law for these crimes, as it currently exists, is clearly insufficient. Despite that inadequacy, when faced with this issue I ultimately made the decision that some action had to be taken. I stand by that decision. Fifth Judicial District Attorney General Ryan Desmond Desmond is not the only Blount County official who is calling for the laws to change. Blount County Mayor Ed Mitchell wrote that he is doing everything in his power to make sure the actions Dalton was accused of never happened to another student in the Blount County Schools system. 'I share everyone's frustrations with the outcome of the charges against Mr. Dalton. There are not enough words to express how deeply disappointed I am. Laws need to be changed. At the root of it all, this entire situation could have been avoided years and years ago with proper action by the School Administration,' Mitchell wrote in part. 6 News obtained the judgement records for Dalton, which states that the victims of these charges were between the ages of 8 and 10 years old. The document also adds that Dalton's probation is set to end on October 30, 2025. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Yahoo
‘Laws need to be changed' Blount County mayor urges reform after former teacher given probation
MARYVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — The mayor of Blount County is expressing his frustration after a former Blount County Schools employee was sentenced to six months of probation for inappropriately touching students. Joseph Dalton was arrested last year over allegations of inappropriately touching elementary students on at least five different occasions. He pleaded guilty to five counts of misdemeanor assault by physical contact and was sentenced to six months of probation. He was granted judicial diversion, allowing the charges to be expunged once the probation is completed. 'The children have to come first': Parents angered by sentencing of ex-Blount County PE teacher In response, Ed Mitchell shared a statement on Facebook, explaining his efforts to deal with issues in the school system and his anger at the outcome of the charges against Dalton. 'I am doing everything in my power to make sure this NEVER happens to another student in our school system. I am first a parent and grandparent, and I am furious,' wrote Mitchell. 'I share everyone's frustrations with the outcome of the charges against Mr. Dalton. There are not enough words to express how deeply disappointed I am. Laws need to be changed. At the root of it all, this entire situation could have been avoided years and years ago with proper action by the School Administration.' Knoxville families discover rental scam days after moving into home He went on to say that while he has 'no statutory authority over the Blount County School system,' he can no longer stand by and allow mismanagement to happen. 'When these allegations of inappropriate behavior against our teachers began to arise, enough is enough. I don't care if it's not my statutory authority. I don't care if I step on toes and hurt someone's feelings because I asked questions about how they handled allegations against a teacher or how they spend the taxpayers' dollars,' wrote Mitchell. 'I am disgusted that someone like this would have been moved around and allowed to maintain employment working with children. It's absolutely unacceptable!' He added that he knows there are members of the Blount County School Board and Central Office who are committed to making tough decisions to protect children and efforts are underway to prevent a similar situation from happening again. In September 2024, the Blount County Commission approved a resolution to ask for a thorough investigation into the personnel records from 2004 to now involving sexual misconduct within Blount County Schools. 'The safety of our students should be the #1 priority of our School system and everyone involved. If there's an employee with even a hint of not keeping our children safe, there should be no place for them in our School systems. As stated, so much work has been done already and we will continue to work together and collaborate to ensure our students are getting the absolutely best education in a safe and secure environment. I'm not finished!' Mitchell closed. When asked about the sentence, Blount County DAG Ryan Desmond declined to comment at this time. Several Blount County parents participated in a protest on Friday to share their frustrations with the sentence. Records detail earlier incidents involving former Blount County Schools employee who pleaded guilty to 'touching assault' Dalton's teaching license is currently still active. A spokesperson for the Tennessee State Board of Education told 6 News that each case must be presented in a review committee meeting for a recommendation on a potential license action. The spokesperson added the board will gather all information from the court and conduct any necessary follow-ups before doing so. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Yahoo
Knoxville families discover rental scam days after moving into home
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Two Knoxville families have to move out of a rental home after losing nearly $2,000 to a scammer pretending to be a realtor. The families were in the home for just a few days before being told they had to leave. They believed they were dealing with a legitimate landlord. The rental was a self-viewing home, and when the so-called landlord told the families he was unable to show the home, he sent them the lockbox code so they could enter the house to take a look. Once their fees had been paid, the fake landlord repeated the process and the families moved in, only to discover it was all a hoax. Former Blount County Schools employee given probation for offensive touching Alex Todd and his sister-in-law Natalie Ryffel are moving for the second time in five days because they were scammed. Together with their spouses, they rented a small two-bedroom home in East Knoxville that they found on Facebook Marketplace. The rental sign was in the front yard. They liked the place. It was small, but had a great price at $850 a month. The landlord was Buh-laal Mustafa Hatim. He both texted and talked with Todd. He also sent him a formal and official-looking contract. At the time, there were no red flags. 'Every time I would talk to him, we would send money over to him. He would, shortly after, send receipts via email,' said Todd. The receipts amounted to $1,800; $850 to rent the house, another $850 as a security deposit, and a $100 application fee. 'He wanted payment through Chime. I figured, okay, he may not have an actual bank account, Chime is an easy service to use,' said Todd. 'We paid him what we were supposed to pay him,' Ryffel added. 'We moved in the day before Easter.' 'He then texted me and said remove the sign, the rental sign, from the front yard, along with removing the lock, if we could,' said Todd. Lawyer, VFL Todd Kelly Jr. discuss consequences of breaking NIL contracts Then, a few days after Easter, they received a text from the realty company: 'You are illegally residing at this property without the consent of the owner. You are instructed to vacate the property immediately.' 'We don't have anywhere to go. We have no home, no nothing. We have no family up here, no nothing,' said Ryffel. The place is listed on websites at $1,350 a month, not $850, and it is a self-viewing home. Hatim never showed the house; he didn't have to because of the lockbox. The landlord had gained sneaky access to the code. To get into the house, Todd called Hatim, who then sent a code. 'Once you put in some basic information, it will send you, text you a code to put into this lock. Then the lights would flash and make a sound. Then you would automatically hear the door unlock,' Todd explained. Here is how the hoax works. Scammers steal property listings from other sites and pretend to be working for the realty company. Self-guided tour homes are potentially easy targets to gain illegal access. The scammer simply signs up for an account and receives a code to unlock the lock box 'You have people who work hard for their money. Only for it to be gone, and you can't even get it back,' said Ryffel. The legitimate realty company sent a text saying they're extending a gesture of goodwill to the families. They were given a free week-long stay at Wood Spring Suites. The couples are using the time to find another rental. This time, they are much wiser. 'Nobody should have to go through this,' said Ryffel. Knoxville woman who faced eviction due to daughter's behavior given more time to find new home 'Self-showing' scams can happen even with safety measures in place, such as one-time use codes on lockboxes that expire after an hour. Before you suspect something is fishy, scammers have figured out a way to fool prospective renters. The scammer can access the one-time use codes, the same way everyone does, except he or she may use a fake ID, or a stolen credit card. Realtors say if there is a sign out front, call the number on the sign to make sure you know who you are dealing with before you give anyone money. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Tennessee flu activity among highest in the nation, causing school closures. What to know
Flu season is in full swing and the Volunteer State is feeling its full effects. Multiple school districts in East Tennessee are closed from Thursday, Feb. 6 due to the high prevalence of illness. Claiborne County Schools, Blount County Schools, Union County Schools and more have canceled classes. The trend of closures continues across the state. Five school districts are closed in Middle Tennessee due to illness and two more school districts are closed or have a remote learning day in Chattanooga. Currently, Tennessee has one of the highest rates of flu activity in the nation, according to the most recent CDC data. The CDC considers flu activity in the Volunteer State to be "very high," the highest classification level. Other states with very high flu activity are Louisiana, South Carolina, New Jersey, Massachusetts and New Hampshire as of Jan. 25. The Walgreens' Flu Index lists Knoxville and Memphis among the markets with the most flu activity nationally. The most recent data, from the last week of January, placed Knoxville at No. 6 and Memphis at No. 8. It's at the discretion of individual school districts to close due to illness. Schools do not need the approval of the Tennessee Department of Education commissioner to cancel in this circumstance. These are the most common flu symptoms according to the CDC. If children or adults feel intense muscle pain, have trouble breathing, or have chest pain, they should seek immediate medical care. fever or feeling feverish/chills. However, not everyone with the flu will experience a fever. cough sore throat runny or stuffy nose muscle or body aches headaches fatigue some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though this is more common in children than adults. Influenza A has been the prominent illness this season, according to the CDC. Of the 2,693 viruses reported by public health laboratories during the week of Jan. 25, 2,642 were influenza A and only 51 were influenza B. The Tennessee Department of Health also reported Influenza A being more common in the Volunteer State. Influenza A tends to be more common than Influenza B each flu season, according to Healthline. Additionally, Influenza A can affect more than just people; birds, pigs and other animals are also at risk of falling ill. Both illnesses have similar symptoms and treatment methods. No. It's not too late to get a flu shot, according to the National Foundation of Infectious Diseases. The CDC recommends that everyone aged 6 months and older get vaccinated annually. Flu viruses typically spread the most in fall and winter, with activity peaking between December and February. While there is no exact date that signals the end of flu season, historical CDC data shows that flu activity dramatically drops in April and May. This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee flu activity among highest in U.S., causing school closings
