Mom leaves child for 8 days and other news from areas around Chattanooga

Mom leaves child for 8 days

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - East Tennessee authorities say a woman dropped off her child with a neighbor and didn't come back for more than a week.

According to the Johnson City Press, city police found 24-year-old April Jones, of Johnson City, at the Horseshoe Lounge on Wednesday.

Johnson City police said that after Jones didn't return to her friend's house to pick up the child for eight days, the friend called them. The department notified Child Protective Services.

Jones was still in jail Friday, charged with felony child neglect. The Washington County Detention Center did not have information about whether Jones had an attorney. She is due in court June 13.


Sheriff warns of roving scams

DeKALB COUNTY, Ala. - DeKalb County, Ala., Sheriff Jimmy Harris in a news release advised area residents to be cautious this summer as traveling con artists move across the Southeast.

He said these people come mostly from the East Coast and are well organized in taking advantage of people.

Harris said one of the most common scams is the "driveway repair."

The scammers will approach a "client" and give a story about having leftover asphalt from a large job. They offer to give a huge discount to pave a driveway, and once the "contract" is signed the $300 quote swells to several thousand dollars after the cheap mix is put down.

Threats of liens are made to get the victim to pay, and a settlement usually is reached that far exceeds the original agreement, Harris said.

He said any home repair not initiated by the homeowner should be suspect and that reputable contractors do not go door-to-door soliciting businesses.

He said door-to-door sales are legal in most cases but should not take place after dark. He urged not letting strangers enter your home if you are alone and always asking for identification and licenses for the items being sold. He recommended not letting people leave your sight if they enter your home and noting vehicle descriptions and tag numbers.

He also said people never should verify account information over the phone or Internet, not wire money to collect money and not cash checks to send money back.


Millions spent on lawyers

ATLANTA - Records show that Georgia is on pace to spend nearly $35 million on private lawyers to do work for its departments and agencies rather than state attorneys.

The Fulton County Daily Report reported that the contract lawyers, also known as special assistant attorneys general, supplement the state's Law Department staff and often work at discounted rates.

The newspaper reported the state has paid $26.2 million to 323 such lawyers through the third quarter of this fiscal year, which ends June 30.

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