Grundy County school board member Kasey Anderson has been arrested again, the fourth time since she was elected to the seat in 2014.
Anderson was charged Tuesday with failing to appear in court on a grand jury indictment issued in March, Grundy County Sheriff Clint Shrum said Wednesday.
She was last arrested March 9 for failure to appear in court on previous charges, the Times Free Press previously reported.
Kasey AndersonAnderson was arrested in November after text messages she sent led to the entire school system going on a soft lockdown. She was charged with making false reports in that incident.
She was also arrested after a domestic incident at her Pelham, Tenn., home in June. She was charged with coercion of a witness, public intoxication, indecent exposure, disorderly conduct, making false reports or statements and resisting arrest.
Anderson could not be reached for comment Wednesday. But in June 2017, Anderson denied wrongdoing in her first arrest, saying, "There's so many lies."
Her husband, Tony Anderson, posted a response to the arrest on the Grundy County Herald newspaper's Facebook page, saying his wife was in court on time Tuesday.
In the post, he wrote, "She was at court today. Wasn't late and they still took her to jail on failure to appear for same thing she made bond on 3 weeks ago. She only missed 1 court date not 2... SMH yes please pay attention to who you vote for. Retaliation for being a whistle blower? Hmm... Let that sink in a minute. Everything she has tried to tell the public has happened. The child abuse cover ups, the sex in the field house and the waste of our tax dollars... Someone don't want the real truth out there. ... Do they? Hopefully officers that can legally carry a gun from now on can be hired if a new sheriff is elected. How can a cop be convicted of 2 domestic assaults and legally still carry a gun? If that was anyone else just carr[y]ing a gun would be enough to be put in jail. How about getting rid of the buddy system and opening your eyes Grundy. Kasey is paying the price for your children! So yes please vote at the polls and take a stand!!"
In the nearly two dozen posts that followed on the social media page, Grundy County Mayor Michael Brady responded to a question from another Grundy resident about an "ouster" effort to remove Anderson from her elected post.
Brady said in the post that neither he nor the county commission have the authority to remove anyone from office while noting that the district attorney and county attorney have the power to start proceedings if the elected office holder is found guilty of charges. Brady also noted that efforts to remove Anderson from office might take longer than her remaining term on the school board.
The legal term for an "ouster" in Tennessee law is "removal from office," 12th Judicial District Attorney General Mike Taylor said.
"Nobody has approached me from Grundy County about filing such a suit," Taylor said. "She hasn't been convicted of any criminal offenses yet."
Taylor agreed that moves to remove Anderson from office could take too long to have any real impact.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton or at www.facebook.com/benbenton1.