Chattanooga man charged in child rape given time to find a lawyer

photo Larry Vaughn

A man arrested nearly two weeks ago on a year-old rape investigation has been given more time to find an attorney.

Larry Vaughn has been charged with aggravated rape. His initial appearance in Hamilton County General Sessions Court was today.

Red Bank City Judge Johnny Houston passed the hearing to Sept. 27 so that Vaughn could have an attorney, a constitutional right for someone accused of a crime.

Houston sat in for Judge Ronald Durby, who had been scheduled to preside over the hearing.

Police named Vaughn as the suspect in the Sept. 9, 2010 rape of a 12-year-old girl after evidence reviewed by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation was matched to him, authorities said.

The girl told police she was on her way to school when she was lured to a residence "by a man promising her candy." Once inside the home, the man raped her twice, she said.

Victims of sex crimes are not identified in accordance with Times Free Press policy.

The TBI received evidence in February from the Chattanooga Police Department and completed the lab work in May, according to newspaper archives. Four months passed before police knew the lab results were available.

Vaughn was convicted on a charge of aggravated burglary after his Nov. 3, 2010 arrest. He was given a four-year suspended sentence.

He is being held in the Hamilton County Jail on a $400,000 bond on the rape charge.

For complete details, see tomorrow's Chattanooga Times Free Press.

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