Ben Benton

Ben Benton is a news reporter at the Chattanooga Times Free Press. He covers Southeast Tennessee’s Bledsoe, Bradley, Franklin, Grundy, Marion, McMinn, Meigs, Rhea and Sequatchie counties. Ben has worked at the Times Free Press since November 2005. Ben was born and raised in Cleveland, Tennessee, a graduate of Bradley Central High School. He has a bachelor's degree in communications from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

Contact Southeast Tennessee reporter Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.

Whitwell officer allegedly strikes, injures teen with patrol car

by Ben Benton ·August 5, 2026

A Whitwell police officer allegedly struck a 13-year-old with a patrol car in a parking lot along Teague Road, leaving the teen hospitalized.

Staff photo by Matt Hamilton/ The Tennessee Highway Patrol Office is shown at 4120 Cummings Highway on Feb. 12, 2026. The state patrol office in Chattanooga is investigating after a Whitwell police officer accidentally struck a teen with his patrol car.

Circuit Court Judge John Harvey ‘Cam’ Cameron dies at 61

by Ben Benton ·August 4, 2026

The six-county 12th Judicial District west of Chattanooga is mourning the loss of one of its Circuit Court judges who died at his home…

Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts / Circuit Criminal Court Judge John Harvey "Cam" Cameron, 61, died Monday.

Copperhill, Tenn., and McCaysville, Ga., slammed by floods

by Ben Benton ·August 3, 2026

Communities on the Tennessee-Georgia line along the Ocoee River are continuing to dig out and clean up after heavy rains overwhelmed streets and forced…

Staff File Photo / Heavy rainfall Sunday caused widespread flooding in McCaysville, Ga., and the city of Copperhill, Tenn. Flooding also damaged water utilities and triggered boil water advisories for water utility customers in both towns,

Cleveland teen killed, two teens charged

by Ben Benton ·July 31, 2026

Police in Cleveland, Tennessee, have charged two men after a 19-year-old man showed up at the hospital with a gunshot wound and later died.

Bradley County Sheriff's Office / Haydon Land, 19.

Grundy County buys former armory for workforce training center

by Ben Benton ·July 30, 2026

MONTEAGLE, Tenn. -- Two $500,000 grants combined with a $150,000 general fund investment from Grundy County, Tennessee, are funding the purchase and eventual rehabilitation…

Staff photo by Larry Sullivan II/A photo of another building on the property of the former National Guard Armory in Monteagle, Tennessee on July 29, 2026. Grundy County has purchased the building for Tennessee College of Applied Technology workforce training and development classes.

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Dismissals granted on three counts, denied on six in 2024 drowning case

by Ben Benton ·July 22, 2026

Deputy’s estate denies wrongdoing. County answer pending

Staff File Photo by Ben Benton / A road sign warning drivers that the end of Blythe Ferry Lane is 500 feet ahead is shown at the Tennessee River in Meigs County. County resident Tabitha Smith and county deputy Robert John "R.J." Leonard drowned Feb. 14, 2024, after Leonard's patrol car plunged into the river. Smith's family is suing the county and Leonard's estate for $100 million.

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Former McMinn County deputy facing charges in domestic incident

by Ben Benton ·July 21, 2026

A former deputy sergeant with the McMinn County Sheriff's Department in Athens, Tennessee, has been arrested in connection with an alleged domestic violence incident.

McMinn County Sheriff's Office / Caleb Latham, 27, of Englewood, Tenn.

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$5M suit over Meigs County courthouse incident settled

by Ben Benton ·July 19, 2026

A $5 million federal lawsuit filed by a Hamilton County woman against Meigs County, Tennessee, and a county judge has been settled after the…

Staff File Photo / The General Sessions courtroom is shown inside the Meigs County Courthouse in Decatur, Tenn.

Two dead in apparent murder-suicide in Cleveland, Tenn.

by Ben Benton ·July 17, 2026

Police in Cleveland, Tennessee, are investigating after two people were found dead in an apparent murder-suicide in a subdivision on the north end of town.

Staff Photo by Ben Benton / In 2023, the Cleveland Police Service Center on Church Street in Cleveland, Tenn., is pictured.

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Bradley County man charged with dumping raw sewage in Cherokee National Forest near Parksville Lake

by Ben Benton ·July 15, 2026

A Cleveland, Tennessee, man is facing charges after he allegedly dumped raw sewage in the Cherokee National Forest near Parksville Lake.