The Rhea County grand jury issued indictments during its October session, charging two men in separate cases with multiple counts of sexual abuse of children.
Jamie Lee Jordan, 42, is charged with three counts of rape of a child and five counts of aggravated sexual battery of a minor under the age of 13 and was being held on a $750,000 bond, according to jail and court records. Daniel Lee Willis, 58, is charged with two counts of sexual battery by an authority figure involving a child over the age of 13 and was being held on a $150,000 bond.
Jordan is represented by Mechelle Story Barbato, an assistant public defender in Rhea County, according to officials in the Rhea County Circuit Court Clerk’s Office. Barbato was in court Tuesday, staff members in Public Defender Ted Engel’s office said at 10:15 a.m., and she did not immediately return a phone message seeking comment. Jordan faces a court appearance Nov. 8.
Rhea County Sheriff’s Office / Jamie Lee Jordan.Meanwhile, Willis has no attorney on record and faces a court appearance Nov. 18, according to court officials.
In July 2024, investigators from the department of children’s services and Rhea County Sheriff’s Office Detective Rocky Potter began investigating a possible child sexual abuse case involving Jordan, according to a statement from the Rhea County Sheriff’s Office. The incidents allegedly happened between Aug. 3, 2020, and Aug. 2, 2022, the eight-count indictment states.
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Potter and the state agency began investigating the case involving Willis in June, according to the sheriff’s office. According to the indictment, the incident leading to aggravated sexual battery allegations happened between Dec. 20, 2018, and June 10, 2024, when Williams allegedly had authority over the child.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.
Rhea County Sheriff’s Office / Daniel Lee Willis.