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Former Chattanooga officer set for decertification after tasing deputy

Chattanooga Police Department / Former Investigator Celtain Batterson was the lead investigator working an 2023 operation that ended with police shooting and killing Roger Heard Jr. Members of the state's Peace Officer Standards & Training Division voted Thursday to decertify Batterson. Chattanooga Police Department / Former Investigator Celtain Batterson was the lead investigator working an 2023 operation that ended with police shooting and killing Roger Heard Jr. Members of the state's Peace Officer Standards & Training Division voted Thursday to decertify Batterson.

By Ellen Gerst September 19, 2024 6 min read

A state board voted Thursday to decertify a former Chattanooga police officer who resigned while under three internal investigations.

Celtain Batterson had worked at the department since 2013, according to an employee roster, and resigned May 1.

He was the lead investigator in the August 2023 police shooting that killed Roger Heard Jr. at a Chattanooga gas station.

Members of the state Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission on Thursday discussed a February incident in which Batterson used a Taser on a Hamilton County deputy while off-duty.