Tennessee board to probe city's schools misconduct reporting

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Tennessee board to probe city's schools misconduct reporting

NASHVILLE - Tennessee education officials are reviewing whether a school district complied with reporting requirements when educators were disciplined or placed on administrative leave last school year.

The Tennessean quoted state board of education spokeswoman Elizabeth Tullos as saying officials will assess whether cases went unreported by Nashville public schools.

Nashville Director of Schools Shawn Joseph is required by law to report certain misconduct by educators who are suspended, fired or resign, including student-involved cases. A July law includes punishment for not reporting certain misconduct cases.

A Nashville school district list shows 19 teachers suspended, fired or resigned after district investigations, and two recommended for review of termination. One was reported to the state.

District spokeswoman Dawn Rutledge said a handful of cases should've been reported to the state, but weren't.

Middle school student finds insects in school lunch

MADISONVILLE, Tenn. - A Tennessee middle school student said she found live insects in her school lunch.

Madisonville Middle School seventh-grader Madison Smith told WBIR-TV that the bugs she and other students saw in their granola "looked like maggots" so they stopped eating and took video to send to their parents.

A statement from Monroe County Director of Schools Tim Blankenship said the flour mites were in a bag sealed in original packaging that had just been opened Sept. 4 for lunch. He said after students reported it, the granola was immediately removed.

Blankenship said cafeteria workers checked other bags of food and found no more bugs.

The school said food safety is a priority. Smith's mother, Brandy Shubert, said she'll pack her daughter's lunch from now on.

Library filled with books, turns away donations

ELIZABETHTON, Tenn. - A public library in Tennessee has received so many books recently that it has begun turning away donations.

The director of the Elizabethton/Carter County Public Library, Renita Barksdale, told the Johnson City Press the library has had to rent two storage spaces to hold recent donations. Barksdale said even the storage spaces are "filled to the brim."

The library announced the change in its donation policy last week. It said it will hold a book sale this month and may then start accepting donations again.

Authorities: 3-month-old girl found dead in Georgia home

CALHOUN, Ga. - Authorities said a 3-month-old girl was found dead in a north Georgia home.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Gordon County Sheriff's deputies were called to the home Monday morning. A Tuesday sheriff's office release said witnesses told authorities the girl was alive Sunday night and found dead the next day.

It was unclear how the infant died. It also was unclear how the witnesses are connected to the infant. The release said the Georgia Bureau of Investigation will conduct an autopsy on the girl. The sheriff's office said an investigation is ongoing.

Former Georgia officer indicted for sexual battery of child

ATLANTA - A former Atlanta-area police sergeant has been indicted on charges related to inappropriate sexual contact with four victims, including two under age 16.

The indictment against former East Lake sergeant Richard Gooddine, 38, was announced by the Fulton County district attorney's office Tuesday.

Gooddine faces 17 counts including aggravated sexual battery, child molestation and violation of oath by a public officer. His alleged crimes occurred between 2011 and 2018.

Each aggravated sexual battery charge against Gooddine carries a possible sentence of 25 years to life, the district attorney's office said in a statement.

The statement alleges that Gooddine attempted to "intimidate and threaten" his latest victim, a 15-year-old-girl.

It says he went to the hospital where the girl was undergoing a sexual assault test kit in August before being removed by hospital staff.

Atlanta mayor makes some city expense records public

ATLANTA - The mayor of Atlanta says the public can now review some of the city's individual expenses online.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced the "Open Checkbook" practice Tuesday at a press conference. The newspaper reports this is a first for the administration, which is under investigation by multiple agencies for possible corruption and public record law violations.

Bottoms says "Open Checkbook" allows the public to track individual expenditures by department, date, vendor and fund. The available data currently stretches from January 2017 to June 30 of this year. Bottoms says it will be expanded upon and updated quarterly.

The newspaper says the available data appears to be missing some information when cross-checked against earlier city data.

Alabama trooper shoots, kills driver after car chase

MORRIS, Ala. - Authorities say an Alabama state trooper shot and killed a man at the conclusion of a car chase.

The State Bureau of Investigation's Lt. Jon Riley tells news outlets a trooper tried to pull over a man for aggravated speeding and reckless driving around midnight Tuesday.

A chase ensued, starting in Gardendale and ending on a dead-end road in Morris. Riley says that shots were fired when the trooper tried to take the man into custody there, and the motorist was struck.

It's unclear whether the driver had or fired a weapon. It's unclear how many shots were fired, or what exactly preceded the shooting. No names have been released.

The scene was still active around 4 a.m. Wednesday. Riley says the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office will investigate.

Deputy: Alabama inmate escaped jail by cutting hole in fence

RUSSELLVILLE, Ala. - Authorities in Alabama say an inmate escaped from a county jail by cutting a hole in a fence.

News outlets report authorities were still searching for 26-year-old Robert Lee Brown on Wednesday, days after he escaped the Franklin County jail.

Sheriff Shannon Oliver had told the Times Daily of Florence that Brown managed to get through the first fence surrounding the facility by "going out a loose section" Saturday, before crawling over the razor wire-topped second fence. Chief Deputy Delane Clark told AL.com that Brown had used an unknown object to cut the first fence.

Records show Brown had been jailed since mid-July, when his probation was revoked in a burglary case.

He escaped clad in a jumpsuit and orange Crocs and has a crown tattooed on his forehead.

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