The Cleveland, Tennessee, day care worker who was charged Feb. 10 with 27 counts of child neglect and then had those charges dismissed by a judge in March is now facing a grand jury indictment alleging 28 new counts related to the same blaze at Little Lambs Child Care that landed him jail the first time.
James Roger Carpenter Jr., 53, was charged the day of the fire with 27 counts of child neglect after emergency officials who were removing the 27 children there during the fire noticed open beer containers in a room, authorities said in February.
Officers questioned Carpenter, who allegedly admitted to drinking multiple alcoholic beverages while working at the center that day, according to a news release on his initial arrest. No one was injured in the fire.
Bradley County General Sessions Judge Sheridan Randolph, however, dismissed Carpenter's charges March 8. Randolph ruled Carpenter couldn't be charged with being in legal custody of the children, officials said.
In response to the dismissal, District Attorney General Stephen Crump said in a March news release he disagreed with Randolph's ruling and promised to present the case to the Bradley County grand jury.
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Carpenter was arrested April 26 on the indictment.
Crump declined to comment specifically about the case when contacted by phone Tuesday, but he posted a Facebook comment Monday about the indictment and new charges.
"Despite claims to the contrary, this case was charged correctly and now has been indicted using the same statute," Crump said in the post. "My office looks forward to the just conclusion of this case in the courtrooms of the 10th Judicial District."
Carpenter now faces an indictment charging him with one count of reckless burning and 27 counts of reckless endangerment, according to a Bradley County Sheriff's Office spokesperson.
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Carpenter is free on a $5,000 bond, authorities said, and he faces arraignment May 23 in Bradley County Criminal Court.
A working phone number could not be found for Carpenter, and he has no lawyer on record, according to court officials.
The day of the fire, 27 children and four staff members were moved to a nearby building until the Bradley County school system sent a bus to transport the children to Ocoee Middle School to be picked up by parents and guardians, according to officials.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton.