Stephen M. Hatchett, district attorney for the 10th Judicial District, said a large case backload was trimmed during his first 100 days in office.
He said, "When I took office on Sept. 1, there was a backlog in the Criminal Courts of over 2,400 cases. There were over 500 cases that had not been reviewed and prepared to be presented to the Grand Jury. I am proud of the tremendous effort put forth by my staff over the past 100 days. My name may be on the door but it is the people in my office who have worked tirelessly to put this District back into order.
"I am also indebted to Dewayna Martin, Rhonda Cooley, Gayla Miller, and Melissa Jenkins our outstanding Circuit Court Clerks and their respective staff for their help. I also want to thank our judges across the District for their help with scheduling and getting cases through the court system - our Circuit Criminal Judge Andrew Freiberg, Criminal Court Judge Sandra Donaghy, and Judge Dwaine Thomas, Judge Brooklynn Townsend, Judge Wylie Richardson, Judge Clay Collins, and Judge Andrew Morgan in the General Sessions Courts. I am also extremely grateful to our law enforcement officers across the District. In my opinion the first duty and obligation of government is to provide law and order. Without it, nothing else in society will function.
"I am a firm believer in transparency in government so below I have provided a very short list of accomplishments achieved by my office since I took office on Sept. 1. I welcome any questions or comments from the public.
- Targeted violent and repeat offenders.
- Implemented zero tolerance policy for anyone trafficking illegal drugs across any of the county lines of the 10th Judicial District.
- Entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms to track stolen firearms.
- Reduced backlog in the Grand Jury from over 500 cases to fewer than 50 cases.
- Reduced delay in cases moving from General Sessions Court to the Grand Jury.
- Staffed office to full capacity for the first time in approximately nine months.
- Streamlined decision-making process for assistant district attorneys to move cases quicker through the court system.
- Created policies to minimize citizen and law enforcement wait times in court.
- Re-organized staff to provide better service to citizens throughout the District and avoid waste of resources.
- Assigned one full-time criminal investigator to Monroe and McMinn Counties and another full-time criminal investigator to Bradley and Polk Counties.
- Reduced the average number of days a case remained open in Criminal Court.
- Re-organized offices so that each county has prosecutors assigned to that county to ensure repeat and violent offenders do not slip through the cracks.
He gave the 10th Judicial District Drug and Violent Crime Task Force quarterly report from Sept. 26- Dec. 6.
The following law enforcement agencies are part of the Task Force: Bradley County Sheriff’s Office, McMinn County Sheriff’s Office, Monroe County Sheriff’s Office, Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Athens, Police Department, Cleveland Police Department, Sweetwater Police Department.
New Cases- 73
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Agency Assists- 31
Felony Arrests- 33
Misdemeanor Arrests- 10
Citations- 38
Cocaine Seized- 1,002 Grams
Processed Marijuana Seized- 363 Grams
Marijuana Plants Seized- 5
Methamphetamine Seized- 3,445 Grams
Legend Drugs Seized- 66 Dosage Units
Fentanyl Tablets Seized- 2,041 Dosage Units
Fentanyl Powder Seized- 490 Grams
Other Drugs Seized- 73 Grams/Dosage Units
Firearms Seized- 14