Celeste Murphy
Former Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy is set to make her first court appearance on Friday after she was indicted following a TBI investigation.
She is due to be arraigned in the courtroom of Judge Boyd Patterson.
Ms. Murphy, 56, stepped down from her post a day before the 17-count indictment was issued.
At the request of District Attorney General Pro Tem D. Michael Dunavant, TBI agents began investigating the residency of Chief Murphy in April. DA Dunavant was appointed by the Court to serve as District Attorney General Pro Tem upon the recusal of 11th Judicial District Attorney General Coty Wamp.
The TBI said, "During the investigation, agents determined Ms. Murphy knowingly entered false information on several government documents related to establishing residency in Chattanooga, though swearing to their truth in signing the documents."
She is charged with one count of illegal voter registration, one count of false entries on official registration or election documents, three counts of false entries in governmental records, three counts of forgery, three counts of perjury, and six counts of official misconduct.
On June 27, Ms. Murphy surrendered to agents at the Hamilton County Jail, where authorities booked her and subsequently released her after she posted an aggregate $19,000 bond.
Ms. Murphy had been tabbed as the new chief by Mayor Tim Kelly in 2022.
She came here from the Police Department in Atlanta, where she still has a number of relatives.
At the time, she was hailed as the city's first black female police chief.
Click here to read the indictments.