Atlanta

Tenn. police chief, former APD deputy chief indicted over residency, lying on documents

Former Chattanooga Police Chief Celeste Murphy (Chattanooga Police Department)

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — Now-former Chattanooga, Tennessee Police Chief Celeste Murphy has been indicted and charged over residency claims.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation says they began looking into questions over Murphy’s residency in April.

Murphy, 56, was accused of lying about living in Chattanooga. The TBI says she falsified several government documents.

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A grand jury returned a 17-count indictment that charges her with illegal voter registration, 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.

She was booked into the Hamilton County Jail and released on a $19,000 bond.

According to documents from the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council obtained by Channel 2 Action News, Murphy spent nearly 25 years with the Atlanta Police Department.

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She began as a sergeant in May 1997 before working her way up to deputy chief in January 2020. She retired from the department in March 2022.

Murphy became the Chattanooga Police Chief in April 2022.

According to POST, she was listed “in good standing” at the time of her retirement.

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