Officer accused of misconduct by two more women
Two additional women have accused Chattanooga police officer Desmond Logan of criminal misconduct while serving in his role as an officer, according to an attorney.
At least three women have accused Logan of raping them while on duty, while a fourth woman described to her attorneys an incident of alleged criminal activity, said Sutherland & Belk PLC attorney Chad Phillips.
“Sutherland & Belk now represents multiple victims of alleged rape, assault and other crimes by a Chattanooga Police Officer while on duty,” Phillips wrote in a statement. “The alleged misconduct includes multiple occurrences over a significant period of time. The severity of the allegations is increasingly concerning.”
Two women previously told the Times Free Press Logan raped them, one of whom hired Sutherland & Belk. A third woman also hired the law firm, and a fourth detailed to the firm an alleged rape at the hands of the officer, Phillips said.
The women each claim to have notified the department of the incidents. Department officials acknowledged one of the complaints and said that woman is the only person to accuse Logan of sexual misconduct while on duty.
Public record requests that were filed more than two and a half months ago seeking information have not been fully met.
The city’s open records office has denied some requests because of the ongoing investigation and notified the Times Free Press that the office would need an extension for other information. The officer’s personnel file and internal affairs file have been released but contained little more than hiring paperwork. The internal affairs file does list a prisoner transport violation for the June allegation. There is no mention of any prior violations.
Details from Chattanooga police officials have been almost entirely limited to what Chief David Roddy said in a June 16 news conference. During his statement, he announced an officer was under criminal and internal affairs investigations for sexual misconduct. Roddy claimed the June victim was the only person to make a complaint “relative to this type of investigation” against the officer.
Department spokespeople did not address a question about whether the department still stands by those comments.
The Chattanooga Police Department is “limited in what we can release or say,” according to department communications coordinator Elisa Myzal. The department has confirmed there is an ongoing criminal investigation by the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office and an internal affairs investigation by the Chattanooga Police Department. The department released all information that’s available, Myzal wrote in an email.
A Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office spokesman did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Representatives with the Federal Bureau of Investigation have spoken with at least one of the alleged victims, but the bureau neither confirmed nor denied the existence of an investigation, according to a spokesman.