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EMA director defends investigation report release after River Park allegation, commissioners press on Facebook posting
Summary
EMA Director Joe Esway told the Cocke County Legislative Body he conducted a documented investigation into a social-media allegation about an incident at Freeman River Park and released an 11‑page report after review; commissioners questioned whether posting the report publicly was necessary and raised concerns about victim privacy.
EMA Director Joe Esway told the Cocke County Legislative Body on March 16 that he had investigated an allegation involving the county’s river‑safety operation at Freeman River Park and had documented his findings in an 11‑page report.
“I did as thorough an investigation as I possibly could, given all the evidence so that I could collect,” Esway said, describing steps that included consulting the sheriff’s detective division, interviewing people named in the original post and seeking corroborating alibis. He said the investigation found that the social‑media claim that several people “saw and heard what happened” was not supported by…
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