Earlier this week Coffee County District Attorney General Craig Northcott made a plea to Tullahoma Alderman Jenna Amacher at the Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting in Tullahoma. Northcott requested Amacher resign as an alderman after he said he received a letter of complaint signed by around 270 people. The complaint questions her residency on Ledford Mill Rd.
Amacher Responds in a letter to On Target News:
In establishing my position that I am a resident- many things come to mind. I am a residential property owner, a taxpayer, a business owner, a single mother with kids who attend school in Tullahoma. I live here, I work here, I shop here. My driver’s license, my utility bills, my bank statements, my tax returns…. All list my address at 1744 Ledford Mill Rd. Residency is easily proven. Unfortunately for my political enemies, claiming any other address would be fraud and an impossibility. I couldn’t claim residency anywhere else even if I wanted to according to the state’s proof of residency requirements.
For the District Attorney- This is not about the question at hand. This is an attempt to retaliate. The District Attorney- given his unethical impropriety in previous comments and actions cannot claim neutrality. Even I am a little shocked at his arrogant display of self-righteous grandeur- calling me a “fool” and quoting Proverbs. Not to mention, literally zero factual evidence given that I’m not a resident. He alluded to “witness statements.” But gave zero specifics and all other facts were blatant lies. Calls the property unimproved- tax records show otherwise. He’s been on this for months and even appointed a special prosecutor to investigate me for “voter fraud.” But yet, still no facts? And the ones you did give were not correct. I’m now not only worried about the weaponization of the justice system but also the integrity of the investigations. The sheer number of ethical violations has become one for the record books.
For the signers of the petition- many who did not even know what they were signing, and others who signed out of peer pressure. I venture to say 90 percent or more didn’t vote for me, and many of whom this comes down to a singular issue- as when they presented it to individuals in town- they prefaced it with -”This individual is anti-growth.” I stand in the way of the 2040 plan being passed as written. That was reason enough for many to sign.
For the Mayor- the one tasked with following the rules and enforcing order in a meeting. When he started with “I’m not here as a citizen,” he should have been stopped. The comments section is limited to citizens’ comments. The DA was not on the agenda, and nor did he present us with anything relevant to any action on the agenda or otherwise that the board may take collectively.
When you ruled against my point of order, you did so only because he was the DA. That is abuse of power. Who you let speak when and what you let them say has boiled down to who they are and do you agree with it… that is unacceptable and a violation of the first amendments requirement of content neutrality. Instead, you allowed this person with a badge to lie, embarrass, and defame a sitting board member.
If the DA is successful, the effect would not just remove me from a part time board that I sit on for the sole purpose of serving my community, but it would officially deprive me of my constitutional right to vote- without cause.
I am ineligible to vote in any other county or district based on the requirements.
In summary, this is an unprecedented action and would have historic significance. A free citizen, without a criminal record, essentially being stripped of sovereignty by the individual tasked with protecting the rights of citizens.
