Two UTM freshmen charged with threatening and harassing a UT Knoxville student via Facebook were sentenced on Oct. 9 in Weakley County General Sessions Court.
Patrick Valdes, 18, from Jackson, and Erin Chism, 18, from Jackson, were each charged on Oct. 2 with one count of felony harassment and one count of felony conspiracy to commit harassment.
According to Weakley County General Sessions Court, Valdes plead guilty in court yesterday to conspiracy to commit harassment under a judicial diversion. He was sentenced to: pay a $25 fine plus court cost; 7 days in jail; 6 months probation; court-ordered counseling and a court-ordered restraining order to have no contact with the victim. The felony harassment charges against Valdes were dismissed.
According to Weakley County General Sessions Court, Erin Chism was sentenced to a pre-trial diversion and the court is waiting for papers to be filed by the defendant’s attorney before any further action can be taken.
According to an earlier press release from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the 27th Judicial District Attorney General requested Tuesday, Oct. 1, that TBI investigate a report that a UT Knoxville student had received a threatening message on her Facebook page last month.
Valdes is accused of writing and producing a song that made reference to sexually assaulting and killing the Knoxville student, along with killing her family and burning her house down, according to the TBI press release. Chism then became “friends” with the woman on Facebook and sent the song to her via Facebook, the press release continued.
The UTM Department of Public Safety and the Knoxville Police Department assisted the investigation.
The Pacer will continue to update this story as necessary. To see the original story on Valdes and Chism, visit http://www.thepacer.net/students-face-harassment-charges/.
