John Coffelt, Editor

An audio file said to have evidence of Commissioner Joe Mike Hodge conspiring with Administrative Assistant Connie Goethe to retrieve documents that belonged to the late Mayor Judd Matheny in possession of the current mayor’s office from the has been released. 

Hodge is heard saying on the audio, “How does the public trust government if government doesn’t want to follow procedure?” Hodge said. “We are not good people basically. We need to be held accountable and show everything we’re doing.”    

“That’s what procedures are for, this is an agreed to procedure that we’re going to (use) to make decisions,” Hodge said.

“Truth is simple, when things get complicated that’s when somebody is trying to hide something,” he said.     

The matter was brought to light by a petition filed June 20 in Coffee County Chancery Court requesting a box of the late Mayor Judd Matheny for the documents that Hodge is accused of conspiring  to obtain with the help of the former Administrative Assistant to the Mayor.

Northcott told the Times that he had told the Hunt and Partin that no crime had been committed prior to an executive session being held during which Hodge was said to have been confronted with pending criminal charges, and allegedly offered a chance to resign and not face prosecution.

In an email obtained by the Times, Northcott tells the county commission, 

“I believe it is important for you to hear the results of my investigation done at the request of Sheriff Partin, Mayor Hunt and County Attorney Mark Williams directly from me…. It is of equal importance  for you to understand the timeline of events to properly evaluate the motives and conduct of all involved.” 

The audio is only part of a series of documents provided to local media by the mayors office. This story will updated to reflect that information. 

John has been with the Manchester Times since May 2011. John has won Tennessee Press Association awards for Best News Photo and placed in numerous other categories. John is a 1994 graduate of Tullahoma High School, a graduate of Motlow State Community College and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Middle Tennessee State University. He lives in Tullahoma, enjoys painting, dancing and exploring the outdoors.