Murphy – The case was dismissed due to insufficient evidence against local educator Tom Graham, who was accused of taking indecent liberties with a student when he was principal at Hiwassee Dam High School.
Graham, 51, of Ranger and a former Cherokee County Principal of the Year, was accused of making lewd statements to a female sophomore at Hiwassee Dam High twice in early 2016.
He was arrested in 2018, when he was principal at Murphy High School. Following his arrest, he was suspended with pay, then eventually lost the job outright.
Neither Graham nor his lawyer would comment about the case following the dismissal of charges in Cherokee County Superior Court on July 10.
The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office started investigating the allegations in 2017, then was joined in 2018 by the State Bureau of Investigation. Subpoenas were issued in early 2018 to Google (for access to email accounts) as well as Instagram and Facebook (for photographic and other social media evidence).
Investigators were seeking suspicious graphic files along with the dates they were uploaded, IP and MAC address information to determine the devices that were used, password history and EXIF data from photos, which could include when and where photos were taken.
The Cherokee and Watauga county school districts were subpoenaed for Graham’s personnel records, with investigators looking for evidence of reprimands, transfers and reason for transfers.
Graham was arrested in February 2018 and released after posting a $2,500 secured bond. As a condition for his bonded release, he was forbidden from making contact with his accuser.
Over a five-year period, at least 16 motions to continue the case were granted. According to court records, Graham rejected a plea deal offered in December 2022.
However, on July 10, assistant district attorney John Hindsman Jr. filed a dismissal, saying that the “prosecuting witness (is) no longer available.” The paperwork did not elaborate, but according to social media identified as hers in court documents, the accuser is overseas pursuing a degree.