A former teacher in Georgia has been arrested after he was accused of grooming a minor after an investigation allegedly revealed his inappropriate messages with the victim.

Officers with the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office arrested Miles McLendon on Wednesday, May 13, and he was booked with one charge of grooming a minor for a sexual offense or trafficking for sexual servitude, according to The Oconee Enterprise.

McLendon’s bond was set at $10,000 and he was released one day later on Thursday, May 14.

The investigation into McLendon, 24, began on February 6, which was one year after he started working as a teacher within the Oconee County School System. Authorities learned of the situation when a member of the school system reported the allegations to authorities.

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“I [the officer] received a phone call from a member of the Oconee County School System,” the OCSO officer narrative stated, per the outlet. “I was given information about some potential inappropriate messages that a juvenile student received through social media. Once all information was gathered, an investigation was started.”

In light of the allegations, McLendon stopped working for the school system in March and the separation went into effect on March 10. It is not currently clear if McLendon was fired or resigned from the role.

The defendant worked at Dove Creek Middle School as a special education teacher at the time the investigation was launched. He started the job on December 9, 2025, according to a district personnel report viewed by The Oconee Enterprise.

However, McLendon has been employed by the district before he took on the special education teacher role. He first started working as a community coach with North Oconee High School in February 2025 before he was hired as a substitute teacher on May 1, 2025.

Following McLendon’s arrest, the Oconee County Schools issued a statement about the situation.

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“Oconee County Schools is aware of law enforcement action involving a former employee. This individual is no longer employed by the district,” the statement read, per the outlet. “Because this is an active law enforcement matter, any additional questions regarding the case should be directed to the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office.”

It is not currently clear if McLendon has entered a plea or retained legal counsel following his arrest.

The Oconee County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment regarding McLendon’s arrest.

An investigation into the allegations remains ongoing.

A former substitute teacher in Connecticut was arrested after she allegedly slapped a 12-year-old girl at school, and three witnesses corroborated the victim’s version of events.

Connecticut State Police confirmed that Ruthanna Terreri was charged with third-degree assault and risk of injury to a minor on May 6 in connection with an incident that took place on April 17 at Chester Elementary School, according to the New Haven Register.

A trooper responded to the school around 12:40 p.m. after the victim’s mother reported that her daughter had been slapped by a teacher, according to a warrant viewed by the outlet.

Upon the trooper’s arrival, Principal Tyson Stoddard said that Terreri, 64, was the teacher involved in the incident. Stoddard also told investigators Terreri, who worked as a long-term substitute, had been placed on administrative leave and was escorted out of the building following the allegations.

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The victim also spoke to police, claiming that Terreri struck her in the head twice with an open palm when she was helping with a live school broadcast. The girl said she was startled by the first slap and that the second one was painful.

“She further stated that Terreri did not speak after either strike and that she did nothing to provoke the incident,” police wrote in the warrant.

Authorities said that the victim did not appear to be injured, and the incident was reported to the state Department of Children and Families.

Three other students that were present at the time of the incident provided sworn statements to corroborate the victim’s claims. Additionally, police said that each student said Terreri hit the student on the head with an open palm.

Two of the witnesses said they saw Terreri strike the victim twice, but a third student said the victim was slapped three times. All of the witnesses said the victim told them the slap was painful.

Terreri met with police on May 6 and denied striking the student. Instead, she claimed that she tapped the child on the head to instruct her when to press a button to move to the next slide during the live broadcast, according to the warrant.

Additionally, Terreri said she initially tapped the victim on the back of her head with her index and middle fingers. However, the student allegedly didn’t respond so she tapped her several more times in the same manner.

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“She further stated that the broadcast concluded successfully and that she told the students they did a good job before they left the room,” police wrote in the warrant.

Superintendent Brian White said that Terreri was not employed by the district at the time of her arrest, according to the New Haven Register. However, it is not clear if she resigned or was fired.

Terreri was released from custody on a $5,000 bond and is next scheduled to appear in Superior Court in Middletown on Thursday, May 21, for her arraignment.

It is not currently clear if Terreri has retained legal counsel following her arrest. The Connecticut State Police did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment regarding her arrest.

Human remains found outside of a home in West Virginia have been identified as a 16-year-old girl, with the discovery being made just one week after her stepfather was arrested on separate charges related to alleged sexual abuse.

James Truman was arrested on May 8, just four days after his stepdaughter, Shayln Harvey, was reported missing on May 4.

The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office confirmed on Monday, May 18, that human remains were found on the property of a home in Big Chimney, West Virginia, on Friday, May 15. The remains have since been confirmed to have belonged to Harvey.

Truman, 52, is currently in custody on charges of incest and sexual abuse by parent, guardian, custodian or other person in position of trust to a child.

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Despite his charges being connected to the teen, he has not been charged in connection with Harvey’s death as of time of publication.

Harvey was last seen on May 2 in the same area where her remains were found. The sheriff’s office confirmed that she was reported missing two days later on May 4. Police originally said she may have gotten into a “blue Dodge Ram pickup truck from the early 2000s” at the time of her disappearance.

As the investigation into Harvey’s disappearance continued, police obtained a search warrant for a residence in the Big Chimney area. Kanawha County Chief Deputy Sean Snuffer said during a press conference on May 15 that the residence was where Harvey lived with her mother and Truman, according to WOWK.

An autopsy has been completed on Harvey’s body, but there is not yet a confirmed cause of death. The sheriff’s office added that they are currently investigating Harvey’s death as a homicide.

Truman’s incest and sex abuse charges stem from an incident that allegedly took place on or around April 15, according to online court records viewed by Law & Crime. However, no additional details about the alleged incident have been publicly shared.

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It is not currently clear if Truman has entered a plea or retained legal counsel following his arrest.

Truman is still in custody at the Kanawha County Jail and is being held on $100,000 cash bond. His next court date regarding his current charges has not yet been announced.

The Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office told Us Weekly they have no additional information to share regarding Harvey’s homicide investigation or Truman’s arrest. Police added that investigations into the two cases remain ongoing.

If you or someone you know is experiencing child abuse, call or text Child Help Hotline at 1-800-422-4453.

A father in Florida has been arrested after his 9-year-old son found his gun and shot his 5-year-old brother in the chest.

Robert Giles has been charged with one count of culpable negligence by leaving a firearm within easy reach of a minor, according to Manatee County court records viewed by Us Weekly.

The incident took place at a residence in Palmetto on March 25. Deputies reported to the home after they received a report about a “shooting with injuries,” according to an arrest warrant obtained by Law & Crime. When law enforcement entered the home, they allegedly found a 5-year-old boy “suffering from a gunshot wound to the upper chest.”

The charging documents stated that a bullet “traveled through his body, striking his clavicle and piercing his lung before exiting.”

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Investigators ultimately determined that Giles’ son “located a firearm inside the primary bedroom” and then accidentally “discharged” the weapon, “striking [a boy with a different last name] in the chest.”

It was also concluded that the 9-year-old boy never intended to find the gun. Instead, the older boy “stated he entered his father’s bedroom while searching for Pokemon pens,” according to the warrant complaint. “While searching, he located a firearm on the floor under the bed.”

Giles, 36, told deputies that the gun, which was identified as a Canik 9 mm, had been stored in a nightstand next to his bed. Additionally, he said that the weapon was stored with “a round in the chamber but without a magazine inserted.”

The defendant allegedly said he was in the kitchen when “he heard a loud ‘pop'” and discovered the younger boy had been shot in his chest near his right shoulder.

Giles then “stated he subsequently secured the firearm by placing it in a safe.”

As the officers walked through the home, they observed blood in the hallway that appeared to have originated “from the primary bedroom,” per the warrant.

It’s believed the bullet traveled through a wall of the bedroom, into an outer wall and out of the residence, per the warrant. As the search of the home continued, investigators found the gun in a safe within the home.

“Inside the residence, a large gun safe was located in a secured condition,” the charging document stated. “Upon opening the safe, deputies observed a Canik 9mm handgun lying on a shelf with a magazine next to it. Multiple additional firearms were also present inside the safe. This safe was within the same room in which the shooting occurred, and within ten feet of where [Giles’ son] located the firearm.”

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Investigators determined a spent casing was still in the chamber and the gun was collected as evidence.

“The firearm was not secured in a manner that would prevent access by a minor,” the charging document said. “[Giles son] described in his interview to have located the firearm under the bed and mentioned nothing about removing it from holster or any other secured location.”

The warrant stated that the accidental discharge of the gun caused “serious bodily injury” to the 5-year-old, stating he “was intubated for approximately five days and remains hospitalized while recovering from his injuries.”

Giles was arrested on April 2 and booked in the Manatee County Jail. He was later released after he posted a $2,500 bond.

He appeared in court on Friday, May 15, and entered a not guilty plea, Us can confirm. Giles’ next court date has not yet been scheduled.

Just four days after Alex Murdaugh’s murder convictions were overturned in connection to the deaths of his wife, Maggie Murdaugh, and their son Paul Murdaugh, the former lawyer has sued county clerk Rebecaa “Becky” Hill over claims that she rigged the trial against him so she could write a book about the case and financially benefit.

Alex, 57, argued that Hill secretly worked jurors during his 2023 double-murder trial and pushed them to find him guilty of the murders, according to a federal lawsuit obtained by TMZ and filed on Sunday, May 17. Hill has been accused of telling the jurors to not be “fooled,” “confused” or “convinced” by Alex’s defense team with the goal that he would ultimately be convicted.

In the filing, Alex claimed that Hill repeatedly pulled the jury’s leader aside for private conversations during the trial. Additionally, Alex alleged that Hill encouraged jurors to closely study his body language when he testified.

Hill has also been accused of pushing jurors to wrap the trial up quickly, allegedly telling them that the deliberation process “shouldn’t take us long” and implying that they may become famous following the verdict.

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The complaint went on to allege that Hill was financially motivated to sway the jury because she allegedly believed a guilty verdict would help sell more copies of her book. After the trial concluded in March 2023, Hill and Neil R. Gordon released their book about the trial, Behind the Doors of Justice: The Murdaugh Murders, in August 2023.

The lawsuit also noted that Hill resigned from office in 2024 and she pleaded guilty to perjury, obstruction of justice and misconduct in office after she was accused of sharing sealed evidence from the trial with the media.

Alex argued in the lawsuit that Hill’s actions cost him at least $600,000 in legal fees, as well as destroyed his right to a fair trial.

Hill’s attorney, Will Lewis, did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment regarding the lawsuit.

Alex filed the lawsuit shortly after the South Carolina Supreme Court overturned his murder conviction regarding Maggie and Paul’s deaths in June 2021. On Wednesday, May 13, the court announced they overturned the guilty verdict because they believed the original trial was damaged by Hill’s “improper” influence.

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“Although we are aware of the time, money and effort expended for this lengthy trial, we have no choice but to reverse the denial of Murdaugh’s motion for a new trial due to Hill’s improper external influences on the jury and remand for a new trial,” the justices wrote in a 5-0 vote, per CNN.

During the trial, Alex denied that he killed Maggie and Paul. However, he did admit to committing financial theft and said he lied to investigators about his whereabouts in the hours before his wife and son were killed.

Once the trial concluded, Alex was given two life sentences for the murder charges. He was also handed concurrent state and federal sentences of 27 and 40 years after he pleaded guilty to dozens of financial crimes.

A high school teacher in Texas has been arrested after he allegedly had sex with a student in his classroom, and he was caught after another student saw them together.

Chad Allen Rodriguez was arrested on Saturday, May 16, and was charged with a second-degree felony for having sex with a 17-year-old girl.

Rodriguez, 38, allegedly started flirting with the female student after they met in October 2025, according to WOAI. Authorities said that the pair’s relationship escalated when they reportedly started sending each other X-rated videos and pictures, as well as meeting in Rodriguez’s classroom to have sex.

Their alleged inappropriate relationship was revealed on Thursday, May 14, when another student spotted them alone in Rodriguez’s classroom, according to the court docs viewed by the outlet. However, it has not been revealed what exactly the other student saw in order for them to believe something suspicious was going on.

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After Rodriguez and the victim were spotted together, the girl reportedly walked out of his classroom and went to authorities to report that she had sex with the teacher, according to the court documents.

Rodriguez has since been charged with having an improper relationship between an educator and student, which is a second-degree felony.

The age of consent in Texas is 17 years old, according to the Scott Palmer Law website. Due to the law, Rodriguez may not be charged with having sex with a minor.

Rodriguez was hired at John Jay High School in San Antonio in August 2016 and worked at the school for 10 years as a physics and astronomy teacher. Additionally, he served as a football and track coach at the school.

After the student came forward with the allegations, Rodriguez was immediately put on leave.

“The district is aware of the allegations and subsequent arrest, and the employee has been placed on immediate administrative leave,” the Northside Independent School District said in a statement obtained by WOAI.

NISD added that it could not share specific details about the case because of the ongoing investigation. “NISD and Jay High School are cooperating fully with law enforcement,” the statement read.

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“Our priority remains the safety and well-being of our students, and we are committed to maintaining a secure, supportive environment during this time,” the district concluded.

Rodriguez is currently in custody at Bexar County Jail and is being held on a $50,000 bond. It is not immediately clear if he has entered a plea or retained legal counsel following his arrest.

The San Antonio Police Department did not immediately respond to Us Weekly’s request for comment regarding the case.