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Police chief to end 'courtesy calls' to Tennessee coach Butch Jones

Anita Wadhwani
USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee
Knoxville police Chief David Rausch in 2013.

Knoxville police Chief David Rausch will stop making "courtesy calls" to Tennessee football coach Butch Jones to alert him when players are under criminal investigation.

The Knoxville mayor's office released a statement from Rausch on Friday making the announcement.

"Going forward, in any incident involving a student at the University, KPD will make formal notification only to UT law enforcement, as required by state law and as part of our ongoing interdepartmental cooperation,” Rausch said in the statement.

The Knoxville News Sentinel first reported the statement and the decision to end the calls.

Rausch's practice of making courtesy calls to Jones came under scrutiny following the release of Jones' cell phone records earlier this month in response to a public records request by The Tennessean. The phone records showed that Rausch in November 2014 called Jones within hours of police being notified of an alleged sexual assault involving two of his players.

Sam Brown, a detective who also serves as a "liaison" to the football team, also contacted Jones.

The players — A.J. Johnson and Michael Williams — learned they were under investigation by their coaches.

The Tennessean reported on April 13 that the calls were contrary to police best practices, potentially threatened the integrity of the investigation and were in possible violation of state law.

Police courtesy calls to Tennessee's Butch Jones 'could violate state law'

Knox County District Attorney Charme Allen said in a statement earlier this month that she could not discuss the specifics of the investigation into the rape allegations against Johnson or Williams. But Allen said prosecutors oppose pre-arrest notification.

“General Allen opposes pre-arrest notification to any person or agency that is not made in furtherance of the investigation," the district attorney's statement said. "A pre-arrest disclosure of sensitive information that is not made for the purpose of advancing the criminal investigation potentially could violate state law regarding the misuse of official information.”

A spokesman for Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero said that Rausch and the mayor "sat down and talked about the practice and evaluated it" over the past week. Their last meeting was Friday, according to spokesman Jesse Fox Mayshark.

In his statement, Rausch said no investigation had been compromised by the courtesy calls.

Butch Jones phone records show calls with Drae Bowles

“After reviewing our longstanding practice of courtesy notifications to the University of Tennessee administration of incidents involving UT students, it is clear that no investigations were compromised or improper information provided, the statement said.

"But in the interest of transparency and to alleviate any appearance of a conflict of interest, we have changed the previous practice, to ensure that investigators focus without hindrance on finding the facts and bringing justice to victims of crime.

Johnson and Williams face separate trials for rape this summer. Both men have pleaded not guilty.

Timeline: Sexual assault incidents at University of Tennessee

Sweeping sex assault suit filed against University of Tennessee

Reach Anita Wadhwani at 615-259-8092 or on Twitter @AnitaWadhwani.