A Tennessee woman, Emilee “Emma” Berger, was arrested and charged with identity theft after allegedly doxxing a man by posting his unredacted personal information on Facebook.
Incident Details and Arrest
Emilee Berger was taken into custody on the evening of March 13, two days after authorities discovered that she had posted a copy of an arrest warrant containing Mitchell Cook’s personal identifying information. Monroe County Sheriff Tommy Jones shared the details on Facebook, stating that the arrest warrant had been posted in a Facebook group called “Uncensored Voices of Monroe County Revamped.”
The post contained sensitive personal data, including Cook’s full name, date of birth, driver’s license number, and Social Security number. The sheriff’s office was informed of the post on March 11.
Cook’s Reaction and Berger’s Statement
Mitchell Cook later informed the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) detectives that he had not given anyone permission to share his personal information on social media.
Berger told detectives on March 11 that after an individual pointed out the unredacted personal information in the post, she re-shared the post with the information redacted. However, the next day, she allegedly created another post acknowledging that the original warrant had been posted without the redacted information.
Criminal Charges and Legal Consequences
Because the original post contained unredacted personal identifying information, detectives determined that a criminal offense had occurred. Sheriff Jones explained that while many public records can be accessed, certain sensitive information, such as Social Security numbers and driver’s license numbers, is protected by law and cannot be disclosed publicly without proper redaction.
Berger was charged with identity theft and booked into the Monroe County Jail on March 13. She was later released after posting a $3,000 bond. It is unclear if she has legal representation.
Investigation into How Berger Accessed the Warrant
An ongoing investigation is looking into how Berger accessed Cook’s arrest warrant. According to Sheriff Jones, investigators determined that a visible line through the document posted by Berger matched the one applied to documents scanned into the Monroe County court system. This suggests that the document Berger shared originated from the Monroe County Clerk of Court’s electronic system.
Monroe County Clerk Dewayna Martin confirmed that this system is accessible only to authorized users, including clerk’s office personnel, law enforcement officials, and local attorneys. Investigators found that two individuals who accessed the warrant were not employees of the MCSO or the clerk’s office.
Next Steps and Ongoing Investigation
Sheriff Jones stated that the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office would be forwarding the findings to the appropriate authorities for further investigation into the unauthorized access of the arrest warrant.
