A gag order has been put down in the case in which Jesse Mathews is charged with the murder of Chattanooga Police Sgt. Tim Chapin.
Criminal Court Judge Barry Steelman issued the order at the request of the district attorney's office after Mathews had agreed to a jailhouse interview with a columnist for the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
The order directs that no one connected to the case make any statement to the news media.
The trial for Mathews is set Jan. 22, 2013.
The state is seeking the death penalty.
He is represented by attorneys Lee Davis and Bryan Hoss.