ATLANTA - A jury has found a former Atlanta educator not guilty after the first trial connected to Atlanta's school cheating scandal.

The verdict clearing Tamara Cotman of wrongdoing was announced around 11 a.m. today. Cotman, a former area director for Atlanta Public Schools, had been accused of trying to influence a witness.

Testimony began Friday in Cotman's trial in Fulton County Superior Court. It was the first of about three dozen former administrators and teachers to stand trial.

She is among 35 former administrators and teachers, including Cotman's former boss, Superintendent Beverly Hall, who faced criminal charges for allegedly changing students' answers on standardized tests. The others have yet to be tried.