A deputy with the Dyer County Sheriff’s Office is now facing charges including Sexual Battery and Official Misconduct following an indictment by a grand jury. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) conducted the investigation that led to these charges against Deputy Jared Willcutt, after allegations surfaced accusing him of sexual assault during a traffic stop.
Timeline-wise, the investigation kicked off on April 2, when the 29th Judicial District Attorney General, Danny Goodman, requested TBI involvement into the claims against Willcutt. This was nearly six months after the incident purportedly took place on October 7, 2024, in Newbern. The TBI agents were able to uncover enough clearly to bring the matter before a grand jury, which ultimately resulted in the indictment.
According to a release posted on the TBI's newsroom, the grand jury convened last Monday and handed down the indictment charging Willcutt, whose date of birth is listed as October 9, 1988, with one count each of Sexual Battery, Official Misconduct, and Official Oppression. The TBI clearly states that these charges are accusations and not evidence of guilt. As is the cornerstone of the criminal justice system, the deputy is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Following the indictment, Jared Willcutt turned himself in to authorities last Tuesday and was subsequently booked at the Dyer County Jail, where his bond was set at $25,000. The progress of this case now transitions to the next stage—due process in the courtroom.
