A former Giles County Sheriff's deputy once praised for pulling an elderly couple from rising floodwaters has turned himself in to face a five-count felony indictment accusing him of lying under oath about a Taser deployment. Stetson Thomas surrendered at the Giles County Jail on Thursday and was later released on bond, a day after a grand jury handed up charges that include official misconduct, destruction and tampering of governmental records, perjury, aggravated perjury and assault.
The indictment, returned Wednesday, followed an investigation into allegedly inconsistent courtroom testimony Thomas gave regarding a Taser deployment, according to authorities cited by WSMV. The station reports the charges stem from discrepancies between official documentation or physical actions and what Thomas swore to in court. Investigators have not disclosed which specific case or hearing produced the testimony in question, and that detail remains unresolved.
Thomas resigned from the Giles County Sheriff's Office on July 31, roughly two weeks before the indictment came down, per the station's report. The Giles County Sheriff's Office requested that District Attorney General Brent Cooper's office handle the investigation independently rather than keeping it in-house. Cooper serves as the elected chief prosecutor for Tennessee's 22nd Judicial District, which covers Giles, Lawrence, Maury and Wayne counties.
A Deputy Once Celebrated for Heroism
Before the allegations surfaced, Thomas had a very different public profile. In March 2025, the veteran deputy and military veteran was commended for his role on the county's swift water rescue team, which pulled an elderly couple from a vehicle trapped in rising floodwaters along Horne Hill Road moments before the car was swept away, according to WKSR Radio.
That earlier commendation now sits alongside a far more serious set of allegations. The same account notes that abuse-of-authority accusations are handled the same way regardless of an officer's prior service record, though the dossier does not indicate whether Thomas's rescue work has been formally referenced by prosecutors in the current case.
What the Charges Could Mean Legally
The aggravated perjury charge carries the heaviest potential exposure. Under Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-16-703, aggravated perjury involves knowingly making a false sworn statement on a material issue in an official proceeding and is classified as a Class D felony, punishable by two to 12 years in prison and fines up to $5,000, according to ecattorneys.law.
The official misconduct count also carries felony weight. Under Tennessee law codified as TCA § 39-16-402, official misconduct committed by a public servant acting under color of office is a Class E felony, which typically carries a sentence of one to six years depending on an offender's classification, per Justia Law. An indictment reflects a grand jury's finding of probable cause, not a determination of guilt, and Thomas is presumed innocent unless proven otherwise in court.
Sheriff Vows No Special Treatment
Giles County Sheriff Joe Purvis addressed the case publicly after the indictment, saying deputies are held to the exact same standards as the general public and that he trusts a Giles County trial jury to determine the outcome, the station's report states. Purvis, who was appointed by the Giles County Commission in November 2024 to fill an unexpired term after former Sheriff Kyle Helton resigned, announced his campaign for a full term in August 2025.
Purvis said abuse of authority will not be tolerated within the department, and he emphasized that the Giles County Sheriff's Office has dedicated employees committed to protecting the community they serve. He added that the office faces the same consequences as anyone else in the public when allegations arise, and confirmed the sheriff's office has cooperated fully with prosecutors throughout the investigation.
Push to Bar Thomas From Future Police Work
Beyond the criminal case, the sheriff's office has asked the Tennessee Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission to begin decertification proceedings against Thomas. Under POST Commission procedures, agencies must formally refer officers accused of serious policy or criminal violations for decertification, a process that can permanently revoke a state law enforcement license, according to a filing from the Tennessee Secretary of State. Voluntary resignation during an internal investigation does not by itself strip an officer's certification without that formal POST action.
The Giles County Sheriff's Office frequently works alongside regional partners on major criminal matters, including the 22nd Judicial District Drug and Violent Crimes Task Force and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, though it is not clear those agencies played a role in this particular case. Investigators have described the broader inquiry into Thomas's conduct as ongoing, and officials have not said whether additional charges or findings could follow.
