Sevier County DA Jimmy Dunn Arrested on Felony Charges Weeks Before Retirement

District Attorney General Jimmy Dunn, who has led the 4th Judicial District covering Cocke, Grainger, Jefferson, and Sevier counties for two decades, was arrested Thursday and charged with multiple felonies, just days before his scheduled retirement on August 31. Dunn faces charges including civil rights intimidation, retaliation for past action, official misconduct, two counts of official oppression, and coercion of a state witness.

Dunn was not arrested alone. Assistant District Attorney William Brownlow Marsh, who served as deputy district attorney general under Dunn, was also arrested in Sevier County and faces two felony counts of official oppression, according to WBIR. As reported by the Knoxville News Sentinel, Dunn was first elected as the district's top prosecutor in 2006 and was reelected in 2014 and again in 2022, building a career that also included 16 years as an assistant district attorney before he took the elected post.

A Retirement Announcement That Came Fast

Dunn announced his sudden retirement in July, cutting his current term four years short. The timing raised eyebrows even before Thursday's arrests: his exit came less than 24 hours after retired Senior Judge D. Kelly Thomas Jr. suspended proceedings in a long-running public records lawsuit, after petitioners alleged that a sworn affidavit Dunn submitted contained false statements about whether his office created or kept grand jury application forms, according to the Knoxville Daily Sun.

That lawsuit traces back to September 2023, when The Gatlinburg Free Press and its publisher, Erik Cooper, sued over alleged unlawful restrictions once placed on citizens seeking to present evidence to Sevier County grand juries, per the same account. Tennessee law gives citizens a statutory right to request to testify before a grand jury under Tennessee Code Annotated § 40-12-104, the outlet notes.

Judge Ordered Dunn to Testify, Then Reversed Course

Judge Thomas initially ordered Dunn to take the witness stand this month to address the affidavit discrepancies, but on August 17 granted a motion for reconsideration that relieved Dunn of the requirement to testify. The Tennessee Attorney General's office, which represented Dunn in the civil dispute, argued the court could not compel the defense to call Dunn as a witness, the Knoxville Daily Sun reported in a separate account of the proceedings.

Just days later, state criminal investigators moved forward with the felony charges. Under Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-16-402, official misconduct is a Class E felony committed when a public servant intentionally exercises unauthorized official power or refrains from performing a legal duty with intent to obtain a benefit or harm another, according to the UT County Technical Assistance Service. Official oppression, also a Class E felony under Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-16-403, occurs when a public official acting under color of law intentionally subjects another to unlawful mistreatment or denies or impedes another's legal rights, per FindLaw, which notes that charges against public officials must be brought via grand jury indictment or presentment. Class E felonies in Tennessee carry potential prison terms of one to six years.

Praise, Then Prosecution

The contrast between how Dunn's exit was framed in July and what followed weeks later is stark. The Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference issued a statement commending Dunn's nearly 40 years of service and integrity upon his retirement notice, according to the conference's own release. That statement came before any criminal charges were filed against him.

Dunn's biography, as listed by the 4th Judicial District DA's office, includes military service as a U.S. Army military police officer stationed in Germany from 1966 to 1968 with the 30th Military Police Battalion, before he received an honorable discharge in June 1968 and eventually joined the district's prosecutor's office as an assistant district attorney in 1990.

Who Fills the Seat Now

Governor Bill Lee's office set a July 24 application deadline for attorneys seeking appointment as interim 4th Judicial District Attorney General, a position that will be filled until the next biennial election in August 2028, according to the Tennessee Bar Association Law Blog. Candidates must meet a five-year state residency requirement and a one-year district residency requirement under the Tennessee Constitution. Lee is expected to announce his choice to fill the seat as Dunn's own legal troubles unfold in parallel with the transition.

Dunn's office had, until recently, continued to handle the routine work of a district attorney general's office. In February, his office requested a Tennessee Bureau of Investigation inquiry into a sexual misconduct complaint that led to an April grand jury indictment of Grainger County resident Glenn Noe, a case Hoodline previously reported on in June. Dunn's office also requested TBI investigations into officer-involved shootings in Sevier County and Pigeon Forge earlier this year, and Dunn was cited in connection with a Grainger County school board member's case in March, underscoring how central his office had been to the district's criminal justice system before Thursday's arrests.