Sheriff Brown Responds to District Attorney's "Bias" Messages

Press release from Sheriff Jimmy Brown

"Earlier this week I was given a series of messages between District Attorney Brent Cooper and a former supporter of his from September 2017. The former supporter, who also served as a reporter for the Democratic Union newspaper, said he was releasing the messages because he felt bad about the accusations leveled against me, knowing what the District Attorney had said to him last year. 

Sadly, as you can see in the screenshots below, the District Attorney revealed a clear bias against me and a clear favoritism for one of my opponents, John Myers. In the messages, Mr. Cooper adamantly says that I should be removed from office and that John Myers should be elected the next sheriff. He goes on to say that he will be doing all he can “behind the scenes” to help get Myers elected. The District Attorney sent these messages in the midst of the "investigation" he was conducting into my office and long before he recused himself from the case.

Let me make it clear, anyone has the right to back me or any other candidate for sheriff. That is their right and I respect it. But the position of District Attorney is supposed to be above board, non-partisan and non-bias, especially when “conducting an investigation”. Regrettably, I think these messages clearly show that our District Attorney does not live up to any of those standards. 

Several weeks ago, the people of Lawrence County heard a one-sided version of the facts from Mr. Cooper. It's important they now see the other side and the motivations the District Attorney had. I have spent 44 years of my life serving the great people of Tennessee in law enforcement. I’m not going to let dirty tricks just weeks before an election stops me from continuing my fight to serve the people of our county. 

I sincerely ask everyone to read these messages and ask yourself, is the way the District Attorney conducted himself proper or not. If not, I ask you to stand behind me this August, so we can send a clear message that ONLY THE PEOPLE will choose their sheriff and that there is no place for politics in the District Attorney’s office or our criminal justice system."