Image Credit: Knox County Sheriff’s Department & Canva
Tennessee Conservative News [By Olivia Lupia] –
The election results for the GOP Sheriff primary in Knox County will stand after the Tennessee Republican Party’s State Primary Board unanimously voted not to take any action on the challenge issued by one of the candidates after two other candidates were indicted in a federal theft conspiracy case and now face losing their pensions.
Third-place candidate Mike Davis, husband to conservative State Rep. Elaine Davis (R-Knoxville-District 18), filed a formal challenge to the primary results after two of the other Republican candidates, former Knox Sheriff J.J. Jones and current Chief David Amburn, were included in a federal indictment which was the result of a yearslong investigation by the FBI and TBI.
The two candidates, along with nine additional individuals connected to the Sheriff’s Department, were charged for conduct between January 2011 and September 2018, allegedly using the Knox County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) credit card and seized cash to make personal purchases totaling over $300,000 and completing personal projects using KSCO resources and equipment.
Davis contended that information about the indictment and case could have drastically changed the race’s outcome, especially as current Sheriff Tom Spangler had endorsed David Amburn ahead of the election.
“We believe that had the voters known, at minimum, back in November of 2025, that David Amburn and J.J. Jones were about to be indicted, it would have completely altered the shape of the entire election process and very possibly the result,” said attorney Lance Baker at the June 10 Primary Board meeting.
The challenge originally requested a completely new election for the sheriff race, but the GOP supposedly does not have the authority to order a new primary so close to the general election and had three options to proceed per the state bylaws and a section of Tennessee Code:
- Let the results stand as they were
- Choose another candidate as the nominee
- Vacate the election entirely, leaving no Republican on the ballot for the August election
Should the Board have chosen the third option, which was Davis’ preference if a new primary could not be conducted, any willing candidates could have run as write-in but there would have been no officially designated Republican on the ballot. Notably, there are no other candidates, Democrat or Independent, for the office.
After the case was presented and statements were heard from both the current candidate-elect Brent Gibson and Davis, Board member and former Knox County Sheriff Tim Hutchinson motioned to let the election stand, saying that while he appreciated Davis’ commitment to fair elections, Gibson won the contest by over 1,100 votes and earned approximately 44% of the total vote.
The Board members unanimously voted in favor of Hutchinson’s motion and the meeting was adjourned, leaving the original primary election results in place for the August general election.
“I think ultimately, it was just kind of felt that the margins, or at least that’s what a lot of the members said during the public portion of this is that the margins of the victory were such that, you know, overturning that just really wasn’t an option,” said Tennessee Republican Party Chairman Scott Golden after the vote.
Given the GOP’s decision, Gibson will also be the elected Knox County Sheriff come August given there are no other nominees for the position. But while the political aspects of the indictment may have been put to rest for now, the judicial ones certainly have not.
As all 11 suspects indicted are connected with the KCSO they now face not just potentially lengthy criminal sentences, but the potentially loss of retirement benefits as county policy prohibits those with a felony conviction from collecting a pension.
Five of the individuals charged have already retired and three others, Chief David Amburn, Capt. Aaron Tarnell, and Capt. James Hammond, filed for retirement after they were indicted and placed on leave, so the financial pressure could push them and other suspects to work towards a plea deal with prosecutors on lesser misdemeanor charges.
And one of the accused, former narcotics chief David Henderson, already pled guilty to defrauding the sheriff’s office last year. Henderson was accused of spending $138,000 on Apple products, ordering his subordinates to work on personal construction projects, and using department resources to restore classic cars.
He entered a guilty plea last August to conspiracy to commit federal program fraud and agreed to pay over $20,000 in restitution. Henderson is scheduled to be sentenced for this charge in October in addition to appearances related to the indictment.
Since all the charges against the 11 are felonies, if convicted they come with serious prison sentences which could be stacked or allowed to run concurrently to shorten the time served depending on Senior Judge Don R. Ash’s judgement, who was appointed to oversee the trial after three Knox County judges recused themselves.
Additionally, if convicted, reportedly none of the men would be eligible for probation or judicial diversion which would keep them out of prison. All 11 are scheduled to appear in court for arraignment at 9 a.m. on July 1.
About the Author: Olivia Lupia is a political refugee from Colorado who now calls Tennessee home. A proud follower of Christ, she views all political happenings through a Biblical lens and aims to utilize her knowledge and experience to educate and equip others. Olivia is an outspoken conservative who has run for local office, managed campaigns, and been highly involved with state & local GOPs, state legislatures, and other grassroots organizations and movements. Olivia can be reached at olivia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
One Response
Criminals masquerading as Republicans? Seems so, guess we’ll see.