NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Former Dickson County Sheriff Jeff Bledsoe has filed a federal lawsuit against the Tennessee Sheriffs’ Association, Inc. (TSA) and two sitting sheriffs, alleging he was retaliated against and unlawfully terminated while on medical leave after exposing illegal activities, policy violations, and workplace harassment within the organization.

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee (Nashville Division), names the TSA alongside Anderson County Sheriff Russell Barker (TSA President) and Robertson County Sheriff Mike Van Dyke (TSA First Vice President and Interim Executive Director) as defendants.

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Career and Contractual Protections

Bledsoe, a career law enforcement officer who previously served as the elected Sheriff of Dickson County, was hired as TSA Executive Director in June 2020. According to the complaint, TSA’s general membership unanimously voted in March 2025 to retain Bledsoe for an additional two-year term pursuant to the organization’s Constitution. Less than a month before his termination, the Board of Directors also approved a salary increase for his $173,475 annual position.

Under Article XI of the TSA Constitution, the Executive Director can only be terminated for cause by a majority vote of the active general membership at a properly noticed meeting. Bledsoe asserts he relied on these explicit contractual safeguards when retiring as Sheriff to accept the position.

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Key Factual Allegations Made by the Petitioner

The lawsuit details a pattern of protected conduct and whistleblowing by Bledsoe, followed by an orchestrated campaign by certain board members to remove him:

• False Certification of Mandatory Training: Bledsoe discovered that participating sheriffs were routinely submitting forms certifying attendance at state-mandated POST and TCI training sessions they had not attended, often remaining outside in common areas or leaving early. Because training completion is tied to state salary supplements, false certification can constitute official misconduct, record tampering, and theft under Tennessee criminal law. Bledsoe altered association procedures to withhold credit forms until the final day and repeatedly warned the membership regarding accurate sign-ins.
• Undisclosed Vendor Gifts and Ethics Violations: Bledsoe raised concerns regarding vendors providing undisclosed gifts, meals, alcoholic beverages, golf tournament fees, and campaign fundraising offers to sheriffs and board members during association events, in violation of state ethics statutes and county policies.
• Hotel Contract Enforcement: Bledsoe shut down unauthorized late-night card games, vendor-hosted bars, and illegal alcohol service in hotel hospitality rooms during annual conferences to enforce hotel contract obligations and uphold state liquor laws.
• Termination of Office Manager for Sexually Explicit Material: In April 2025, Bledsoe terminated TSA’s office manager after she displayed sexually explicit adult content during a virtual TSA Board of Directors meeting. A subsequent board-approved forensic examination revealed extensive adult content accessed and stored on TSA equipment during work hours, triggering a broader financial audit.

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Alleged Secret Meetings and Campaign for Removal

Following the termination of the office manager and Bledsoe’s refusal to remain silent regarding training and ethics violations, the petition alleges that certain board members engaged in a coordinated effort to marginalize and discredit him.

The complaint outlines hostile public confrontations by Sheriff Andy Dickson during board meetings, unannounced board gatherings, and an unscheduled “sheriffs-only” meeting in July 2025 from which Bledsoe was excluded. Attendees later described the meeting to Bledsoe as an advance-planned “witch hunt” organized to attack his reputation. When Bledsoe raised concerns about secret meetings violating governance rules, board members allegedly told him to “be on his A game” and asserted that “you work for the board”.

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Lockout and Termination During Medical Leave

In September 2025, Bledsoe was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, a physical cardiovascular impairment affecting major bodily functions, which he attributes in part to severe workplace stress. In early October 2025, Bledsoe also contracted COVID-19 and was placed on medical leave starting October 7, 2025, notifying TSA leadership.

On October 9, 2025, while Bledsoe was on medical leave, board members presented his employment status to attending sheriffs during a conference session titled “TSA Proposed Constitution Amendment”:

• Lockout from Session: Bledsoe repeatedly attempted to join the session by phone and text message to executive board members, including Barker and Van Dyke, but was blocked from participating.
• Exclusion of Staff: TSA staff members responsible for taking official meeting minutes were removed from the room.
• Misrepresentations to Membership: Attending members were falsely told that Bledsoe had been informed of the meeting and chose not to attend.
• Telephone Firing: Later that day, Sheriff Barker called Bledsoe to inform him that his employment was terminated effective immediately. Defendant Van Dyke was subsequently named Interim Executive Director.

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Procedural Violations and Claims of Pretext

The petition stresses that TSA violated every procedural safeguard in its governing documents, failing to provide 10 days’ written notice, written charges, an opportunity to respond, a disciplinary conference, or a vote by the general membership.

The complaint alleges that TSA’s stated reasons for termination—including the office manager’s firing, a resolved 2009 tax filing matter, and vague “performance concerns”—were false pretexts contradicted by the membership’s unanimous vote of confidence seven months earlier and his recent salary increase.

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Legal Counts and Relief Sought

Bledsoe’s complaint asserts ten distinct legal causes of action:

1. Retaliatory Discharge under the Tennessee Public Protection Act (TPPA).
2. Deprivation of Property Without Due Process under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and the Fourteenth Amendment.
3. Disability Discrimination and Retaliation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Tennessee Disability Act (TDA).
4. Retaliation under Title VII and the Tennessee Human Rights Act (THRA) for opposing sex-based workplace harassment.
5. Breach of Contract and Promissory Estoppel against TSA.
6. Inducement of Breach of Contract against Sheriffs Barker and Van Dyke individually.

The lawsuit requests reinstatement as Executive Director (or front pay), back pay and lost benefits, compensatory damages for emotional distress and medical expenses, punitive damages, and statutory treble damages against Defendants Barker and Van Dyke.