BREAKING: Former Sevier County DA Jimmy Dunn Indicted for Unlawful Arrest and Abuse of Power
Former Sevier County District Attorney James Bruce Dunn was indicted by a grand jury on August 26, 2026, after all 13 jurors voted to return a presentment against him.
The presentment in State of Tennessee v. James Bruce Dunn (26-CR-486) charges the former prosecutor with the unauthorized exercise of official power under T.C.A. § 39-16-402(a)(1). The grand jury alleges that on May 1, 2023, Dunn knowingly directed the arrest and detention of publisher Erik Cooper using an incomplete and premature capias that had not been properly executed. The filing states Dunn instructed Assistant District Attorney William Brownlow Marsh to obtain and act upon the invalid document.
Furthermore, the state alleges Dunn actively concealed the offense by creating the illusion of a lawful legal process while withholding the fact that the capias was invalid. This concealment allegedly tolled the statute of limitations until Cooper eventually appeared before the grand jury on August 24, 2026. Ultimately, the presentment accuses Dunn of misusing his official authority and manipulating judicial procedures to effectuate an unlawful arrest.
Here is the direct list of the six criminal charges brought against James Bruce Dunn:
- Count One: Official Misconduct
- Count Two: Official Oppression
- Count Three: Retaliation for Past Action
- Count Four: Conspiracy to Commit Official Oppression
- Count Five: Coercion of a Witness
- Count Six: Civil Rights Intimidation
Conspiracy – A second person was also indicted by the same Grand Jury. Assistant District Attorney General William Brownlow Marsh was indicted by the Sevier County Grand Jury on August 26, 2026, in connection with the unlawful arrest of Erik Cooper on May 1, 2023.
Unlike James Bruce Dunn, who faces six charges, Marsh is charged under two specific counts in the presentment: Official Oppression (Count Two) and Conspiracy to Commit Official Oppression (Count Four).
The indictment alleges that Marsh actively conspired and acted in concert with Dunn to subject Cooper to an illegal arrest and detention. Specifically, after the Circuit Court declined to finalize an arrest warrant (capias) because a bond amount had not yet been set, Marsh went to the Clerk’s office and obtained an incomplete copy of the warrant by misleading Chief Deputy Clerk Michelle Maples, falsely claiming the copy was strictly “for his file and that no one would see it”.
Instead of filing it, Marsh immediately delivered this unauthorized, incomplete document to Dunn, who then passed it to an officer to execute the arrest as Cooper exited a Grand Jury proceeding. The prosecution asserts that Marsh’s deceptive acquisition of the warrant, paired with the defendants’ subsequent efforts to make the arrest appear lawful, concealed the crime and tolled the statute of limitations until August 24, 2026.
About Jimmy Dunn
Jimmy Dunn spent two decades as the District Attorney General for the 4th Judicial District, which encompasses Sevier, Cocke, Grainger, and Jefferson counties. A Cocke County native, Dunn began his career in law enforcement serving as a U.S. Army military police officer in Germany from 1966 to 1968, and later worked for the Tennessee Department of Safety while attending the Nashville School of Law. He also graduated from the FBI National Academy in Quantico.
Admitted to the Tennessee Bar in 1986, Dunn spent more than 16 years serving as an Assistant District Attorney. He was first elected District Attorney General in 2006 and subsequently won re-election to eight-year terms in 2014 and 2022. At the state level, he was an elected member of the Executive Committee of the Tennessee District Attorneys General Conference.
His extensive 36-year prosecutorial career ended abruptly earlier this summer. On July 10, 2026, Dunn announced his unexpected early retirement, effective August 31. His resignation came less than 24 hours after a senior judge heavily scrutinized a sworn affidavit Dunn submitted in a public records lawsuit—filed by the very same Erik Cooper—regarding alleged grand jury misconduct, ordering Dunn to appear and testify in person.
About William Brownlow Marsh
William Brownlow Marsh is a veteran Deputy District Attorney General for Tennessee’s 4th Judicial District. A 1975 University of Tennessee College of Law graduate, he has spent decades prosecuting complex regional cases and acting as a special prosecutor in neighboring jurisdictions. His career includes prosecuting public officials and researching jurisdiction during the 2016 Gatlinburg wildfires. Recently, Marsh was implicated in a lawsuit by publisher Erik Cooper alleging grand jury misconduct by Marsh, acting DA Ron Newcomb, and former DA Jimmy Dunn, a dispute that led to Dunn’s sudden resignation in July 2026.