Thomas faces more charges in cattle cruelty case

John Thomas of Wartrace, left, was served with warrants out of Coffee County charging him with six counts of animal cruelty by Bedford County deputy Benjamin Burris on Friday. Thomas could face as many as 300 counts of aggravated animal cruelty in Bedford County.
(T-G Photo by Brian Mosely)

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John Darron Thomas of Clyde Gleaves Road may be facing up to 300 counts of aggravated animal cruelty after members of the Bedford County Sheriff's Department said they discovered more cattle carcasses on his property. Deputies were on the land again Saturday.

Meanwhile, Thomas' legal troubles continued to mount Friday as he was served with warrants out of Coffee County for six counts of animal cruelty.

He was taken into custody and appeared for a preliminary hearing, where he was bound over to the Bedford County grand jury on other charges unrelated to the cruelty matter.

Authorities executed search warrants on Wednesday on Thomas' property to check on reports of dead and dying cattle on four farms he owns.

Bedford County Sheriff Randall Boyce told the T-G Friday that 102 dead cows have now been found on Thomas' land.

"It's probably going to rise above that," Boyce said.

The sheriff also said Friday afternoon that Judicial Commissioner Terry Stacy was in the process of signing some 300 warrants on Thomas for cruelty and not properly disposing of the dead animals.

Boyce also said that if the dead cattle they found had been abused, "then the live ones with the bones sticking out have definitely been abused."

The sheriff said there could be as many as 500 to 600 head on the Thomas property or on land he rents and more were discovered Friday afternoon. Boyce said that county agriculture experts were to take a look at them "to see just how bad they are."

Local farmers have been donating hay to keep the cattle fed, and Chief Deputy David Williams Jr. said that the sheriff's department has now been getting calls from concerned residents about other cattle on property leased by Thomas.

Bound over

Thomas' bond was revoked due to the new charges against him and the court granted permission for authorities to put control of the cattle under the Bedford County Humane Association and their agents, which includes the local livestock association and the Tennessee Farm Bureau.

District Attorney General Chuck Crawford said that while he is no expert on the care of livestock, some of the cows may be so weak that they can't be moved.

The preliminary hearings for Thomas on Friday was heard by Lincoln County Judge Andy Myrick, since General Sessions Court Judge Charles Rich has recused himself from Thomas' cases.

At a three-hour preliminary hearing Thomas was bound over to the county grand jury on two counts of DUI, three counts of animals running at large, failure to appear, theft under $500 and theft over $10,000. The grand jury meets on Feb. 22.

He was placed on bonds totalling $79,500 and was released, but he was ordered not to have any contact with potential witnesses in the case, many of which are his neighbors.

One of his neighbors, Randy Webb, testified that he has called deputies 70 times over the past year about Thomas' cattle roaming in his yard. He stated the cattle are hungry, "which is why they are there all the time," and have ruined his landscaping and damaged vehicles on his property.

Webb also said the cows are on his land "every day" and that Thomas have never denied ownership when he would retrieve them.

Not his cows

Thomas' attorney, Carla Ford of Murfreesboro, told the T-G that the cows in question did not belong to her client, but are owned by his father Claude Thomas, and that John is "helping to take care of them."

Thomas claims that his cows were shot after he filed a $6 million federal lawsuit late last week against the county, the Sheriff's Department, Sheriff Randall Boyce and Deputies Burris, Kent Jacobs and Kevin Roddy.

He claims that he has been pulled over approximately 20 times with no convictions and that deputies have harassed and kidnapped him.

Thomas repeatedly denied on Wednesday that his cows had been starved, even when asked about the results of autopsies Thomas requested for the cattle, which stated the cows were severely dehydrated and emaciated.

The federal suit filed by Thomas claims that the county officers have conspired to arrest him and caused false imprisonment for retribution for his interfering with the relationship of Jacobs and his girlfriend.

However, Sheriff Boyce said Wednesday that "other things will come to light when we go to court" in the suit.