LAWRENCE COUNTY, Tenn. – The Tennessee Supreme Court has refused to hear the appeal of the former Lawrence County Sheriff Kenny Taylor regarding his claim that he lost the 2010 election due to an ineligible candidate.
Questions about the race were first raised by NewsChannel 5 Investigates when Phil Williams discovered one of the candidates for sheriff, Mike Risner, listed a shack with no gas or water as his Lawrence County residence. Risner was actually living in Giles County.
When the case was brought before a judge in 2010, the judge said it was a mistake for Risner to be on the ballot but not a big enough mistake to warrant a new election. The judge said Risner did not do anything illegal or fraudulent even though he claimed to live in Lawrence County.
The Tennessee Supreme Court's decision not to hear Taylor's appeal will officially end the 2010 Lawrence County Sheriff's election, leaving former Tennessee Highway Patrolman Jimmy Brown, who won the election, to serve as sheriff, as he has been doing since September 2010.
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