CARROLL COUNTY, Tenn. — A Bruceton man has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Carroll County, the towns of Bruceton and Hollow Rock, Dyer County, and more than a dozen current and former officers and officials, alleging unlawful searches, excessive force, false arrest and retaliation spanning more than two years.
Johnathan Pierpoint filed the original complaint May 21 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, and an amended complaint August 7 adding new defendants and claims.
The suit brings 24 causes of action, including federal civil rights claims and state law claims such as assault, battery, defamation, and a Tennessee Public Records Act violation against the Town of Bruceton.
The complaint references a May 21, 2025, incident in which then-Hollow Rock Officer Rob Weems allegedly assaulted Pierpoint inside the Bruceton Post Office, and Chief Rick Crossno later solicited a trespass order against him. The complaint alleges Pierpoint was told by federal postal investigators that he had done nothing wrong, and that the trespass decision came from Bruceton police.
The suit also touches on an October 9, 2024, raid of Pierpoint’s Bruceton home, prompted by an accidental 911 call from his Apple Watch.
The complaint alleges officers forced entry with guns drawn, damaged property during the search, and displayed personal items throughout the home. Officers seized a handgun, digital scales and drugs, according to the complaint. The following day, at the Carroll County Jail, the complaint mentions that Correctional Officer Jordan Hughes pepper sprayed Pierpoint in his cell. Hughes was later granted judicial diversion in connection with the incident, according to court records.
All charges tied to the raid were dismissed and expunged in January 2026.
The amended complaint adds a second arrest in October 2025, which it alleges was made by Special Agent Labe Ezell for a failure-to-appear charge that did not exist.
It further alleges Carroll County Sheriff Andy Dickson ordered Pierpoint held without bond at the Dyer County Jail, where he was detained for roughly 35 days. New allegations describe severe overcrowding, exposure to illegal drug use by other inmates, and delayed medical care during that detention.
Case status
According to the court docket, the case remains in its early procedural stages. Several defendants from the original complaint were not successfully served and had their summonses returned unexecuted in August.
New summonses were issued following the amended complaint.
As of this report, attorney Milton Dale Conder Jr. has filed notices of appearance on behalf of the Town of Bruceton and Chief Crossno individually.
No other defendants have yet entered an appearance, and no formal answers or motions have been filed in response to the complaint.
Pierpoint is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, attorneys’ fees, and a jury trial. None of the allegations have been proven in court, and defendants had not filed formal responses as of this report.
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