The Rutherford County Sheriff's Office (RCSO) is the primary law enforcement agency in Rutherford County, Tennessee. The RCSO is responsible for patrolling the 626-square miles of the County and its 250,000+ residents. The RCSO currently employs 178 sworn law enforcement officers and 135 Detention Officers as Deputy Sheriffs. The Rutherford County Sheriff's Office was founded in 1804 and Samuel McBride was elected the first Sheriff. In the wake of former Sheriff Robert Arnold's suspension from office, and subsequent federal corruption plea, the Rutherford County Commission appointed Mike Fitzhugh as interim sheriff on January 12, 2017.
Sheriff Robert Arnold Controversy
On May 21, 2015, Sheriff Arnold and two others were the target of and FBI and Tennessee Bureau of Investigation raid related to a probe into financial and purchasing irregularities. His business interests are also being looked at for potential conflicts of interest by examiners from the Tennessee Comptroller's office. On May 27, 2016 Arnold, his Chief Administrator, Deputy Joe Russell, and Arnold's uncle were indicted on 14 charges by the FBI, including fraud and destruction of evidence. Rutherford County residents Steve Lane, Joe Liggett and Jacob Bogle have been seeking an ouster lawsuit since April 2015. Sheriff Arnold and Deputy Russell have plead not guilty and Arnold stated he intends to stay in office. Arnold was suspended without pay on November 14, 2016. The federal criminal trial of Arnold, Russell and Arnold's uncle, John Vanderveer, is set for February 7, 2017; while Arnold's civil ouster trial has been set for April 10, 2017.