Former Johnson County General Session Court Judge Perry Stout pleaded guilty to charges related to money laundering and distributing marijuana on Friday in a plea agreement with prosecutors that saw charges dropped related to the weapon he allegedly possessed at the time he committed the crimes, a conspiracy to sell the drugs, and maintaining a home to sell or use drugs.
Stout (pictured above) was reportedly “visibly broken in appearance,” in court on Friday, reported The Tomahawk, which added that he “seemed almost disconnected” from the events unfolding in the court room, “but was very keen to ensure that his family was considered in connection to his plea deal.”
A post to a Facebook page connected to Stout’s private law practice requested prayers ahead of his court appearance in a post attributed to the Stout family which requested “no hateful posts” in reply.
The former judge’s guilty pleas for the money laundering and marijuana related offenses were both Class B felony offenses with a maximum sentence of 25 years, but WJHL reported that Stout accepted an eight-year sentence for money laundering charge and a two-year sentence for the drug charge for a combined 10-year sentence.
The outlet further noted he will be eligible for parole after serving 30 percent of his sentence.
In court, Stout reportedly “admitted to helping fund a marijuana trafficking operation from early 2022 until January 2024” and “using the profits from that operation to fund his 2022 judge campaign, among other things.”
Stout announced his resignation in June 2023 and left his position on July 8, 2023, just days after the Tennessee Board of Judicial Conduct (TBJC) published a letter calling his conduct “seriously at odds with the standards of conduct expected” of judicial officials.
Findings outlined by the TBJC included Stout’s sexual relationship with a deputy court clerk, which he sought to continue despite being discovered by his colleagues and the other party declining his advances. The board said in its letter that Stout did not dispute the allegation he engaged in the inappropriate sexual relationship “but sought to minimize his conduct by asserting that the sexual conduct was consensual, the court employee who lost her job was not assigned to his courtroom, and that he did not have supervisory authority over her.”
Assistant District Attorney Dennis Brooks told The Tomahawk that Brooks planned to reenter politics by running as a candidate for the judgeship he resigned from last year and would have funded his campaign with the illicit proceeds from the drug business, and was “close” to “being a judge again” before the Wednesday arrest.
Brooks noted to the outlet that after winning the election, regardless of alleged criminality, Tennessee judges can only be removed from their position via impeachment by the Tennessee General Assembly.
This is the case with Shelby County Criminal Court Judge Melissa Boyd, who continues to hold her position despite being suspended from the bench and criminally indicted for harassment and coercion.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Georgia Star News, The Virginia Star, and the Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Perry Stout” by Perry Stout.
