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Law Enforcement - Historical Notes

Tennessee Code Annotated
Tennessee Attorney General Opinions

Jails and Prisoners

The following acts once affected jails and prisoners in Gibson County, but are no longer operative.

  1. Private Acts of 1929, Chapter 111, as amended by Private Acts of 1939, Chapter 227, gave the Gibson County Highway Commission "full charge and control" over the county workhouse and its prisoners.
  2. Private Acts of 1957, Chapter 77, authorized Gibson County to establish a county penal farm.  According to the Secretary of State's certification, this act was rejected by the Quarterly County Court.

Militia

Those acts once affecting Gibson County, which related to the militia and to other law enforcement agencies other than the sheriff, are mentioned below in chronological order.

  1. Private Acts of 1823, Chapter 111, created Gibson County and provided that the militia would compose the regiment and be attached to brigade. (Blanks appear in original act.)
  2. Private Acts of 1824, Chapter 40, designated the Gibson County militia as the 84th Regiment, attached to the 13th Brigade along with Henderson, Carroll, Henry, Weakley, Obion and Dyer Counties.
  3. Public Acts of 1825, Chapter 69, revised the State militia laws.  All free men and servants between the ages of 18 and 45 were required to serve in the militia, except judges, secretary of state, treasurers, ministers, justices of the peace, public ferry men, keepers of the grist mills, and postal officers and mail carriers.  Gibson County militia composed the 84th Regiment, attached to the 13th Brigade, and would hold regimental musters on the third Saturday in October each year.
  4. Acts of 1837-38, Chapter 157, set the dates for the annual drill of the 19th Brigade in Gibson County on the Monday and Tuesday following the first Friday and Saturday in September.
  5. Acts of 1845-46, Chapter 109, provided that the commissioned militia officers in Gibson County were to hold drill musters at the county seat in each year preceding their regimental musters.

Sheriff

The following acts have no current effect but are included here for reference purposes since they once applied to the Gibson County Sheriff's Office.  Also referenced below is an act which repealed prior law without providing new substantive provisions.

  1. Acts of 1837-38, Chapter 35, directed the state treasurer to pay $400 to the former sheriff and collector of Gibson County, John W. Needham.
  2. Private Acts of 1923, Chapter 319, set the compensation of the Gibson County Sheriff at all of the fees collected by the Sheriff s office.  That act was repealed by Private Acts of 1925, Chapter 416.
  3. Private Acts of 1933, Chapter 777, limited the compensation of Sheriffs in Gibson County to $3,000 per year.
  4. Private Acts of 1957, Chapter 78, would have enabled the Quarterly County Court to increase or supplement the Sheriff's salary above the amount provided by general law.  This act was not presented to the Quarterly County Court according to the certification of the Secretary of State, and therefore never became law.