The former Trigg County sheriff who is accused of providing alcohol to a minor and later tampering with the testimony of a potential witness appeared for his arraignment in Trigg Circuit Court Wednesday afternoon.
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced last month that Jason Barnes was indicted by a Trigg County grand jury on one count of third-degree unlawful transaction with a minor and one count of tampering with a witness.
Barnes and his defense David Rye appeared in-person before Judge C.A. “Woody” Woodall while Special Prosecutor Assistant Attorney General Alexander Garcia appeared virtually.
Rye entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Barnes and said he and Garcia have discussed possibly resolving the case.
The charges stem from a joint investigation by Kentucky State Police, FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky. Cameron said the investigation determined Barnes provided alcohol to a person under the age of 21 in February of this year. They also discovered that several months later, during the investigation, he knowingly practiced what they called “deceit with the intent to affect the testimony of a potential witness.”
Barnes was arrested on a warrant and released under a $2,500 bond.
Kentucky State Police confirmed to the News Edge in June that they along with the FBI were investigating complaints of sexual misconduct involving members of the Trigg County Sheriff’s Office.
Barnes, who was elected sheriff in 2018, resigned August 31.
Barnes will be back in court for a pretrial conference on November 12th.
