Another Arnold-Era Firing Costs County Big

MURFREESBORO, TN — Rutherford County spent nearly $225,000 to settle a wrongful termination suit resulting from the firing of Major Tommy Thompson during the doomed administration of now-convicted and imprisoned Sheriff Robert Arnold.

A number of former sheriff's deputies have sued the county for wrongful termination and nearly all of the have received six-figure settlement checks, the largest of which went to former deputy Virgil Gammon, who received a $340,000 award last year. Gammon's claim was similar to Thompson's: that he was fired after testifying before a federal grand jury in the JailCigs case. Thompson said he also provided information to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

(For more local updates, click here to sign up for the Nashville Patch's daily newsletter and free, real-time news alerts, or find your local Middle Tennessee Patch here.)

County Mayor Ernest Burgess decided to settle the case for $224,999.60,according to the Daily News Journal.

According to Thompson's suit, he warned Arnold not to fire anyone who was cooperating with the JailCigs investigation, a warning reiterated by Evan Cope, who works in the county attorney's office.

Arnold claimed he fired Thompson, who was in charge of, among other things, the county jail, for two inmate suicides, which Thompson said he could not have prevented. Thompson noted he had complained to Arnold about understaffing at the jail and that staffing levels were determined by Arnold.

Image via RCSO