KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A now former Knox County deputy faces a nine-count indictment accusing him of aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor and official misconduct in connection with a service call he made to a home in February.
The charges address how Stidam allegedly handled a minor teen's cellphone and images he found on it when he responded to the Knox County address, WBIR has learned.
Tim Stidam, 40, turned himself in Friday morning and was booked after a Knox County grand jury returned the indictment. He was released in lieu of $50,000 bond.
The grand jury returned the indictment Thursday.
"We stand prepared to vigorously defend Mr. Stidam, who has had an impeccable career at the Knox County Sheriff's Office prior to this accusation and has had a significant amount of personal tragedy in his life, including the loss of his wife, leaving him the single parent of his children," Knoxville defense attorney T. Scott Jones told WBIR on Friday.
Stidam's wife, Sarah, died in 2021 from COVID-19 complications.
Several of the related exploitation counts in the indictment allude to Stidam possessing images of a minor "engaged in simulated sexual activity..."
Knox County Sheriff Tom Spangler fired Stidam in March.
He'd been under investigation at the time for unspecified bad conduct. According to records, he admitted to violating numerous department orders before he was dismissed.
The Sheriff's Office's Office of Professional Standards looked into his conduct on Feb. 23, records show.
"In your interview, you admitted to conduct that you know to be violations of the General Orders of this agency," the sheriff wrote in a March 17 hand-delivered letter to Stidam.
The sheriff told Stidam then that his conduct "renders you unsuitable for continued employment with the Knox County Sheriff's Office," the letter states.
Spangler wrote at the time that under Merit Council rules, Stidam had three days to submit a written explanation answering the internal investigative charges.
Stidam, who had worked for KCSO since 2013, offered no written response.
Spangler's letter also noted the deputy had "violated" about a half-dozen department general orders.
A second letter dated Monday, March 28 that was included in Stidam's Merit System file officially confirmed his termination.
The KCSO's internal investigation was turned over to Knox County District Attorney General Charme Allen for review, resulting in the indictment.
