Jim Carson
This encyclopedia article is about a living person.
James Howard “Jim” Carson is a retired Scott County lawman who served as sheriff from 1994 to 2006.
See Also: Sheriffs of Scott County
Preceded By: Jack Laxton • Succeeded By: Anthony Lay
Early Life
Born June 1, 1945, Carson is the son of Leon Carson (1910-1980) and Laura Jane Cecil (1913-1994). He is one of 12 children.
Carson first married Chloria Eileen Terry (1947-2019). They had several children together, including sons James Jr. (1967-2004), Marty (1972-2021), Jason (1980-2013) and Kevin, and daughters Carla Buttram, Michelle Norris and Lori Coffey.
Eileen Carson died in a car accident in 2019. The couple had divorced before that time.
Carson’s remarried to Jeanne Carson. They had several more children, including son Peyton, and daughters Robyn Clowers and Katie Campbell.
Sheriff of Scott County
Carson’s brother, Marion Carson, was elected sheriff in 1976. He was re-elected in 1980 and 1984, but was indicted by a federal grand jury in 1986 and resigned the office.
Jim Carson ran for sheriff in the 1986 election and finished a strong third, behind Jack Laxton, who his father had defeated in the 1976 election, and Norman Acres. He received 1,486 votes to 1,853 for Acres and 2,237 for Laxton. There were a total of 11 candidates for sheriff in the 1986 election.
Carson ran against Laxton again in 1990 and this time polled a strong second. He finished with 2,149 votes in a six-man race. Laxton received 2,622 votes to retain the seat.
In 1994, Carson won election by a comfortable margin. He finished with 3,375 votes in a five-man race, out-polling Dean Sexton (2,381) and Laxton (1,498), in addition to Johnny Yancey and Delbert J. Sexton.
Like his brother, Marion Carson, Jim Carson proved to be a popular sheriff with the voters of Scott County. He was re-elected in 1998 and again in 2002.
In the 1998 election, Carson defeated James Lee Claborn by a vote count of 5,875 to 1,801. Carson ran unopposed in 2002, receiving 6,297 courtesy votes.
As an example of his popularity, Carson received more courtesy votes in 2002 than any other countywide office-holder who was running unopposed.
However, much like the Max Carpenter shooting in 1994 appeared to turn the tide of public opinion against Laxton, who had been a very popular sheriff for many years, the death of deputy Hubert D. “John John” Yancey may have played a role in the 2006 election.
Yancey, a popular law enforcement officer, was killed on Nov. 28, 2003 as he and other officers — including Carson’s son, Marty — were investigating a methamphetamine lab at a mobile home on Williams Creek Road in Oneida.
Marty Carson killed Yancey inside the mobile home. He was cleared of wrongdoing in separate investigations by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and Federal Bureau of Investigation, but Yancey’s widow, Lori Yancey, filed a wrongful death lawsuit in federal court and won.
In the 2006 election, Carson was defeated by Anthony Lay in a four-way race. Lay received 4,163 votes, while Carson finished second with 2,182 votes. Also running were retired Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper Eddie R. Pierce and Ancil D. Chambers.
Carson left office on Aug. 31, 2006 as the longest-serving sheriff in Scott County’s history, with 12 years on the job. (It’s worth noting that sheriffs were term-limited at six years prior to the 1980s. Jack Laxton and Frank Butler each served a total of 14 years in multiple tenures.)
Carson ran for election again in 2010, after Lay resigned to take a job with the U.S. Marshals. He polled strong, but was defeated by Mike Cross. Cross received 1,975 votes, while Carson received 1,643 votes. Bobby Ellis — who served as chief deputy under Lay — received 1,478 votes as a write-in candidate, after Lay resigned too late for Ellis to qualify to be on the ballot. Brad Lay received 1,388 votes. Also running were Doc Hall, Brian Keeton and Lay. Interestingly, Keeton received 565 votes in that 2010 election, finishing a distant fifth. However, he would be elected sheriff 12 years later.
