By Tabitha Evans Moore
Editor & Publisher

LYNCHBURG, Tenn. — District 4 Metro Council member Peggy Sue Blackburn entered a conditional guilty plea on June 12 in Moore County General Sessions Court on one count of animal cruelty, resolving charges stemming from a December 2025 investigation into the condition of cattle under her care.

The case was heard by Coffee County General Sessions Judge Gerald Ewell, who was assigned by the Administrative Office of the Courts after Moore County General Sessions Judge Terry Gregory recused himself Jan. 20 because both he and Blackburn hold Moore County elected positions.

The case was originally scheduled for April 10 before being postponed to Friday, June 12.

THE GUILTY PLEA

The plea was entered pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated § 40-35-313, a provision that allows qualified defendants with no prior criminal history to receive post-plea diversion. Under the terms accepted by the court, Blackburn received an 11-month, 29-day suspended sentence and will serve that period under supervised probation. If she successfully completes probation, the conviction will not be formally entered on her record and she may petition the court for expungement. Diversion under § 40-35-313 is available only once.

If Blackburn violates the terms of her probation, the conditional guilty plea converts to a formal criminal conviction for not only herself but also her father, Billy Joe Blackburn and sister, Billie Patrice Blackburn. Blackburn was represented by Fayetteville attorney Ray Fraley. Following the plea, Blackburn met with a probation officer in the courtroom.

THE INVESTIGATION

The case originated May 16, 2025, when Deputy Hudson O’Haver of the Moore County Sheriff’s Department filed a livestock welfare complaint with the Tennessee Department of Agriculture after observing cattle at the Dog Tail Road location. Dr. Jill Johnson of the Tennessee State Veterinarian’s Office responded the same day.

On May 16, 2025, Deputy O’Haver observed several emaciated cattle and cattle holding their legs up at the Dog Tail Road location. He noted the barn was flooded with urine and feces water. He filed a livestock welfare complaint with the Tennessee Department of Agriculture the same day.

Dr. Jill Johnson of the state veterinarian’s office responded to the scene, where O’Haver showed her the cattle in question. According to the incident report, the Blackburns were found loading cattle onto a tractor trailer on Womack Ridge Road at the time. Investigators made contact with them to discuss the situation.

The case returned to state attention on December 16, 2025, when Investigator Brandon Thomas of the Moore County Sheriff’s Department received an anonymous complaint regarding dead cattle on Dog Tail Road and Womack Ridge Road. Thomas drove to the locations and observed cattle in a pen on Dog Tail Road that appeared crippled. On Womack Ridge Road, he observed buzzards and two dead cattle in an advanced state of decomposition with bones exposed. Thomas then filed a complaint with the Tennessee State Veterinarian’s Office.

THE STATE VETERINARIAN’S FINDINGS

The Times reached out to the Tennessee Department of Agriculture the day after the Blackburn’s June 12 court date with a public records request. On June 25, we received 18 documents — over 50 pages of information about the case — including several reports from State Veterinarian Dr. Jill Johnson.

The May 16 state vet examination found approximately 60 cattle with body condition scores of 1 to 2 on a standard 9-point scale — a range indicating severe emaciation. According to the report, most of the cattle were severely lame and unable to walk well, no hay was available at the time of inspection, the barn floor was flooded with water and feces, and no veterinary treatment had been provided to the lame animals.

Dr. Johnson’s examination form noted that water for the cattle was provided primarily through Jack Daniel’s liquid slop, and that the slop was being fed in adequate quantities at the time — meaning the feeding program was still active when the animals were found in this condition.

Following the May inspection, Dr. Johnson hand-delivered recommended actions to Billy Joe, Billie, and Peggy Sue Blackburn, directing them to remove all lame or injured cattle within two weeks. The document warned explicitly that failure to implement the recommendations or provide reasonable care may result in a finding of probable cause and referral for criminal charges.

Dr. Johnson returned for a compliance recheck on May 30, 2025. Billy Joe Blackburn was not present. Peggy Sue Blackburn showed her the cattle. According to the report, very few had been moved. A second recheck was scheduled for June 5, 2025, at which point Harry Shelton, the cattle’s owner, sent two semi-trucks to remove approximately 90 lame cattle for slaughter. The May case was closed without a probable cause determination after the cattle were removed.

According to the reports, six months later, on December 16, 2025, Investigator Brandon Thomas of the Moore County Sheriff’s Department received a new anonymous complaint. Dr. Johnson returned to find conditions had deteriorated further. More than 200 cattle were now present. Two dead calves were in a pen on Dog Tail Road. Two larger cattle on Womack Ridge Road had been dead for an extended period, with vultures consuming the carcasses. No hay was available at either location. Water was stagnant and not potable. Multiple cattle were lame with no treatment provided. Dr. Johnson determined probable cause of animal cruelty, citing unreasonable failure to provide livestock with necessary food, water, care, or shelter.

The December case was closed on December 19, 2025 with a probable cause determination.

The Times also shared the case photographs with two area cattle farmers, both of whom said the animals in the images appeared underfed and that based on the fact that the state vet visited the farm multiple times, the animal cruelty charges were warranted. Both declined to be named.

Photos obtained by The Lynchburg Times through a public records request document the condition of the cattle at the time of the investigation. The images show cattle with visible hip and spine bones consistent with severe emaciation, animals unable to stand in deep mud, and cattle in advanced states of physical deterioration. A full photo gallery appears below.

{Editor’s Note: The following photographs contain graphic images of animals in distress obtained as part of a public records request.}

THE CHARGES

Blackburn, along with her father Billy Joe Blackburn, 86, and sister Billie Patrice Blackburn, 55, were each charged with one count of animal cruelty under TCA § 39-14-202, which covers intentionally or knowingly failing to provide an animal with necessary food, water, care, or shelter.

Proceeding on June 12 addressed only Peggy Sue Blackburn’s charge. The related charges against Billy Joe Blackburn and Billie Patrice Blackburn were set aside, contingent on Peggy Sue Blackburn’s successful completion of her probationary term. If she violates probation, those charges may be refiled.

THE DEFENSE

Blackburn’s attorney Ray Fraley offered mitigation during June 12 proceedings, citing the phaseout of Jack Daniel Distillery’s historic Feeder Cow Program as a contributing factor to the cattle’s condition, as well as a health condition affecting Billy Joe Blackburn that disrupted the feeding operation.

Court proceedings June 12 established that Blackburn had operated a contract feeder cattle farm with Manchester cattleman Harry Shelton for more than 15 years. The cattle at the center of the investigation belonged to Shelton, not Blackburn. Shelton was present in the courtroom on June 12 but did not speak.

The Jack Daniel’s Feeder Cow Program, which had supplied local cattle farmers with spent distiller’s grain at little or no cost for decades, concluded March 31, 2026. The distillery first announced the program’s phaseout in March 2022, giving area farmers approximately four years notice. By January 1, 2026 — the same week Blackburn was served her criminal summons — non-employee haulers had already experienced a 70 percent reduction in their allotments.

The state veterinarian’s prior report on Blackburn dates to May 2025, ten months before the Feeder Cow Program concluded.

{Editor’s Note: The Lynchburg Times previously reported on the initial charges in January 2026. That article is available here. The Times also reported on the conclusion of the Jack Daniel’s Feeder Cow Program in September 2025. That article is available here.}

WHAT THE PLEA MEANS

Under Tennessee law, judicial diversion under § 40-35-313 is available only to defendants with no prior criminal history and no prior diversions. Qualifying defendants are generally entitled to diversion if they meet the statutory criteria.

The charges against Billy Joe and Billie Patrice Blackburn were not dismissed June 12. They were set aside contingent on Peggy Sue Blackburn’s compliance with the terms of her probation. If she is convicted of any offense above a traffic violation during her probationary period, her conditional guilty plea converts to a formal conviction and the related charges against her father and sister may be refiled.

Though Blackburn has made statements on the record that she can not feed cattle as a condition of her plea deal and joked about being “retired” during the June Metro Council meeting, there are no farming activities stipulations imposed by the court according to the Petition for Acceptance of Plea of Guilty by Defendant and Waiver of Rights document provided by the court — something we also independently confirmed with court officials prior to publication.

Blackburn remains a District 4 member of the Moore County Metro Council. As of publication, no community members or fellow council members have publicly called for her resignation.

The Lynchburg Times obtained and reviewed the affidavit of complaint, the petition for acceptance of guilty plea, the original Moore County Sheriff’s Department incident report in this case, the complete state veterinarian’s reports, as well as the photos published here as part of a public records requests. •

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