April 29, 2026

Martin Daniel, Chairman

Knox County Republican Party

P.O. Box 50153

Knoxville, TN 37950

RE: Request for Criminal Charges

Dear Chairman Daniel:

I am writing in response to your request that this Office pursue criminal charges against a sitting County Commissioner arising from public statements acknowledging crossover voting and encouraging Democratic voters to participate in the ongoing Republican primary.

After review of the request and the surrounding circumstances, I have determined that this matter should not be evaluated by this Office due to the appearance of a conflict of interest and the importance of maintaining public confidence in the impartial administration of justice.

The District Attorney General’s Office is charged with serving all citizens fairly, impartially, and without partisan influence. In this instance, the complainant is the Knox County Republican Party, an organization of which I am a member. In addition, this Office is funded in part through state appropriations and in part through local county government, over which the County Commission exercises budgetary authority and oversight. Given these facts, any decision made directly by this Office whether to prosecute, decline prosecution, or take no action-could reasonably be questioned as influenced by political considerations rather than neutral legal judgment. For that reason, I am making no prosecutorial determination on the merits of the allegations at this time.

instead, in order to avoid even the appearance of impropriety and to ensure public confidence in the process, this Office will request that the Executive Director of the District Attorneys General Conference initiate proceedings to seek court approval for the appointment of a District Attorney Pro Tem, as authorized under Tennessee law, to review the complaint, assess the available facts and applicable law, including the constitutionality of those laws, and make any prosecutorial decisions independently of this Office.

Upon appointment of a District Attorney Pro Tem, I will further request that the Executive Director promptly notify you, as Chairman of the Knox County Republican Party, so that you are aware when the independent review process has formally commenced.

That independent reviewer will be in the best position to determine whether any Tennessee criminal statute is implicated, whether sufficient admissible evidence exists, and whether prosecution would be legally and ethically appropriate.

This referral should not be interpreted as a conclusion that criminal conduct either did or did not occur. Rather, it reflects the principle that public trust is best served when politically sensitive matters involving organizations with which the elected District Attorney has an affiliation are reviewed by a neutral and detached authority.

Questions concerning crossover voting in party primaries may also involve broader issues of election policy and legislative design. Nevertheless, any allegation of criminal conduct deserves objective review through a process free from reasonable questions regarding impartiality.

This Office remains committed to transparency, fairness, and equal enforcement of the law.

Thank you for your correspondence.

Respectfully,

Charme P. Allen

District Attorney General