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Jeanette Stricklin pleads guilty

Hardin County Clerk removed from office for two counts of official misconduct

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Hardin County Clerk Jeanette Stricklin has been removed from office after pleading guilty Monday to two counts of official misconduct.
Consistent with state law, Stricklin submitted her resignation, according to the office of 26th Judicial District Attorney General Jody Pickens.
“One of the fundamental duties of a county clerk is to collect taxes on the sale of vehicles, boats and campers among other items and Ms. Stricklin failed to perform this basic function,” said Pickens, who was appointed as a special prosecutor in the case.
He said Stricklin “used her office for personal gain by avoiding paying taxes on a purchase.”
Noting that Tennessee does not have an income tax and that the state is partially funded by such transactions, Pickens said Stricklin failed to perform her duties and took advantage of her position, which “deprived the citizens of Hardin County of revenue dollars that would have been used to fund their schools, emergency services, and local infrastructure.”
The plea comes following an investigation by the Tennessee Department of Revenue, which determined Stricklin processed her own registration of a $5,500 travel trailer on May 14, 2021, fraudulently registering the trailer as a gift to avoid paying taxes.
The Revenue Department said Stricklin also processed the registration of a Ford Explorer for her daughter in November 2022. She advised her daughter to complete a false affidavit of non-dealer transfer so that the vehicle could be registered without appropriate supporting documentation, the department said.
In doing so, Stricklin knowingly submitted a false affidavit regarding the chain of ownership of the vehicle.
Stricklin was indicted by the Hardin County Grand Jury on Nov. 13, 2023.
Circuit Court Judge J. Brent Bradberry sentenced Stricklin to two years for each count and ordered restitution to the state Department of Revenue.