Johnson County Sheriff Adam King is facing a new round of criminal charges after a grand jury handed down a fresh indictment targeting him on allegations of witness retaliation and evidence tampering connected to an ongoing sexual misconduct investigation.
The indictment filed July 29 accuses King of intentionally retaliating against Chief Deputy James Saulter after Saulter reported King to county officials last June for alleged official oppression. Prosecutors allege King took adverse personnel action against Saulter specifically because of his role as a witness in the investigation.
The new indictment also charges King with altering, destroying, or concealing a laptop computer with the intent to undermine its value as evidence in the case against him. The evidence tampering allegation marks a significant escalation in the legal troubles surrounding the embattled sheriff.
King’s legal team pushed back sharply against both charges. Attorneys Mark G. Daniel, Matthew J. Smid, and William Mason released a statement calling the retaliation charge a re-indictment of a previously filed count that they say was already flawed. They argued the state revised the charge because prosecutors recognized weaknesses in the original filing.
Regarding the laptop allegation, King’s attorneys said law enforcement never requested the device until this month when the Johnson County IT Department reached out following the state’s failed prosecution attempt. They said King fully cooperated and handed over the computer when asked.
King was first arrested in August 2025 after a grand jury indicted him on multiple felony counts including retaliation and official oppression. That original indictment alleged he verbally and sexually harassed a female employee and cultivated a hostile work environment for women at the sheriff’s office.
Earlier this month a judge declared a mistrial in King’s criminal trial after jurors could not reach a unanimous verdict on charges of two counts of retaliation and one count of official oppression. The hung jury left the case unresolved and prosecutors have now moved forward with a revised and expanded indictment.
King has pleaded not guilty to all charges throughout the legal proceedings. He has continued to serve as Johnson County sheriff in a limited capacity despite the criminal cases pending against him.
The Texas Rangers were brought in to conduct an independent investigation into the matter after Saulter’s initial report to county leadership raised concerns about the objectivity of an internal review. The involvement of state law enforcement underscored the seriousness of the allegations against King.
The new indictment sets the stage for another courtroom battle between King’s defense team and state prosecutors who are now pursuing him on strengthened and expanded grounds.
