CLAY COUNTY (KFDX/KJTL) — The troubles continue to mount for Clay County’s suspended Sheriff Jeff Lyde after a Grand Jury from the 97th Judicial District Court returned indictments on two new charges stemming from a July 2021 incident for which he’s already facing charges.
Originally, Lyde was accused of holding two individuals in the Clay County Jail for more than 48 hours without finding probable cause.
Now, in addition to those two official oppression charges, Lyde also faces charges of tampering with a governmental record in those cases.
The indictments allege Jeffrey C. Lyde, while acting in his official capacity as the Sheriff of Clay County, intentionally concealed the affidavits for arrest warrants on two people held in the Clay County Jail, despite the fact that no probable cause had been found, and kept them in his personal possession instead of filing or destroying them.
These are just the latest allegations against Lyde, who faces a handful of other charges and lawsuits.
A civil suit to remove Lyde from office is currently pending in 97th District Court and Lyde has been temporarily suspended without pay until that trial concludes.
In all, Lyde has been indicted on seven charges. A total of five counts of official oppression were pending prior to the filing of his latest tampering charges.
During a news conference in December 2021, after Lyde was indicted for official oppression, he claimed he was in fact out of town the weekend of July 12, 2021.
Lyde alleged he was not made aware of the situation in the Clay County Jail until the afternoon of the following Monday and that Justice of the Peace John Swenson failed to magistrate the two individuals in custody.
This conflicts with the allegations made in the indictment, blaming Lyde for not releasing the two individuals after Justice Swenson found no probable cause to hold them in jail.
As of the time of this publication, there are no hearings currently on the docket regarding the petition to remove Lyde from office.
This is a developing story. Stick with Texoma’s Homepage for updates on the petition to remove Jeffrey C. Lyde from his office as Sheriff of Clay County as new information becomes available.
