Former Washington County Assistant District Attorney Pleads Guilty To Trading Sex For Dismissal Of Charges

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – On May 25, 2021, William E. McManus, Jr., age 50, pleaded guilty before the Honorable J. Ronnie Greer, Senior United States District Judge, to soliciting a bribe in December 2018 in exchange for dismissal and expungement of criminal charges.  Sentencing is set for November 15, 2021, at 10:30 a.m., before the Honorable  J. Ronnie Greer in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee at Greeneville.

As part of the filed plea agreement, McManus admitted that, while acting in his capacity as an Assistant District Attorney for the First Judicial District, he dismissed and expunged shoplifting and possession of methamphetamine charges pending in the Sessions Court of Washington County, Tennessee, in exchange for a commercial sex act with someone with whom he had previously engaged in commercial sex acts.  The maximum punishment for the offense is a term of imprisonment of up to ten years and a fine of up to $250,000. 

Acting U.S. Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III of the Eastern District of Tennessee made the announcement.

The case was jointly investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, investigators of the First Judicial District Attorney General’s Office, and the Johnson City Police Department.  The prosecution was coordinated with the Sixth Judicial District Attorney’s Office, which was appointed to be a special state prosecutor for this investigation. 

Assistant United States Attorney Matthew T. Morris represented the United States in Court. 

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