Jury selected in retaliation trial of Johnson County Sheriff Adam King
A panel of 12 jurors and one alternate was selected Monday in the trial of Johnson County Sheriff Adam King.
Prosecutors allege King sexually harassed female employees and then threatened his chief deputy to keep quiet.
He was indicted in August on two felony county of retaliating against a witness, and one misdemeanor count of abuse of office related to sexual harassment.
Seven men and five women jurors will decide whether King retaliated against former chief deputy James Saulter, who he allegedly threatened with “adverse personnel action” after learning Saulter had reported King for ongoing harassment, according to the indictment.
Separate cases on the misdemeanor sexual harassment charge and a March 2026 indictment on felony perjury are still in the pre-trial phase.
If convicted, King could serve anywhere from two to 10 years in prison, and pay up to a $10,000 fine, Judge John Wilson Weeks told the jury pool ahead of the selection process.
How we got here
King was initially indicted in August 2025 after a weeks-long investigation by the Texas Rangers.
King allegedly repeatedly sexually harassed female employees including on one occasion where he instructed a woman to remove a sweater covering a V-neck blouse, according to the indictment. He told the employee that she would need to “disrobe” before he would sign any documents, which was a task required for her job, the indictment states. The sheriff allegedly told her, “If you keep losing weight, you’re going to make me do some ungodly things to you.”
Following the indictment, King was placed on administrative leave before an October court order allowed him to return to work while the trial played out.
He received community support following the indictment with a September rally of around 200 residents arguing the charges against King were baseless.
Prosecutors charged King with perjury in October 2025 when he was accused of lying during grand jury testimony; however, those charges were thrown out in December before being refiled in March.
The retaliation case against King was first scheduled to go to trial in May, before being pushed back when prosecutors alleged King violated the court order that allowed him to continue serving as sheriff.
The delay came days after King fired former chief deputy Saulter for insubordination after he allegedly failed to show up to an internal affairs interview, according to a letter from King explaining the firing. King had been allowed to return to work on the condition that he was forbidden to contact any employees who are witnesses in the criminal case, according to the court’s order.
Prosecutors also alleged King fathered a child through an extra-marital affair and threatened the child’s mother to keep quiet. His attorneys denied those claims, stating he’d be willing to submit to a paternity test to disprove the claims.
Potential jurors questioned on harassment, retaliation
A jury pools of roughly 300 Johnson County residents was whittled down to 110 on Monday morning before attorneys began their questions.
Johnson County Assistant District Attorney Stephanie Bosworth walked the room through the mechanics of the trial as well as the stakes.
She began her questioning on whether any of the 110 possible jurors knew King on anyone at the sheriff’s office. Ten members of the pool raised their hands with three admitting to having some knowledge of King. None said it would affect their judgment.
When asked if any of the pool had prior knowledge of the trial to the point where they’ve formed a conclusion, three people raised their hands.
One potential juror said he’d formed a conclusion, but said he’d like to think he could put it aside to be an impartial juror.
When asked about harassment, several members of the pool said they’d either been victims or accused of committing sexual harassment.
One potential juror said she’d reported a supervisor for harassment, but quit after her accusation was used to accuse her of harassment. She stated that experience might impact her judgment.
King’s attorney, Bill Mason, began his presentation by referencing Bosworth’s mentioning a defendant can’t be judged for not testifying in their own defense.
He noted King would testify in the retaliation case.
He then explained to the pool rules of evidence, and the burden of proof, while questioning some potential jurors on whether they knew King or any of the witnesses connected to the case.
Judge Weeks has scheduled the trial to start at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 23.
He told the pool he expected the trial to last “some number of days into next week.”
This story was originally published June 22, 2026 at 6:51 PM.
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