Joe Adams
June 11, 2026 - A Tenaha man has been convicted and sentenced to two life sentences following a three-day trial in the 273rd Judicial District Court with Judge Jim Payne presiding.
The majority of testimony was heard Tuesday, and the jury began Wednesday considering the guilt or innocence of Joe Adams. After only 17 minutes of deliberation, the jury returned with a guilty verdict.
This article is copied from Shelby County Today without permission.
After the guilty verdicts, the trial entered the punishment phase, and testimony continued for the jury to hear. Once the jury entered deliberations following testimony, they took 43 minutes to return with the dual life sentences for burglary of a habitation and felon in possession of a firearm. Both charges carried a punishment enhancement of habitual 25 years to life, in consideration of Adams’ criminal history.
Deputies responded on May 8, 2025, to reports of a man walking down railroad tracks with two rifles and aiming them. Aaron Jones, who was a Sheriff’s Department Deputy at that time responded to Tenaha and began searching for Adams. Once he located Adams on FM 947, he ordered him at gunpoint to put the rifles down before taking him into custody without incident.
This article is copied from Shelby County Today without permission.
Tenaha ISD Police Chief David Jeter arrived at the location and assisted Jones in the arrest. Meanwhile, Adams recounted to the officers how he had come into possession of the rifles. Adams shared that he had broken into the house of a friend of his and this was predicated on a claim that he had seen a white SUV leaving his friend's house and that he had heard a scream from within the residence. Jurors learned in testimony that Adams had used a piece of rebar to break a window to gain entry into the house and once inside he claimed to discover two rifles on a table, which he took in order to prevent something from happening.
A resident testified to seeing Adams point one of the rifles at her children who were playing in her back yard just previous to Deputy Jones’ arrival.
This article is copied from Shelby County Today without permission.
D.J. Dickerson, Shelby County District Attorney Investigator, testified that Adams is a “danger to our community,” and “a nuisance to our society.” He also testified that law enforcement had already been looking for Adams on the day of his arrest, because of reported social media threats made by him against Tenaha ISD.
This wasn’t the first time Adams had been accused of making similar threats, as reported by Shelby County Today in 2023. (Related Article: Tenaha Man Arrested Following Alleged Threats).
This article is copied from Shelby County Today without permission.
After the verdict of the jury was read aloud, Judge Payne issued judgment on case numbers 25CR22772, and 25CR22773 against Adams finding him guilty and sentencing him to life in prison in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Institutional Division (TDCJ-ID). No fine was assessed by the jury, Adams was remanded to the custody of the Shelby County Sheriff for delivery to the TDCJ-ID.
