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The Sevierville Police Department in Sevierville, Tenn. (Google Maps).
An Alabama couple lost custody of their two children for over nine months after they were accused of driving while intoxicated — but there was no evidence that the one behind the wheel was ever intoxicated.
In a lawsuit filed on Feb. 25, Nicholas and Elizabeth Frye stated that they took a vacation with their two small children in Tennessee in February 2024. While at the resort where they were staying, Elizabeth Frye slipped and sustained a minor injury, and Nicholas Frye took the family to a nearby Walmart store for medical supplies. Upon completing their Walmart run and driving back, Nicholas Frye was pulled over by an officer “without reasonable suspicion or probable cause” and accused of DUI. Elizabeth Frye was also arrested, and both were charged with “DUI, public intoxication, child abuse and neglect, and aggravated child abuse and neglect.”
But there was no immediate evidence that either parent was under the influence — and Nicholas Frye’s blood tests later showed an “absence of drugs and alcohol at the time of the arrest.”
The lawsuit, filed in Tennessee’s Eastern District Court, named the City of Sevierville, the Sevierville Police Department, and three Sevierville police officers, including Officer Laura Franklin, who pulled Nicholas Frye over on Feb. 24, 2024. Also named in the suit were the State of Tennessee and the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services and an unnamed official who worked for the agency.
After the Frye parents were arrested, their two children were taken to the Sevierville Police Department, where they remained until their grandmother (who was not named) came from Alabama to pick them up. The Tennessee Department of Children’s Services was notified that the children’s parents were arrested and charged, and the Alabama Department of Human Resources removed the children from the Fryes’ custody.
Elizabeth and Nicholas Frye did not regain custody of their children for over nine months.
The lawsuit stated that there was never any evidence that either parent was under the influence. The Fryes also claimed that the Sevierville Police Department did not perform any “immediate” testing at the time of the arrests that would have proven the absence of any intoxication and provided probable cause for a DUI arrest. Instead, Nicholas Frye underwent blood testing that provided results at a later time. The lawsuit made no mention of whether or not Elizabeth Frye underwent any testing for intoxication.
The Fryes contended that they were arrested “without proper evidentiary basis,” and this resulted in the removal of their children from their custody for nearly a whole year.
The Fryes are claiming that they and their children have suffered “irreparable, permanent, and significant mental and emotional anguish” as well as “deleterious effects to their reputations” and their standing in the community. They are seeking damages of just under $15 million.
Local news outlet Al.com reached out to the City of Sevierville for comment, and a spokesperson said that the city “does not generally comment in regard to ongoing litigation.”
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