State v. Houston

900 S.W.2d 712 (1995)

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State v. Houston

Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals
900 S.W.2d 712 (1995)

  • Written by Sharon Feldman, JD

Facts

Freddie Houston (defendant) was a police captain responsible for scheduling police officers to appear in the city court. Houston had an argument with the court administrator for the city court clerk’s office. The court administrator tried to walk away several times, but Houston followed him, called him a bastard, and yelled at him to stand up like a man. The court administrator finally cursed at Houston. Houston responded by striking the court administrator in the face, breaking the administrator’s jaw and two teeth. The grand jury indicted Houston for misdemeanor assault. Houston requested pretrial diversion. Although the district attorney acknowledged that Houston had an excellent work record and social history, he denied pretrial diversion because Houston was a captain with the police department and had to be held to a higher standard than ordinary citizens, the victim was a court official who was performing his duties when Houston attacked him, the victim suffered serious injuries, Houston was armed with a deadly weapon, and the victim tried to retreat but Houston pursued him. Houston petitioned for a writ of certiorari overturning the district attorney’s denial of pretrial diversion. After a hearing, the trial court affirmed the district attorney’s decision. Houston appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Hayes, J.)

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