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TYLER, Texas (AP) — An assistant district attorney in Texas will not be fired for giving the suspect in a state trooper's Thanksgiving shooting death a plea deal in a previous officer assault without approval.
KYTX-TV in Tyler, Texas, reports that Smith County District Attorney Matt Bingham said Thursday he would not have approved the plea deal Jacob Putnam gave to Dabrett Black in the 2015 beating of a sheriff's deputy that reduced the charges to a single misdemeanor.
Bingham said Putnam is running unopposed for district attorney. Bingham said he wants Putnam to get as much courtroom experience as possible. He added that Putnam apologized for violating internal policy by not getting the deal approved.
Black is charged with capital murder of a peace officer in Texas Trooper Damon Allen's shooting death.
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