I learned today that Murfreesboro Police Officer Finess Brown is back at work & a quick check shows him back working with his police powers restored and in the news by August 19, 2007. Decommissioned Officer Brown - last he showed up in the news - had been scheduled for General Sessions Court exaclty one month earlier - July 19. Here's excerpts from June 2007 news when he was first charged:Murfreesboro Police officer charged with assaulting wife
By Lisa Marchesoni
June 13, 2007 - 11:52 AM
A Murfreesboro Police officer charged with domestic assault lost his police powers Tuesday until the case is handled in court... Sgt Shawn Murphy responded to Brown’s home Sunday afternoon after someone from the home called 911 and hung up. Brown was not at home but his wife reported her husband struck her after an argument about him whipping their son... 'whipping their son for telling her that they went to another woman’s house”... When her husband and son prepared to leave, she tried to get their son back but the doors were locked... the wife accused her husband of spitting in her face eight times but she told him, “That doesn’t bother me anymore” and “I’m done,” Murphy reported. “She advised he then grabbed her by the hair and slung her into the bathroom wall. She stated a struggle ensued and ended up in the bedroom.” When she tried to call 911, she stated Brown grabbed the phone, pulled her hair, punched her face and cheek and threw her into the bedroom wall, the sergeant reported. She suffered swelling and marks on her face...
Murfreesboro Police officer charged with assaulting wife
ReplyDeleteBy Lisa Marchesoni
June 13,, 2007 - 11:52 AM
A Murfreesboro Police officer charged with domestic assault lost his police powers Tuesday until the case is handled in court, authorities said.
Officer Finess Brown, 35, was accused of domestic assault of his wife, Catina, during an argument Sunday.
Police Chief Glenn Chrisman said Brown was charged after an investigation by detectives.
“He was decommissioned yesterday afternoon,” Chrisman said. “That removes his law enforcement powers. He is still working. He won’t have law enforcement authority or powers at all.”
Sgt Shawn Murphy responded to Brown’s home Sunday afternoon after someone from the home called 911 and hung up. Brown was not at home but his wife reported her husband struck her after an argument about him whipping their son.
“She advised Officer (Kristy) Loyd and myself that they got into an argument over his whipping their son for telling her that they went to another woman’s house,” Murphy reported.
When her husband and son prepared to leave, she tried to get their son back but the doors were locked. She called her brother who calmed her down.
When Brown returned later, she reportedly tried to get the children to get the keys but her husband would not let her, Murphy reported.
Later, the wife accused her husband of spitting in her face eight times but she told him, “That doesn’t bother me anymore” and “I’m done,” Murphy reported. “She advised he then grabbed her by the hair and slung her into the bathroom wall. She stated a struggle ensued and ended up in the bedroom.”
When she tried to call 911, she stated Brown grabbed the phone, pulled her hair, punched her face and cheek and threw her into the bedroom wall, the sergeant reported. She suffered swelling and marks on her face.
The wife told police she did not want to prosecute.
Under state law, law enforcement officers are supposed to immediately arrest the person believed to be the aggressor in a domestic violence case if they are present. Brown was not at home when police were there.
Chrisman said the wife’s accusations required an investigation. Brown was charged after the investigation and decommissioned.
“Law enforcement officers have to uphold the law and enforce the law and they’re accountable like everyone else,” Chrisman said. “He has been charged. We trust in the judicial system to handle the case from that point forward.”
Brown’s hearing is pending in General Sessions Court.
http://www.murfreesboropost.com/news.php?viewStory=4802
Former officer takes plea deal
ReplyDeleteDaily News Journal, TN
By BRANDON PUTTBRESE
bputtbrese@dnj.com
July 13, 2007
A former Murfreesboro police lieutenant accused of threatening to shoot an officer and evading arrest in May accepted five years probation Tuesday in exchange for a guilty plea in Rutherford County Circuit Court.
Hugh Lawson Jones, 60, of Victoria Drive was charged with aggravated assault and evading an officer, both felonies.
Assistant District Attorney Allen Hale said Jones could have the charges retired permanently if he maintains good and lawful conduct among several other criteria.
Jones was court ordered to undergo domestic-violence assessment and an alcohol treatment program and will have to report to probation officers on a regular basis, Hale said. The former officer is also not allowed to own or possess firearms, he added.
Jones was accused of throwing his wife into a wall, threatening her life and police.
The Joneses reportedly started arguing after Mrs. Jones dumped out all the alcohol in the home, an arrest report stated.
The former police lieutenant then reportedly holed up in the garage with a rifle after his wife contacted police on her cell phone. When police arrived, Jones allegedly threatened to shoot them if they came onto his property.
Jones then left his home in a black Toyota truck, reports show. Police caught Jones and arrested him moments later.
In January, Jones was charged with a misdemeanor domestic assault. That case was dismissed as a part of Jones' plea agreement, Hale said.
"Mr. Jones made it about 60 years with no criminal history, and then in a period of three months, all this occurred," the prosecuting attorney said. "Now he has a five-year probationary period and the potential to be a convicted felon. We feel it's a reasonable, but significant penalty."
If Jones fails to meet the conditions set by the plea, he effectively enters a guilty plea and would be sentenced for the crime.
An active-duty Murfreesboro police officer accused of assaulting his spouse will appear in General Sessions Court July 19.
Finess Brown, 35, who faces a misdemeanor domestic assault charge, was decommissioned in mid-June, meaning his police powers were suspended until the case works its way through the Rutherford County court system.
Brown, who has worked for the department since July 2004, was arrested June 12.
If found guilty of the misdemeanor charge, Brown may have to find a different line of work. Police have said Tennessee domestic violence laws do not allow a convicted offender to possess a handgun, which would impede an officer's ability to work.
http://dnj.midsouthnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070713/NEWS01/707130314/1002