Arguments today in appeal of aggravated assault case

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July 9, 2012

Arguments today in appeal of aggravated assault case

By BRAD KELLAR CNHI The Herald-Banner Mon Jul 09, 2012, 10:38 AM CDT

GREENVILLE — A state appeals court is scheduled next week to consider the case of a Hunt County man, sentenced to a lengthy term in prison on a charge of aggravated assault.

Michael Dean Richard of Greenville was convicted in October of last year in connection with an attack which occurred three years earlier.

The Sixth District Court of Appeals in Texarkana is set to hear oral arguments in the case Monday.

A jury in the 196th District Court found Richard guilty and sentenced him to 65 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice-Institutional Division.

Richard was indicted in April 2010 on one count of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury.

On October 16, 2008, the Hunt County Sheriff’s Department responded to a 911 call on FM 1903. Upon arrival, the deputy observed the victim to have suffered extensive injuries to the face and head, ultimately requiring surgeries. The defendant was arrested shortly thereafter.

Richard had previous convictions for assault with a deadly weapon in California in 2005 and aggravated assault in Harris County in 1988.

Aggravated assault typically carries a maximum sentence upon conviction of from two to 20 years in prison and an optional fine of up to $10,000. However based upon Richard having two or more prior felony convictions, his punishment was enhanced to 25 to 99 years or life.

The Sixth Court of Appeals, through its three justices decides civil and criminal appeals arising primarily in its 19 county district, which includes most of northeast Texas, including Hunt County.

Of cases appealed from trial courts to the fourteen Texas Courts of Appeal, more than 95 percent become final at the Court-of-Appeals level because they are not accepted by either the Texas Supreme Court or the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in Austin, the state courts of last resort for civil and criminal cases, respectively.