By Brad Kellar
Greenville, TX –
A Hopkins County man will not go to prison after pleading guilty in Hunt County District Court to multiple felony counts, including a charge of family violence aggravated assault.
It was the second time in five years that Wade Preston Starr had pleaded guilty to assaulting a female family member. Starr, who was placed on probation on four counts Thursday, was sentenced to prison on the last occasion after his probation on the earlier aggravated assault charge was revoked.
Starr also pleaded guilty Thursday in the 354th District Court to one count each of deadly conduct, the unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and possession of a controlled substance.
Starr, 26, of Sulphur Springs, had been indicted on all four charges. Under the charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon/family violence, Starr was alleged to have threatened a female family member with a shotgun on August 4. Due to Starr having a prior family violence conviction on his record, the charge was enhanced to a first degree felony, punishable upon conviction by a maximum sentence of from five to 99 years to life in prison and an optional fine of up to $10,000.
Under a plea bargain arrangement, Starr pleaded guilty Thursday in the 354th District Court to the assault from earlier this year and was placed on 10 years of probation.
In the deadly conduct charge, on the same day as the recent aggravated assault, Starr was alleged to have discharged a firearm in the direction of the same female victim. And Starr admitted to have been in unlawful possession of a firearm, due to the prior felony conviction; namely the 2003 aggravated assault conviction out of Dallas County.
Starr received 10 years probation on each of the charges, both of which are third degree felonies, punishable by a maximum sentence upon conviction of from two to 10 years in prison and optional fines of up to $10,000.
Starr also pleaded guilty to one count of possession of less than one gram of methamphetamine and was placed on five years of probation.