Larry Pearson walks a hall of justice in Lubbock, Texas, on April 12, 2023. (Screengrab via KLBK)
A Texas man was sentenced to spend 70 years in prison for spitting on police officers, according to multiple local media outlets in Lubbock.
Larry Pearson, 36, had his sentence imposed on Tuesday by jurors in the West Texas city after being found guilty on two counts of harassment of a public servant from April 2022.
The condemned man will have to serve roughly 17 years in prison before he is eligible for parole.
At the time, the defendant was arrested for domestic violence after the alleged victim flagged down a police officer in the northeast part of town, prosecutor Jessica Gorman told local CBS affiliate KLBK.
According to a police report obtained by The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, Pearson’s then-girlfriend was driving the two home after visiting his parents the night of April 2, 2022, when he lashed out about a broken cellphone and punched her twice until a cop car came into view.
The defendant allegedly said, “You know you have an a– whooping coming,” after they passed the marked vehicle and allegedly punched her a third time, this time in the face.
The girlfriend then reportedly turned her car around when she saw another police vehicle approach, the paper reported. Police pulled the car over, and the woman told the officer that she thought Pearson had a gun – prompting the officer to call for backup. The gun was an Airsoft gun, a replica toy gun long used in sports and firearms training exercises.
Officers approached with guns drawn, and Pearson was arrested, Gorman told the Avalanche-Journal. He allegedly grew increasingly irate and took offense at the fact his then-girlfriend was not arrested instead of him “because her tags were out.”
The prosecutor said in the backseat of the patrol car, the defendant began to scream, kick the windows and spit at the plastic divider. When Sgt. Joshua Conklin opened the door to try and assert control, he got spit on. Then, Conklin and other officers put a spit hood on the defendant, which Pearson removed.
The defendant continued screaming and kicking and again spit at officers as he was transferred to a holding cell. Throughout the arrest, Officer Brittany Cothran was also spat on. The incidents were documented as part of Lubbock Police Department protocol involving contact with fluids.
After a three-day trial, jurors deliberated for 11 minutes before returning a guilty verdict on both counts on Monday, the Avalanche-Journal reported. Under Lone Star State law, a person who harasses a public servant by causing them to come into contact with saliva, or various other fluids, commits a felony in the third degree. Such felonies typically carry a sentence of two to 10 years in prison.
The next day, jurors returned to the 140th District Court and sentenced Pearson to 70 years behind bars.
“You’re not going to get 70 years for something like this when you’ve never been in trouble before,” Gorman told the paper. “In Texas, if you’ve been to prison multiple times, two consecutive times and then you commit another felony that’s a third degree or higher, you’re what’s called a ‘habitualized criminal,’ where your minimum is 25 years.”
During the sentencing phase, jurors considered the defendant’s criminal history dating back to 2010, with a conviction on one felony count of aggravated robbery, three convictions for misdemeanor domestic assault, one felony conviction of domestic violence, and one felony count of continuous family violence. Pearson still faces a misdemeanor charge from the underlying 2022 incident that led to his latest arrest.
Defense attorney Jim Shaw asked jurors not to consider his client’s past, the paper reported, noting that Pearson had served his time for each prior offense and paid his debt to society.
Jurors considered otherwise.
“We asked them to just consider the life that he’d been leading,” Gorman added. “I didn’t ask them for a specific number.”
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Man sentenced to 70 years in prison for spitting on cops