Sunday, November 16, 2008

November 16, 2008 Constable/Cherokee Park Manager Paul King's Diversion Hearing on Theft Charges Postponed To Next Week (Part I)



























Paul King, Hamblen County Constable and Cherokee Park Manager, will have to wait until next week before his request for pre-trial diversion (above) is presented to Judge John Dugger. [Click on each image to read. The 4-page document will be in correct sequence for most browsers]

King and his boss---Cherokee Park Director, former deputy Sheriff and former Hamblen County Commissioner Frank Parker---were indicted in May 2008 for felony theft over $500.

The pair--both of whom are county employees, both of whom had law enforcement connections at the time of the theft, and both of whom were elected officials at the time of the theft--took $750 from Albert Walker to get Walker's car out of the Hamblen County Sheriff's impound lot.

Both Parker and King knew that there was no charge at all to get Walker's car out of impound, but both admit that they did not let Walker know that his car could be retrieved for nothing. After taking the $750 from Walker, Parker and King were charged with theft by deception.
Parker was also charged with felony misconduct for using his position as a county commissioner to get the car out of the impound lot.

Parker resigned his position as a county commissioner in June 2008 and immediately applied for pre-trial diversion. District Attorney Berkeley Bell recommended diversion for Parker, and Parker's diversion was signed by Judge John Dugger in early July 2008.


Apparently, County Mayor David Purkey, the County Commission, and the County Ethics Committee aren't saying much of anything regarding Parker and Cherokee Park. It's not clear whether Parker has resumed the title of "Director" and is allowed to handle money again. It's also not clear whether Parker is again drawing approximately $38,000 in salary plus full benefits or whether he continued to draw his full salary all along. Parker is still listed as Cherokee Park Director on the Hamblen County government website.

King, Parker's Co-Defendant, applied for diversion in August 2008. His diversion was scheduled to be heard this past Friday, November 14. During Friday's 1:00 session of court, however, Judge Dugger announced that King's attorney was unable to attend the hearing and that the diversion would be presented next week. King apparently continues to be employed by the county as Manager of Cherokee Park.
In addition to King's request for pre-trial diversion (shown above), a page from King's initial application for diversion and one of King's letters of commendation--from current and long-time Hamblen County School Board member Roger Greene--can be seen here.

In a nutshell, pre-trial diversion means that there is no trial. The defendant tells his version of what happened, explains that he is sorry and that this was a one-time thing, and is typically required to make restitution. The District Attorney can approve the request or reject it for any number of reasons. If the diversion is granted, the defendant is allowed to go free with the charges wiped off completely if the Defendant is not charged with anything else during the brief probationary period.

Frank Parker's request for pre-trial diversion will be posted soon. It is a particularly interesting document in which Parker accepts "criminal responsibility" for his actions and then turns right around and blames the Victim for "pestering" Parker into committing theft. Parker's "he pestered me into it" sounds a lot like comedian Flip Wilson's old "the Devil made me do it" tag line from the 1970s.

More to come....

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