DA Says Assistant Who Gave Plea Bargain to Trooper’s Accused Killer Won’t Be Fired

Dabrett Black

A Smith County Assistant District Attorney will not be fired for giving the suspect in a state trooper’s Thanksgiving shooting death a plea deal in a previous officer assault without approval. Smith County District Attorney Matt Bingham said Thursday, however, he would not have approved the plea deal Jacob Putnam gave to Dabrett Black in the 2015 beating of a deputy that reduced the charges to a single misdemeanor.