BRENHAM MAN SENTENCED TO 20 YEARS IN FAMILY VIOLENCE CASE
A Brenham man was convicted Thursday and handed a max sentence for repeated domestic violence.
(Washington Co. Jail)
48-year-old Charyan Demon Thomas was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison by a Washington County jury, for Continuous Violence Against the Family. Thomas will also have to pay a $10,000 fine. The sentence comes after Thomas’ trial was delayed from last year, due to pre-trial publicity.
According to a release from the Washington County District Attorney’s Office, the charge came after a series of violent incidents against his wife from April of 2017 through December of 2018.
On more than one occasion, Thomas was said to have strangled the victim and covered her mouth and nose, cutting off her breathing. Both the earliest and most recent assaults involved major injury to the victim, due to being struck multiple times by Thomas.
Continuous Violence Against the Family is a third degree felony with punishment range of two to ten years. However, prosecution presented evidence that Thomas previously received a 15 year sentence for Aggravated Robbery in Colorado County. That conviction enhanced the punishment range to second degree felony status, or two to 20 years.
The State alleged that Thomas’ hands were used as a deadly weapon, in that they were capable of causing serious bodily injury or death when he strangled the victim. The jury found the allegation to be true, “aggravating” the charge so Thomas will have to serve half his sentence before being eligible for parole.
Judge Reva Towslee Corbett presided over the trial. Assistant District Attorneys Lauren Haevischer and Barbara Enright represented the State, and Bruno Shimek represented the Defendant.
District Attorney Julie Renken said this is the second major domestic violence case the office has tried in as many weeks, and the second maximum sentence from the jury. She said she hopes these verdicts “send a message of support to any family violence victims out there”. She said her office “will continue prosecuting these cases to the fullest”.