Former Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst arrested in Dallas, accused of assaulting woman
Former Texas Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst was arrested Tuesday in connection with an assault on a woman in Dallas near Love Field.
Dewhurst, 75, faces an assault charge, which is a Class A misdemeanor.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit obtained by Star-Telegram media partner WFAA-TV, Dewhurst is accused of pushing a woman during a scuffle over a laptop. The incident allegedly occurred outside of the DoubleTree Hilton Hotel near Dallas Love Field, the TV station reported.
Detectives with the Dallas Police Department’s public integrity unit are conducting the investigation.
Dallas police responded to the disturbance call shortly before 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 3300 block of West Mockingbird Lane.
When they arrived, Dallas police met with a woman who had been physically assaulted by a man she knew, according to police reports. That man was later identified as David Dewhurst.
According to the affidavit, he is accused of pushing the woman to the ground and toward a concrete bench, causing her to hit her head against the bench. Dewhurst gained control of the laptop and started walking toward a bus he had planned to board when the woman caught back up to him, and he then allegedly pushed the woman’s head down and kept her bent over while he spoke to another person, the affidavit said.
Dewhurst was arrested at 6:40 p.m. Tuesday and booked into the Dallas County Jail at 12:19 a.m. Wednesday, according to jail records. He was released at 4:14 a.m. Wednesday after posting $1,000 bond.
It was not immediately clear whether Dewhurst had an attorney.
Dallas police did not identify the woman.
In October 2020, a Harris County grand jury declined to indict Leslie Caron for injuries sustained by Dewhurst in Houston, according to court records.
In May 2020, Caron, 41, was charged with injury to an elderly individual. The grand jury returned the decision on Oct. 15, 2020, meaning jurors didn’t find evidence to support an indictment, in effect ending the criminal case against Caron.
Dewhurst told investigators Caron kicked his ribs while he sat on a couch and attacked him again several days later, again kicking his ribs, throwing a pot that hit his elbow and biting his arm as he defended himself, officials said. An X-ray showed two fractured ribs.
Caron denied attacking Dewhurst and told investigators that he was injured while moving items at his warehouse, police said. She said Dewhurst assaulted her, but police did not find evidence to confirm the accusation, according to court documents.
Dewhurst, a Republican, served as lieutenant governor from 2003 to 2015. He lost re-election to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Dewhurst ran for U.S. Senate in 2012, losing to U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz.
This story contains information from Fort Worth Star-Telegram archives.
This story was originally published April 14, 2021 at 5:56 AM.
