Criminal assault charges against retired MS state trooper dismissed. Here’s why
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- Judge dismissed five misdemeanor charges against retired trooper Dale Decamp.
- Defense cited prosecutor delays and multiple unanswered speedy trial requests.
- Victim criticized dismissal; civil lawsuit by Decamp against accuser remains pending.
A judge has dismissed misdemeanor criminal charges against a retired Mississippi state trooper accused of assaulting two court clerks because of speedy rights violations.
Special Judge Sharon Sigalas dismissed the charges against former MHP Master Sgt. Dale Conrad Decamp Jr., after his attorney, Tim Holleman, successfully argued that the state, through its special prosecutor, Theressia Lyons, failed to prosecute the case in a timely manner.
“I remember a long time ago, an old judge told me one time that defendants and parties both in civil matters and criminal matters are entitled to a fair trial, not just a fair appeal,” Sigalas said. “So, in this case, following the rules (of criminal procedure for) this defendant getting a fair trial, it was not his obligation to determine who the judge was or who the prosecutor was. That was the state’s job to do that.”
To back his argument, Holleman provided several email messages he had sent to Lyons asking her to move the case forward to trial. Holleman said he sent the emails to Lyons in January 2023 after Decamp’s arrest the same month on five misdemeanor counts of simple assault.
The night before Wednesday’s hearing, Lyons filed a motion saying she had not received any demand for a speedy trial through April. She also argued that there was a lack of communication with her regarding the case once it was transferred from Hancock County Justice Court to County Court.
Holleman provided written communications showing he had made five requests for a speedy trial.
As for any lack of communication between the two courts, the judge said: “I don’t find that there is a good cause to find there was a lack of communication between the two courts. I certainly knew I was appointed back on April 19, 2023.”
Though the judge said she never received any notice about the special prosecutor, she said it was neither her job nor the defense’s job to set the case for trial and again shifted the blame to the state’s prosecutor.
After Wednesday’s ruling, one of the victims of Decamp’s alleged crimes, Justice Court Clerk Catherine Garcia, expressed her disappointment in the decision because she said the allegations against Decamp are true.
“If it’s dismissed, this is just going to be another officer who gets away with something,” Garcia said.
Decamp has consistently denied any wrongdoing, but because the case never went to trial, there is no resolution for any of the parties involved.
Since the allegations first surfaced, Holleman said his client has suffered greatly.
After media reports about the criminal allegations, Holleman said Decamp lost a job at Lowe’s. He said Decamp lost another job opportunity related to the U.S. Marshal’s Service because the charges surfaced in a background check.
Holleman has repeatedly questioned the motivation for the allegations of wrongdoing against Decamp and has referred to what happened as “horseplay.”
A Hancock County sheriff’s investigator said the allegations against Decamp were first reported to the Mississippi Highway Patrol for an internal investigation and action against Decamp. The investigator, Kris Robbins, said the Sheriff’s Department took over the criminal investigation after MHP failed to take action against Decamp.
Holleman said the clerks pursued criminal prosecution after MHP failed to fire Decamp.
The Hancock County Board of Supervisors appointed Lyons, now a Harrison County Justice Court judge, to serve as special prosecutor in October 2021.
In the charging documents, Decamp was accused of assaulting the clerks at different times between March 2020 and January 2021.
Since Decamp’s arrest, he filed a civil lawsuit against one of the deputy clerks over one criminal allegation that did not result in an indictment against him. That case is still pending.
