A judge ordered no fines or other punishment at contempt of court hearings for Fort Worth’s mayor and a city councilman after they made comments about the Aaron Dean case before the trial was finished.
Mayor Mattie Parker did not attend Wednesday’s hearing in 396th District Court. Judge George Gallagher said Parker came to court on Tuesday instead because she had a conflict. Councilman Chris Nettles was at the Wednesday afternoon hearing, which lasted about two minutes.
A jury found Dean guilty of manslaughter on Dec. 15 and sentenced him on Dec. 20 to more than 11 years in prison. The day of the guilty verdict, Nettles and Parker made public statements about the case. Gallagher had ordered Nettles and Parker to attend a hearing Wednesday at noon for speaking despite a gag order in the case.
