A man has been sentenced to 70 years in prison for spitting on police officers during an arrest.
The incident happened in May 2022 while 36-year-old Larry Pearson was being arrested for domestic violence in Lubbock, according to police.
The victim, Pearson’s girlfriend, waved down officers and told them that Pearson had hit her several times and had a weapon, according to police.
It was later revealed that Pearson had an airsoft gun, police said.
The victim showed multiple visible signs of injuries on her face, according to police.
While in custody in the officer’s patrol vehicle, Pearson began kicking at the doors. When officers opened the door to tell Pearson to stop, he spits on both officers, according to police.
Pearson kept spitting even after he arrived at the Lubbock Detention Center, police said.
Pearson was convicted of two counts of harassment of a public servant.
Because of his two previous felony convictions for aggravated robbery in 2009 and continuous family violence in 2019, Pearson’s sentence was enhanced to a minimum sentence of at least 25 years to life in prison.
During the closing arguments of Pearson’s trial, prosecutor Jessica Gorman asked the jury to consider a number that would send a strong message not only to Pearson but to society as well.
Gorman explained that people without priors would not have gotten the same treatment, according to Everything Lubbock.
“You’re not going to get 70 years for something like this when you’ve never been in trouble before,” said Gorman.
In her closing argument, Gorman told jurors, “If you’re going to live the life of crime, you’re going to do that among other criminals [in prison].”
As reported by The Dallas Express, under Texas law, criminals with prior convictions face enhanced sentencing.
Pearson will have to serve 17 years of his sentence before he is eligible for parole, according to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal.
The incident for which Pearson was initially arrested parallels a disturbing crime trend here in Dallas, with family violence aggravated assaults up 7.46% year over year as of April 18, according to figures from the City of Dallas Open Data crime analytics dashboard.
That’s a harsh sentence but his fellow prisoners will teach him that spitting is wrong, something the rest of us could not do.