GREENEVILLE, Tenn. — Greeneville Police Department Chief Steve Spano said the city's assistant police chief is back on duty after a jury acquitted him of a domestic violence charge he was facing.
In March 2023, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation said a Greene County grand jury indicted Stephen Hixson, the assistant chief of the Greeneville Police Department, for simple assault. According to the TBI, agents began investigating allegations that Hixson had assaulted his stepdaughter after an argument at a home on Sunnyside Ridge Drive in Greeneville on Dec. 10, 2022.
On March 14, 2024, Chief Spano announced that a jury found Hixson not guilty on all charges.
"The trial by jury emphasizes the importance of a fair judicial process and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty," Spano said. "The outcome reaffirms his innocence throughout the entire process and continues to show the importance of a fair and impartial judicial system in addressing allegations of misconduct."
Greeneville city manager Todd Smith placed Hixson back on full-duty status after the trial.