Trial likely next summer for Wood County constable

SHERMAN (KRLD) — An East Texas constable indicted on federal charges will probably go on trial next summer. In a hearing on Monday, attorneys for Wood County Precinct 2 Constable Kelly Smith asked for a June 2023 trial date. Smith was indicted by a federal grand jury in Sherman last month on a charge of “deprivation of rights under color of law.” He is accused of unnecessary use of a police dog while arresting a suspect last July, causing needless injury to the man. KLTV television in Tyler reports Smith’s attorney says he was simply doing his job of arresting a violent, uncooperative suspect, and that Smith himself was injured in the incident.