Lance Phillips seeks to change trial venue

TYLER- Lance Phillips, the son of a Smith County elected official, is seeking to change the location of his upcoming trial due to family prominence. Phillips, 41, of Tyler, is charged with the assault of a peace officer or judge for accusations related to a County Commissioners Court meeting on April 2nd, where he was held in contempt of Court and removed.

Phillips’ attorney asked that the trial, which was set for February 4, 2025, to be postponed so that he may gather evidence to support a venue change. The lawyer cited that Lance Phillips’ parents (former Smith County Precinct 3 Commissioner, Terry Phillips, and current Smith County Clerk, Karen Phillips) are notable figures in the county, as well as the amount of news reports and views of videos involving Lance and his family. The hearing to address the venue change and other issues will be held on February 26th.

In August 2024, Karen Phillips was given one year of probation for interfering in the arrest of her other son, Derek Phillips, in March of 2023. Derek Phillips received a thirty day jail sentence for interfering with a traffic stop. Lance Phillips was convicted for hindering court proceedings by disorderly conduct, and was sentenced to serve one year in county jail. That conviction stemmed from him going off-topic during a January 2024 Smith County Commissioners Court meeting. He has since served out that sentence, but remains in the Gregg County Jail on bonds for a pending charge of obstruction or retaliation.

According to the Tyler Morning Telegraph, in the October 3rd indictment, Phillips committed slander, libel, and disorderly conduct against Smith County Judge, Neal Franklin, in retaliation of Franklin serving as a witness in Phillips’ hindering court proceedings trial.