Teacher fights indictment after surrendering her certification

An elementary school teacher was indicted on two counts of bodily injury to a child following allegations that she hit or slapped two students. The teacher requested that the indictment be dismissed, arguing she had previously come to an agreement with the prosecutor's office that in exchange for surrendering her teaching certificate, she would not be indicted. 

In support of her request, she attached a Texas Department of Family and Protective Services letter ruling out allegations of physical abuse against the two students; her Texas Education Agency certificate indicating she had voluntarily surrendered her license; and several emails exchanged by her and the county district attorney's office.

A review of the emails revealed that the DA's office was claiming that the teacher had not honored the terms of the agreement because she was "fighting the permanent revocation of her teaching certificate." The teacher's attorney responded that she was not attempting to fight the revocation, but was trying to ensure that what the teacher signed with TEA could not be used as an admission against her in the criminal case. 

While those discussions were taking place, the teacher had agreed to a two-year suspension of her teaching certificate. The teacher ultimately did surrender her certificate. The teacher argued that by indicting her while this was occurring, the state was breaching the terms of its agreement and violating her due-process rights.

At the hearing on the motion to dismiss the indictments, the state argued that it was not appropriate for the court to weigh in on negotiations between it and the teacher. It also argued that it was within its authority to withdraw its offer of dismissal regardless of whether the teacher had surrendered her teaching certification.

The trial court granted the teacher's motion and dismissed the indictments, finding that there had been an agreement between the state and the teacher in which the state would not indict the teacher if she permanently surrendered her teaching certification and that the teacher accepted these terms and relied on it by agreeing to surrender her teaching certificate.

The state appealed this decision. On appeal, the court of appeals noted that dismissal of an indictment was permitted based on contractual or due-process violations. For its part, the state had not provided any legal theory to support its claim that it could continue to pursue the indictment. Therefore, it found that dismissal of the indictment was appropriate.