St. Mary's deputy suspended after assault charges filed

A deputy approaching his fourth year with the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office was suspended this past weekend after being charged with misdemeanor second-degree assault.

According to a St. Mary’s sheriff’s office press release, the deputy, Donald Anthony Shubrooks, 29, of Lexington Park, reported the incident after it had happened.

According to the press release, St. Mary’s County Sheriff Steve Hall (R) said that in accordance with the agency’s policy an administrative investigation is underway. Shubrooks, who joined the agency in 2020, “has been placed on emergency suspension with pay” pending the outcomes of the criminal and administrative investigations.

According to details divulged by the sheriff’s office, on April 27 Shubrooks contacted the agency’s nonemergency line and told a dispatcher he had been involved in a domestic dispute with his girlfriend at his residence. Deputies responded to Shubrooks home and began the investigation.

The investigation revealed Shubrooks and his girlfriend, whose name was not released by the sheriff’s office, had a verbal argument which turned physical. The woman left the residence but returned after deputies arrived.

The deputy’s girlfriend “sustained minor injuries but did not require medical attention,” the sheriff’s office press release stated.

According to court records, after initially being held without bond, on April 29, Shubrooks was released on his own recognizance by district court Judge Kenneth A. Talley.

Shubrooks is being represented in the criminal case by the public defender’s office.

A district court hearing on the charge Shubrooks is facing is scheduled for May 28.