Grand jury declines to indict Harris County sheriff's chief of staff on injury to a child charge

A grand jury has declined to indict a high-ranking official in the Harris County Sheriff's Office after he was accused of assaulting his 14-year-old son in September 2023, ABC13 learned on Tuesday.

The Harris County District Attorney's Office confirmed that Jason Spencer, who is the sheriff's chief of staff, won't be indicted on an injury to a child charge.

Charging documents read that Spencer allegedly slammed the 14-year-old against a wall, threw a plastic gun case at him while he ran down the stairs, and pinned him to the ground by the arms at his home in the Heights on Sept. 13, 2023.

Investigators said the boy's medical records showed he suffered abrasions to his arms, back, and face, a hematoma to the skull, and additional bruises.

At the end of May, a Montgomery County court tossed out a protective order violation against Spencer.

While MCDAO didn't elaborate beyond the dismissal, Spencer's attorney, Murray Newman, told ABC13 that the judge's intent was not to bar contact between Spencer and his children as long as it wasn't threatening or harassing.

Newman said the judge found a clerical mistake from the original May 7 order and corrected it retroactively to that date.

Newman said that after Spencer's ex-wife testified, the court found that Spencer also didn't violate any of the court's bond conditions.