Kennesaw councilman completes pretrial diversion after domestic incident, DA will not prosecute
Oct. 2—The office of Cobb County District Attorney Flynn Broady has decided not to prosecute Kennesaw City Councilman Chris Henderson for a domestic violence incident after Henderson completed a pretrial diversion program.
The DA's office formally indicated in Cobb County Superior Court that it would not prosecute Henderson, whom prosecutors had charged with felony aggravated assault and misdemeanor simple assault after a January incident at the councilman's home following a night of drinking.
Broady's office considers the case closed, spokesperson Latonia Hines confirmed.
Criminal history record information regarding the case will be restricted pursuant to state law that says access to a person's record, "including any fingerprints or photographs of the individual taken in conjunction with the arrest, shall be restricted."
The pretrial diversion program is offered to low-risk and low-need offenders "who have committed crimes that did not result in serious injury to a victim, or who have committed crimes involving family violence," according to the DA's office.
The program is designed to provide education, counseling, treatment and community service alternatives to people who have been charged, while also ensuring restitution for victims.
Henderson did not return a request for comment, and his lawyer declined to comment.
Henderson, who represents Kennesaw's Post 4, was accused in a January Kennesaw Police Department report of throwing several objects at his wife and police officers, including picture frames, candles, a lamp, flower pots and glass vases. The incident occurred after a night of drinking with four other people.
An arrest warrant filed at the time said Henderson "placed (his wife) in reasonable apprehension of immediately receiving a violent injury," as well as "knowingly and without authority interfere(d) with property in a manner as to endanger human life."
Police responded shortly after 3 a.m. on Jan. 31 to Henderson's home. Yelling could be heard from outside, according to the police report, and a witness told police Henderson had access to guns upstairs.
At one point, police ordered Henderson to come downstairs. Instead, he stood at the top of the stairs, yelled and threw objects at his wife and the officers, the report says. Officers drew their guns and also had a ballistic shield. Henderson then went into a room and emerged holding a knife.
Henderson was told to drop the knife and come downstairs. He complied and spoke with officers before being arrested, according to the report.
Police spoke with all five members of the group that went out drinking and learned that one of them got in a fight with Henderson before police arrived. The man had a large cut on his forehead, dried blood on his face and blood coming from cuts to his nose and lip. The man denied medical attention and did not want to press charges, the report says.
Henderson had cuts to his wrist and legs and admitted to fighting the other man, per the report. Police also found a broken door, which Henderson's wife said had been broken during the fight, adding that Henderson later threw the door at her.
Henderson was taken to the Cobb County Adult Detention Center following his arrest. Bond was set at $4,000. He was released later that day, court records show. No other arrests were made.
Henderson, a software engineer at the Georgia Tech Research Institute, is running for a second term on the council. In November, he will face challenger Antonio Jones, an entrepreneur.
