Trial rescheduled in officer shooting
The trial date has been rescheduled to April 22 for Herman Lee White, 67, of Hope, Ark., who is accused of shooting an Arkansas State Police trooper in Hempstead County.
Little Rock attorney Willard Proctor, who is representing White, asked for a second forsenic evaluation, delaying the trial until April 22. A pretrial hearing will be April 1, said Hempstead County Circuit Clerk Gail Wolfenbarger.
Proctor did not return telephone calls about the second forsenic evaluation request, which was approved by 8th Circuit Court Judge Duncan Culpepper.
White allegedly shot Arkansas State Police Trooper Pete Penney during a traffic stop about 9 p.m. March 23 off U.S. Highway 278 between Ozan and Nashville.
White was driving the vehicle Penney stopped.
White allegedly shot the the trooper in the abdomen during the fight with a .357-caliber pistol. Penney returned fire, striking White three times with his service revolver.
Penney has returned to work and in October, he received the regional Officer of the Year award during the Arkansas Attorney General’s 2012 Law Enforcement Officer of the Year awards program.
White has recovered from his injuries and is housed in the Arkansas Department of Correction.
White has been charged with battery in the first degree of a law enforcement officer.
The charge is a Class Y felony, which carries a potential sentence of 10 to 40 years or life in prison and a maximum fine of $25,000.