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By CASEY KNAUPP
Staff Writer

A 38-year-old Tyler man was sentenced Monday to 11 years in prison for pointing a gun at his wife during a domestic dispute.

Francisco Javier Estrada was found guilty of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon by 114th District Judge Cynthia Stevens Kent after a brief bench trial April 28. The defendant, who waived his right to a jury trial, was sentenced by the judge and fined $10,000. He faced two to 20 years in prison.

Mary Lou Estrada testified during the bench trial that during the Aug. 9 argument with her husband, she was scared when he pointed a pistol at her while her children were in a nearby bedroom.

“I was just trying to get out of there,” she said. Mrs. Estrada called police and went outside but was not followed by her husband, she said.

The victim testified she did not tell deputies that after her husband shot through a window, he pointed the gun at her and said he would get her just like he did the window.

Smith County Sheriff Deputy John Archer went to the residence at 6331 Horseshoe Lane at about 2 a.m. on Aug. 9 and said he noticed a bullet hole in the front window. Mrs. Estrada told him her husband had gone to bed and was pretending to be asleep.

When asked by deputies, the defendant said there was no gun in the house, but Archer said he saw a pistol on the couch, partially covered by a pillow. Archer said the woman told him that Estrada shot through the window, then pointed the gun at her and said “he could do her just like the window.”

Defense attorney Melvin Thompson said Mrs. Estrada testified that her husband was playing with the gun and that his client did not intend to shoot her or fire the gun through the window. He said the woman called police out of anger.

Assistant Smith County district attorneys Jason Parrish and Richard Vance prosecuted the case. In 2003, Estrada pleaded guilty to assault/family violence, according to county records.