Tag Archives: Hawk

Hawk’s Wife Ordered to Pay $20K to Ex-husband

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A federal judge has branded a woman now accusing her legislator husband of domestic violence a deceitful trickster who cyberstalked an ex-husband, doctored emails to make it appear he was an adulterer and secretly changed a prenuptial agreement.
More from Jamie Satterfield:
U.S. Magistrate Judge William B. Carter has issued a ruling in which he assesses Chrystal Goan Hawk $20,000 for violating state and federal wiretapping laws in connection with her prior marriage to Greeneville millionaire James Roy Klumb.
Crystal Hawk is now the wife of state Rep. David Hawk, who represents the 5th District, and, in March, accused him of hitting her and knocking her to the ground. That charge is pending.
Rep. Hawk has insisted his wife was the aggressor, pointing a gun at him as he held their baby daughter. A hearing on the charge was postponed to Sept. 11, well after the Aug. 2 primary in which he faces three Republican challengers. His wife is an attorney and president of the Greene County Republican Women.
Crystal Hawk was fresh out of law school when, in 2004, she began dating Klumb, a Greene County businessman whose family business holdings include the Klumb Lumber Company. The pair wed in 2006.
Both, according to Carter’s opinion, were worried about infidelity. Klumb asked Crystal Hawk to draw up a prenuptial agreement to protect his family interests in the event of a divorce.
According to Carter’s opinion, Crystal Hawk drafted two — one meeting her husband’s wishes and signed by him and a second that would give her a big chunk of her husband’s assets should he cheat. She also drew up two versions of a related document and had her lover, attorney Todd Shelton, take the version benefiting her to be signed off by a judge. It did not appear from the opinion that Shelton knew that document had been altered.
Carter wrote that Crystal Hawk also secretly installed spyware on Klumb’s work computer and diverted email between Klumb and another woman. The email was innocuous, but Crystal Hawk doctored them to make it appear the pair was having an affair, according to Carter.
Although the couple eventually reached a divorce settlement in which Klumb proved the financial victor, Klumb via defense attorney Hugh Ward sued his now ex-wife for violating wiretapping laws through the use of spyware on his computer to snatch his emails.
Carter called Crystal Hawk’s actions “extreme and outrageous.” She also has to pay Klumb’s legal bills.
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Note: This expands and replaces the original post.

Hawk’s Domestic Assault Hearing Postponed, DA Recuses Self

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GREENEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A preliminary hearing in the domestic assault case of state Rep. David Hawk has been rescheduled and the district attorney has recused himself from the case.
The Greeneville Sun reports (http://bit.ly/PTjV05 ) a hearing scheduled for Monday was moved to Sept. 11, after the Aug. 2 primary election in which Hawk is running against three other Republicans to keep his state house seat.
Hawk said the election was not the reason for the delay. He said Joseph Baugh, who was appointed as special prosecutor after District Attorney General C. Berkeley Bell recused himself, asked for the hearing to be rescheduled.
Hawk pleaded not guilty to the charge filed in March by his wife, Crystal Goan Hawk, who said her husband struck her in the face with his hand, knocking her down.

Hawk Draws Three Opponents in House District 5 Primary

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Two of the three candidates opposing state Rep. David Hawk in this summer’s Republican primary acknowledge they had no plans to enter the contest until the incumbent was charged with domestic assault on his wife.
But now that the race for House District 5 is underway, all the candidates say that’s not really an appropriate topic for campaign discourse. Hawk says his attorney has advised him not to talk about the pending case. His challengers say, more or less, that they don’t need to bring it up.
Greeneville businessman Hawk, 44, has spent 10 years as a lawmaker and says the experience and relationship gained over that period warrant reelection to another term. In a speech to announce his candidacy, he declared “I’m the same person now that I was when you re-elected me four times.”
Hawk was charged in March with assaulting his wife, Crystal Goan Hawk, an attorney who is also president of Greene County Republican Women. According to the Greeneville Sun, Crystal Hawk has declared the organization will fully support the Aug. 2 GOP primary winner in the general election.
Hawk’s primary opponents are:
-Duncan Cave, 34, an attorney who works in a law firm with his father and two brothers. “My basic policy stand is deregulation for the government,” he said, adding this could include easing or eliminating state licensing for some professions and turning more decision-making over to city and county governments, perhaps even on matters such as gun control.
-Ted Hensley, 59, a county commissioner and real estate broker who characterizes himself as a “constitutional conservative” who feels political parties “are keeping us divided, stoking the fire to keep us divided” in situations where “working together” would better serve the public interest. Hensley also said he felt “compelled” to run, believing the nation is “under attack, not just from outside but from within.”
-Bradley Mercer, 30, an attorney who served as a legislative intern and worked two years with a Nashville lobbying firm before going to law school. That background gives him the needed experience for legislating, he said, and he entered the race because of a concern that Hawk, if the Republican nominee, could lose in the general election.

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Delay Granted in Rep. Hawk’s Domestic Assault Case

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GREENEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — An East Tennessee state legislator has been granted a continuance in a domestic assault case filed by his wife.
The Greeneville Sun (http://bit.ly/K7X4ZP ) reported Greene County General Sessions court moved back a scheduled appearance by Rep. David Hawk to July 16. The Greeneville Republican lawmaker had been scheduled to appear Monday afternoon.
The five-term representative pleaded not guilty a day after the charge was filed March 18.
Crystal Goan Hawk told deputies her husband struck her in the face with his hand, knocking her down.
There was no immediate word why the legislator requested the continuance.

GOP Lady Leader: ‘Don’t Underestimate Eddie Yokley’

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Brandon Puttbrese, communications director of the state Democratic Party, thought enough of the following Greeneville Sun story to email it around. It’s about a meeting of the Greene County Republican Women’s Club, whose chair is the wife of state Rep. David Hawk, R-Greeneville.
Hawk has three opponents in the Republican primary, who aren’t mentioned in the story by name. They are Duncan Cave of Greeneville, Ted Hensley of Chuckey and Bradley Mercer of Afton.
Also not mentioned in the story is the misdemeanor domestic violence charge pending against Hawk for an alleged assault on his spouse.
An excerpt:
During the club’s monthly meeting, President Krystal Hawk called on those running to prepare a clean race and asked the Republican members to support the primary winner against any candidate.
“If you’re a candidate, I expect you to join [as a sponsor of the women’s club]. Period, end of discussion,” she said on Monday.
Hawk explained that the club will vocally support all Republican candidates through the primary elections and financially support the Republican primary winners.
At the close of the meeting, she emphasized this point further without any specific reference to a particular person or incident. Hawk is the wife of State Rep. David Hawk, who is seeking re-election to the 5th District in a contested Republican primary.
“Everyone in this room has had a personal strife or a personal tragedy,” she said. “We stand by each other. At the end of the day, we will stand behind whichever candidate [wins the Republican primary]. Be good mannered and be well respectful of all the candidates.”
The speaker for the club’s luncheon, Claire Crouch, state president for the Tennessee Federation of Republican Women, drove a similar point home as well.
“I don’t care who it is, I’m for him,” Crouch said in reference to the presidential race. “That’s who I want — the Republican.”
At the state level, she called for the same support of any Republican candidate over a Democrat, even if the Democratic candidate is a good person.
“Once we have one good person standing, please make sure that’s the person that can beat (former state Rep.) Eddie Yokley,” she said in reference candidates for the 5th House District seat in the state legislature.
“He must not be underestimated,” she said of Yokley. “He is a good man. He’s a kind man, but he’s a Democrat.”
Crouch, who lives in Newport in Cocke County, called for the same unity behind the Republican primary winner in the 11th District seat (now held by Rep. Jeremy Faison, R-Cosby, opposed in the primary by Phil Morgan Jr. of Newport), noting that Democratic primary candidate Marjorie Ramsey is also a good person but a “dyed-in-the-wool Democrat.”

Hawk Resigns Committee Chairmanship

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News release from House Speaker Beth Harwell:
Speaker Beth Harwell made the following statement today regarding Representative David Hawk:
“I have spoken with Representative David Hawk and he has informed me that he will relinquish the chairmanship of the House Conservation and Environment Committee.”
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Representative David Hawk made the following statement today:
“My dedication continues to be caring for my family and serving my constituents. Proving my innocence will take much of my focus, so I feel relinquishing my chairmanship will best serve these goals.”

State Democratic Chairman: Rep. David Hawk Should Resign

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News release from state Democratic Party:
NASHVILLE — Tennessee Democratic Party Chairman Chip Forrester issued a statement Tuesday following the weekend arrest of Republican state Rep. David Hawk, the second GOP committee chairman arrested from the 107th General Assembly.
“Reports of Republican Representative David Hawk being put in jail on domestic assault charges are tragic and unacceptable. What’s nearly as troubling is the fact that Hawk is not the first powerful Republican chairman arrested from this General Assembly.
“While they refused to hold Representative Curry Todd accountable for his dangerous behavior, this time around Speaker Beth Harwell, Leader Gerald McCormick and the Republican Party must force Representative Hawk to resign.
“The Republican Party is faced with a serious crisis of leadership. Domestic violence and criminal behavior by anyone — including elected officials — cannot and will not be tolerated by Tennesseans. Republicans should not tolerate this despicable behavior from their leadership either.
“In Tennessee, we rightfully hold our public officials to a higher standard. If this conduct is brushed under the rug, it sends a strong signal to all Tennesseans that violence against women is acceptable. It is not.
“I challenge Speaker Harwell and the rest of the Republican Leadership to demand Rep. Hawk’s resignation.”
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Note: The news release is accompanied by a link to Jeff Woods blog post on Hawk being welcomed back to the Legislature by colleagues. It starts like this:
David Hawk, the state’s latest “family values” politician to go to jail, returned to the House last night to a surprisingly warm welcome from his colleagues. There were hugs and claps on the back and even a fist-bump for the accused wife-beater.

Hawk Returns to Legislature; Says Wife Pointed a Gun at Him

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Rep. David Hawk returned to the state Legislature on Monday afternoon, just hours after his first court appearance on a misdemeanor charge of domestic violence resulted in an order for the Greeneville Republican to have no contact with his wife.
Hawk accepted handshakes and well wishes from fellow lawmakers at his desk before stepping out of the chamber to meet with reporters.
“Yesterday morning my wife had a gun and told me that she was going to put a bullet in my head while I was holding my baby,” Hawk said.
Hawk’s account of the incident stands in contrast to the criminal complaint obtained by The Greeneville Sun (http://bit.ly/ws76T2), which describes Cristal Hawk saying her husband grabbed her by the arm, struck her in the face and knocked her to ground in an altercation at their home.
Crystal Hawk said she was holding their 11-month-old daughter at the time. She said her husband then took the child and went to a neighbor’s house.

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Rep. David Hawk Booked on Domestic Violence Charge

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State Rep. David Hawk, R-5th, of Greeneville, was charged with domestic assault Sunday morning following an altercation with his wife at the couple’s home here, sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Ricker said in a report Sunday afternoon.
More from the Greeneville Sun’s report:
According to the report, Hawk’s wife told deputies that her husband struck her in the face with his hand, knocking her to the ground.
Rep. Hawk, 43, a five-term member of the Tennessee House of Representatives, is being held in the Greene County Detention Center pending a first scheduled appearance Monday morning in Greene County General Sessions Court.
Because of the nature of the charge, no bond was set, the report said. It is common for no bond to be set in cases involving domestic assault until the accused has made an initial appearance before a judge.
Hawk’s wife is Crystal Goan Hawk, a Greeneville attorney and the current president of the Greene County Republican Women.
Note: The above updates and replaces earlier post.
UPDATE II: From WCYB-TV:
The report says the call came in from David Hawk’s wife, Crystal Hawk. She said they had been drinking early that morning. and that Hawk looked through her cell phone and became mad. She said they began arguing and around 8:00 Sunday morning, he hit her in the face with his hand and knocked her to the ground. She told authorities she was holding their 11-month-old daughter at the time.
According to Officer Michael McDonald’s report, Hawk left the house with the child and went to a neighbor’s house. Crystal Hawk told the officer she went to a friend’s house and called authorities.
Our crews spoke to David Hawk as he came out of the courtroom this morning. He told our crews this: “Yesterday, my wife had a gun and told me she was going to put a bullet in my head while I was holding my baby. At that time, I escaped to safety with my daughter”.
Hawk was released on a $500 bond. He’s scheduled to be back in court on May 21st. The judge ordered that Hawk have no contact with his wife and supervised contact with his 11-month-old daughter.