Delaware state senator reinstated to legislative committees months after acquittal

Delaware state Sen. Darius Brown has been reinstated into two legislative committees more than three months after he was acquitted of assault charges.

Last May, a woman accused Brown of punching her in the face, and throwing and breaking a glass of water after an argument at a restaurant in Wilmington.

Brown was charged with offensive touching and disorderly conduct.

He was acquitted by a jury in January following a brief trial.

When the charges first came to light, Senate President Pro Tempore Dave Sokola removed Brown from the legislative judicial committee.

Then in November, Brown’s colleague, state Rep. Melissa Minor Brown, accused Senator Brown of yelling profanities at her during the legislative session. Following that incident, Sokola kicked Sen. Brown out of the capital improvement committee.

Sokola said he’s reinstating Brown to both committees in light of his January acquittal.

“As Pro Tempore, I removed him from these committees in the face of the allegations he faced last year, and I have now reinstated him given his acquittal in court and my belief that the terms of these sanctions have been appropriate,” Sokola said in an emailed statement Tuesday.

Days after he was acquitted in January, a group of Wilmington pastors and the state NAACP called for Brown to be immediately reinstated, saying Sokola punished Brown before he could prove his innocence in court.