Michael Mayfield, 33, has been charged with vandalism under $500.KINGSTON, Tenn. – Prosecutors expect Scottie Mayfield’s son to plead guilty to vandalism in connection with a tire-slashing case left over from his father’s unsuccessful congressional bid.
A judge is likely to grant judicial diversion to Michael Mayfield, which means the 33-year-old farmer will avoid punishment beyond a form of probation, officials said. Judicial diversion usually involves no jail time and allows a misdemeanor to be expunged if a defendant stays out of trouble for a year.
“Both sides are in agreement that he should be deserving of diversion,” said Bill Reedy, the Roane County assistant district attorney handling the case. “It’s very rare for a court to reject that.”
Reedy said diversion applies to this case because Michael Mayfield has no previous criminal record, a blank slate that was jeopardized earlier this year as the offense made national headlines.
During an April 24 Mayfield campaign event at the Roane County Courthouse, surveillance cameras caught the younger Mayfield exiting his father’s campaign bus, crossing the parking lot and taking a pocketknife to the left rear tire of a 2005 Audi.