Bruce StevensonA 59-year-old man who was accused of killing his lover in 2015 but later released for lack of evidence is heading to a Hamilton County grand jury on new charges.
Bruce Stevenson was charged with aggravated assault, two counts of vandalism, two counts of reckless endangerment, unlawful carrying of a weapon and driving on a revoked license on Jan. 19.
Witnesses told police Stevenson hurled a brick through the front window of a home of a woman he once dated around 11 p.m. a month earlier. Then, the woman told police, he fired at least three shots outside the home on Milne Street.
On New Year’s Eve, he returned in a white Cadillac, opening fire on the same home around 10 p.m., two other men told police. Officers found 10 bullet holes in the door, as well as two men inside who identified Stevenson as the shooter.
Although his attorney, Larry Ables, waived a preliminary hearing Monday in General Sessions Court, Stevenson appeared before Judge Gary Starnes. The appearance focused on whether Stevenson should face one or two counts of reckless endangerment.
“This is one incident,” Ables said. “We think the appropriate thing is one charge.”
After reviewing Tennessee case law, Starnes agreed with him.
Starnes dismissed one count of reckless endangerment, bound the other charges to the grand jury, and ordered Stevenson to wear a GPS device monitor.
“If you shut it off, you’re gonna be in jail on a no-bond,” he warned.
Prosecutor Ben Boyer said Stevenson’s criminal history alarms the state. He argued that dropping the second reckless endangerment count reduces Stevenson’s bond by $75,000.
“Which seems silly,” Boyer said, “considering how dangerous this guy is.”
In June 2015, police arrested Stevenson for the death of 56-year-old Rosa Chatman, who was found severely beaten with her throat cut in her College Hill Courts apartment on April 15.
Police said Stevenson lied about his contact with Chatman in the days surrounding her death. The duo also had a history of domestic violence during their 20-year on-again, off-again relationship, police said.
In July, a judge dismissed the homicide and aggravated assault charges after District Attorney General Neal Pinkston’s office said evidence “had not developed favorably for the state.”
Stevenson’s criminal record spans more than two decades.
A registered sex offender in Tennessee, Stevenson was convicted of two counts of rape in 1990 and is classified as an active, violent offender.
In 1990, he pleaded guilty to aggravated rape and kidnapping charges and received a five-year sentence for the kidnapping and another eight-year sentence for the rape.
In 1998, a jury found Stevenson guilty of attempted second-degree murder for trying to kill his girlfriend and sentenced him to 20 years in the Department of Corrections.
And, in 2007, police arrested Stevenson in connection with burning down a woman’s house. Ultimately, those charges of arson, aggravated burglary, theft and vandalism all were dismissed.
He also was convicted of violating the sex offender registry in 2008 and received a two-year sentence.
Stevenson is being held in the Hamilton County Jail on a $175,000 bond, Boyer said. If the grand jury returns an indictment, his case will move into Criminal Court.
Contact staff writer Zack Peterson at zpeterson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6347 with story ideas or tips. Follow on Twitter @zackpeterson918.