Sam Morgan won’t be censured by El Paso City Council for domestic violence arrest

EL PASO, Texas -- El Paso city Rep. Sam Morgan will not be censured as a result of domestic violence charges he's facing following his arrest in October of last year.

El Paso City Council had debated for months whether to censure Morgan, finally rejecting a measure to so by a 3-2 vote on Tuesday.

Council members Isabel Salcido, Henry Rivera and Cissy Lizarraga voted against censuring Morgan, while Cassandra Hernandez and Alexsandra Annello voted in favor of censure. Peter Svarzbein and Claudia Ordaz-Perez were not present for the vote.

Police and prosecutors have accused Morgan of assaulting his wife Janet, who has filed for divorce since the Oct. 4 incident, and threatening her with a gun. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges filed against him.

Morgan was absent from Tuesday's meeting, but had previously maintained that the city charter did not have a provision allowing his fellow council members to censure him. Some others, however, had contended that state law did allow for the body to censure him if they chose to do so.

The city charter would allow for Morgan's removal from office if he were ultimately convicted of a crime.