A Wharton County deputy cleared in a deadly September ’25 shooting is back on duty after a grand jury decided not to indict him. Investigators say Cpl. Timothy Helton shot 29-year-old Theodore Speaker outside a County Road 255 home after Speaker aimed an illegal rifle at his sergeant. Sheriff Shannon Srubar says Helton’s quick action saved lives that night. An autopsy found high PCP levels in Speaker’s system. Helton, now fully reinstated, was later honored as Wharton County’s Officer of the Year for helping rescue a woman from a burning apartment last November.