Oklahoma Couple Charged with Fraud for Collecting Welfare on Missing Son
An Oklahoma couple has been charged with fraud after officials discovered that they were collecting welfare payments on their adopted son, who has been missing for more than 10 years.
Doug and Valerie Herrman were arrested and charged with theft. They are accused of accepting $52,800 in welfare payments to which they were not entitled. Their adopted son, Adam Herrman, vanished in 1999, but the Herrmans never reported him missing. Authorities did not even become aware of Adam's disappearance until 2008, when his adoptive sister notified authorities. Doug and Valerie Herrman maintain their son, 11 years old at the time, ran away after his mother hit him with a belt. They are considered "persons of interest" in his disappearance.
Meanwhile, the Herrman's continued to accept government assistance for Adam's care for more than ten years after he was last seen. The Herrmans falsely claimed Adam as a dependent on their tax returns, continued to collect adoption subsidies after his disappearance, and failed to notify authorities that the child was no longer living in their home. Additionally, neighbors say that the Herrmans collected money from the state after a report determined that Adam had special needs. At this time, the Herrmans do not face fraud charges in Oklahoma. Doug and Valerie Herrman are charged in a neighboring state and are not defended by Oklahoma criminal defense lawyers, but by lawyers in their home state.
The Herrmans' attorneys claim that their clients deny any wrongdoing. The criminal defense lawyers for Valerie Herrman say that both Herrmans intend to plead not guilty to the charges and to "vigorously seek the dismissal" of fraud charges.
In the meantime, police continue to investigate Adam Herrman's disappearance. Prosecutors hope to have homicide charges filed by the end of the year. Authorities searched the mobile home park where the Hermanns were living when Adam was last seen, but no body has been discovered.
Doug Herrman's criminal defense lawyer would not comment on the disappearance, saying he would focus only on the current charges.
Plea Agreement Frees Man Twice Sentenced to Death Row in Oklahoma
Twice convicted of murder, twice sentenced to death row, and twice having his convictions overturned on appeal because of inadequate counsel, James T. Fisher, Jr., was ordered freed last week when prosecutors decided to accept a plea deal rather than to attempt a third trial.
The former death row inmate was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1982 killing of Terry Gene Neal in Oklahoma City. Neal was killed after his attacker stabbed him in the throat with a broken bottle, and stole his car and television. There was no forensic evidence to tie Fisher to the crime, and the prosecution largely relied on the testimony of witness Fadjo Johnson, who was originally charged with Neal's murder. Johnson said that he and Fisher met Neal in an Oklahoma City area known for homosexual prostitution. The witness claimed that Fisher killed Neal after having sex with him.
Despite such shaky evidence, Fisher was convicted of first degree murder in 1983 and sentenced to death. However, he appealed the decision saying that his Oklahoma defense attorney inadequately defended him against the charges. At Fisher's appeal, the attorney who represented him in the first trial admitted that he let his personal feelings about homosexuality interfere with his work. An appeals court ruled that the defense lawyer was "grossly inept" and that he "sabotaged his client's defense." The murder conviction was overturned.
In 2005, history seemed to repeat itself at Fisher's retrial. He was again convicted of Neal's murder and again sentenced to death. Just as before, he appealed the conviction on grounds of inadequate counsel. His Oklahoma City defense lawyer for the second trial admitted that he was in the midst of substance abuse problems during the retrial, and that he was unable to properly defend his client.
After two convictions overturned on appeal, prosecutors were faced with the dilemma of trying Fisher a third time--this time with evidence that was nearly 28 years old. Rather than attempting a third trial, prosecutors accepted a plea agreement negotiated with Fisher's current Oklahoma criminal attorney. As part of the deal, Fisher pleaded guilty to first degree murder and was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole. He was given credit for time served, 27 years, and the rest of his sentence was suspended. As a result of the agreement, Fisher will be released from prison into an intensive reintigration program in another state, which is designed to help Fisher transition back into society. Fisher's current defense attorney says that the program usually takes six months to three years to complete.
As a stipulation of his plea agreement and subsequent release, Fisher is order never to set foot in Oklahoma again.
Unrelated Schemes Result in Oklahoma Fraud Charges for Two Dell Employees
Two Dell employees have been charged with computer fraud in Oklahoma County District Court after each was alleged to have defrauded the computer company out of over $133,000 using separate and unrelated fraud schemes. One employee set up fraudulent customer accounts to obtain equipment and hardware for pennies on the dollar; another gave unauthorized discounts to family and friends.
In the first case, Ryan Matthew Wells, 27, is accused of creating fabricated customer accounts using his relatives' names. He then allegedly manipulated the prices of items on 59 fraudulent orders. In one case, he paid only 34 cents for five Dell projectors valued at $1,961.45. Wells reportedly told police that he later sold the items through classified ads on Craigslist and eBay, using the profits to pay his student loans. Wells allegedly defrauded Dell out of $113,900 as a result of this scheme. He is charged with ten counts of computer fraud.
In the second case, Phillip Valentine, 28, is accused of providing his family and friends with unauthorized discounts on Dell merchandise, giving one friend a discount of $500 off a camera lens. The total value of unauthorized discounts in Valentine's scheme is approximated at nearly $20,000. Valentine has been charged with two counts of Oklahoma computer fraud.
In Oklahoma, fraud is a white collar crime, or a crime connected to a business or commercial enterprise. White collar crimes are often investigated long before the suspect or perpetrator is even aware that someone has become suspicious of his or her actions. If someone has been accused of fraud or embezzlement, the first step is seeking counsel from an Oklahoma white collar defense attorney experienced in defending fraud, embezzlement, computer crimes, and other white collar criminal investigations.
Oklahoma Expungement Hearing Postponed for Man Implicated in Triple Homicide
The expungement hearing for a man charged in a 1996 triple shooting has been delayed after his Oklahoma expungement attorney asked for a postponement to give her adequate time to respond to objections from the the Oklahoma County district attorney's office and the OSBI. A new hearing date has not yet been set.
Tybream Demont Rogers petitioned the court to expunge his criminal record of three first degree murder charges stemming from his alleged involvement in a shoot-out that left three people dead. Rogers was never accused of being the shooter, but he was charged in connection with the fatal shooting. His murder trial ended in mistrial after his Oklahoma City criminal defense lawyer raised allegations of sexual misconduct against an arresting officer. An appellate court ruled that retrying Rogers would amount to double jeopardy; therefore, a retrial would be unconstitutional.
In Rogers's Oklahoma expungement petition, he claims that the charges against him have hindered him from finding a job. He asserts that it is unjust that charges of which he was never convicted are preventing him from finding gainful employment. Those arguing against an expungement of Rogers's record say that an expungement is not warranted because the case against Rogers was never dismissed, and he was never convicted or acquitted of the crime.
Expungement law in Oklahoma has specific guidelines for the sealing of non-conviction information. Title 22 Section 18 and Title 22 991(c) of the Oklahoma Statutes describe the methods of obtaining the different types of expungement under Oklahoma law. For someone wishing to clear or purge his or her record, an experienced Oklahoma expungement lawyer can help determine the type of expungement for which he or she is eligible and will help petition the court to seal or purge the client's record of arrests, criminal charges, and convictions.
Officer Accused of Perjury in Oklahoma Drug Trafficking Case
A preliminary hearing has been set for July 30 for the police officer accused of perjury in an Oklahoma drug trafficking case. Former police officer Rodney Richards has been accused of lying about a federal arrest warrant, falsifying an affidavit, lying about the jurisdiction of a police pursuit, and lying under oath during the trial of an alleged drug dealer.
This is not the first time Richards has faced perjury charges. In 2006, Richards was accused of lying about the presence of a police informant during a drug bust. Richards was acquitted in that case, and his Oklahoma defense lawyer asserts that Richards is an honest, hard-working officer. He suspects that the most recent charges against Richards are politically motivated. The District Attorney in the current case, Bret Burns, was the assistant district attorney in the 2006 case and is currently seeking re-election.
Burns maintains that Richards lied under oath, and that "his perjury allowed a drug dealer to go free."
The alleged perjury came to light during the preliminary hearing of a suspected drug trafficker, Robert Shawn Williams. Rodney Richards and his partner Randy Johnson were accused of providing differing stories about Williams's arrest, and prosecutors say the officers "doctored" a police audiotape. The case against Williams was dismissed.
Richards and Johnson reported that they began a high-speed pursuit of Williams and his passenger, Melanie Ann Anderson, within the Marlow police department's jurisdiction and that it continued into Grady County, resulting in the arrest of Williams and Anderson, who was convicted of drug trafficking after officers found crystal meth hidden on her body.
However, another police officer reported that he saw Richards and Johnson that day, but that they were parked near the Grady County line, past the jurisdiction of the Marlow officers.
If convicted of purjury, Rodney Richards faces up to 15 years in prison. Neither Richards nor his current Oklahoma criminal defense attorney were available for comment on the case.
Man Held on $1 Million Bond after Continued Oklahoma Traffic Offenses
Reapeat offenders of any crime face harsher consequences as they continue to break the law. Oklahoma defense attorneys see many cases where the punishment is based on the defendant's history and seems to be too severe for the alleged crime. The case of a man being held on $1 million bond for traffic violations perfectly illustrates the point.
Pacer Wynn Gooding, 42, was arrested last week and charged with his second Oklahoma DUI with a blood alcohol concentration of .08, the state's legal limit. Under Oklahoma law, a second DUI within ten years of the first conviction is charged as a felony. If convicted, the driver faces a jail sentence of one to five years.
Gooding was found with marijuana at the time of his arrest and was also charged with Oklahoma possession of a controlled substance and driving while suspended.
While charges against Gooding are serious, having bail set at $1 million seems unwarranted at first glance. However, Gooding's history of traffic offenses is so extensive that prosecutors deemed him "a threat to society." Gooding's most recent arrest was not only his second DUI arrest, but also his fifth incident of possession of marijuana and his eighteenth charge of driving while suspended. An Oklahoma judge agreed that being a serial traffic offender made Gooding a menace to the general public and set the million dollar bond. Gooding's Oklahoma DUI lawyer was not available for comment.
Pacer Wynn Gooding's prodigious police record dates back nearly 25 years and, in addition to the charges listed above, includes charges of transporting an open container, second-degree burglary, malicious injury of property, grand larceny, concealing stolen property, leaving the scene of an accident, four counts of second-degree forgery and numerous traffic offenses.
A bond of $1 million for traffic offenses shows that a judge is unlikely to show leniency in sentencing if Gooding is convicted. His Oklahoma DUI defense attorney will have to work diligently to overcome judicial prejudices and ensure his constitutional rights are upheld.
Oklahoma County Meth Lab Explosion Kills Man, Nets Two Arrests
While many reports show that the illegal manufacturing of drugs in Oklahoma has declined, the production of meth continues to be a costly and dangerous problem in the state. Last week, firefighters were called to an explosion at an Oklahoma County mobile home. When they arrived, they discovered Nathan L. Knapp, 48, with third degree burns over his face and body. The man's son, Nathan C. Knapp, 28, told police officers that the injured man had been burning trash when the flames got out of control, but physicians at the Integris Baptist Medical Center Burn Unit reported that the father had chemical burns. The elder Knapp later died of his injuries. Police report that Nathan C. Knapp did not immediately call 911 after his father's injuries because he was trying to get rid of evidence of a meth lab.
Deputies found signs of the lab inside the home and suspect Knapp of manufacturing meth in a bathroom when it exploded. A two-year-old child was inside the mobile home during the explosion and was taken into state custody. Knapp and another adult, Kristen Danker, 22, were arrested on complaints of child neglect and manufacturing a controlled and dangerous substance in Oklahoma. Other charges are likely pending as a result of Nathan L. Knapp's death.
With the DEA reporting that methamphetamine is the "principal drug of concern" in Oklahoma, it is not surprising that at least two other meth labs were discovered in the state last week. In one incident, an investigation into a burglary complaint revealed a meth lab at the home where the stolen property was concealed. The owner of the home was arrested for endeavoring to manufacture methamphetamine and knowingly concealing stolen property.
In the second incident, a bounty hunter searching for a fugitive was led to a home that contained an active meth lab. While searching for the fugitive, who was not at the residence, the fugitive recovery agent found equipment used for making meth. Allegedly, the two people arrested at the home were cooperative and even took the agent to a detached garage to show him the lab. Police report that the lab was large and that the street value of the seized drugs is estimated at over $10,000. Two adults inside the home were arrested on complaints of manufacturing meth and Oklahoma possession of a firearm after the previous commission of a felony.
The manufacture of illegal drugs in Oklahoma remains a serious problem. When someone is charged with this crime, he or she faces serious consequences, even as a first offense. An experienced Oklahoma drug defense attorney thoroughly evaluates the client's case and ensures that his or her rights are upheld throughout the judicial process.
Motion to Dismiss Rejected for Convicted Oklahoma Rapist David Harold Earls
David Harold Earls made national headlines when he was given a twenty year sentence with nineteen years suspended as part of a plea agreement in the Oklahoma rape of a 4-year-old girl. While his one-year jail term outraged Oklahomans, the agreement was made after his victim's testimony, the primary evidence in the case, was inconsistent and contradictory. Charges that Earls also molested the girl's brother were dropped after the boy changed his story and said he did not remember being assaulted by Earls.
Earls is making headlines again as his Oklahoma defense lawyer argued that facing trial for additional charges against the victim and her brother would amount to double jeopardy.
Protection from "double jeopardy" is a constitutional right that protects citizens from being tried twice for the same crime. Under the Fifth Amendment of the United States Constitution, "[no person shall] be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb." This law essentially protects citizens from being tried for the same crime following an acquittal, being retried after a conviction, and facing multiple punishments for the same crime.
While Earls's Oklahoma sex crime defense attorney argued that a new trial would subject his client to double jeopardy after his initial conviction, a judge agreed with the state attorney general's office that, although the victims were the same in both cases, the accusations and charges are different from those in the original conviction. The judge ruled that there is no evidence that prosecutors and the defense agreed that all crimes and acts committed by David Harold Earls were settled by the original plea agreement. The decision clears the way for a hearing today after Earls's grand jury indictment on three new counts of indecent and lewd acts with a child younger than 16.
Earls was originally convicted of forcible oral sodomy and first degree rape in Oklahoma in 2009.
Oklahoma Judge Rules Life Without Parole in Fatal Beating of Toddler
Oklahoma City criminal defense lawyers see all kinds of allegations and crimes during their careers. Among the most heartbreaking are crimes against children. Abuse against children, particularly at the hands of a caregiver, incites public outrage and is punished harshly in the criminal justice system.
An Oklahoma County judge last week exemplified that outrage when she sentenced Herman Marzelo Vail Bailon, 34, to life in prison without the possibility of parole in the 2008 beating death of his girlfriend's 2-year-old daughter. Bailon pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and asked for a 30-year term at his sentencing, but the judge ruled that the severity of the child's injuries warranted a harsher sentence. Judge Tammy Bass-LeSure said that a life sentence alone would have made Bailon eligible for parole when he was 70 years old; she felt that the attack was so violent that Bailon should never be released, and therefore sentenced him to life without parole. Bailon's Oklahoma City defense attorney requested that the judge consider Bailon's poverty-stricken upbringing in war-torn Guatemala in her decision, but she was unmoved.
At the time of the incident, Bailon was watching his girlfriend's two young children, aged 2 and 3, and his own infant son at an Oklahoma City motel while his girlfriend was at work. While she claimed to be working two jobs, Bailon's Oklahoma criminal lawyer alleges that there is evidence that she was actually seeing another man when she was supposedly at the second job. Frustrated at being left to care for the children and suspicious of his girlfriend's neglect, Bailon admits he took out his anger on the children. Bailon admitted to police that when the 2-year-old refused to eat lunch, he repeatedly slapped her before throwing her to the ground and kicking and stomping her. The girl died from head injuries sustained in the attack. Bailon said that, at the time of the abuse, he was in a rage and wasn't thinking; however, he admits that he abused the child at other times prior to her death.
The girl's mother, Elizabeth Nicole Guerrero, 29, is serving a 20-year sentence for permitting child abuse after admitting that she should not have left her children in Bailon's care, knowing he was a threat to them.
Prosecutors and criminal defense lawyers deal with horrifying crimes on a daily basis, but none is more gut-wrenching than the death of a child at the hands of an abusive caregiver. Both the prosecution and the defense bear the weighty responsibility of fighting to ensure that justice is served.
Elderly Man Charged with Solicitation of a Minor in Oklahoma
While many stereotypes exist about sex offenders and sexual predators, Oklahoma City sex crime defense attorneys know that there are no rules when it comes to allegations of sexual assault. Sex offenders and those accused of sexual assault include both genders and come from all age groups and all walks of life.
Last week, a 73-year-old Oklahoma man was charged with solicitation of a minor and a number of other offenses after he allegedly pulled a 14-year-old girl into his vehicle and offered to pay her for sex. The probable cause affidavit for Duane Nelson's arrest reports that he stopped his vehicle to ask the girl for directions. When she approached his vehicle, Nelson allegedly grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into the truck, drove her to a city park, and offered to pay her $100 for sex. The girl says she told Nelson that her boyfriend was supposed to meet her at the park, and he let her go. She hid nearby before calling police.
Under the supervision of police, the girl called Nelson the next day and offered to meet him at a local high school. Nelson said that he would provide alcohol for the girl at their meeting.
When he arrived at the designated time and location, Nelson was arrested with a loaded firearm in his pocket. He has been charged with numerous crimes, including kidnapping, indecent proposals to a minor for sex, solicitation, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and attempting to provide a minor an intoxicating beverage.
Nelson's Oklahoma defense lawyer will need to look closely at the procedures surrounding his arrest, including the girl's statements about her alleged abduction and the phone call arranging a meeting. Procedural missteps, circumstantial evidence, and lack of evidence can be instrumental in lessened or dismissed charges and can lead to acquittal if a case goes to trial.