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.
Defective Breathalyzers Result in Wrongful DUI Convictions
When trying DUI cases, prosecutors and judges rely heavily on the results of clinical tests such as the breathalyzer to determine an accused person's level of intoxication. In Oklahoma, if these tests reveal a driver's blood alcohol concentration (BAC) to be .08 or higher, that person is found guilty of driving under the influence. Oklahoma City DUI lawyers, however, understand that these tests are not necessarily foolproof. Defective equipment and improperly calibrated machines can skew the results of a sobriety test, and attorneys argue that such tests should not be the primary evidence in a DUI conviction. The results of a recent investigation in our nation's capital help solidify that argument for DUI defense attorneys throughout the country.
Earlier this year, an independent consultant for the capital's police department determined that the majority of the department's Intoxilyzer machines were calibrated incorrectly and were giving inflated BAC measurements. This discovery launched an investigation, the results of which were released last week. The investigation revealed that, in actuality, not most, but all of the department's Intoxilyzers were defective. The equipment gave readings up to 20% higher than a person's actual BAC. According to the Attorney General, results were used in 400 DUI convictions; however, DUI defense lawyers claim that finding to be inaccurate, saying the actual number of people affected by these flawed results may be in the thousands. Approximately half of the 400 acknowledged convictions resulted in jail time. As a result of the outcome of the investigation, requests for expungements and new trials are flooding the offices of DUI lawyers. Lawsuits are sure to follow, with at least one already filed on behalf of the wrongfully convicted.
The discovery of defective sobriety testing equipment is not surprising to Oklahoma DUI defense attorneys. They know that human error and equipment failure can result in false assumptions of DUI. From poor officer training in administering field sobriety tests to mishandling of lab results to improperly calibrated equipment, there are a number of ways the results of a DUI test can be flawed and inaccurate. The faulty Intoxilyzers call into question the validity of at least 400 DUI convictions--and call into question the supposed infallibility of such "clinical" evidence in police departments around the country.
Woman Arrested in Midwest City Domestic Dispute Has Lengthy Arrest Record
People often have a stereotypical image of domestic abuse being violence against women; however, this is not always the case, as evidenced by last week's domestic assault arrest of a Nicoma Park woman in Midwest City. Kathleen Edith Dartez, 46, finds herself needing the services of an Oklahoma domestic violence defense attorney after she allegedly hit her ex-boyfriend with her truck outside his home.
Witnesses report that Dartez showed up at her ex-boyfriend's home at the Hilltop Trailer Park in Midwest City, where she crashed her pickup into a car and a motorcycle in his driveway. According to witness, her ex-boyfriend ran to her truck and yelled at her to stop. Instead, she rammed her truck into him, flipping him into the air before he landed on the ground, striking his head and knocking him unconscious. He was treated and released from Integris Baptist Medical Center.
Dartez was jailed on a complaint of domestic-related assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. Under Oklahoma law, the definition of a "dangerous weapon" is vague and can mean not only typical weapons such as guns and knives, but also any item a person may use to intentionally harm another--for example, a pickup truck. While Oklahoma domestic violence complaints may be charged as either misdemeanors or felonies, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon is a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison on the first offense.
Dartez is no first-offender, however. She has prior Midwest City arrests for assault and drug possession, and she was convicted of DUI in Oklahoma County in 2006.
Oklahoma's domestic violence rates are among the highest in the nation. The Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (ODMHSAS) reports that 5,500 adults and 2.650 children received domestic violence services. They further report that intimate partner violence occurs in one out of every six couples in Oklahoma. Drugs and alcohol are often a factor in such violence: a 2000 report by the Oklahoma County Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring (ADAM) program found that 77 percent of men and 47 percent of women arrested on domestic violence charges tested positive for one or more drugs at the time of arrest. In fatal domestic violence cases, 60% of perpetrators were known to habitually use alcohol or drugs, and 45% of victims and 41% of perpetrators were intoxicated at the time of the homicide.
These statistics may be startling to many people, but the Oklahoma criminal defense attorneys who deal with these cases on a regular basis are not surprised by the numbers of cases or the correlation between domestic violence and drug and alcohol abuse.
Former High School Custodian Admits Rape of Student
As summer begins, Oklahoma students and teachers have reached the end of a school year that saw a number of allegations of student sexual abuse by school employees. An elementary assistant principal was charged with four counts of lewd molestation against young boys. An Oklahoma City alternative school teacher was accused of showing nude photos of himself to a student. A high school baseball coach was arrested on complaints of forcible oral sodomy, rape by instrumentation and first-degree rape based on accusations that he began a sexual relationship in 2001 with a girl who was an eighth-grader when the sexual contact began.
Most recently, an ex-custodian at an Oklahoma high school confessed to authorities that he sexually abused a 16-year-old student on school grounds over the course of the past six months. After the allegations, Jay High School custodian Adam Wolfe was suspended from his job and later resigned.
According to an affidavit for Wolfe's arrest, he initially befriended the alleged victim by giving her candy and soft drinks. Wolfe is accused of raping and sexually abusing the student in the custodial office, an art classroom, and a computer classroom beginning in December 2009 and continuing throughout the school year.
The affidavit states that Wolfe told authorities that he was "unable to resist" the student, and that she objected to each of his sexual encounters with her over the six month period. He says that he did occasionally stop the sexual contact because he felt guilty when his accuser said he was hurting her.
Wolfe is charged with a number of crimes in the sexual abuse of the student, including with four counts of second-degree rape, three counts of second-degree rape by instrumentation, three counts of forcible oral sodomy and three counts of sexual battery. Those accused of Oklahoma sex crimes need the expertise of an Oklahoma rape defense attorney to ensure their right to a fair trial.
Oklahoma Mayor Receives DUI Sentence and Faces Embezzlement Trial
The mayor of Eufaula, Oklahoma, appeared before two judges last week as a result of a DUI arrest and embezzlement allegations. In the first appearance, Mayor Dean Smith pleaded guilty to charges stemming from his DUI arrest, including misdemeanor charges of driving under the influence, transporting an open container of alcohol, and failing to obey a traffic signal. Smith's Oklahoma DUI lawyer did not reach a deal with prosecutors in exchange for the guilty plea, and Smith was given a one-year deferred sentence and ordered to undergo drug and alcohol assessments and pay a $900 fine.
In Smith's second appearance before a judge later the same day, he was ordered to stand trial on four felony counts of embezzlement by a public officer. The charges stem from allegations that Mayor Smith used his position as a city official to obtain about $200 in city money. Allegedly, Smith used a city credit card to purchase gasoline and was later reimbursed for the purchases.
One day after embezzlement charges were filed against him, Mayor Smith suspended Eufaula Police Chief Don Murray. Smith says that disciplinary action against the police chief was unrelated to the embezzlement investigation. He later asked the city council to review Murray's employment, and Murray was reinstated.
While embezzlement of property valuing less than $500 is generally a misdemeanor under Oklahoma embezzlement law, the statutes make special provisions for embezzlement by public officials. Misdemeanor embezzlement is punishable by up to one year in jail and/or a $1,000 fine. Embezzlement by a public officer, however, is a felony. If convicted, Mayor Smith faces a minimum one year sentence, fines totaling triple the amount embezzled, and restitution. Smith's Oklahoma white collar crime attorneys will be ready to defend him at trial on July 1.
Oklahoma City Man Arrested on Domestic Abuse and Gun Possession Complaints
Last week, Oklahoma City police responded to a domestic violence call in southwest Oklahoma City. The call alleged that a man hit his girlfriend's 3-year-old child in the head with the butt of a shotgun. When police arrived on the scene, however, they found that the child had no visible injuries. While they found no evidence of child abuse, police discovered the child's mother with marks on her neck and a bloody lip. Through the investigation, police determined that there had indeed been a domestic altercation between the suspect, Mario Flores, 23, and his girlfriend.
According to the complainant, Flores accused the woman of infidelity. He then allegedly armed himself with a shotgun, choking her with one hand and holding the gun in the other. She alleges Flores threatened to kill her, threw her to the floor, and kicked her.
Flores, a convicted felon, was ultimately arrested for domestic abuse by strangulation and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Additionally, police determined that the shotgun Flores was carrying was stolen, and he faces additional charges of possession of a stolen firearm and possession of a firearm after former conviction of a felony.
If convicted of the crimes of which he has been accused, Flores faces significant jail time. Under Oklahoma law, domestic violence is a felony that carries a sentence of up to four years in prison and fines up to $5000. Possession of a firearm while in the commission of a felony carries a sentence of up to 10 years for the first offense and up to 30 years for the second offense. Possession of a firearm after former conviction of a felony also carries up to 10 years in prison.
Flores will need an experienced Oklahoma criminal lawyer to help him navigate the domestic violence and firearm possession charges that he will face. An experienced domestic abuse lawyer will look at the facts of the case and the credibility of the witness, noting the false allegation of child abuse that originally called police to the residence.
Former Chief Investigator Acquitted of Sexual Battery
Last week, the trial began in the Oklahoma City sexual battery case against Kevin Rowland, former chief investigator for the medical examiner's office. After only two days of trial and 50 minutes of deliberation, jurors found Rowland not guilty of sexual battery against a male co-worker.
Rowland was charged with sexual battery following an incident in December of 2007, in which he grabbed the chest of a male co-worker. The prosecution argued that Rowland took sexual pleasure from the action and that he was on "an erotic power trip." According to Rowland's Oklahoma City defense lawyer, however, Rowland's actions were merely "horseplay" and not sexual in nature.
Jurors agreed with the defense that there was no evidence that the incident was meant to arouse either Rowland or his accuser; if the action was not sexual in nature, then no sexual battery occurred. Jurors failed to find evidence that the married Rowland had sexual interest in his male co-worker. Additionally, they considered a series of racy emails sent to Rowland from his accuser before and after the incident. The emails included a montage of film scenes showing topless women.
While jurors found Rowland not guilty of sexual battery, prosecuting attorneys say the judge refused to allow them to consider finding Rowland guilty of misdemeanor assault.
In fact, after the acquittal, one juror claimed that the case was a waste of the taxpayers' money, contrasting the "horseplay" in the Rowland case with serious cases of sexual harassment or sexual battery in the workplace. "It wasn't worth it," she said of the trial.
Rowland still faces Oklahoma rape charges. He is accused of raping a female employee at a Tulsa hotel in 2006. His Oklahoma rape defense attorney asserts that the charge is equally unsupported by evidence as the sexual battery charge, and that it is politically motivated. His trial is scheduled to begin in late November.