Tulsa World
Thursday, November 7, 1996
Ottawa Co. Sheriff Freed On 8 counts
By David Harper
World staff writer
Despite the rain, the sun shone on embattled Ottawa County Sheriff James Ed Walker on Wednesday.
A federal jury in Tulsa found Walker innocent on eight of the 12 counts the government had filed against him, and deadlocked on the other four.
“It was a witch hunt, ” said defense co-counsel Chad Richardson of the government’s case against his client, for alleged kickbacks related to illegal gambling.
“The only thing that surprised me was that (the jury) hung up on four of them. I thought it would be unanimous.”
The jury began its deliberations shortly after 3 p.m. Tuesday and was sent home after two hours. The jury reconvened at 9:30 Wednesday, and deliberations dragged on through the rainy day. At 3:15 p.m. counsel for both sides was summoned to the chambers of U.S. Senior District Judge H. Dale Cook. Richardson soon emerged from the meeting and briefly talked with Walker in the courtroom before moving the discussion behind closed doors.
Richardson said he explained the situation to his client, and that they agreed they wanted the jury to stay and try to break their deadlock in hope of total exoneration for Walker.
The jury was brought into the courtroom shortly after 4 p.m. and the foreman of the jury told Cook it had reached a verdict on seven of the counts and was deadlocked on five. Cook sent the jury back for another hour of deliberations. The extra time resulted in agreement on one additional count.
Cook then asked each of the jurors individually if there was any hope of resolving their differences if given more time. Each answered no, and Cook said he would take the eight verdicts and declare a mistrial on counts two, three, five and 12 of the indictment, which was handed down in May.
Count two related to supposed extortion of amusement company owner Edwin “Tubby” Mercer; count three was an accusation that Walker extorted money from amusement company owner George W. Roberts through Roberts’ son, Michael, and count five involved supposed extortion from Charles “Chuck: Newkirk, Count 12 was a supposed conspiracy among Walker and the Robertses “to facilitate an illegal gambling business.”
U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma Steve Lewis had no comment about the verdict, but said the government will prosecute Walker again on the four unresolved counts.
Richardson said he wouldn’t mind another trial since it would give Walker a chance for a complete victory.
Walker, who has been on leave since the indictment, said he planed to meet soon with Ottawa County Commissioners to discuss filling out the remainder of his term, which runs through Dec. 31.
Walker did not run for re-election in the vote held Tuesday. Walker said he looked forward to a smooth transition between his administration and that of sheriff-elect Jack Harkins.
Walker said he experienced many emotions during the jury’s long deliberations but never lost his optimism that everything would turn out all right.
Walker and his wife, Rhonda, heaped praise on attorneys Chad Richardson and his father, Gary, for their work.
“God brought us together,” Walker said.
The Richardson law firm had only a month to prepare its case, after Walker and the Stipe law firm parted ways on the day the trial was originally scheduled to begin in September.
Chad Richardson acknowledged that the government doesn’t often lose criminal trials.
“The odds are always in their favor,” he said. He said it seemed to him from the start that the case could be won and that “there was more to it than met the eye.”
The Richardsons’ strategy involved attempting to tear apart the credibility of the prosecution’s witnesses during cross-examination, by pointing out inconsistencies between their testimony and prior statements to investigators looking into illegal gambling in northeastern Oklahoma.
The Richardsons implied that those witnesses, most of whom were bar owners and gambling machine vendors who had already pleaded guilty, were complying with the government’s case against Walker in hopes that they would get probation in their cases.
The Richardsons also insinuated that those owners and vendors were eager to drag Walker down because he was the first sheriff to crack down on illegal gambling in the county, by sending two 1994 warning letters.
The defense also hammered the government for the lack of one indisputable bit of evidence, such as a tape recording, that would have shown Walker’s supposed guilt, and decried the absence of evidence of funds. Walker supposedly took from gambling figures, in exchange for protection from prosecution.
The defense also presented Walker’s current and former co-workers as witnesses, who vouched for his character.
“That just shows you how confident we were,” Richardson said of how early the defense rested. “We had 25 more people lined up behind them, but the jury looked like they were getting tired and losing interest, so we decided to go ahead and rest.”
Walker was thinking of resting Wednesday evening. However, it seemed likely that his family had a celebration awaiting. During the two-and-a-half week trial, Walker’s family and friends packed the first few rows of the courtroom.
Walker, trying to hide his emotions, said that the continuous support of his family meant a great deal to him. He said he was especially touched that his mother and father sold some of their belongings to help him pay his legal bills.
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