2016 Tulsa County Sheriff Race

[heironymouspasparagus]

I predict Vic Regalado will come in first with Luke Sherman second.

Mike Huff is strongly endorsing Vic.  Mike seems to be pretty good guy to me, so that will probably sway me unless I hear something else seriously bruising.

[Conan71]

Mike Huff is strongly endorsing Vic.  Mike seems to be pretty good guy to me, so that will probably sway me unless I hear something else seriously bruising.

They worked together, so no real surprise that Huff would endorse him.

I've met Luke Sherman before, he seems like a really solid guy as well.  I think either one could be a good sheriff.

[Vashta Nerada]

My poorly made point was that immigration isn't listed in the mission of the Sheriff's office.

Illegal immigration is an overblown issue that gets all the rednecks in a kerfuffle. 

It goes deeper than that.

Having something on your resume like "I was in charge of one of the most corrupt divisions of TPD that the DOJ investigated" or "I made the 'War On Drugs' profitable" or "I work for the unions" seems a lot like we are trading one mobster for another.

Replacing Glandz with anyone making a career out of WOD or Vice-Squad-like activity is just re-arranging the chairs.





Prosecutors drop drug indictment after judge cites false police testimony

Federal judge tosses evidence gained in illegal police searches.


A federal drug indictment against a Broken Arrow man has been dismissed after a judge, citing "untruthful testimony" by law enforcement, threw out evidence obtained during what he determined to be two illegal searches.
Prosecutors sought the dismissal of a two-count indictment against Elton John Fernandes on Tuesday after U.S. District Judge John Dowdell granted a defense motion to suppress evidence obtained during the two searches.
Dowdell granted the dismissal request late Tuesday, just days after he issued an opinion and order that was critical of law enforcement testimony during a pretrial hearing Feb. 10 and 11.
"Based on the demeanor and testimony of the live witnesses ... the court has serious doubts as to the credibility of much of the law enforcement testimony that was presented during the hearing," Dowdell wrote in his 21-page opinion and order, issued Friday.
The federal public defender's office requested the hearing to challenge the admissibility of evidence seized during searches of Fernandes' vehicle and home on Oct. 7, 2014.
"One thing was clear from the testimony heard by the court: law enforcement officers were hell-bent on getting into the defendant's home on Oct. 7, 2014," Dowdell wrote in his opinion.
Fernandes, 37, was indicted Dec. 7 by a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma on two counts of possession with intent to distribute synthetic drugs.
The indictment stems from an Oct. 7, 2014, traffic stop by Broken Arrow police of a vehicle driven by Fernandes. During the traffic stop, two types of synthetic drugs — AB-Fubinaca and XLR-11 — were discovered in Fernandes' car following a search.
Broken Arrow Detectives Craig Brown and Michael Jackson and other law enforcement had been surveilling Fernandes at his home just prior to stopping him on a traffic violation, according to the opinion.
Brown and Jackson are members of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force who testified during the pretrial hearing, according to Dowdell's opinion.
The traffic stop and subsequent searches occurred the same day that Tulsa County sheriff's deputies and Tulsa police raided 13 convenience stores suspected of trafficking in synthetic drugs, erroneously referred to as synthetic pot.
The raids yielded more than $700,000 in cash, several thousand bags of K2 and 19 arrests, law enforcement announced at the time. Fernandes was not among those arrests.
At issue in the hearing last week was whether Fernandes consented to a search of his vehicle during the traffic stop and whether a search warrant was executed when police entered his home afterward.
Dowdell said testimony during the first day of the hearing last week was "largely in lock step" with officers testifying about the traffic stop, the vehicle search and subsequent execution of a search warrant at Fernandes' home in the 1100 block of West Queens Street, and its search.
"On the first day of the hearing, the government's witnesses were unshakable in their testimony that no law enforcement officer entered the residence until after the search warrant was signed at 2:31 p.m.," Dowdell's opinion states.
However, the prosecution's case began to fall apart on the second day of testimony, which detailed events Dowdell described as "extraordinary" in his opinion.
"As it turns out, all of the government witnesses' testimony that no one entered (the home) until after 2:31 p.m. was false, which was pivotal to the Court's evaluation of the credibility of the government's witnesses," Dowdell stated in his opinion.
The defendant's wife, Vallery Soares, who is "somewhat estranged" from Fernandes, according to the opinion, testified that police showed up at her home shortly after her husband left around 11 a.m.
Soares testified that more than five law enforcement officers knocked on her front door and entered after she opened it to greet them. The officers scattered after entering the home and started looking around the home, according to the opinion.
Soares testified that she asked officers to leave after they did not show her a warrant "but officers told her that 'at least two people' would need to stay in the home with her," according to the opinion.
Prior to testimony on the second day of the hearing, prosecutors told Dowdell that after further investigation they confirmed that Broken Arrow police did indeed enter the home prior to the execution of the search warrant.
Dowdell wrote that testimony indicated that despite law enforcement not having probable cause to arrest the defendant or a warrant to search the home or witness any emergency or danger when they arrived at the home, "they made immediate entry into the home."
"While it appears that no evidence was seized until after the search warrant was executed, the Court finds these facts to be critically relevant to the determination of whether the officers' actions with respect to the entry and subsequent search were in good faith, and concludes that the motion to suppress the evidence obtained from the residence should be granted," Dowdell wrote.
Case records indicate that officers seized suspected synthetic drugs, nine guns, over 100 rounds of ammunition and about $55,900 in cash during a search of the home.
In the search of Fernandes' vehicle before the home search, law enforcement found about 100 foil packages that were labeled "King Kong" and suspected to be synthetic drugs, case records indicate. Police also seized $3,000 in cash that Fernandes was carrying when he was stopped.
Police said they did not arrest Fernandes at the time because they did not have a field test to determine whether the material in the foil packages that was seized from the vehicle was controlled drugs.
However, Fernandes maintained that he did not consent to a search of the vehicle by police, a claim police denied.
Given the testimony during the hearing, Dowdell wrote that he questioned the "veracity of the government's testimony that defendant consented to the search of his vehicle."
The judge also found that the government failed to meet its burden that Fernandes had consented to the search, noting that he accepted Fernandes' testimony "in light of the inaccurate testimony of the government's witnesses."
Both the U.S. Attorney's Office and the federal public defender's office declined to comment on the ruling.

[Conan71]

It goes deeper than that.

Having something on your resume like "I was in charge of one of the most corrupt divisions of TPD that the DOJ investigated" or "I made the 'War On Drugs' profitable" or "I work for the unions" seems a lot like we are trading one mobster for another.

Replacing Glandz with anyone making a career out of WOD or Vice-Squad-like activity is just re-arranging the chairs.

Would you mind just a short summary of WTH the rest of your post has to do with the sheriff's race?  Long articles re-posted with no paragraph breaks gets a bit hard to read.

Last we were talking was about Regalado who comes from TPD homicide which doesn't seem to be too corrupt of a unit.  Is there someone from the BA PD narco unit running for sheriff?  Was that the point?

[heironymouspasparagus]

They worked together, so no real surprise that Huff would endorse him.

I've met Luke Sherman before, he seems like a really solid guy as well.  I think either one could be a good sheriff.

True.  I had some casual acquaintance with Mike as new cop and saw him from time to time over the years on news reports, etc.  Always seemed to be decent guy, so still gonna go with what he says....I just have no first hand input on Sherman, but if you like him he is probably good guy, too.   Either one ok with me....


On TPD homicide -
TPD homicide had Roy Hunt for many years!  He was a very good guy with whom I had several years of a semi-business relationship....no, I didn't kill anyone...  Liked Roy a lot.



And then there was Tommy Gresham....whew!  What a mess!  He was always fun to have a drag race with - kind of a Dirty Harry Wannabe.  Even with his "quirks", I liked the guy on a personal basis, but he and a couple of his buddies really should not have ever been cops.

[patric]

True.  I had some casual acquaintance with Mike as new cop and saw him from time to time over the years on news reports, etc.  Always seemed to be decent guy, so still gonna go with what he says....I just have no first hand input on Sherman, but if you like him he is probably good guy, too.   Either one ok with me....

On TPD homicide -
TPD homicide had Roy Hunt for many years!  He was a very good guy with whom I had several years of a semi-business relationship....no, I didn't kill anyone...  Liked Roy a lot.

And then there was Tommy Gresham....whew!  What a mess!  He was always fun to have a drag race with - kind of a Dirty Harry Wannabe.  Even with his "quirks", I liked the guy on a personal basis, but he and a couple of his buddies really should not have ever been cops.

Got a slick 4-color postcard where one candidate promises to end the good ol' boy system, while its flipside shows all the good ol' boy endorsements.
I dont think I've ever voted for someone based on those anyway, so no matter.

[heironymouspasparagus]

Got a slick 4-color postcard where one candidate promises to end the good ol' boy system, while its flipside shows all the good ol' boy endorsements.
I dont think I've ever voted for someone based on those anyway, so no matter.

Funny to hear the establishment guys talk about doing away with good ole boy....   

[RecycleMichael]

Michael Bates has an interesting take on one of the candidates on batesline.com

[Vashta Nerada]

Funny to hear the establishment guys talk about doing away with good ole boy....   

Regalado's finance report fails to list the PAC's as required in Oklahoma Ethics Commission rules, as well as the identification number of another PAC that gave to his campaign.

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/crimewatch/quarter-of-tulsa-county-sheriff-candidate-vic-regalado-s-campaign/article_36626fdd-35c0-5692-bf15-f30482a5339e.html

[AquaMan]

Relating ones political donations to ones appraised home value is dubious at best.

It isn't what or where you live that denotes wealth, though wealthy people often love to flaunt their prosperity and live around others like them. Its the disposable income one possesses. Lots of fine homes are populated with owners unable to maintain them when the energy industry flounders. Yet, a lower middle income person living modestly may find it easy to part with a donation that his employer suggests is "important" to him.

The stunning thing to me is how he made a story out of what is considered standard practice in politics. Its even more true in Tulsa. Make good friends with insiders, movers, the wealthy and the activists and you have a lot better chance of succeeding in Tulsa politics. Can't blame him for that.

However, when I read the TCSO's mission statement I didn't see anything about immigration. He who has the funding and is willing to glom onto the most popular conservative meme's will get elected in Tulsa. I'm surprised he didn't rail at abortion as well.

[Vashta Nerada]

The stunning thing to me is how he made a story out of what is considered standard practice in politics. Its even more true in Tulsa. Make good friends with insiders, movers, the wealthy and the activists and you have a lot better chance of succeeding in Tulsa politics. Can't blame him for that.
However, when I read the TCSO's mission statement I didn't see anything about immigration. He who has the funding and is willing to glom onto the most popular conservative meme's will get elected in Tulsa. I'm surprised he didn't rail at abortion as well.

OTOH buying the most powerful position in the county certainly saves us the trouble of going to vote for it.

[Ed W]

Regalado's finance report fails to list the PAC's as required in Oklahoma Ethics Commission rules, as well as the identification number of another PAC that gave to his campaign.

http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/crimewatch/quarter-of-tulsa-county-sheriff-candidate-vic-regalado-s-campaign/article_36626fdd-35c0-5692-bf15-f30482a5339e.html

The Frontier wrote this about Regalado's finances:

"Levi Gonzalez and his wife don't live in Tulsa County and can't vote for Vic Regalado in Tuesday's election for sheriff.

But records show they each gave Regalado's campaign $2,500 on Feb. 12.

On the same day, six other people who work at the same industrial construction company with Gonzalez — ISTI Plant Services — also gave Regalado's campaign between $2,500 and $2,700, the maximum contribution allowed. Their spouses, all but one listing her occupation as homemaker, gave matching amounts.

Three days later, another employee at ISTI and a woman who lives with him in Rogers County gave Regalado's campaign $2,700 each. The employee,  25-year-old Justin Gonzalez, has felony drug and firearm convictions as well as a misdemeanor conviction of eluding police in Rogers County.

...Altogether, eight employees of ISTI Plant Services and six spouses contributed $34,350 to Regalado's campaign, with nearly all of that donated on Feb. 12, records show. That figure accounts for almost 25 percent of the $147,000 that individuals have contributed to Regalado's campaign since October, records show."

Gotta admire all these fine civic-minded folks. There's certainly not even a hint of corruption here.

[davideinstein]

Nah, everything's fixed now.


Deputy anxious to join in high-speed chase does U-turn on overpass, tickets driver he hit.

I had someone cut in front of me on the highway a few years ago during rush hour that caused me to wreck. They wrote me a ticket for reckless driving even though I was going the speed limit and the previous car in front of me was at a safe distance. Went across the highway into a rail and had death confront me only to deal with an insensitive officer. I respect law enforcement but this organization has always rubbed me the wrong way.

[Conan71]

The Frontier wrote this about Regalado's finances:

"Levi Gonzalez and his wife don't live in Tulsa County and can't vote for Vic Regalado in Tuesday's election for sheriff.

But records show they each gave Regalado's campaign $2,500 on Feb. 12.

On the same day, six other people who work at the same industrial construction company with Gonzalez — ISTI Plant Services — also gave Regalado's campaign between $2,500 and $2,700, the maximum contribution allowed. Their spouses, all but one listing her occupation as homemaker, gave matching amounts.

Three days later, another employee at ISTI and a woman who lives with him in Rogers County gave Regalado's campaign $2,700 each. The employee,  25-year-old Justin Gonzalez, has felony drug and firearm convictions as well as a misdemeanor conviction of eluding police in Rogers County.

...Altogether, eight employees of ISTI Plant Services and six spouses contributed $34,350 to Regalado's campaign, with nearly all of that donated on Feb. 12, records show. That figure accounts for almost 25 percent of the $147,000 that individuals have contributed to Regalado's campaign since October, records show."

Gotta admire all these fine civic-minded folks. There's certainly not even a hint of corruption here.

I'm curious how ISTI's comptroller is going to account for funneling all that money through various individuals...  

Oh wait!  I know!  It must have been when everyone at ISTI received their quarterly bonus and they were feeling really generous.

There's big donors from OKC on his list, he seems to be the GOP's guy.  Certainly none of these donors are going to become reserve deputies or property appraisers under good ol' boy Vic.

[AquaMan]

The Frontier wrote this about Regalado's finances:

"Levi Gonzalez and his wife don't live in Tulsa County and can't vote for Vic Regalado in Tuesday's election for sheriff.

But records show they each gave Regalado's campaign $2,500 on Feb. 12.

On the same day, six other people who work at the same industrial construction company with Gonzalez — ISTI Plant Services — also gave Regalado's campaign between $2,500 and $2,700, the maximum contribution allowed. Their spouses, all but one listing her occupation as homemaker, gave matching amounts.

Three days later, another employee at ISTI and a woman who lives with him in Rogers County gave Regalado's campaign $2,700 each. The employee,  25-year-old Justin Gonzalez, has felony drug and firearm convictions as well as a misdemeanor conviction of eluding police in Rogers County.

...Altogether, eight employees of ISTI Plant Services and six spouses contributed $34,350 to Regalado's campaign, with nearly all of that donated on Feb. 12, records show. That figure accounts for almost 25 percent of the $147,000 that individuals have contributed to Regalado's campaign since October, records show."

Gotta admire all these fine civic-minded folks. There's certainly not even a hint of corruption here.

Now that's a story. No meaningless references to home values, and donations from outside the county or even the state isn't damning, but a strong indication that these donations were planted by a company skirting the rules. Still, probably not uncommon and hard to prosecute.

The county is a scary operation and its enforcement arm is the stuff of B movies.