Admitted drug trafficker Curtis Keller walked into Criminal Court for sentencing Tuesday, shielding himself from cameras with a sheet of paper on which he had printed: "Massive Corruption Within the Courts." Things went downhill from there. Keller, in bright red jail garb and escorted by two jail officers, was convicted last fall of directing a 2010 home invasion in Collierville, a scheme he acknowledged planning in an effort to get his marijuana back. Kicking in a door in the middle of the night, threatening a woman and children with guns and pistol-whipping the man at the house, however, was the crowning achievement in a lifetime of crime, the judge said. [continues 490 words]
For most of his four years as a Memphis police officer, Arthur Sease IV financed his dream of becoming a record producer by stealing large sums of money and drugs from dealers whose reward was not being arrested, a federal court jury was told Thursday. Federal prosecutors said Sease got greedy, however, taking $32,000 in one stop and on another occasion robbing a particularly dangerous dealer in a white BMW who was so angry he chased Sease's squad car through the streets of Whitehaven. [continues 434 words]
They Admit Roles In Charges Against Third Officer Who's Been Indicted Two Memphis police officers pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to charges they extorted cash and planted drugs on motorists in bogus traffic stops. West Precinct officers Adam Gagnier, 29, and Jennifer Vickery, 35, have agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors investigating similar incidents involving at least one other officer currently under indictment. Both admitted playing roles in charges pending against fellow officer James Fetter. Fetter, who's in federal custody, was indicted last week on charges of violating the civil rights of his estranged wife and her employer. [continues 408 words]
Admits Taking $4,500 to Protect Drug Deal A Memphis police officer pleaded guilty Monday to federal drug conspiracy charges stemming from his role in a police corruption case. John D. Vaughan admitted accepting $4,500 in November to help provide security for a drug deal that he didn't know involved undercover FBI agents. Vaughan also agreed to continue cooperating with prosecutors who say they'll recommend he get a break when he's sentenced in May. He could receive up to 10 years in prison. [continues 251 words]
Jury Awards Victim's Family A federal jury's award of nearly $3 million to the family of a cemetery worker killed by police in a drug raid two years ago is the first step in a two-phase lawsuit, attorneys said Monday. The jury's verdict of about $2.85 million Friday established damages and liability against three Memphis officers in the death of Jeffrey Robinson, 41, who was shot in the face by police July 30, 2002, at his home at 1523 Rozelle next to the Baron Hirsch cemetery. He died about six weeks later on Sept. 16. [continues 224 words]
Drugged Driving Mike Holliday was in a good mood that Friday evening 20 months ago when he dined with his wife, Donna, and another couple at Cafe St. Clair on Pickwick Lake 115 miles east of Memphis. The 54-year-old founder of the Holliday's Fashions women's clothing stores was looking forward to a Labor Day at the house where he, his wife and their three sons had spent many weekends. "He was happy and excited about being up there for the week," says close friend John Meeks, a Memphis businessman. "He had really just gotten the business and his life to a point where he was going to be able to slow down and enjoy life." [continues 1962 words]
Charged In Van Accident That Killed 5 Two operators of a day care facility have been indicted on criminal charges stemming from a crash last year in which a school van driver and four children were killed. The unusual indictment contends Camelia Gibson and Sandra Gordon are criminally responsible for entrusting the care of the children to a driver with a record of drug abuse. Each woman is charged with four counts of reckless homicide and two counts of reckless aggravated assault in connection with the crash on Midtown Interstate 240 that killed four children and injured two others on April 4 last year. [continues 691 words]
Marijuana, cocaine residue and drug paraphernalia were found at the Frayser residence where sheriff's deputy George Selby was killed last week while trying to serve a search warrant, court papers showed Monday. The man identified in the warrant, Reginald Rome, made a first appearance Monday in General Sessions Criminal Court, where he faces first-degree murder charges. Judge Greg Gilluly explained the charges to Rome, including being a felon in possession of a handgun, and ordered that he remain in jail without bond. [continues 363 words]
A former Memphis police officer was convicted Friday in a multicount federal indictment stemming from the theft of more than $135,000 in drug forfeiture money. Alandas McGraw, who has been fired from the Police Department, was convicted by a federal court jury of conspiracy, money laundering and defrauding a government agency. He was the forfeiture and settlement officer of the Police Department's vice and narcotics unit. Authorities said McGraw had the authority and control of the necessary paperwork to pave the way for the city to cut two settlement checks that were split among himself and two others. [continues 87 words]
The shooting death of a 9-year-old boy last month in Orange Mound was the unintended result of a dispute over drugs, according to testimony Thursday from the intended victim. The first-degree murder case against Brian Keith Young, 24, was advanced to the grand jury after a 30-minute probable cause hearing during which the defendant stood silent and stared at the floor. "Somebody yelled out my name two times, and I had turned around and I seen Mr. Young shooting," said Lakeith Hampton,, who knew Young as "B. Y." "He aimed at me, pulled the trigger, and fire came out of the gun. No one else was shooting but B. Y. It was about some drugs." [continues 454 words]
Authorities raided and locked down a Brooks Road topless club Tuesday night for alleged repeated drug sales and assaults. They are seeking to have the club declared a permanent nuisance. State prosecutors said Wednesday the raid on Babes Show Club at 1375 E. Brooks Road, however, was different from the showy, highly publicized raids in 1996 that briefly closed eight clubs but quickly became mired in controversy and ended in failure. The Tuesday raid did not involve constitutional issues regarding lewdness or obscenity or whether something's an "artistic dance," said chief narcotics prosecutor Bobby Carter. [continues 323 words]
A special sheriff's deputy whose job was to keep an Arkansas department's lone helicopter in operation by obtaining surplus federal parts admitted Monday he acquired extra parts to sell for his own profit. John S. McHann, 45, of Millington pleaded guilty to the wire fraud and money-laundering scheme in a criminal information presented before U.S. Dist. Judge Julia Gibbons. He faces up to 20 years in prison when sentenced in January, although federal prosecutors say they likely will recommend a lighter sentence because of his substantial cooperation. [continues 420 words]
Sheriff's narcotics officers who came away empty-handed from a forceful early-morning raid on a South Memphis home last year relied on an informant who had seen drugs stored and sold at the home, says a search warrant. The residents of the home at 1143 Bradley - including a girl, 13, and a man, 91, with Alzheimer disease - have filed a federal lawsuit against the department, claiming they were cursed, threatened and stepped on as the house was ransacked. They said officers acted maliciously and that they had the wrong home. The Sheriff's Department disputes both allegations. [continues 689 words]
