A man who has spent 17 years in federal prison was freed Friday after a judge found that law officers — including some later convicted in a corruption probe — manufactured evidence in order to obtain his drug conviction.
Jeffrey Dan Williams was convicted in 1997 of methamphetamine and firearm possession charges and sentenced to 35 years in prison.
U.S. District Judge James H. Payne issued an order on Friday vacating the judgment and sentence and dismissing the indictments against Williams, now 53.
Payne found that the "scheme to manufacture evidence was deliberately planned, carefully executed and intended to defraud this Court, and in fact, this Court did rely upon the fraudulently manufactured evidence in order to convict and sentence Williams."
Also, newly discovered evidence presented on behalf of Williams "identified numerous constitutional violations that cast doubt on his convictions and undercut the reliability of the proof of guilty," Payne wrote in his opinion and order.
The judge also found that "it was more likely than not that no reasonable juror would have found Williams guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."
William Widell, an attorney with the federal Public Defender's Office, said Williams walked out of a federal prison in Sandstone, Minn., on Friday afternoon.
Williams initially pleaded innocent, later changed his plea to guilty and has since tried to change it back, saying he was coerced to enter a plea.
Following a police corruption scandal in Tulsa, Williams' case and request to change his plea were brought back for hearings in May 2012.
At an evidentiary hearing, two alleged informants who were used in the federal investigation against Williams testified that they were coerced by Tulsa police officers to testify against Williams in 1997.
Williams maintained he had never met one of the informants who was alleged to have provided information to police.
Meanwhile, prosecutors at the evidentiary hearing worked to establish that investigators followed correct procedures in their 1997 investigation to show the original sentencing was appropriate.
Testimony also included previously unheard, inflammatory allegations against convicted Tulsa police officers, including an account of a plan to rob a police evidence van of drugs and money.
One of the informants in the case testified in Williams' 2012 hearing that he had worked for former Tulsa police officers John K. "J.J." Gray, Jeff Henderson, Harold R. Wells and former federal agent Brandon McFadden from 1995 to 1999 selling drugs.
The three officers and McFadden all have received prison terms in connection with a federal corruption investigation that spanned from 2008 to 2011.
In his ruling Friday, Payne found that Gray, Henderson and other unnamed officers in the Special Investigations Division, "conducted an unconstitutional and illegal search and seizure of Williams on July 22, 1997."
In his decision, Payne also singled out a federal DEA agent, who the judge said was negligent in accepting information against Williams as fact and using it in his investigation which ultimately was used to convict Williams.
The hearings in Williams' case ended in June 2012 and final closing arguments were filed in September 2012, according to court records. Payne's decision came a year and a half after closing arguments.
At least 49 people, including Williams, have been freed from prison or had their cases modified because of civil rights violations or potential problems with their cases stemming from police corruption.
The police corruption has resulted in nearly 20 lawsuits against the city, none of which has made it to trial.
The city has received favorable rulings in several of the cases and total settlements are less than $1 million, according to a city attorney.
Jarrel Wade 918-581-8367
Curtis Killman 918-581-8471
Police corruption probe
A federal grand jury probe into police corruption resulted in 11 officers being accused of criminal behavior.
Three former officers and a federal agent were convicted.
John "J.J." Gray pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing money during a 2009 sting. He cooperated with prosecutors, was sentenced to four months in prison and was released in May 2012.
Harold R. Wells was convicted on four counts related to a 2009 FBI sting and meth possession. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Jeff Henderson was convicted of civil-rights violations and perjury. He completed a 42-month prison term in October 2013.
Brandon McFadden, a former ATF agent who pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy in the corruption case, was sentenced to 21 months in prison. He was released in July 2013.
Two other officers, Bruce Bonham and Nick DeBruin, were acquitted on all counts and later fired after an internal investigation. A third acquitted officer, Bill Yelton, later retired before an internal investigation could be concluded.
Jeffrey Dan Williams: A federal judge vacated his conviction and sentence and dismissed the indictment against Williams, now 53.
