A man who was freed from federal prison in 2010 has filed a
civil rights lawsuit against the city of Tulsa and a former police officer who
is currently behind bars in connection with a probe into corruption within the
Tulsa Police Department.
Lindell Pointer Sr.,
36, alleges in the complaint posted Wednesday on the Tulsa federal court's website
that the city knew "of the threat of harm and injury" Jeff Henderson
posed, yet acted with "deliberate indifference" and failed to
adequately supervise and monitor him.
At least 12 lawsuits
have now been filed against the city and individual officers as a result of the
police corruption investigation.
Pointer was sentenced
Dec. 29, 2008, to 14 years in federal prison. On Nov. 17, 2010, a sealed order
was entered in his case, which prompted his release from custody.
He had pleaded guilty
Sept. 17, 2008, to possessing 50 grams or more of crack cocaine with intent to
distribute. However in a Nov. 5, 2010, filing, Pointer stated Henderson and
former U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Agent Brandon
McFadden were "instrumental" in formulating the case against him.
Henderson was
convicted in August 2011 of perjury and civil rights violations and was
sentenced to 3 1/2 years in prison. McFadden, who is also named as a defendant
in Pointer's lawsuit, is serving a 21-month prison sentence after pleading
guilty to a drug conspiracy charge.
Pointer alleged in
his November 2010 pleading that a "phony search warrant" was used
against him and that "the interests of justice" demanded that he be
released from custody.
Pointer's plea
agreement says Henderson and McFadden were involved in the execution of a
search warrant at a residence in the 7800 block of East 22nd Place on March 7,
2008, during which a plastic bag containing a total of 164.77 grams of crack
cocaine was found. That discovery formed the basis of the charge to which
Pointer pleaded guilty.
In his new lawsuit,
Pointer claims the city of Tulsa and former Police Chief Ron Palmer - who is
also sued in the case - knew that Henderson and other TPD officers "were
committing perjury, suborning perjury, fabricating evidence and initiating what
would become the malicious prosecution of the plaintiff and numerous other
persons."
The complaint alleges
that such misconduct was "encouraged, tolerated and condoned" and
that the city's failure to adequately and properly train its officers
constituted "deliberate indifference" to the rights of people such as
Pointer.
Pointer alleges that
the city, through the Police Department, "created an environment wherein
its officers were able to freely and without fear of discipline violate the
rights" of citizens.
Pending lawsuits related to the police corruption probe
Marvin L. Barber: He was sentenced in December 2007 to 17
1/2 years in prison for drug and firearms crimes. His conviction was vacated in
August 2010. His lawsuit names former Officer Jeff Henderson, Officer Bill
Yelton, former Police Chief Ron Palmer and the city as defendants.
Larry Wayne Barnes
Sr. and Larita Annette Barnes: The Barneses were convicted of selling drugs and
were sentenced to federal prison. After they had served more than a year each,
they were freed in 2009 after an informant said he had worked with Henderson
and former ATF Agent Brandon McFadden to frame them.
Dustin Eastom: He was
convicted and sentenced to seven years in prison in February 2008. He was freed
from prison Sept. 7, 2010, after his drug conviction was set aside.
Hugo Alberto
Gutierrez: He was sentenced in July 2008 to seven years and three months in
prison after pleading guilty in April 2008 to possessing methamphetamine while
intending to distribute it. His conviction was overturned and dismissed on July
30, 2010. His lawsuit names former Tulsa police officers John K.
"J.J." Gray, Callison Kaiser and Eric Hill, former Tulsa Police Cpl.
Harold Wells and the city of Tulsa as defendants.
Bobby Wayne Haley
Sr.: He was convicted in September 2005 on drug and conspiracy charges and was
sentenced to 22 years in prison. His conviction was vacated, and he was
released in May 2010. He sued the city June 3, 2010.
Demario T. Harris: He
was convicted of drug and firearms crimes in April 2005 and was sentenced to
life in prison, but was freed Oct. 28, 2010. His lawsuit names Henderson,
Yelton and the city as defendants.
William Eli Kinnard
Jr.: He claims that police officers falsified documents to obtain a warrant to
search his home. His lawsuit names the city and two officers as defendants.
Patrick Neil London:
He served 435 days in jail before a judge dismissed his drug case after
determining that police had lied about the facts of his arrest. The claims
against the city were dismissed on Feb. 17.
Juan Antonio Mata
Jr.: He was convicted in a drug case, but the probe into police corruption cast
doubt on the legality of his arrest. His lawsuit names Henderson, McFadden, the
city of Tulsa and the ATF as defendants.
Lindell Pointer Sr.:
He was released in November 2010 from a 14-year federal prison sentence imposed
in December 2008 in a crack cocaine case.
DeMarco Williams: He
was convicted of drug charges in 2008 and received two life sentences. The
sentences were overturned, and he was freed from federal prison in April 2010.