City Council OKs firm's donation of legal help

Tulsa's City Council on Tuesday unanimously accepted a donation of $1.2 million in legal services from attorney Clark Brewster's law firm to defend the city in police corruption-related lawsuits.

"We start today," Brewster said following the council's vote at a special meeting.

"We will get the pleadings already served and start preparing responses and be very aggressive," he said.

The donation figure will likely change as more lawsuits surface. Three have already been filed in federal and state courts.

The city has received two additional tort claims, which are precursors to the filing of a civil rights lawsuit, said the city's chief litigator, Gerry Bender. The council was told the city expects the claims to become lawsuits.

The mayor's administration agreed to Brewster's donation after a conference Monday with Brewster and his partners in the firm of Brewster & DeAngelis to discuss strategy in the cases.

Mayor Dewey Bartlett had asked the council for a budget amendment of $400,000 to hire an outside law firm for representation last week when Brewster stepped forward with his pro-bono offer.

That money was just to get the process started. Proposals for defense in the three cases reached $900,000 to take them through trial.

Bartlett recused himself from the decision to go with Brewster because his company, Keener Oil & Gas, sent a lease proposal for an oil deal on the attorney's ranch.

Brewster said after the meeting that he never responded to the lease proposal he received from Keener two or three years ago.

"I actually threw it away and forgot about it," he said. "I don't see us (he and Keener Oil) having a business relationship."

Mayoral Chief of Staff Terry Simonson, however, said the mayor still wants to have a business relationship with Brewster, "so it was just cleaner to step back and disclose it."

He said Bartlett hesitated on the offer last week because "we wanted to understand the fullness of the gift."

Given that Brewster's firm "is financially stable and able to give the needed time to the city, we agreed to accept it," he said.

Brewster has said that his motive is philanthropic.

"For years, we have seen other people step up," he said. "There is a lot of sacrifice in the city. We feel it is our turn to help."

He expressed confidence in being able to defend the city, saying his firm is "not in the settling business."

"I truly believe the city's position is both factually and legally defensible," he said. "It's quite a step to get to the city, even in the face of having some rogue officers who might have done wrong."

He said after the meeting that the general public thinks that "just by virtue of a police officer doing wrong makes the city automatically liable, and that's not the law in a civil rights case."

"The plaintiffs have to prove an independent theory against the city. We don't think they are going to be able to climb that hill."

Councilor Rick Westcott agreed, saying, "These are not cases where the facts of the law are clearly against us, and it's just a matter of how much money the plaintiffs want."

Councilor Chris Trail said Tulsans should feel proud to have an attorney of Brewster's caliber representing the city.

"Frankly, I feel bad for the other guys," he said. "I know (Brewster is) going to be very aggressive and fight tooth and nail for us."

Brewster said that even though more than 20 potential plaintiffs have been reported, many wouldn't withstand scrutiny, although he expects more than the three lawsuits filed so far.

The city will pay case expenses unrelated to attorney fees, such as copying, depositions and travel for expert witnesses. Brewster said he doesn't think those costs will be more than $25,000 per case. Other proposals to the city had those costs as high as $194,000, the council was told.

Simonson said that if Brewster comes out of the gate "hard, really hard" with the first few cases, "there may not be any more."

"That's our hope," he said, "because the facts will be the same."

The names of eight current and former Tulsa police officers surfaced earlier this year as part of a federal grand jury investigation of police corruption. Indictments have alleged that officers stole drugs and money, planted drugs, falsified search warrants and violated civil rights.

Six former or current police officers and a former federal agent have been charged in the inquiry. Two other former officers have admitted stealing drug money; they have immunity while they cooperate with prosecutors.

So far, 25 people have been freed from prison, had their sentences reduced or their cases dismissed as part of the investigation, records show.

Pending lawsuits

LARITA BARNES

Convicted of a drug felony April 23, 2008, and sentenced Oct. 3, 2008. Freed from federal prison July 2, 2009. Was serving two 10-year sentences. Filed suit Aug. 6 in U.S. District Court against the city of Tulsa, former ATF Officer Brandon McFadden and Tulsa Police Officer Jeff Henderson. The suit alleges Barnes was deprived of her rights and illegally incarcerated. Federal prosecutors allege Henderson and McFadden coached a drug informant and fabricated a drug buy on May 8, 2007, that sent Barnes and her father, Larry Barnes Sr., to prison.

LARRY BARNES SR.

Convicted of a drug felony April 23, 2008, and sentenced Oct. 3, 2008. Freed from federal prison July 2, 2009. Was serving two five-year sentences. Barnes and his wife, Linda Sue Barnes, filed a lawsuit April 19 in Tulsa County District Court against the city of Tulsa, former Tulsa Police Chief Ron Palmer, Henderson and McFadden. The Barneses filed an additional tort claim notice Nov. 11, claiming retaliation by police officers who allegedly orchestrated drug buys trying to involve Barnes after he was released from prison.

BOBBY HALEY SR.

Convicted Sept. 30, 2005, of drug and conspiracy charges and sentenced Jan. 4, 2006, to 22 years in prison. He was released from federal prison in May. Filed a federal lawsuit June 3 against the city of Tulsa and the Tulsa Police Department. Officers involved in his case are Henderson and Bill Yelton, who have both been indicted.

Tort claims (Precursors to lawsuits)

DEMARCO DEON WILLIAMS

Convicted April 25, 2008, in federal court of cocaine possession with intent to distribute and received two life sentences, records show.

His convictions were vacated on April 30. Williams spent six years in federal prison or in jail awaiting trial.

Williams' release from prison is believed to be connected to a federal grand jury's examination of alleged police corruption, a World investigation shows.

Records indicate Henderson and McFadden were witnesses in Williams' trial. McFadden, a former agent in the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, has pleaded guilty to drug conspiracy and is cooperating with federal officials while he awaits sentencing.

Henderson was indicted July 20 on drug conspiracy, attempted bribery, witness tampering, suborning perjury and civil rights violations.

PATRICK NEIL LONDON

Patrick Neil London was arrested during a traffic stop Jan. 12, 2009, and spent 435 days in jail because of a false arrest, his demand letter to the city states. He was charged in Tulsa County District Court with trafficking illegal drugs.

London alleges that he was wrongly jailed by Tulsa police officers involved in an alleged cover-up of his case. He is asking for $13 million from the city.

His case involves some of the indicted officers.

Brian Barber 581-8322 P.J. Lassek 581-8382
brian.barber@tulsaworld.com pj.lassek@tulsaworld.com

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City Council OKs firm's donation of legal help

Tulsa's City Council on Tuesday unanimously accepted a donation of $1.2 million in legal services from attorney Clark Brewster's law firm to defend the city in police corruption-related lawsuits.

Pending lawsuits

Tort claims (Precursors to lawsuits)

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