Interagency Cooperation Cornerstone Of Maximizing Law Enforcement Efforts To Protect The Public

MUSKOGEE, OKLAHOMA – One year ago, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced the revitalization and enhancement of Project Safe Neighborhoods, commonly referred to as “PSN.” PSN is a key component of DOJ’s violent crime reduction strategy which is a top priority of Attorney General Jeff Sessions. PSN emphasizes, among other things, the importance of collaboration between federal, state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to focus enforcement efforts on the most violent offenders. Today, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma is reporting the results of its efforts to combat violent crime over the last year. 

The Eastern District has seen a substantial increase in violent defendants indicted since October 2017, with nearly a 90% increase when compared to the previous fiscal year. During the same period there has been an increase of over 100% in the number of defendants indicted for crimes related to drug trafficking. Forty-nine defendants were indicted for violent crimes and 51 for drug offenses. Nearly 75% of all cases indicted in federal court in the Eastern District in fiscal year 2018 were for violent crime or drug offenses. 

“The increase in defendants indicted is a direct reflection of the hard work by this office and law enforcement agencies – federal, state, local, and tribal – throughout the district. But it also shows the determination to utilize the prosecuting authority that offers the best alternative for a long-term solution to violent crime,” United States Attorney Brian Kuester said. “Frequently jurisdiction is appropriate in state or federal district court. Because of open communication and trusted relationships, we are all doing a better job of considering the option that best serves the needs of the community.”

Offenses included in the violent crime category are child exploitation, bank robbery, kidnapping, domestic violence, violent crime in Indian Country, and federal weapons offenses. The predominant drug offenses prosecuted in federal courts are distribution, possession with intent to distribute or trafficking and generally involve significant quantities of illegal narcotics. In the Eastern District of Oklahoma Methamphetamine continues to be the most commonly seized drug. Cocaine and Fentanyl seizures are rare but have occurred. 

“I consider our work against those in the drug trade as vital to making communities safer. People in the business of selling or transporting large quantities of illegal narcotics are in an inherently dangerous business which goes hand-in-hand with guns and violence. Efforts by law enforcement agencies to combat drug trafficking is an integral part of fulfilling their duty to public safety. Investigating and prosecuting drug dealers, dangerous felons that possess weapons, predators of children, and violent offenders who commit crimes in Indian Country has the positive result of reducing the number of violent people that are free to inflict their violence on the public,” said Kuester. 

The following are just a few of the cases prosecuted and defendants sentenced in the Federal District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma over the last twelve months:

•    Billy Hershell Smith II of Tahlequah was sentenced to 293 months’ imprisonment for Sexual Exploitation of Children
•    Michael Leon Johnson of Okmulgee was sentenced to 210 months’ imprisonment for Felon In Possession of Firearm & Ammunition. Johnson had three previous convictions for a violent felony, a serious drug offense, or both
•    Blake Alan Miller of Muskogee was sentenced to 180 months’ imprisonment for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine
•    John Carl Berryhill of Okmulgee was sentenced to 168 months’ imprisonment for Possession of Certain Material Involving the Sexual Exploitation of Minors
•    James Paul Brown of Stilwell was sentenced to 188 months’ imprisonment for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine and Felon In Possession of Firearm
•    Justimiano Perez Diaz of Stigler was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment for Enticement of a Minor Using the Internet
•    Jason Delaney Kiplinger of Oklahoma City was sentenced to 262 months’ imprisonment for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine
•    Brian Thomas Green, Kalvin Kyle McCown, and Travis Lee Hill, all of the Longview, Texas, area, were sentenced to 25, 20, and 15 years’ imprisonment respectively for their roles in the kidnapping and killing of Kenneth Earl Ayres
•    Deana Marie Oakes of Panama, Oklahoma was sentenced to 168 months imprisonment for Possession with Intent to Distribute Methamphetamine
•    Michael Aaron Campbell of Muldrow was sentenced to 120 months’ imprisonment for Enticement of a Minor Using a Facility of Interstate Commerce

“These are not all PSN cases, but the interagency cooperation that is at the heart of the PSN Program has very clearly taken root in all areas of the work that we do, particularly in those cases involving violent offenders. PSN promotes the interagency cooperation that is a cornerstone of maximizing our impact on our public safety priority,” Kuester added.