Pottawatomie/Lincoln County District Attorney Richard Smothermon visited with Shawnee Rotarians Tuesday, where he talked about the Chandler jail escape and filing of murder charges in a Shawnee shooting, then answered questions about drugs, gambling and embezzlement issues and a high-profile child abuse case.
Smothermon, first elected district attorney in 2002, spoke briefly but wanted to answer questions on the minds of Rotarians.
Smothermon has seen some high-profile cases here, including the child abuse case of Meeker toddler Kelsey Smith Briggs, who died in 2005. Her stepfather is serving 30 years in prison following a plea agreement, and her mother is serving 27 years behind bars after being convicted at trial last year. Both convictions were for enabling child abuse.
The case, which lasted two years, was an emotional one for Smothermon — and his decisions in that case weren’t popular with everyone, he said.
“There’s been hard feelings against me in the little town of Meeker,” he told Rotarians. “But I believe I did the right thing.”
There was discussion and questions on why he worked a plea deal with the stepfather and then took the mother’s case to trial. At the end of the day, he said there’s evidence it was one of them.
“To this day, I can’t tell you who killed Kelsey,” Smothermon said, adding some evidence pointed to the stepfather, while other evidence pointed to the mother.
“There’s are a great deal of questions on whether I sent an innocent woman to prison,” he said, commenting on several Web sites that allege the mother, Raye Dawn Smith, was “railroaded.”
“But there’s no doubt in my mind she assisted or allowed it (child abuse),” he said, “or quite possibly she committed some of it.”
Smothermon said many mistakes in the system, including with the Department of Human Services, contributed to Kelsey’s death; many things were changed in his office as a result of the case.
A Rotarian asked about Oklahoma’s pseudoephedrine law and wanted to know if taking cold medication off store shelves has helped cut down drug labs.
The purpose of the law was to stop meth labs in Oklahoma, Smothermon said, and that has happened. Until last week, when three small labs were found, Smothermon said there really hasn’t been any labs found since the law took effect.
Because of the volatility of labs, Smothermon told Rotarians they’re safer today because of the law. But since methamphetamine can’ be manufactured as easily here, Smothermon said there’s a new problem — meth imports.
Methamphetamine is being brought in from other states that don’t have the cold medicine law, or from Mexico, he said.
Another Rotarian asked about the overall drug situation in Shawnee, wondering if things are different compared to 10 years ago.
Smothermon said more needs to be done to fight the war on drugs. He said the Shawnee Police Department and Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office need dedicated drug units — officers that solely work on drug activity. Lack of resources and officers have been the cited as ongoing problems for those agencies, but he said having dedicated drug officers is important.
“Eighty percent of all crime comes from drugs,” he said.
Smothermon’s drug task force is comprised of three agents. While national grants used to help fund the task force is being threatened, Smothermon said he is working to fund agents because a task force is needed here.
Other questions about tribal police, social host ordinances and crimes related to gambling were posed. Smothermon said there’s seven casinos in this district and many of the embezzlement cases he’s seeing today are related to gambling problems.
The Shawnee Rotary Club meets at noon each Tuesday at Golden Corral.
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Kim Morava may be reached at 214-3962.
SHAWNEE, Okla. —
