The Joplin Globe, Joplin, MO

State News

Discussion

April 20, 2008

Former inmate made sketch of sheriff’s home

The Associated Press

ARAPAHO, Okla. — A former Custer County jail inmate’s sketch of former Sheriff Mike Burgess’ home may be some of the best evidence federal prosecutors have against the lawman.

Burgess resigned from the position he’d held since 1994 shortly before he was charged last week with 35 felony counts for allegedly running a sex-slave operation at the jail. The charges included 14 counts of second-degree rape and seven counts of forcible oral sodomy.

The inmate, Joy Leigh Mason, has accused Burgess of threatening to kick her out of the Custer County Drug Court program if she didn’t have a sexual relationship with him.

Mason told state investigators several sexual encounters took place inside the rural home of Burgess, who was a voting member of the Drug Court Team.

“Mason provided a rough sketch of the interior of Burgess’ residence which included details that could only be known to someone that had been inside of the residence,” according to a search warrant affidavit filed in January by Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agent Elizabeth Green.

Mason, 40, made her allegation May 21, when she was jailed after failing a drug screen. Court records show Mason then “disclosed that she had been having sex with Burgess and that he had promised her that he would protect her and keep her from going back to jail.”

According to records filed in Custer County court, as Mason sat in jail that night, OSBI agent Joe Ferrero learned that Burgess allegedly telephoned Cimberly LaDawn Taylor, who is Mason’s cousin and a fellow drug court participant. Taylor advised Burgess that Mason had evidence which she “believed would have Sheriff Burgess’ DNA.”

“Sheriff Burgess asked Ms. Taylor if she would go to Ms. Mason’s residence and obtain the evidence,” Ferrero reported in his affidavit. “At that time Sheriff Burgess promised Ms. Taylor that if she would get the DNA evidence that Ms. Mason had, he would get Ms. Taylor’s brother out of prison.”

When contacted by The Oklahoman, Taylor declined to say whether she obliged Burgess, adding only that her brother never received any such release. “I have no further comments,” Taylor said.

District Attorney Dennis Smith ordered an investigation of the allegations.

Burgess and his staff were questioned. Some of the staffers were identified in a federal civil lawsuit filed in October on behalf of Mason and 12 other former Custer County inmates. Jail Administrator Jerry Wood and jailer Aaron Rivers are still working for the county.

Former inmate Ivette Figueroa accused Wood of sexual battery in the civil lawsuit. In the complaint, Figueroa said Wood pressed “her body to his, touching her sexual organs and pressing his erect penis on her body.”

Rivers is accused of requiring inmate Regenia Oldbear to “engage in sexual touching of him” in May 2006 to avoid punishment.

Others accused in the lawsuit were former deputy Duane Richardson, ex-jailer Jim Cook and former jailer Brandon Turney.

Criminal charges haven’t been filed against any of the present or former employees.

Text Only
State News
  • Lions climb into share of MIAA men's basketball lead

    Without taking the floor, Missouri Southern has climbed into a first-place tie in the MIAA men’s basketball race.

    February 22, 2012

  • 2.6 magnitude earthquake recorded in Oklahoma

    The U.S. Geological Survey has recorded a 2.6 magnitude earthquake near Wellston in central Oklahoma.
    No injuries or damage is reported.

    January 19, 2011

  • Audit: $108,000 taken from Missouri Veterans Commission JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A former employee of the state auditor’s office embezzled nearly $108,000 while working as an accountant for the Missouri Veterans Commission, the state auditor alleged Monday.

    Stacy Griffin-Lowery was fired by the Veterans Commission in March 2008 and pleaded guilty three months later to a misdemeanor theft charge. She repaid the state $17,665, the auditor’s office said.

    But Missouri Auditor Susan Montee on Monday accused Griffin-Lowery of swiping an additional $90,192 by getting reimbursed for cash advances and purchases made on her personal credit card.

    April 12, 2010

  • Race in Kansas’ 2nd District could heat up for GOP incumbent TOPEKA, Kan. — A conservative Kansas legislator said Monday he will announce in a few weeks whether he will challenge freshman U.S. Rep. Lynn Jenkins in the Republican primary.

    State Sen. Dennis Pyle’s actions in recent months suggest the Hiawatha farmer, who’s served in the Legislature since 2001, is running against Jenkins in the Aug. 2 primary. He set up a campaign organization in November and has a Web site featuring a brief video of him on his farm, asking viewers for support.

    April 12, 2010

  • Oklahoma tea party leaders, lawmakers envision militia OKLAHOMA CITY — Frustrated by recent political setbacks, tea party leaders and some conservative members of the Oklahoma Legislature say they would like to create a new volunteer militia to help defend against what they believe are improper federal infringements on state sovereignty.

    Tea party movement leaders say they’ve discussed the idea with several supportive lawmakers and hope to get legislation next year to recognize a new volunteer force

    April 12, 2010

  • Missouri: Senate panel cuts $500 million from proposed budget JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — A Senate committee declared Thursday that it has sliced more than $500 million from Missouri’s proposed budget for next year — meeting a target set by Gov. Jay Nixon to bring it in balance.

    April 8, 2010

  • Kansas: Wichita-area casino in doubt after governor’s decision TOPEKA, Kan. — A proposed casino south of Wichita was in doubt Thursday after Gov. Mark Parkinson refused to grant its developers a regulatory reprieve. Partners in the $225 million Chisholm Creek project wanted to delay a state board’s decision on their plans.

    April 8, 2010

  • Oklahoma: Groups oppose education spending initiative OKLAHOMA CITY — A coalition of business and labor groups said Thursday it will work to defeat a ballot initiative to dramatically increase spending on public education that coalition members said would devastate the budgets of many other state services and possibly force tax increases.

    April 8, 2010

  • Missouri: Gov. Nixon affirms support for tuition freeze COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has no plans to sit idly while lawmakers consider whether to preserve a tuition freeze deal he assembled before the state’s dire financial status was fully known.

    April 7, 2010

  • Kansas: Agency uses YouTube to illustrate road woes TOPEKA, Kan. — It’s one thing to hear about potholes and state budgets. It’s another to see how the two are connected. That’s part of the thinking behind a new video presentation on YouTube this week from the Kansas Department of Transportation.

    April 7, 2010