This rough-looking bunch of people—Brandi Waters-Adams, Tabitha Allen, Sarah Book-O’Connor, Samantha Jones, William J. Morris, David Morrison, Denise Ragsdale, Michael South, April Wallace and Ryan Wallace—were all busted Monday after a Franklin County grand jury handed down multiple indictments charging “multiple narcotics trafficking offenses.” In keeping with the ‘multiples,’ multiple agencies were involved in the grand jury warrant sweep, including West Frankfort city police, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department, Illinois State Police, and Christopher, Orient, Royalton and Zeigler PDs.

We’re posting their ages along with their photos (all but Ryan Wallace’s; his wasn’t available) so you can see just HOW rough.

Brandi Waters-Adams, age 27

Tabitha Allen, 27

Sarah Book-O’Connor, no age available

Samantha Jones, 52

William Morris, 39

David Morrison, 51

Denise Ragsdale, 54

Michael South, 39

April Wallace, 31…holding up remarkably well.

However, it’s not just the federal charges that make this case stand out, but is also the fact that Richland County prosecutor David Hyde had a complaint and opted to let the feds handle it—months later, when the suspect was still free to do as he would—that makes this case typical Richland County fare (meaning justice isn’t necessarily going to be done).

Daniel F. Gillard, 48, was indicted in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois in Benton January 8, 2013, with two counts of Possession of Child Pornography dating back to November 4, 2011, in Richland County.

The indictment states that in the first count, Possession of Child Pornography, on or about that November 2011 date, Gillard “possessed at least one matter with contains any visual depiction that has been mailed, shipped or transported using any means and facility of interstate and foreign commerce including by computer, or that was produced using materials that have been mailed, shipped or transported in interstate or foreign commerce by any means, including by computer, the production of such visual depiction involved in the use of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct, and such visual depiction ways of such conduct.”

The second count is Accessing Child Pornography with Intent to View, and states that “from on or about October 27, 2011, until on or about November 3, 2011…(Gillard) knowingly accessed with intent to view at least one matter which contains any visual depiction that was produced using materials which have been mailed and shipped and transported in and affecting interstate and foreign commerce, by any means including by computer; and the production of such visual depiction involved the use of a minor engaging in sexually explicit conduct and the visual depiction is of such conduct.”

No court documents indicate who the minor child might be, or if he or she might be local.

He was arrested Jan. 15. Disturbingly, Gillard was released on his own recognizance (without putting up any bond money) the next day, pending a pretrial conference set for March 8 and a jury trial set to begin on March 18.

Of course there were severe restrictions placed on Gillard’s movement and activities.

But the most disturbing information came when an Olney man contacted Disclosure, advising that his young daughter (a minor) had allegedly been sexually harassed by Gillard at about the time Gillard was allegedly viewing child pornography (November 2011), and the family had taken the matter up with Richland prosecutor David Hyde.

Hyde told them that he wasn’t going to pursue anything because he had “something better” against Gillard.

Apparently, the “something better” turned out to be the child porn charges.

However, the family (and anyone else potentially exposed to the child porn issue) had a whole year with Gillard in the area, doing whatever he pleased, and remaining uncharged in Richland….just another crime going unpunished under the watch of Hyde.

While all hearings have been set on the “fast track” for Gillard, it likely won’t go that way, and he’ll probably agree to a plea in exchange for a certain number of years in the federal bureau of prisons; but this will probably only happen after numerous continuances take the case further down the road past the March 18 jury trial date.

In the meantime, Gillard is free on a recog bond and able to move about, albeit in a limited way…while a formerly potential victim and her family worries about that fact.

West Frankfort police chief Jeff Tharp advised that  Kristena J. Grant was burned by a “flash explosion” from a shake-&-bake meth lab going on at a residence on East Fourth Street in his town. She was taken to Herrin Hospital and subsequently to a hospital in St. Louis for treatment of her burns, which were qualified as “non-life-threatening.”

Sound familiar?

Remember the shake-&-bake victim from last November, Mary Beth Hutchison?

Allow me to refresh your memory:

Mary Beth Hutchison mugshot from December

But that’s not Mary Beth’s mug from HER shake-&-bake arrest; that’s from a POT BUST TWO WEEKS LATER.

Yeah.

So Franklin County authorities, for all their flaws, are going after Grant despite her injuries. Good for them. In the meantime, Hutchison was hemmed up for pot, and as of this morning, entered a guilty plea to Possession of Cannabis less than 2.5 grams and was placed on pay-or-appear status ($895.16 in fines and fees, which she’ll never be able to pay per our prediction.)

Just thought we’d point out the disparity, and show you what a shake-&-bake injury looks like in color, as we had to run it in black and white in this month’s issue.

If we’re able to obtain a photo of Ms. Grant, we’ll pop that on here as well.

GALLATIN/FRANKLIN COs.—Despite what at times appeared to be desperate pleas on the parts of members of the family, his attorney, and the man himself, former Gallatin County sheriff Raymond Martin could not overcome the evidence against him dating back several years as well as some that was very recent, and it all added up to another sentence of life in a federal penitentiary on December 7, 2012.

The sentence was not unexpected, in light of what occurred on October 30: When Martin was moved into a federal holding cell at the Williamson County Detention Center in Marion to await his resentencing (originally scheduled for November 29; generally speaking, the feds try to have a person back to the area of the federal court at least 30 days before any scheduled court activity), a shake-down of the cell occurred about ten minutes after Martin was placed in it, and the shake-down produced contraband: Court documents showed that on a bunk under Martin’s toothpaste, officers located two and a half prescription-type pills. Hidden behind a roll of toilet paper, officers found a plastic bag containing 21 more prescription-type pills and approximately eight grams of a white powder. The white powder was separately field tested by both jail officials and Illinois State Police Inspector Glenn Rountree and it tested positive for the presence of cocaine.

Some of the pills were readily identifiable without lab testing, and belonged to Martin as prescribed medication; in any event, federal inmates are not allowed to possess any type of medication; rather, they are required to take individual doses of the medication in the presence of medical staff, and of course, cocaine is a federal felony if possessed by an inmate of a federal penitentiary.

Martin admitted to jail officials that the substances found in the cell belonged to him.

Federal court officials (namely, U.S. Assistant Attorney James Cutchin) used this, and more, as the basis for asking for as strict a sentence as federal Judge J. Phil Gilbert had issued on January 19, 2011: Life in prison without possibility of parole.

The history

Martin had been caught up in a federal operation in late 2008 when a local man, Jeremy Potts, had been recruited by Martin to sell pot for the sheriff, then in his fear of being harmed, contacted federal authorities, who moved in and captured much of the activity on film for several months before arresting Martin at the sheriff’s department May 18, 2009.

While Martin was incarcerated in federal holding at the Jackson County Jail in Murphysboro, he hatched a plan with his then-wife Kristina (Tina) Naas Martin and his son, Cody, then only 20 years of age, to kill Potts as well as another pot seller for Martin, David Woods. Martin attempted to involve two men incarcerated for local infractions in Murphysboro. This plan was discovered and the three were arrested in early January 2010, Martin arrested in the Jackson County Jail itself.

Martin was charged with a total of 15 federal counts when he went to trial in September 2010: Three counts of Distribution of Marijuana; two counts of Carrying a Firearm During and in Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime; a count of Conspiracy to Distribute and Possess With Intent to Distribute Marijuana; three counts of Witness Tampering by Attempting to Use Physical Force; three counts of Witness Tampering by Attempting to Intimidate, Threaten and Corruptly Persuade a Witness Not to Testify; three counts of Conspiracy to Tamper With Witnesses by Intimidation, Threats, and Corrupt Persuasion; and a count of Attempted Structuring of Financial Transactions.

Throughout a two-week trial in September 2010, damning evidence was presented, and a federal jury found Martin guilty on all counts.

During his sentencing, the judge told Martin that he, as a law enforcement officer, was held to a higher standard than others who committed similar crimes. It was primarily that fact, and that Martin had involved his son in several of his crimes, that prompted the judge to order five years imprisonment on each count except 4 and 5, Carrying a Firearm During and In Relation to a Drug Trafficking Crime.

On each of those, Gilbert sentenced Martin to life in prison.

First right to appeal

Martin exercised his right to an appeal of his sentence, and in September of 2011, he received it on a very minor technical point: sentencing guidelines and the wording the judge used when he issued the life sentence, basically boiling down to “statutory” and “guideline/advisory.”

The federal appeals court (based in Chicago) ordered the sentence remanded back to the Southern District Court for resentencing, hence the reason Martin was brought back to Illinois.

He was given an opportunity to present witnesses, and to make a statement himself, as well as to have his court-appointed attorney, John O’Gara of Belleville, issue a plea of leniency as well.

Martin’s six sisters, as well as other family members, were in attendance at the December 7 court date in Benton at the federal courthouse.

Others were present as well, including residents of Gallatin County (who will remain unidentified) who had known for years of Martin’s activities that brought all of them together in the same imposing place.

The haggard former sheriff

Many in the courtroom gave visible and audible expressions of surprise, however, when Martin was brought in to the courtroom in prison orange and wrist and leg shackles.

Martin looked nothing like the man who sat through two weeks of testimony in September 2010, nor even as he did in January 2011 for sentencing.

Martin appeared at least 30 pounds lighter, his hair close-shaven and gray, his skin ashen, cheeks sunken, and eyes hollow. Two and a half years of imprisonment had taken an extreme toll on the man.

He sat through Cutchin reiterating the seriousness of his offenses and the level of criminality that the contraband in his Williamson County cell reached.

Cutchin also explained the false positive test the powder came back reading for cocaine, and that the powder was nothing more than a busted pill. Among the pills were found to be Wellbutrin, Cymbalta, Mirtazapine and Remeron.

He reiterated many of the activities Martin hadn’t been charged with but that were read over in the sentencing phase in 2011, including alleged vote fraud in Gallatin County, gambling on the outcome of elections (while in office, and including his own office of sheriff), theft of county funds, and extortion using his office.

Cutchin asked for the same sentence that had been issued in January 2011.

Sisters testify

His family, however, didn’t see it that way.

Two of his sisters, Patricia Ann Brazier and Wanda Rexing, each gave impassioned pleas to the judge to go lenient on their little brother and let him go with time served.

Each of them delivered prepared statements through tears and at times sobs, and through these statements, those listening got a glimpse of the reasoning Martin operated under for so many years that made what he was doing “alright”—he had grown up poor and deprived, and he filched county funds, sold pot and allowed meth makers free reign to develop their product as long as they stayed out of his pot territory in order to “get ahead” in life and hedge against hard times the likes of which he experienced as a child.

At times, both women’s statements were a little extreme and over-the-top. Brazier delivered what turned out to be Biblical references to “productive vine and good fruit,” but it may have been more understandable if she’d actually cited chapter and verse; out of that context, it seemed somewhat lacking in intent.

Somewhat bizarre analogies

Rexing’s statements were even more difficult to follow, beginning with the ages of Martin’s parents when he was born (his father was 74, his mother 33) and continuing with reference to the streets of Shawneetown 50 years ago being “meaner than the meanest streets of New York City,” hyperbole that didn’t match up with what people actually knew about rural southern Illinois, despite the reputation Shawneetown has always had; and concluding with references to the television show “Touched by an Angel” and analogies in commercials for Beano and sunblock.

Throughout this history of Martin’s growth and development into the adult he eventually became, there was no mention of the former sheriff Glen McCabe having taken Martin under his wing so he could learn how to cultivate good Vietnamese cannabis in the rich volcanic Gallatin County soil; of how Martin and John Robinson made trips to see the Latin Kings in Chicago to keep the pot flowing when the crops weren’t good; no mention of how Martin told David Duffy that Duffy could keep on making meth as long as his meth making didn’t interfere with Ray’s pot business. Just that the family “was so poor” and “that’s why Ray hoarded and was always careful with everything he had.”

Survival instinct & ‘keistering in’ the pills

The sisters even excused Martin’s possession of the pills as his “survival instinct” and that he was “hoarding them for future use.”

When Martin actually had his time in front of the judge, he was asked by Gilbert how Martin got the drugs.

“From other inmates I came in contact with on my way en route to Williamson County,” Martin answered.

The judge leaned over the bench.

“But how did the drugs get in your cell?” Gilbert asked.

Martin fidgeted.

“Well…” he said. “I mean, do you want me to tell you here, with my family…?”

“Well, I mean, did you keister em in??” Gilbert asked, not laughing and not even smiling at the prospect that the pills, wrapped in plastic or cellophane packaging, could have been brought in by Martin placing them far up into his rectum…which might explain his hesitancy at telling such a thing in front of his older sisters.

“I’d just rather not say,” Martin answered, effectively ruining any possibility he might have had at swaying the judge to reduce his sentence even by a little….because Gilbert had an opportunity to learn how inmates in his own prison system were able to get drugs to other inmates and other facilities, yet Martin refused to even come off that information.

Prison: Great place to be a bum

Martin’s plea was as impassioned as his sisters’: he spoke of how being in the federal pen created a lazy person, where he could “stay in bed til noon, have lunch, play cards, watch TV, go to the rec yard, have dinner, watch TV, and play cards some more.

“Prison is a great place to learn how to be a bum,” Martin told Gilbert. “But I’m not a bum. I want to work, and provide for my kids.”

It was in fact Martin’s three kids (and his two ex-stepsons, Tina’s boys, who are no longer with Martin’s family now that Tina is divorced from the former sheriff) that he used as his focal point in begging Gilbert to give him “time served” so Martin could “dance at my daughter’s wedding” (his daughter, Megan, is currently 16 and has no current plans to marry.)

Judge was not swayed

Gilbert, however, used what Martin did to his son Cody, now a felon, as reasoning for no leniency whatsoever.

As before when the judge told Martin that he believed animals provided for their young better than Martin treated Cody, this time Gilbert berated Martin for ever involving his son in the crimes of tampering with the federal witnesses, Potts and Woods.

He also berated him for being in a position of trust and abusing that trust.

“Other than murder,” Gilbert said, “this is one of the most severe cases of criminality I’ve ever seen. Anything less than life is not appropriate.”

And with that, Martin was sentenced to the exact same time as January 2011: two life sentences on Counts 4 and 5, and five years each on all the others.

Martin was advised he had ten days to appeal the sentence.

As of Sunday, December 16, there was no appeal on file through the federal court system.

In fact, perhaps the only surprise today was Martin’s appearance, as many almost didn’t recognize the former Gallatin County sheriff; several remarked later that if he hadn’t been wearing prison orange and chains, they might not have believed it was Martin at all. Martin was astonishingly thin, his skin and hair gray, his eyes hollow and cheeks sunken in. In short, he looked skeletal and rather ill.

Martin was in Benton today, December 7, 2012, once more after having spent the last two and a half years in the Federal Bureau of Prisons having received two life sentences for using a weapon in the commission of a drug crime, this dating back to early 2009, when he threatened one of his pot sellers, Jeremy Potts, with his service revolver, after Potts expressed a desire to get out of the dope selling biz. Throughout a two-week federal jury trial in September 2010, it was revealed what Disclosure had published about Martin in 2006 was true: he was moving mass quantities of pot through the county, and using local felons, like Potts, to facilitate that.

Raymond Martin: He no longer looks like this. Really. He looks BAD.

Martin was convicted on all charges against him, including drug trafficking and conspiracy to commit it, using a weapon in the commission of a drug felony, Intimidation of Federal Witnesses, conspiracy to commit intimidation of the witnesses, and attempted structuring of a financial transaction to prevent discovery.

He was sentenced on January 19, 2011, to life on the two weapons convictions, and five years on each of the other convictions.

However, Martin appealed his sentence almost immediately, and in September 2011, the Second District Court of Appeals ruled that while they were upholding his convictions, they were remanding the sentencing back to the federal court on a minor technicality regarding the difference between having used “statutory” and “guideline/advisory” sentencing terms.

In the end today, it made no difference at all, as Judge Phil Gilbert issued the exact same sentence, only under the guidelines terminology as opposed to the statutory terminology. That’s all it boiled down to; and while it was confusing, and at times since a little over a year ago, worrisome, it made not a minute’s difference in Martin’s length of time he’ll spend behind bars.

Nor, it seemed, did the impassioned pleadings of his sisters, Patricia Ann Brazier and Wanda Rexing, who both took the stand and tearfully read prepared statements designed to try to persuade the judge to let Martin go TODAY and allow him to return to his family, where “after he’s been pruned” he can be “a productive vine and produce good fruit” (not our words; that one belonged to Brazier). Rexing’s entreaties were even more bizarre and at times made less sense, but were delivered through tears and genuine sobs. Seems that Raymond was the baby of the family, with his daddy being 74 when he was born and his momma being 33 (he has six older sisters, and all of them were in attendance today.) Because the family was dirt poor, Martin learned “survival mode” early, and this is what his sisters believed was the reason why he took the actions he did and what lead him to being the pot kingpin of Gallatin County, with a big house, lots of property and a penchant for nice things—all because he had “done without” for so long. No mention of the former sheriff Glen McCabe having taken Raymond under his wing so he could learn how to cultivate good Vietnamese cannabis in the rich volcanic Gallatin County soil; no mention of how Ray and John Robinson made trips to see the Latin Kings in Chicago to keep the pot flowing when the crops weren’t good; no mention of how Raymondo told David Duffy that Duffy could keep on making meth as long as his meth making didn’t interfere with Ray’s pot business. Just “we were so poor” and “that’s why Ray hoarded and was always careful with everything he had.”

In fact, this “hoarding” excuse was used as the reason why Ray had those pills in his possession at the Williamson County jail on October 30, according to Rexing. She said that Ray “always plans for the future” and no doubt collected up those antidepressants “just in case” he got into a spot where he wouldn’t be able to take them (he’s been suffering depression while in the federal prison system).

One thing was very marked about the sisters’ implorings…they both blamed the media for Martin’s predicament. Repeatedly they issued statements to the effect that “he’s not like they say in the media” and “all these things they say about him in the media just aren’t true.” At no time did they say anything about the allegations that the government said about him, which would be more appropriate, since all the media said about Martin came from either personal experience or straight out of court files or hearings.

Even Martin himself stood before the judge and did his best to plead for leniency. He asked for “time served” and asked to be released in time for Christmas. He repeatedly stated that he “wanted to be a father again,” and that his daughter had just gotten on the cheerleading squad, he had two young stepsons that he missed (even though he’s now divorced from their mother, Tina Naas) and his youngest son is now 6 and “wants to play baseball.”

Martin even addressed the dope found in his cell and took full responsibility for it. Gilbert asked Martin where the drugs came from; Martin answered honestly: “From other inmates I came in contact with on my way en route to Williamson County” (where he was being held since late October pending today’s hearing).

“But how did the drugs get in your cell?” Gilbert pressed.

Martin hemmed and hawed, and asked if he had to tell that in front of his sisters.

“Well, I mean, did you keister em in??” Gilbert asked…and he wasn’t laughing.

“I’d just rather not say,” Martin said (and we could tell at this point that he’d just shot in the foot any chance he may have had of getting Gilbert to reduce his sentence, as this was the only question Gilbert actually asked of him; the man wanted to know what was going on in the feds’ own prison system, and there was Martin standing there in a position to come clean about it all….and he didn’t.)

Martin did, however, tell all kinds of things about being in the federal pen, how they can stay in bed til noon, have lunch, play cards, watch TV, go to the rec yard, have dinner, watch TV and play cards some more. “Prison is a great place to learn how to be a bum,” Martin told Gilbert. “But I’m not a bum. I want to work, and provide for my kids.” Martin begged the judge for the chance to “dance at my daughter’s wedding,” and asked that he be sentenced to time served and put on a very strict mandatory supervised release for a number of years as an alternate sentence.

Gilbert would hve none of it.

Gilbert pointed out that all the things Martin was missing out on (his daughter’s cheerleading, his youngest son’s baseball games) was because of action MARTIN took, not because of anything else. The judge was very methodical in addressing every point Martin made; he was very careful to address each issue raised. But in the end, Gilbert said, once again, Martin took no onus upon himself except perhaps for the drugs secreted into his Williamson County cell (and even then, he wouldn’t tell HOW.)

Gilbert then reiterated every point he’d made in January 2011, telling Martin that as the duly-elected sheriff, he was being held to a higher standard than the regular citizen, as he’d abused the taxpayers’ trust, used taxpayer money to his own advantage, broke the law, tampered with votes during elections and even gambled on elections, including his own (this was a new tidbit).

Martin was re-sentenced to two life sentences on counts 4 and 5 (the weapons in a commission of a drug crime counts), and five years on each of the other charges (1-3, 6-15). It was not made readily apparent whether that was from this day forward, or whether he’d already been given more than three years time served.

Martin was told he has ten days to file an appeal on this sentence.

Gilbert then allowed his sisters to come forward and get a chance to hug and talk to their little brother. He was lead away shortly to be taken back to his cell in Williamson County, awaiting transport back into the federal prison system.

We’ll have much more on this, including full transcripts of Martin’s remarks as well as those of the judge, the prosecuting attorney for the government, James M. Cutchin, and Martin’s attorney John O’Gara, who is an incredibly capable attorney out of Belleville, but didn’t have much to work with in this case, in the upcoming print edition, on stands December 19…be watching for deliveries.

This one. It ran last week.

Apparently that wasn’t right.

This is a photo of a test that ostensibly was run on a “powdery substance” being found in former Gallatin County sheriff Raymond Martin’s cell in Williamson County after he landed there in late October, pending a hearing in U.S. District Court originally set for November 29. That hearing didn’t go because of the multiple pills and powdery substance. This “powdery substance” field-tested positive for cocaine. That’s the photo above: the field test. Administered by the people in the federal holding section of the Williamson County Courthouse.

Yeah. That’s what we said.

As it turned out, this powdery substance is now being reported as being the insides of an anti-depressant pill that busted and was among the other pills Martin allegedly had (allegedly because really, this is a tough one; jail officials “shook down” his cell on Oct. 30 about 10 minutes after he arrived and magically “found” this stash of contraband)—NOT cocaine. The feds have advised that the field test read a false positive. Oops. Sorry Raymondo.

This is just the latest troublesome development in a series of troublesome developments that began when Martin’s appeal was approved by an appeals court in Chicago. The higher court ruled that his sentence was a little excessive (two life sentences for a “weapons in commission of a drug crime” conviction) and that he should be resentenced according to guidelines. According to what we’re learning, however, a different set of “guidelines” are going to be applied that are going to result in roughly the same sentence (maybe a couple of years shorter, but hey, life is life). This is set to go down on Friday of this week. And the feds are wanting to use this big drug stash found in Raymondo’s cell as reason to impose and even stiffer sentence…if one can be had. Maybe those two extra years or so. We probably won’t know until we get there.

But the drug find was indeed strange. Martin claims that the antidepressants came from other federal inmates that he “borrowed”  prior to making his trip back to Illinois. At least he admitted to them. He probably should have kept them in whatever dank place he had them just a little longer than he did so the shakedown wouldn’t have revealed them…but hey, if the man’s on antidepressants, it would seem he had other concerns to deal with besides crevasse concealment.

So we don’t know what we’re going to hear Friday. It definitely should be interesting. And maybe we’ll hear an explanation of how that field test could have given an erroneous result…and how often such a thing has happened in OTHER cases across the country.

According to documents filed just days ago by U.S. Attorney James M. Cutchin, the man who prosecuted Martin in the 2010 federal jury trial, the trouble erupted shortly after Martin was placed in his cell at the Williamson County Detention Center, that gigantic and imposing structure up behind the courthouse that has areas designed for federal holding:

On October 30, 2012, defendant was returned to this district from a Federal Bureau of Prisons (“BOP”) facility in advance of his resentencing and placed in the Williamson County Jail by the United States Marshal’s Service (“USMS”). The USMS instructed jail officials to maintain defendant as a maximum custody inmate, meaning that he would be housed in a cell alone and subjected to routine and periodic searches of his cell and person. Prior to being put in his cell, it was thoroughly searched for contraband with negative results. At approximately 11:50 p.m., jail officers conducted a strip search of defendant and a “shakedown” of his cell. On a bunk, under defendant’s tooth paste, officers located 2 1⁄2 prescription-type pills. Hidden behind a roll of toilet paper, officers found a plastic bag containing 21 more prescription-type pills and approximately 8 grams of a white powder. The white powder was separately field tested by both jail officials and Illinois State Police Inspector Glenn Rountree and it tested positive for the presence of cocaine. Defendant admitted to jail officials that the substances found in the cell belonged to him. Photographs of the pills and powder are attached hereto as Exhibits 1-4.

Here are the exhibits, lovingly photographed no doubt by someone on the federal payroll:

Pills & powder

More pills

Even more pills

Ostensibly, the test that proved positive for cocaine.

Cutchin wrote:

The sign posted in HamCo; we haven’t seen it anywhere else yet.

As it turned out, judge William Speroni, sitting in on the case on a conflict from the First Judicial Circuit, issued the order, but we kinda had to jump through hoops to find this out.

Here’s the short version:
Back in March, during the Primary, there was a heavily-contested race for the seat being vacated in the Second Circuit by Kyle Vantrease. All of the contenders were Democrat and no Republican emerged after the Primary, so the winner of the Primary was going to be judge.

During the Primary, it appeared candidate Kent Renshaw was going to emerge the victor. The vote was really split amongst five candidates, but Renshaw had a strong showing. Then, at the eleventh hour—LITERALLY—Dirnbeck was notified that there were some absentee ballots that were “found” in one of the precincts in Franklin County, and when he came toting those ballots in, 42 of them were miraculously for him, and he won the election. Or so he thought.

A few weeks later, Renshaw, with the detestable but capable (in matters like these) attorney Morris Lane Harvey in tow, filed a miscellaneous remedy case seeking reconsideration of the vote tally. The matter wasn’t able to be sorted out before the election; despite that, ballots were printed with Dirnbeck’s name on them, and people had the option to vote for him….a symbolic vote, as there still wasn’t a candidate. But since the Renshaw matter wasn’t resolved, as such, in the course of the MR case, it was determined that whatever votes cast for Dirnbeck on November 6 wouldn’t count, and that an election would be held after the matter was resolved in court. Which could take forever.

There were some misapprehensions about keeping this information off the election results. As one public official put it this morning, “those are the peoples‘ votes!” But it was ordered and entered into the record October 23, and there it stayed. WHY this wasn’t made widely public at that time is a mystery. If at that time the judge could have explained to the public that it was wise to keep the numbers out of the public eye because IF there were an overwhelming showing for Dirnbeck, it might sway any decision a judge or jury might make in the future of the MR case, it might have made such misapprehensions dissipate. But there wasn’t that. There was just a sign like the one above, posted at Hamilton County. Which, by the way, is the only place we’ve seen it so far. Results of Dirnbeck’s vote tally are on Wayne County’s unofficial results. A total of 4,866 votes of 7,731 ballots cast were entered for Dirnbeck there….and I’d imagine there are other counties where the number is made available. Pick up next week’s issue of Disclosure‘s print version to see if this is the case…and to keep up with the Franklin County MR case that could potentially bring us a new judicial candidate in the Second Circuit.

Raymond Martin, we’ve been told by sources today, is listed as “in transit” on the Federal Bureau of Prisons website:

Raymond Martin, in Jackson County January 2010.

Martin, 50, a nearly-20-year sheriff of Gallatin County when he was arrested May 18, 2009, received to two life sentences on January 19, 2011, after a jury of his peers found him guilty of several counts in his federal drugs, weapons, and intimidation of witnesses case was held in Benton September 2010. The two counts that landed Martin life sentences are the oft-misquoted counts 4 and 5, Carrying a Firearm During and in Relation to a Drug-Traffcking Crime, specifically, Distribution of Marijuana. He received varying sentences for the other charges of Distributing Marijuana, Conspiracy to Distribute Marijuana, Witness Tampering, Conspiracy to Tamper with Witnesses, and Structuring Financial Transactions to Evade Reporting them.

Martin fought from the moment his verdict was read to change at least SOMETHING about his sentencing, and was able to get an appeal in front of a federal appeals court late last year. This came to fruition over the summer when it was announced that his life sentences would be “re-done,” due to some kind of technicality arising from Judge Phi Gilbert’s application of federal sentencing guidelines. Our legal sources tell us that the technicality is SO minor, and complicated, it would take a band of attorneys hours to explain it. However, they also tell us that it’s not going to make a lot of difference. Judge Gilbert is hearing the resentencing, and while the sentencing might change a little bit, it’s likely that Martin will end up with such long sentences that at his age, it’s going to end up being natural life anyway.

Martin’s defense attorney John O’Gara of Belleville has been reappointed as his legal counsel, and he’s scheduled to appear with Martin on November 29 at 1:30 in Benton; however, it’s not clear whether O’Gara will continue in that capacity beyond making an appearance, as, at closing of Martin’s case in September 2010, Martin expressed dissatisfaction with how O’Gara represented him. We thought so too, at the time, but after seeing what a capable attorney O’Gara is in the Brandon Jenkins case, we realize that the situation with Martin was just as many in positions of authority in Benton were saying in late 2010: O’Gara didn’t have a lot to work with with Martin.

We’ll be there in Benton on Nov. 29, so you be here. And while you’re waiting, please consider subscribing to our print version of Disclosure, or getting an e-Edition membership, which we’re working on incessantly now to bring you more and more features, all for only $5.99 a month, and which brings you all the print version articles and photos right here to the convenience of your computer. Thanks for reading Disclosure!

FRANKLIN CO.—A Zeigler man was brutally beaten by police after sources say they stormed into his home where he was playing with his grandson on Saturday, September 30 and beat him in front of the boy.

Richie Dale….who has expressed in the past that he hoped a suspect would present him with the opportunity to draw his weapon and shoot the suspect, as he’s “never killed anyone” and “would like to.”

Sources close to the case say that Samuel Ray Grimes, 41, of 212 West Maryland St., Zeigler lives at the duplex with his girlfriend.

Her father, who lives at the opposite end, dislikes Grimes, has had several arguments with him and has even called police randomly in what sources say is an attempt to get Grimes in trouble thus forcing him to move out.

The source has told Disclosure the father texted his daughter this past Saturday and asked if she were with Grimes and his grandson at the duplex. She said no and nothing else was thought of it.

Ten minutes later the father’s good friend, police officer Richie Dale, arrived out of the blue, presumably with some of his buddies, who have not been named yet.

Grimes and his 4-year-old grandson were situated on a loveseat watching cartoons when the officers reportedly burst in the door, separated the child from Grimes and began beating Grimes severely in front of the child.

Witnesses who saw the inside of the duplex afterward said there were pools of blood on the kitchen floor from one side of the kitchen to the other with blood splatters all over the walls and doors.

There was also blood reported all over the floor and on the walls of a hallway in the residence.

When Grimes’ girlfriend asked police why they stormed the duplex, she was told that at least one of the officers said they looked through a vent fan and saw Grimes holding the child in front of him by his neck and was “beating him like a grown man,”  then “threw him across the room.”

The child was taken to the Herrin Hospital to be checked out for injuries.

Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) were called in to investigate.

The only mark of concern on the 4-year-old was what looked like a bruise on his bottom. However, the bruise turned out not to be a bruise but a birthmark. There even exists a baby picture showing the birthmark.

Witnesses say the police claim Grimes, with his eye socket shattered, continued “resisting” them at the police station and while he was on his knees and handcuffed officers sprayed mace in his face twice.

A visit to Grimes Sunday morning in his jail cell following the beating found him not able to see out of his swollen, blood-filled right eye. He appeared to have a broken nose and had a deep gash on both his head and leg.

Grimes, front view

Grimes, eye damage

It is not clear if Grimes ever got medical attention.

It is believed he wasn’t even checked out by an EMT prior to being locked in the county jail.

On Monday, October 1, DCFS informed Grimes’ girlfriend their investigation concluded there was no foundation to the report the child was ever beaten or in any danger and certainly no evidence of the brutal beating the police officers are claiming they saw and was their ultimate “reason” for busting in and beating Grimes in the first place.

Grimes was released from custody Wednesday, Oct. 3, after a $1,000 cash bond was posted by none other than the girlfriend’s father who allegedly instigated it all in the first place.

When Grimes and his sister asked authorities for a copy of the police report they were shown a five-page report but told Chief of Police Tim Scuras they would have to get a subpoena if he wanted to see it. He ultimately walked away with one photocopied page of the report.

When he said he wanted the entire report he was told he couldn’t have it.

Still dealing with intense pain, Grimes went to the local emergency room.

Doctors there found his eye so badly damaged they called an ambulance to transport him to St. Louis University Hospital.

Medical personnel said Grimes did not have a broken nose but did say the damage to his right eye is so serious and proper treatment had been so neglect that he may lose not just the sight in the eye but the eye itself.

A call we made to the Zeigler Police Department was met with a recording: “We are unavailable to take your call, please leave a message.”

Anyone wishing to help or who may be able to get a response out of Chief of Police Tim Scuras by calling 618/596-2351 is welcome to pass his comments on to Disclosure staffers at disclosurenewsonline@yahoo.com.

(Jack note: There’s a reason why we don’t routinely cover Franklin County, and this is it. This kind of police brutality bullshit has gone on unchecked for YEARS….and people just LET it. They don’t change their elected people. They let people like Tom Dinn, who’s now a Franklin County judge, ascend from prosecutor to that position, when he would never prosecute anything like this…so how’s he going to treat it if someone [God forbid little Evan Owens, who's the appointed SA right now] actually WOULD charge it? They’re set to elect another legal dufus, Eric Dirnbeck, as county judge, when it’s clear that there may yet be a case of absentee ballot fraud that lead up to Dirnbeck’s nomination in the Primary. The place is SICK, and the people are the only ones who can remedy it…and they can’t or worse, won’t…so it’s often a waste of our time to cover matters there; however, this one is so egregious, we believed bringing it to you here at the site will let the world know how horrible and corrupt Franklin County really is.)