Holtzclaw, 29, had been charged with 36 counts of rape, sexual assault, sodomy and stalking, among other charges for his systematic pursuit of marginalized Black women with criminal backgrounds to stop, check and sexually assault as he worked his police beat.
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The Holtzclaw jury recommended a 236-year sentence, according to the AP. The verdict comes as a surprise for many, who doubted that the jury would place enough value on the lives of Black women to find Holtzclaw guilty. The case was heard by an all-white jury, and after the verdict, Oklahoma County District Attorney David Prater said Holtzclaw’s attorneys were squarely responsible for that.
They said he did this because he did not think authorities would take the victims’ word over his if he had to defend himself against sexual assault allegations. She said she didn’t call the police because, “I’m calling the police on the police?”
Formal sentencing was set for January 21.
During the trial Holtzclaw’s defense attorney, Scott Adams, questioned the accusers’ credibility and whether they were high on drugs when they encountered the officer.
This verdict is “remarkable”, she said.
Holtzclaw was arrested in August, 2014 for the assaults of at least eight women, but was released on bail when his $5 million dollar bond was reduced to $500,000.
But others, including one of the victims’ mothers, said they were waiting for the formal sentencing before deciding whether justice had been done.
One woman accused Holtzclaw of taking her to an abandoned, secluded area known as “Dead Man’s Curve”, where he ordered her to perform oral sex and intercourse or go to jail.
Some of the accusers – BuzzFeed documented their testimony on Wednesday (Dec 9) in court – said the officer violated them in their own homes while wearing his department-issued uniform.
The other victim, Hill, said during the news conference that she was taken to a hospital where she was sexually assaulted by Holtzclaw.
Flanked by her family and a group of African-American activists outside the Oklahoma City courthouse, Ligons said she knew she had done nothing wrong when Holtzclaw pulled her over and assaulted her.
The Holtzclaw case brought new attention to the problem of sexual misconduct committed by law enforcement officers, something police chiefs have studied for years. “I couldn’t believe what was going on was really going on”. Holtzclaw was found guilty on a number of counts.
The judge read the jury’s verdicts about 8:25 p.m. Thursday.
After the verdicts, Prater addressed why the jury of eight men and four women ended up being all white. Holtzclaw’s youngest victim was 17 years old and he raped her on her mother’s porch.
A common thread among cases of police sexual misconduct was they involved victims who were among society’s most vulnerable: juveniles, drug addicts, and women in custody or with a criminal history. “When you’re in the county [jail], you can’t get your hair done or do any prepping for court”.
The girl recalled Holtzclaw pulling up in his police auto as she walked home one night in June 2014.
Police said they used the Global Positioning System in Holtzclaw’s vehicle and police databases to confirm he had been in contact with numerous women. Others were outraged that it was taking the jury so long to deliberate in a case with a seeming abundance of evidence.
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“We are satisfied with the jury’s decision”, it read, “and firmly believe justice was served”.
