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For months, controversy has swirled around Lincoln County's first-term sheriff Tim Daugherty.
He testified at the September trial of his chief deputy, Barry Taylor, who was later convicted of misdemeanor obstruction of justice and fired.
Now, it's Daugherty's turn to stand trial. Accused of interfering with a drunken-driving investigation, he's been charged with two felony counts of obstruction of justice and a misdemeanor of making a false report to another officer. Jury selection starts today.
"It's fairly unusual for a sitting sheriff to be facing trial on felony charges," said Assistant District Attorney Gwynn Radeker. "It'll be a challenging trial - and interesting. It's an honest-to-God quest for the truth."
Radeker was the prosecutor in Taylor's trial, which was moved to Shelby at Taylor's request.
Daugherty's lawyer, Sean Devereux, said the sheriff wanted the trial held in his native Lincoln County.
"He's wanted to be sheriff since he was a kid," Devereux said. "All this has been tough for him."
Daugherty had only been in office about three months when the events that led to the charges occurred, Devereux said.
The sheriff is "a people person," he said. "I think he tried to please more people than he should have. He's learned a lot."
The indictment cites conflicting statements and evidence Daugherty gave when he first learned about a Feb. 25, 2007, case in which his former chief deputy helped Dr. Daniel Senft avoid a DWI charge.
Daugherty told the State Bureau of Investigation he had no involvement in the case.
But after further investigation, SBI agents learned that Daugherty allegedly instructed the chief deputy to take Senft to his office and later release him, preventing the arresting officer "from offering the chemical analysis to Daniel Senft or performing any other acts necessary to complete his duties."
Daugherty is a Democrat and his supporters have called the controversy politically motivated. In October, county commissioners - all Republicans - authorized the county attorney to file a petition asking for Daugherty's immediate suspension. The court hearing is Feb. 22.
Meanwhile, Daugherty's lawyer subpoenaed Ken Fortenberry, editor of the Denver-based weekly news@norman, to testify in next week's trial. Fortenberry called the subpoena a violation of his First Amendment rights and refused to testify unless ordered by a judge.
While reporting on the controversy, Fortenberry said he interviewed people who worked for the sheriff's department and were afraid for their jobs if found out. Some of the interviews took place outside Lincoln County in shopping center parking lots, Fortenberry said.
Devereux said he wouldn't ask Fortenberry to reveal sources and "I'm not trying to violate anybody's First Amendment rights."
Devereux wasn't specific about what he would ask, saying only it would focus on Fortenberry's first-hand knowledge about any of the alleged activities.
