Former Catoosa Court Clerk Avoids Jail Time As Part Of Plea Deal

By Jeffrey Smith, The News On 6

ROGERS COUNTY -- A former Catoosa court clerk busted for selling narcotics will avoid jail time as part of a plea deal. 

Phyllis Matthews pleaded guilty Monday morning to three counts of distributing hydrocodone. She was indicted in January, along with the city's former assistant police chief.

Catoosa's City Hall was upended earlier this year with federal indictments on drug charges coming down to a court clerk, and the assistant police chief. Another Catoosa officer was fired as part of the investigation.

1/8/2010  Related Story: Catoosa Police Officer Terminated As Part Of Drug Investigation

On Monday, former court clerk Phyllis Matthews faced sentencing on three counts of distributing hydrocodone, but not before a federal judge grilled her over her involvement in the drug ring.

"People deserve, you know, that their elected officials and their government employees are doing a good, honest job," said Sheriff Scott Walton, Rogers County.

She walked away with three years of probation and a $600 fine, but no jail time. The Rogers County Drug Task Force investigated Catoosa's drug ring for five months. Sheriff Scott Walton says he'd like to have seen some jail time, but what matters to him is the felony conviction.

"A felony conviction is what changes somebody's life," said Walton.

Back in February, Matthews testified she only had distributed six narcotic pills, from her own prescription. Prosecutors said they had evidence she distributed at least 35 pills, many of them given to her by a friend. 

Moments before an undercover informant was set to testify, Matthews admitted to selling the hydrocodone. She already lost her job and her pension and Walton says her situation sheds light on a growing problem.

"It brings light to the fact that Oklahoma has a very serious pharmaceutical drug problem," said Walton.

Walton says Oklahoma ranks seventh in the nation for narcotic pain pill prescriptions and even public officials aren't immune from addiction.

The pre-sentence report, which would shed more light on the five-month drug investigation, is still under seal as of Monday night.

Former Assistant Police Chief Paul Whitmire is expected to change his plea to guilty when he appears in federal court Friday. He's charged with three counts of illegally obtaining hydrocodone.