Tom Fink
Staff Reporter
CLAREMORE —
Formal charges were filed Thursday in Rogers County against a former Chelsea police chief.
Jeremy Wayne Murrell, 34, faces one dozen felony counts of obtaining controlled substance by fraud.
Murrell was arrested by Rogers County Sheriff’s deputies on Friday, Aug. 13 on charges of illegally obtaining “thousands” of opiate-based prescription pills during an 11-month period from August 2009 through July 2010.
He later bonded out, and with last Thursday’s formal charges filed, he faces a Wednesday, Sept. 1 arraignment in Rogers County.
Murrell, who had been Chelsea’s police chief for more than a year, reportedly had not been informing his doctors that he was being prescribed medications such as Lortab and Oxycontin by other physicians.
According to Rogers County District Attorney Gene Haynes, each charge filed against Murrell could carry with it a maximum punishment of ten years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
“Not in this (Murrell’s) case, but typically, if a person appears to have a (drug) addition and is not distributing the drugs to other people, we try to steer them into drug court for rehabilitation,” Haynes said. “However if we have belief or proof that they are doing this crime for the purposes of distribution to others, we seek prison time.”
Haynes said there appeared to be “no indication” that Murrell was distributing the drugs he is charged with obtaining by fraud.
The day after charges were filed against Murrell, the Chelsea Board of Trustees voted to terminate his employment as chief of police.
“This (special meeting) had been in the works before Thursday’s charges were filed against Jeremy — it was just a matter of finding a date when we could meet,” said Chelsea Town Coordinator Kenny Weast. “Currently, we’re conducting a search for a new chief of police.”
