Fired Okla. Officers to Get Pensions and Benefits

Two Tulsa police officers fired after their involvement in a police corruption probe will receive thousands of dollars in retirement and benefits as part of their termination from the Tulsa Police Department. Police Chief Chuck Jordan fired officers Bruce Bonham and Nick DeBruin on Jan. 20, citing "conduct unbecoming of an officer" and "duty to be truthful and obedient."

DeBruin, 39, and Bonham, 54, were indicted in 2010 in U.S. District Court for allegedly stealing money during an FBI sting in 2009. Prosecutors also accused the officers of planting small amounts of drugs on people to gain convictions, their indictment states.

Bonham and DeBruin were acquitted of all charges in June. The Police Department conducted an internal affairs investigation regarding the issues that arose during their police trial. An FBI video showed DeBruin and Bonham handling or pocketing money planted by the FBI as drug money, their indictment states.

Bonham was hired by the department in 1990, while DeBruin was hired in 1999. Since the trial's conclusion, the two had been on administrative leave with pay pending the outcome of the internal investigation.

Bonham, who served 21 years on the police force, is eligible for retirement and is expected to receive an estimated $2,700 a month in retirement pay, according to a retirement pay formula from the Oklahoma Police Pension and Retirement System. Before he was terminated, Bonham earned $62,783 a year, records show.

DeBruin served on the police force 12 years but was vested in the retirement system at 10 years, records show. When he is 50 years old, DeBruin is expected to receive an estimated $1,400 in monthly benefits, according to the formula. DeBruin earned $58,621 a year upon termination, records show.

The estimated retirement pay for DeBruin and Bonham does not reflect overtime hours counted toward annual pay. Additionally, even though the officers were terminated for violating police policies, they will receive vacation pay and compensatory time, said Officer Jason Willingham, TPD spokesman. Bonham will be paid $18,175 while DeBruin will be paid $10,962, Willingham said.

"Whatever the reason for separation, vacation and compensatory time is paid due to being time earned during their employment," Willingham said.

The police corruption investigation became public in November 2009. Jane Duke, a federal prosecutor from the Eastern District of Arkansas, oversaw a grand jury investigation. The probe resulted in at least 41 people being freed from prison or having felony cases dismissed or modified. At least eight lawsuits have been filed against the city and some of the officers as a result.

The first police trial, May 31 through June 10, also involved a third officer, retired Cpl. Harold R. Wells. DeBruin and Bonham denied allegations against them when they testified in federal court.

In addressing the FBI video, DeBruin and Bonham told the jury they were collecting the money for a drug dog to sniff. No drug dog was at the scene. Wells did not testify during the trial. He was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.

During a second trial in the police corruption case in August, Officer Jeff Henderson was convicted on eight counts of perjury and civil rights violations, while Officer Bill Yelton was acquitted. Henderson was sentenced to 42 months in prison and has been transferred to a federal facility in Yankton, S.D. Yelton remains on suspension with pay pending the outcome of an internal affairs investigation. Eleven Tulsa police officers and one federal agent were named in court documents as having some role in the corruption case. Omer Gillham 918-581-8301 [email protected]