The Verdicts, Count by Count
The State tried thirty-six counts involving thirteen women in a single trial. The jury convicted on eighteen and acquitted on eighteen. It rejected every count involving five of the women, including three of the four who went to police on their own.
Five of the thirteen women: not guilty on every count.
The jury returned its verdicts on the night of December 10, 2015, Daniel’s 29th birthday, and recommended a total of 263 years. On January 21, 2016, Judge Timothy Henderson imposed the jury’s recommendation on every count and ordered the sentences served one after another. Trial Tr. 4323–26; Sentencing Tr. 46:1–8, 46:19–21 (Jan. 21, 2016); Judgment and Sentence, O.R. 615–16.
| Accuser | How she came to police | Counts | Verdict | Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tabitha Barnes | Found by detectives | 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 | Guilty on 3 of 5 | 18 years |
| Carla Raines | Found by detectives | 2 | Not guilty on every count | None |
| Florene Mathis | Found by detectives | 7 | Not guilty on every count | None |
| Rosetta Grate | Found by detectives | 8, 9 | Guilty on 1 of 2 | 20 years |
| Sherry Ellis | Found by detectives | 10, 11, 33, 34 | Guilty on every count | 62 years |
| Terri Morris | Went to police | 12, 35, 36 | Not guilty on every count | None |
| Carla Johnson | Found by detectives | 13, 14 | Guilty on every count | 16 years |
| Jannie Ligons | Went to police | 15, 16 | Guilty on every count | 21 years |
| Kala Lyles | Went to police | 17, 18, 19, 20 | Not guilty on every count | None |
| Shardayreon Hill | Went to police | 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 | Not guilty on every count | None |
| Syrita Bowen | Found by detectives | 27, 28 | Guilty on every count | 46 years |
| Regina Copeland | Found by detectives | 29 | Guilty on every count | 30 years |
| Adaira Gardner | Found by detectives | 30, 31, 32 | Guilty on every count | 50 years |
Of the four women who went to police on their own, the jury convicted only on Jannie Ligons’s counts. Of the nine women detectives found by searching Daniel’s records, it convicted on seven. The State told the jury those seven accounts matched Daniel’s records. The records were how detectives had found the women in the first place. Scott Adams 01001; Davis Dep. 249:17–250:6 (Jan. 29, 2019).
Each count, its verdict and its sentence.
| Count | Accuser | Charge | Verdict | Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tabitha Barnes | Sexual battery | Guilty | 8 years |
| 2 | Carla Raines | Procuring lewd exhibition | Not guilty | None |
| 3 | Tabitha Barnes | First-degree burglary | Not guilty (and not guilty of illegal entry) | None |
| 4 | Tabitha Barnes | Procuring lewd exhibition | Guilty | 5 years |
| 5 | Tabitha Barnes | Procuring lewd exhibition | Guilty | 5 years |
| 6 | Tabitha Barnes | Stalking | Not guilty | None |
| 7 | Florene Mathis | Sexual battery | Not guilty | None |
| 8 | Rosetta Grate | Forcible oral sodomy | Guilty | 20 years |
| 9 | Rosetta Grate | First-degree rape | Not guilty | None |
| 10 | Sherry Ellis | Forcible oral sodomy | Guilty | 16 years |
| 11 | Sherry Ellis | First-degree rape | Guilty | 30 years |
| 12 | Terri Morris | Forcible oral sodomy | Not guilty | None |
| 13 | Carla Johnson | Sexual battery | Guilty | 8 years |
| 14 | Carla Johnson | Sexual battery | Guilty | 8 years |
| 15 | Jannie Ligons | Procuring lewd exhibition | Guilty | 5 years |
| 16 | Jannie Ligons | Forcible oral sodomy | Guilty | 16 years |
| 17 | Kala Lyles | Forcible oral sodomy | Not guilty | None |
| 18 | Kala Lyles | Procuring lewd exhibition | Not guilty | None |
| 19 | Kala Lyles | Procuring lewd exhibition | Not guilty | None |
| 20 | Kala Lyles | First-degree rape | Not guilty | None |
| 21 | Shardayreon Hill | Sexual battery | Not guilty | None |
| 22 | Shardayreon Hill | Sexual battery | Not guilty | None |
| 23 | Shardayreon Hill | Sexual battery | Not guilty | None |
| 24 | Shardayreon Hill | Forcible oral sodomy | Not guilty | None |
| 25 | Shardayreon Hill | Second-degree rape by instrumentation | Not guilty | None |
| 26 | Shardayreon Hill | Indecent exposure | Not guilty | None |
| 27 | Syrita Bowen | Forcible oral sodomy | Guilty | 16 years |
| 28 | Syrita Bowen | First-degree rape | Guilty | 30 years |
| 29 | Regina Copeland | First-degree rape | Guilty | 30 years |
| 30 | Adaira Gardner | Sexual battery | Guilty | 8 years |
| 31 | Adaira Gardner | Second-degree rape by instrumentation | Guilty | 12 years |
| 32 | Adaira Gardner | First-degree rape | Guilty | 30 years |
| 33 | Sherry Ellis | Sexual battery | Guilty | 8 years |
| 34 | Sherry Ellis | Sexual battery | Guilty | 8 years |
| 35 | Terri Morris | Procuring lewd exhibition | Not guilty | None |
| 36 | Terri Morris | Procuring lewd exhibition | Not guilty | None |
Count 3 was the only count on which the jury was offered a lesser offense, illegal entry, and it acquitted on both. Under Oklahoma law Daniel must serve 85 percent of the sentences on Counts 8, 10, 11, 16, 27, 28, 29 and 32 before he can be considered for parole. Trial Tr. 4323–26; Jury instructions, Scott Adams 01672–75, 01710–83; Judgment and Sentence, O.R. 615–16; Holtzclaw v. State, 2019 OK CR 17, ¶ 1.
One woman’s counts had DNA evidence. The jury weighed all thirteen together.
The only physical evidence the State offered as corroboration concerned Adaira Gardner’s three counts. After the trial, one juror called it very crucial,
and another said it got deliberations moving when some jurors had a hard time believing some of the accusers. KOCO 5 News (Dec. 18, 2015); ABC News (May 20, 2016).
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