Jury Sent Home In Judge's Indecent Exposure Trial

More delays in the trial of former Creek County Judge Donald Thompson.<br/><br/>Thompson is charged with four felony counts of indecent exposure, over claims he used a sexual device during trials.<br/><br/>It's

Wednesday, June 14th 2006, 5:45 am

By: News On 6

More delays in the trial of former Creek County Judge Donald Thompson.

Thompson is charged with four felony counts of indecent exposure, over claims he used a sexual device during trials.

It's a fifth charge - a misdemeanor count of misusing a state computer - that's the source of this latest delay.

News on 6 reporter Steve Berg says it's become a familiar sight in Bristow: former Judge Donald Thompson and his well-known defense attorney Clark Brewster packing up early and going home.

An increasingly exasperated prosecutor, Richard Smothermon, says they'll try again next Monday.

"It's just putting off the inevitable," Smothermon says. "We're going to get this to a jury, we're going to try it to its completion, and let 12 people decide. But these delay tactics, at some point, he's going to run out of time."

Thompson is accused of having pornography on a state-owned computer in his office.

And on Monday, the judge presiding over Thompson's case, Judge Allen McCall mentioned that he had a link to Bass Pro Shops on his state-owned computer.

So Brewster filed a motion for Judge McCall to remove himself, suggesting Judge McCall was also using a state computer improperly.

"In light of the court's statement that the judge was concerned about his own computer," Brewster replied, "we felt that created an automatic conflict for him to continue to hear the computer count which is count 5 only."

But Smothermon says a link to Bass Pro Shops is a far cry from what he alleges Thompson had on his computer.

Smothermon says, "Show me someone that works in state government that thinks it's acceptable to put personal pornographic pictures of yourself on your state computer."

The State Supreme Court has appointed a judge to decide whether Judge McCall should be removed, as Brewster has requested.

Smothermon expects McCall will stay.

"It has to be an extraordinary reason to make that request, and the three times that they've asked now a judge to recuse have all been ridiculous reasons," says Smothermon.