Jeremy French

Professor Fritsvold

LEPS 500

14 September 2015

Lauded by TulsaPeople magazine as an unsung hero, stating Every neighborhood

deserves a Pastor Willard Jonessomeone who embraces the community, identifies its needs

and formulates innovative methods to meet them (Wigton, 2011). Jones was recognized for

establishing a community center in the South Haven neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma. The 6.9

million dollar community center was designed to house much needed services for the

economically depressed neighborhood and its residents. The center contained medical and dental

clinics and social, vocational and educational programs as well as domestic violence intervention

services for victims and their children. Its going to be a one-stop shop, Jones says. We

provide the space for these agencies to do what they do best. The people need them. Were

talking about an area where 20 percent of households live in poverty with an annual income of

$12,000 to $14,000. Thats poverty (Wigton, 2011). As the Executive Director of the

community center, Jones personally managed the design, construction and fundraising. Donors to

the project included foundations, corporations, churches and private individuals.

After completing the construction of the community center in 2012, Jones requested

additional money from the board of directors to operate the center. The board was skeptical of

the request for additional funds and conducted an audit of the community center. The results of

that audit revealed transfers to church bank accounts. Jones refused to cooperate with the board

when asked to submit to an audit of the church bank accounts. As a result of Jones refusal, the

board filed a police report.

 The culmination of the police investigation resulted in the discovery that over $990,000

was embezzled by Jones and converted to personal use. What did Jones spend the money on? A

home, gambling, liquor, a 32mm Rolex watch and a mink coat. Jones was subsequently indicted

by the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Oklahoma on three counts of wire

fraud and tax evasion. Believe it or not, members of the pastors church actually voted to keep

him as their pastor after the indictment. Shortly after being indicted, Jones plead guilty and was

sentenced to thirty-seven months in federal prison.

Does the punishment fit the crime? According to the United States Sentencing

Commission and their Federal Sentencing Guidelines it does (United States Sentencing

Commission, 2014). If you dont believe it, conveniently visit www.sentencing.us and use their

nifty sentencing calculator. Based on not having a prior criminal history and a reduced sentence

for acceptance of responsibility, Jones gets a measly thirty-seven month sentence. I argue that the

punishment for the scheme committed by Jones is nowhere near appropriate. It does not take a

research analyst to be able to determine that an armed robbery of a convenience store will on

average be sentenced to more than thirty-seven months in most any jurisdiction. Most

convenience store robberies involve a miniscule amount of money especially in comparison to

the amount embezzled by Jones.

References:

United States Sentencing Commission. (2014, November 1). 2014 USSC Guidelines Manual |

United States Sentencing Commission. Retrieved from http://www.ussc.gov/guidelines-

manual/2014/2014-ussc-guidelines-manual
Wigton, S. (2011, December). Beyond the walls - TulsaPeople - December 2011 - Tulsa, OK.

Retrieved from http://www.tulsapeople.com/Tulsa-People/December-2011/Beyond-the-

walls/