Arkansas Man Sentenced for His Role in Firebombing Residence of Interracial Couple

The Department of Justice announced today that Gary Dodson, 33, of Waldron, Ark., was sentenced in Little Rock for his involvement in firebombing the residence of an interracial couple.   On Dec. 7, 2011, Dodson pleaded guilty to conspiring to violate the civil rights, criminal interference with housing rights due to race and possession of an unregistered firearm/destructive device.    District Judge Billy Roy Wilson sentenced Dodson to 15 years in prison and 3 years of supervised release for the three counts of conviction.

 During his plea, Dodson admitted that on the night of Jan. 14, 2011, he attended a party where he and three other men, Jake Murphy, Dustin Hammond and Jason Barnwell, devised a plan to firebomb the victims’ house.   Dodson then drove the other men to purchase gas for the firebomb and then Dodson drove everyone to the victims’ house in Hardy, Ark. When they arrived, Barnwell, Murphy and Hammond constructed three Molotov cocktails and threw them at the house.   They damaged the victims’ house; however, no one was injured.

 Murphy and Hammond previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to and violating the civil rights of the victim.   Both received sentences of 54 months incarceration and three years of supervised release.   In June 2011, Wendy Treybig, who co-hosted the party on Jan. 14, 2011, with Barnwell, pleaded guilty to obstructing justice.   She was sentenced on Dec. 13, 2011, to 21 months incarceration and three years of supervised release.   Jason Barnwell pleaded guilty on Aug. 26, 2011, and was sentenced on Jan. 27, 2012 to 20 years incarceration.

“With today’s sentencing, we can finally close the book on this terrible incident of racial hatred,” stated Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division Thomas E. Perez.    “The sentence reflects the gravity of these kinds of crimes.   The Civil Rights Division will continue to pursue justice in hate crimes such as these, where victims are targeted because of the color of their skin.”

U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas Christopher R. Thyer said, “The very strength we have in our communities is a result of the diversity of its people.   Those who perpetrate crimes against others solely because of racial differences will find, as these four defendants have, that there is a price to pay.   The laws that protect our communities leave no tolerance for hate crimes.”

This case was investigated by the Little Rock Office of the FBI and the Little Rock Office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance from the Arkansas State Police, the Hardy and Waldron Police Departments, and the Scott and Sharp County Sheriff’s Offices.    It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney John Ray White of the Eastern District of Arkansas, and Trial Attorneys Cindy Chung and Henry Leventis of the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.

Operation “SAFE SCARE”

Van Buren, AR – Operation SAFE SCARE is a joint agency focus to validate the addresses provided by registered sex offenders. Halloween is a time when many children are on the streets going door-to-door trick-or-treating and are vulnerable to sexual predators. The aim of SAFE SCARE is to keep our kids safe so they can enjoy Halloween and being a kid. SAFE SCARE allows law enforcement to validate information provided by sex offenders during the registration and periodic re-registration requirements under Arkansas State Law. Normally, sex offenders’ addresses are verified only during initial registration and on a case by case basis after that. Experience tells us that often times, registered sex offenders will periodically re-register as required, but will use an address where they are not actually residing anymore.

SAFE SCARE targeted 128 registered sex offenders in the Crawford County area. Officers were able to locate and verify 103 of those sex offenders in the two day operation. Officers were unable to verify compliance with 25 offenders either because no one was home at the time, or the offender was in non-compliance with their registration and not living at the residence where they were registered. Officers will spend the next several days following up on these unverified offenders and seeking additional charges for individuals who are found to be in non-compliance with their sex offender registry. During SAFE SCARE, officers made three arrests for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender, Internet Stalking of a Child, and Sexual Battery. Officers anticipate additional charges with more arrests to come in the next few weeks as a result of information

With Halloween right around the corner, it is crucial that citizens know which houses their children should avoid when trick-or-treating. Some cities around the country require sex offenders to display a sign on their front doors or porches the night of Halloween telling kids ‘no candy.’ During Operation SAFE SCARE, officers gave all offenders a similar sign that tells kids not to trick-or-treat at their house and asked them to display it on their front door on Halloween night. Offenders are not supposed to have their front porch lights on, nor are they supposed to answer the door. For the safety of you, your children, and the registered sex offender, if a sign like this is displayed on a front door or porch, do not trick-or-treat at this residence.

You can find more information about sex offenders in Crawford County by visiting www.crawfordcountysheriff.org and clicking on the “SEX OFFENDERS” tab at the top of the page or by going to www.vanburenpd.org and clicking on the “PUBLIC INFORMATION” tab on the left, and then the “SEX OFFENDERS” tab on the right.

Participating Agencies:

Arkansas State Police

Arkansas Department of Community Correction
Alma Police Department
Van Buren Police Department
Crawford County Sheriff’s Office
U. S. Marshals Service

Arkansas Man Pleads Guilty to Federal Hate Crime Related to the Assault of Five Hispanic Men

First Defendant to Be Convicted Under the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department announced today that Sean Popejoy, 19, of Green Forest, Ark., pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of committing a federal hate crime and one count of conspiring to commit a federal hate crime.   This is the first conviction for a violation of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which was enacted in October 2009. 

Information presented during the plea hearing established that in the early morning hours of June 20, 2010, Popejoy admitted that he was part of a conspiracy to threaten and injure five Hispanic men who had pulled into a gas station parking lot.  The co-conspirators pursued the victims in a truck.   When the co-conspirators caught up to the victims, Popejoy leaned outside of the front passenger window and waived a tire wrench at the victims and continued to threaten and hurl racial epithets at the victims.   The co-conspirator rammed into the victims' car, which caused the victims’ car to cross the opposite lane of traffic, go off the road, crash into a tree and ignite.   As a result of the co-conspirators’ actions, the victims suffered bodily injury, including one victim who sustained life-threatening injuries.

“James Byrd, Jr. and Matthew Shepard were brutally murdered more than a decade ago, and today the first defendant is convicted for a hate crime under the critical new law enacted in their names,” said Thomas E. Perez, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. “It is unacceptable that violent acts of hate committed because of someone’s race continue to occur in 2011, and the department will continue to use every available tool to identify and prosecute hate crimes whenever and wherever they occur.

“It is terrible and disturbing that violence motivated by hatred of another’s race continues to occur,” said Conner Eldridge, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas.   “We are committed to prosecuting such crimes in the Western District of Arkansas.”

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum punishment of 15 years in prison.

This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Fayetteville Division in cooperation with the Arkansas State Police Department and the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office.   The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Edward Chung of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyra Jenner for the Western District of Arkansas.