Cops and Robbers

As a Metro cop for more than 15 years, Ernest Cecil helped nab countless gang members, drug dealers and other violent criminals on Nashville’s streets. But last week, the longtime law enforcement officer stood before a federal judge as a convicted felon pleading for mercy.

“I am really just throwing myself on the court to ask for as much leniency as you can give me,” said Cecil, who was convicted on cocaine, conspiracy and robbery charges in October for helping his nephew pull off a profitable drug robbery disguised as a legitimate narcotics bust.

Cecil, 50, has maintained his innocence all along, claiming his only intention was to encourage his nephew to lead a law-abiding life. But because Cecil chose not to testify on his own behalf at trial, the jury never heard his version of how he became entangled in a criminal drug conspiracy.

“I attempted to help a family member stay on the straight and narrow, but it didn’t happen that way,” Cecil explained at last Friday’s sentence hearing, during which details of a family drama emerged, making this more than a simple case of a good cop gone bad.

Defense attorney Rayburn McGowan told the judge that in seeking to convict Cecil, the government relied on the stories of career criminals, including 37-year-old Corey Cecil, who testified against his uncle in exchange for a lighter sentence.

“A lot of the people you heard testify against Mr. Cecil are dangerous offenders, and that’s how they spent their entire lives. They were willing to say whatever it took to get a lot less time,” McGowan told the judge, adding that his client is a devout Christian and a dedicated family man. Years ago, he was an all-American football player, attending Vanderbilt University on scholarship and eventually going on to work as a well-respected officer for nearly two decades. It was an obvious career path, given that a number of Cecil’s family members had pursued jobs in law enforcement before him, including a brother who works as an agent for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Although Cecil’s lawyer asked the judge to impose a three-year sentence, federal sentencing guidelines dictate he must serve a minimum of 12 years behind bars. Given the mandatory minimum, Judge Aleta Trauger said 12 years without parole was the least prison term she could impose, although she believes it’s too harsh in this case. “If my hands were not tied, I would not give Mr. Cecil 12 years,” she said. “It’s way too much. It’s draconian. It’s way greater than necessary in the court’s view.”

Judge Trauger echoed many of the remarks made by the defense, which told the court Cecil was a first-time offender with no prior convictions. In contrast, she acknowledged that Corey Cecil, the primary witness in the case, had a sordid criminal past: “He is not an admirable person, but he did render substantial assistance and helped himself in that way. He helped the government convict a police officer who engaged in criminal conduct.”

In turn, Corey Cecil, who had a lengthy rap sheet before this latest brush with the law, was sentenced to five years without parole for his role in the crime.

On the afternoon of April 30, 2003, prosecutors say Officer Cecil conspired with his nephew to steal more than 3 kilos of cocaine from a local drug supplier.

The plan, according to the government, was for Corey Cecil to arrange to purchase the cocaine stash in a parking lot near the corner of Wedgewood and Eighth Avenue South. But when he arrived to make the deal, he claimed he didn’t have enough cash on him to pay for the drugs. Because the supplier knew and trusted Corey Cecil, he turned over the drugs and agreed to follow him to another location to retrieve the rest of the money. That’s when prosecutors say Officer Cecil arrived on the scene with his lights and sirens blaring, and pulled over the supplier, in turn letting Corey Cecil get away with the drugs without ever having to pay. They say the officer searched the supplier, knowing he no longer had the drugs on him, and then let him go. Prosecutors say Corey Cecil escaped the seller’s retribution by saying he too was chased by police and had to ditch his car, which he claimed was seized with the drugs inside.

Corey Cecil later distributed the stolen cocaine—unbeknownst to the supplier—earning more than $70,000 and paying $10,000 to his uncle for his assistance in the heist.

Not surprisingly, Ernest Cecil’s defense lawyer tells a different story of what transpired that afternoon, claiming his client was oblivious to his nephew’s plans to squeeze the drug dealer. McGowan explains that Ernest Cecil worked as a gang intelligence officer with Metro police, and that he occasionally relied on his nephew to gather information from the streets. In fact, McGowan says Ernest Cecil’s superior often requested that he contact his nephew to get information.