Conspiracy Charge Dropped In Chad Peery Maiming Case

Adrianna Iwasinski, News 9

Three men are accused of beating and paralyzing an Oklahoma City police officer, but a judge has determined the men who attacked officer Chad Peery were not in a conspiracy to do so.

The ruling was seen as a victory for the defense, but the men still face some very serious charges.

The district attorney's office said the conspiracy charge was not going to be worth the effort to pursue, especially since it carries a lesser penalty.

With the conspiracy charge off the table, one of the defendants now wants to plead guilty the lesser charge of maiming.

Joshua Rinken and his attorney tried to enter a blind plea before Judge Fred Doak this morning, only to have that plea rejected.

"From the beginning, we've wanted to accept responsibility, express our remorse to the Peery family and be sentenced for what we are in fact guilty of," Rinken's attorney, Tommy Adler, said. "We don't want to face the punishment for something that we are not guilty of and something that the DA's office has come up with trying to enhance punishment."

That will be up for the trial judge to decide at a later date.

For now, Joshua Rinken, Cadmio Lopez, and Jimmy Smith have all been bound over to stand trial for maiming officer Chad Peery.

"Well, everyone is just mortified it was such a horrible, horrible accident to Mr. Peery, but, unfortunately, that's what it was—an accident," Don Jackson, Lopez's attorney, said.

And, Jackson insists his client had no participation in the attack.

Police reports state Peery, who was off duty, tried to break up a bar fight inside the Dan O'Brien's Pub back in February when he was grabbed by Rinken and held while Smith punched at him with his fists.

Lopez is accused of keeping the crowd back while the attack took place.

"He was simply there with two people he knew who got involved in a bar fight. It wasn't him," Jackson said.

Jackson also said he will continue to fight to get the judge to set a bond for his client.

For now all three men are being held without bond until they go to trial.