L-R: Officer Joe Huffaker , Sgt. Jacy Tatum
SAN FRANCISCO (CN) — Two former California police officers who posed as federal agents to extort marijuana from drivers and then lied to investigators to cover up the crimes were sentenced to a combined 50 months in prison Wednesday.
U.S. District Judge Maxine Chesney sentenced former Rohnert Park police officer Brendan Jacy Tatum to 30 months, while co-defendant and fellow ex-police officer Joseph Huffaker got 20 months.
The case centers on a scheme prosecutors say began after California voters approved Proposition 64 in 2016, legalizing recreational marijuana and ending a lucrative drug interdiction program that had been a source of pride for the small police department about an hour north of San Francisco.
After the program was shut down, Tatum continued seizing marijuana but began selling the drug, pocketing the profits and creating false police reports to cover his actions. Huffaker joined the scheme in late 2017.
The officers would drive far outside their jurisdiction in an unmarked vehicle, dressed in generic tactical gear without badges and pull over drivers they suspected of carrying large amounts of cannabis. They would then falsely claim to be agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and threaten arrest if drivers refused to hand over their marijuana.
Tatum, 44, pleaded guilty to charges of extorting marijuana and obstructing justice in 2021 in exchange for cooperating with federal investigators. He testified as a cooperating witness during Huffaker’s trial.
Huffaker, 41, was convicted on six counts after a weeklong trial last July. The charges included conspiracy to commit extortion, impersonating a federal officer and falsifying records in a federal investigation.
The government initially sought more than a five-year sentence for Huffaker but Chesney ordered his sentencing to be rescheduled until after Tatum’s.
“My concern is that the government has essentially gotten someone to cooperate down, not up,” the Bill Clinton appointee said. “It is undisputed [Tatum] engaged in the behavior alleged here for a considerable amount of time before Huffaker.”
On Wednesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Abe Fine said Tatum was a “corrupt police officer” whose conduct eroded the public’s trust in law enforcement.
The government sought a sentence of 46 months for Tatum while the probation office recommended two years. Tatum asked for 18 months of home detention alongside community service hours.
Fine said the government’s recommended sentence weighed the seriousness of Tatum’s conduct and the abuse of public trust with his cooperation in the case. He added that Tatum aided in the government’s prosecution, including testifying for three days during trial, and providing information about obstruction of justice the government was previously not aware of.
“It is rare for a police officer to cooperate against another police officer. It is important that that cooperation is incentivized,” Fine said.
Tatum’s attorney, Stuart Hanlon, told the court that Tatum should benefit from his cooperation with the government versus Huffaker, who, Hanlon says, didn’t cooperate and stretched the case through a lengthy trial process.
He additionally questioned the purpose of incarcerating Tatum at this point, arguing that Tatum has successfully rehabilitated since the crime occurred, including reconnecting with his family, maintaining a job as a firefighter and paying restitution.
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Ex-cops who posed as federal agents to extort marijuana get up to 30 months in prison
