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February 28, 2019
Ronald Picou
February 28, 2019
A former assistant high school basketball coach will spend up to 25 years in a state prison as the result of his recent guilty pleas to human trafficking and related charges in a Terrebonne Parish courtroom.
Prosecutors and other officials say the case of 31-year-old Derrian Williams was significant from several aspects, including the use of technology to gain access to messages stored on his Apple iPhone, an issue that has in the past been contentious for law enforcement. Working closely with federal authorities, prosecutors said, helped further their case to a point where a plea rather than a trial was more likely to occur.
“This conviction is important because there is a very strong underground world of sex trafficking that is out there, and we must do everything in our power to intervene and stop it,” said Terrebonne Parish District At
torney Joe Waitz Jr. “We have to fight for our children, who have no power, and no one else gets to fight for them. Some have absolutely no voice and no power.”
Defense attorney Jerri Smitko acknowledged that the potential of a federal prosecution based on the same fact-set used in the state case was an influence on Williams’ decision to enter the plea.
Attorneys generally agree that when a case is brought into federal court a number of factors make assurances of specific sentencing agreements less likely, and that other difficulties make the decision to plead out in state court more attractive.
Williams pleaded guilty before State District Judge George Larke on Feb. 15 following his indictment by a Terrebonne grand jury on charges of trafficking a child for sexual purposes, attempted trafficking of a child for sexual purposes and felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile. His prison term will run for 25 years, according to court records. The trafficking charge carried a 25-year sentence, the attempted trafficking 12 years, and the last charge eight years. Judge Larke made the sentences concurrent, meaning the most Williams will serve is the 25 years. He will also have to permanently register as a sex offender.
The case began when on Feb. 9, 2017, Terrebonne Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies received a call from a woman in Gulfport, Miss. who said her daughter had run away from home and then contacted her from Houma, claiming she was in danger.
Deputies located the partially-clad teen at 3615 Friendswood Drive in Houma, in the presence of Williams, who was then 29-years-old, a long-time coach in the area who had also worked at Ellender Memorial High, prior to his job at Vandebilt.
Authorities learned that the girl had met Williams on the social media application “KIK” and had arranged for him to pick her up in Gulfport. At the Friendswood Drive address, according to police information, Williams told the girl that she must have sexual relations with him to pay for transport from Gulfport to Houma. Records also show that after engaging in intercourse with the girl, Williams told her he had a client coming to the location, and that she would be performing sexual activity with that man and others. That, police said, is when the girl contacted her mother.
Assistant District Attorney Bud Barnes, who handled the case for Waitz, said trafficking cases can be particularly challenging.
“They always deal with a youngster who is in jeopardy,” Barnes said. “Generally the child has been groomed as part of the operation, sometimes being made to feel they are part of a ‘family.’ This girl made a call to her mother early and the deputies were able to jump on the case, from an investigative standpoint very quickly.”
The ability to promptly find the girl resulted in usable evidence including DNA linking Williams, something that such prosecutions often do not have.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s New Orleans field office assisted, Barnes said, noting that the state had extra elements for building their case, including information from Williams’ iPhone.
“The iPhone is a tough nut to crack,” Barnes said. “There is new software that they have developed that allowed us to get into the phone, and there was a whole bunch of evidence that became overwhelming.”
Barnes said there was evidence of other victims from other states, but that he had difficulty gaining their cooperation. One of those was located in Michigan.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana had taken an interest in the case, Barnes acknowledged. The potential of a federal prosecution and the many complications that involves, Barnes said, played a role in the state court outcome. Federal authorities, he said, indicated they would be satisfied with a state guilty plea and not further involve their agencies if that plea was secured.
The prosecution of Williams was significant to Terrebonne Parish in another aspect. Ryan “Mack” Williams, Derrian’s father, was a volunteer coach for the Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government’s recreation department. Following his son’s arrest, the elder Williams allowed him to attend an out-of-town girls basketball tournament that he was coaching, while he was out on bond. Derrian Williams was spotted at the game, and an internal investigation by the parish government was undertaken. Ultimately, evidence confirmed that both the elder Williams and then-TPR director Sterling Washington were aware of Williams’ presence.
No allegations of impropriety have ever been made concerning Williams’ coaching jobs, or during the trip involving TPR. However, the presence of Williams during the tournament was enough for sweeping security change to be instituted by Parish President Gordon Dove. Ryan Williams was dismissed from his job. Sterling Washington voluntarily resigned.
Felony background checks going back ten years and misdemeanor checks going back five years are now mandatory for all volunteer and salaried coaches, or anyone else having the potential of contact with children at TPR activities. A system of color-coded badges was also developed.
“He did not work for the parish not did he have any permission to coach under TPR,” said Dove. “Since this happened every scorekeeper, every field supervisor, umpire, referee or concession person, anyone near children has color-coded badges around their necks. We immediately took action. I don’t care if it’s a coach or who they are, if they don’t have the badge they will be escorted off the field. This is about protecting our kids, the safety and security of our children.”
Derrian Williams (top left corner) was still attending TPR girls’ basketball games while out on bond following his arrest. That led to the resignation of former TPR Director Sterling Washington.
