Former police officer Daniel Holtzclaw broke into tears on Thursday evening as Judge Timothy Henderson read the verdict: guilty on 18 of 36 charges.
The convictions include multiple counts of first-degree rape, forcible oral sodomy, second-degree rape, procuring lewd exhibition and sexual battery.
Prosecutors argued that Holtzclaw, who is Caucasian and Asian, targeted drug addicts as his victims. The New York Daily News reported that all of his alleged victims are black.
The jury’s verdict, which came after 45 hours of deliberation, was read on the defendant’s 29th birthday.
The Oklahoman‘s Kyle Schwab reported that that Holtzclaw’s victims sang him “Happy Birthday” at the courthouse.
Holtzclaw is facing life in prison.
According to Oklahoma’s News 9 Now, the former police officer’s charges add up to a combined sentence of 263 years in prison.
His sentencing is scheduled for January, 2016.
Following announcement of the verdict, the now disgraced policeman was led away in handcuffs by members of the local sheriff’s department, Business Insider reported.
Before he was fired back in August following his arrest, the recently convicted rapist was a lieutenant with the Oklahoma City Police Department.
Holtzclaw’s mother and father, Eric and and Kumiko Holtzclaw, were in attendance while the verdict was being read. Daniel, their son, refrained from testifying throughout the trial. His lawyer attempted to poke holes in the accounts of the alleged victims by raising awareness of their criminal records and warrants.
This officer violated an oath to protect this community
Assistant District Attorney Gayland Gieger was quoted by NY Daily as having stated in court that Daniel “violated an oath to protect” the community.
In total, thirteen African-American women have come forward to publicly accuse Holtzclaw of having sexually assaulted them while he was on duty.
The DNA of the thirteenth accuser, a 17-year-old runaway, was found outside as well as inside of the defendant’s pants, according to court testimony from the lead detective.
Detectives used GPS and search records to prove that the officer had not only confronted his accusers, the thirteen girls and women his victimized, but had driven them down strange paths for lengths of time in excess of what standard procedure would dictate.
Holtzclaw was in a “committed” relationship with an adult women at the time of the alleged sexual assaults. He has adamantly denied any wrongdoing in the charges brought against him.
