ROGERS COUNTY — A Rogers County teen is sitting in jail. He went nearly two weeks without charges filed, he has no bond, and no chance anytime soon to speak with a judge—leaving family to question due process in the case.
Nathan Brashers, 18, was arrested on March 4 on serious offenses: reckless conduct with a firearm and shooting with intent to kill.
According to Nathan’s dad, Patrick, he fired a shot in the air during a heated argument and took off running.
Authorities say the teen also fired at two men.
But after a week in the Rogers County jail, no charges and no court appearance, Nathan is sent home.
Deputies came back two hours later to put him back in jail without bond.
“When he picked him back up he said, ‘my bad, I didn’t run it native,’” said Patrick Brashers.
Nathan is a Cherokee citizen. The case is now going through the tribal court.
“I am not a lawyer, but I feel like his due process has been thrown out the window while there is a tug of war contest between the tribe and the county,” said Patrick.
Patrick called 2 News when days went by and Cherokee Nation had not filed charges, either. He felt in limbo on how, or whether, to get an attorney for his son—or how to get help. He also wondered how long his son could stay in jail without charges.
On March 16, at 10:27 a.m., 2 News emailed the Cherokee Nation, detailing the concerns and asking why Nathan Brashers was in jail without charges.
At 4:36 p.m., we received a response that the charges are filed. When pulling the documents, the filing happened 40 minutes before responding to our email. The papers were stamped at 3:55 p.m.
There are more questions: Nathan has not seen a judge and will not until April 7. An initial hearing is set 34 days after his arrest.
We asked Robert Gifford, an attorney with experience practicing in multiple courts and also a tribal court judge. While not speaking specifically to this case, Gifford says a person should be seen by a judge within 72 hours of an arrest.
“If he’s just languishing in jail, he would have the right to file a federal Habeas Corpus under the Indian Civil Rights Act,” he said.
Gifford suggests filing a Writ of Habeas Corpus through a court clerk’s office for someone concerned whether their jailing is lawful.
While not making excuses for his son, Patrick just wants the process for him to be fair.
We asked Cherokee Nation if they wished to answer specific questions we had about this case, but they declined.
By phone, Rogers County Sheriff Scott Walton said their office had sent Brashers home and this is not their case.
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