A trial began May 16 for Oklahoma Citys gruesome Cathouse murders, which happened seven years ago. The crime was named for one of the pregnant victims, a sex worker featured in the HBO reality TV show Cathouse about a legal brothel in Reno, Nevada.
The events are still impacting current affairs. According to NewsOK.com, Oklahoma County Sheriff John Whetsel said the Oklahoma County Jail was locked down for two days recently due to concerns about gang violence.
Allegedly, threats to harm jail staff across the state originated from the Irish Mob, which was triggered by the crime and current trial.
Denny Phillips and Russell Lee Hogshooter, the last defendants in the case, are charged with six counts of first-degree murder. The Indian Brotherhood Gang has been linked to the two defendants. Prosecutors allege Phillips used his authority as an Indian Brotherhood war chief to order Hogshooter and another suspect, David Allen Tyner, to murder one of the victims, who was Hispanic.
The connections between the Irish Mob, the trial and the jail lockdown are still unclear. Whetsel provided no clarification for why the trial would appeal to the Irish Mob, most often considered a white supremacist gang.
Print headline: Mob mentality