UPDATE: Trial date set for Redding ex-police officer accused of large-scale drug sales
A trial date of June 13 has been set for Redding ex-police Cpl. Will Williams, his wife Heather Legault-Williams and Heather Hart on charges they were part of a large-scale marijuana cultivation and distribution operation in Shasta County.
The three pled not guilty on the charges during their arraignment early Friday before Shasta County Superior Court Judge Daniel Flynn, according to a post on the Facebook page of the Shasta County District Attorney's Office.
The arraignment follows a two-day preliminary hearing in late October in which Flynn determined there was enough evidence to set a trial.
The case originated in May 2020, when the Redding Police Department, California Highway Patrol and Shasta County District Attorney held a press conference to announce that Williams, a veteran officer, had been arrested on April 29 in connection to a warehouse where investigators found marijuana, cocaine and $59,000 in cash.
Williams was terminated from his job about three months later, on Aug. 21, 2020.
ORIGINAL STORY:
Redding ex-police officer accused of large-scale drug sales will head to trial
Friday, Oct. 21
A Shasta County judge decided Friday that former Redding police Cpl. Will Williams will head to trial on charges of being part of a large-scale marijuana cultivation and distribution operation in Shasta County.
A trial date will be set on Nov. 4, said Chief Deputy District Attorney Ben Hanna.
Shasta County Superior Court Judge Daniel Flynn determined that there is sufficient evidence to hold Williams, his wife Heather Legault-Williams and another woman, Heather Hart, to answer on the charges of "maintaining a place for selling or using a controlled substance, cultivating marijuana and possession of marijuana for sale," according to a statement from the District Attorney's Office on Friday.
At the conclusion of a lengthy preliminary hearing that began Thursday and included testimony from five California Highway Patrol officers, the judge determined that there was sufficient evidence to go forward with a trial, said Hanna.
At a preliminary hearing, the prosecutor must show that there is probable cause to believe that the defendant committed the crime.
The case originated in May 2020, when the Redding Police Department, California Highway Patrol and Shasta County District Attorney held a press conference to announce that Williams, a veteran officer, had been arrested on April 29 in connection to a warehouse where investigators found marijuana, cocaine and $59,000 in cash.
The complaint filed in Shasta County Superior Court in April 2021 by the District Attorney's Office said that Williams and his wife, Heather Legault-Williams, were maintaining a drug house and possessing marijuana for sale.
Williams was terminated from his job on Aug. 21, 2020, Redding Police Chief Bill Schueller said.
Heather Hart is alleged to be one of the people involved in the illegal marijuana growing and distribution warehouse that operated on Crossroads Drive in Redding, said Hanna.
Related: Case of Redding police officer accused of large-scale drug sales comes to court
Legault-Williams was also charged with possession of a controlled substance, the statement said.
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The attorney for Legault-Williams said the charges were filed in retaliation because RPD learned in early 2020 that Williams planned to file an age discrimination lawsuit against the city.
Michele Chandler covers criminal justice issues for the Redding Record Searchlight/USA Today Network. Follow her on Twitter at @MChandler_RS, call her at 530-338-7753 or email her at michele.chandler@redding.com. Please support our entire newsroom's commitment to public service journalism by subscribing today.
This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Redding ex-police Cpl. Will Williams pleads not guilty; trial date set
