Federal judge orders former Delaware County firefighter to serve 30 years on sex abuse conviction

TULSA, Okla. – A former rural Delaware County firefighter was sentenced on Monday to 30 years for sexually abusing three juveniles.

Jeffrey Carl Cunningham, 46, of Eucha, appeared in the U.S. District Court in Tulsa.  He was also ordered a lifetime supervised release after serving his federal prison sentence.  Cunningham was also fined $300 court records show.

In July 2022 Cunningham pleaded guilty to three counts of aggravated sexual abuse of a minor child in Indian County.

The victims, all boys, were between 9 and 12 years old, court records show. The sexual abuse occurred between Jan. 1, 1997, and Dec. 31, 2011, during an outing at a creek and while at his home, court records show.

Cunningham was charged in Delaware County District Court in September 2020 with one count of lewd molestation.  The case was dismissed a year later after Cunningham’s attorney filed a “McGirt” motion based on jurisdictional issues.

The “McGirt” ruling caused the case to be dismissed from Oklahoma state court and allowed the Federal Court to try the case.