[2] Before being elected to office himself, Terrill had various political jobs, working "as a press intern for Governor Henry Bellmon, legislative assistant to former House Republican Leader Larry Ferguson, director of legislative research and special projects for Governor Frank Keating, political director of the Oklahoma Republican Party, and as special assistant to Labor Commissioner Brenda Reneau.
[6][7] The bill was backed by "Immigration Reform for Oklahoma Now" (IRON), an advocacy group that supported legislation to combat what it asserts to be an "illegal alien invasion of America.
[12] In that year, Terrill unsuccessfully ran for Cleveland County commissioner,[12] losing to Norman School Board member and former police captain Darry Stacy.
[16] He spent three months in prison and was then released to serve the rest of his sentence while wearing an ankle monitor, with "movements are restricted to his home and other locations agreed upon" by a probation officer.
[9][19] In 2008, a federal bankruptcy judge "ordered Terrill to pay $11,301 for failing to disclose loans to his campaign as an asset.