Dallas to settle at least four lawsuits in scandal

[Judi Lynn]

Dallas to settle at least four lawsuits in scandal

Jan 26, 2005 12:26 pm US/Central
DALLAS (AP) -- Plaintiffs in at least four of nine federal
lawsuits stemming from the Dallas police fake drugs scandal will
reportedly get settlements from the city.

The Dallas Morning News cites lawyers and court filings in the
case in reporting the pending settlements.

The scandal erupted after the use of fake drugs evidence by
Dallas narcotics officers was exposed. The fake evidence was used
to send innocent immigrants to jail.

Two settlements handled by Dallas lawyer Tony Wright were
disclosed in federal court records. Wright says his clients in two
of the other civil rights cases also had reached deals with the
city. He declined to disclose the dollar amounts because it could
jeopardize settlements between the city and other plaintiffs.
City Attorney Madeline Johnson says significant progress is
being made in most of the lawsuits against the city. She says she's
confident most will be resolved soon.
(snip/)

http://cbs11tv.com/localstories/local_story_026132654.html

[Ezlivin]

1. Pssst, got any gypsum?

These guys were busting people for dealing in gypsum!

Texas really knows how to ruin the reputation of its police. First Tulia and then Dallas.

The War on Drugs is such a senseless waste of time.

[ret5hd]

2. support the blue...

end sarcasm

[rainbow4321]

3. Some were jailed, others deported...informant "earned" $200,000

There were some who were to deported to Mexico, also, after they got "convicted"...One of the police "informants" involved was pulling in $200,000 for being an informant.



http://www.mysanantonio.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D87RKH9G0.html


The four cases involving Hispanic men falsely arrested in 2001 were scheduled for trials in the next several months. Monetary payouts were not disclosed Tuesday.

Wright's four settled cases were brought on behalf of George Sifuentez, Lorenzo Escamilla, Jacinto Jesus Mejia and Israel Pineda. Informants in their arrests had planted bundles of a white powder, sometimes billiard chalk, and then led police to begin false felony prosecutions.

She said some plaintiffs might be due larger payouts than others because they spent longer periods in jail, causing more harm to their lives and careers.

Lawyers hired by the city to investigate the scandal earlier reported that sloppy police work and lax supervision in the department's narcotics division led to the false arrests. Delapaz, Herrera and other former narcotics officers face criminal charges. They are accused of evidence tampering related to reports filed in some of the false arrests.


http://www.cfif.org/htdocs/freedomline/current/in_our_opinion/sordid_trail.htm

Quickly forgotten in public tempests of this sort are the stories of the victims, which, in this case, are those who served time behind bars for crimes they didn’t commit, or, absent the ability to defend themselves, were quickly deported in plea bargain deals. Many of those who weren’t deported hope to resume normal lives in an America they’ve quickly grown to distrust.

We know little about the informant. We do know he was paid well for his services. In exchange for information leading to at least 70 drug busts since 1999, he received roughly $200,000, according to news reports. Yet, according to Chief Bolton, the informant passed a polygraph, indicating he didn’t know the drugs that turned out to be gypsum were phony at the time.

What about the suspended officers? Were they trying to beef up their arrest records? Was race a factor or were the Mexicans they arrested just easy targets? The suspended narcotics officers, Senior Cpl. Mark Delapaz and Officer Eddie Herrera, have more than 10 years on the force and are both highly commended.


As for the police, it may be that the troubling pattern of evidence was lost on officials playing the numbers game -- cops tend to get intoxicated by the big busts. And as for the informant, guilty or not, he’s $200,000 richer.