Pubdate: Thu, 03 Apr 2003
Source: Independent  (UK)
Copyright: 2003 Independent Newspapers (UK) Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.independent.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/209
Author: Andrew Gumbel

FRAMED BLACK VICTIMS OF RACIST DRUG STING IN TEXAN TOWN SHOULD BE FREED, 
SAYS JUDGE

Vindication was at hand for the black population of the small Texas town of
Tulia yesterday, after a judge recommended quashing the convict-ions of 38
residents caught up in a notorious drug sting based solely on the tainted
testimony of a dishonest and overtly racist undercover agent.

Family members wept with joy as even the prosecution conceded it could not
defend the convictions, which have become a byword for small-town injustice
and institutional racism in the four years since the original arrests were
made.

More than 10 per cent of Tulia's black population was caught up in the
sting, including half of the town's black males, even though the charge
that they were dealing in powder cocaine was not supported by any material
evidence.

The judge, Ron Chapman, shut down a week-old hearing into four of the 38
cases rather than listen to further condemnations of the undercover agent,
Tom Coleman, the authorities in Tulia who trusted his work, or the federal
government's anti-drug taskforce which hired him.

"It is established by all parties and approved by the court that Tom
Coleman is simply not a credible witness under oath," the judge said. He
said he would urge the Texas appeals court to overturn all 38 convictions.

Although 13 of the 38 defendants remain behind bars and will probably have
to wait several months before an appeals court ruling can set them free,
their lawyers hailed Judge Chapman's decision as a major breakthrough.

"We're beyond elated," said Jeff Blackburn, a lawyer from Amarillo who has
spent three years and tens of thousands of dollars of his own money
fighting the case. "This goes far beyond anything we thought we could
achieve, given the nature of the system here."

Under a deal between the defence and the prosecution, county authorities in
Tulia will pay $250,000 (?160,000) in compensation - a huge amount for an
impoverished rural area - in exchange for immunity from further lawsuits.
Mr Blackburn said he saw the money as a "downpayment" pending a flurry of
further suits.

Mr Coleman's fate is uncertain, although prosecutors have indicated that
they may file perjury charges against him. He was named Texas Lawman of the
Year for his work in Tulia even though he picked the names of many of the
defendants at random, lied about his own criminal history and kept up a
steady stream of racist epithets when talking to local law enforcement agents. 
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