Pubdate: Mon, 13 Dec 2004
Source: Times-Picayune, The (LA)
Copyright: 2004 The Times-Picayune
Contact:  http://www.nola.com/t-p/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/848
Author: Michael Perlstein

DRUG SWEEP FAILS TO HINDER CRIME

Bail Deals Return Offenders To Streets

"All we can do on our end is make good cases and good arrests."  - officer 
involved in 'Playin' with the Fellas'

When the New Orleans Police Department unleashed "Playin' with the Fellas" 
in September, the operation was touted as a head-on blitz against violent 
crime, designed to sweep the streets clean of the low-level drug dealers 
who make up a disproportionate share of the city's murderers and victims.

The narcotics squad left little maneuvering room for suspects, videotaping 
hand-to-hand drug sales involving undercover officers cruising around in 
inconspicuous "cool" cars. Nearly 200 suspects were caught in the sting, 
the vast majority accused of selling one or two rocks of crack cocaine. 
District Attorney Eddie Jordan applauded the cases as "high-quality," an 
assessment backed by a nearly 95 percent acceptance rate.

More than two months later, however, the operation has shown no signs of 
making a dent in violent crime or curbing street-level drug activity. Of 
198 cases that led to arrests or arrest warrants, at least 47 percent of 
the suspects remain free, and the pace of shootings and killings has 
remained stubbornly high.

Most of the suspects who remain on the street either made bond arrangements 
or were never picked up. And in the 15 cases that have been adjudicated so 
far, 12 defendants pleaded guilty and received probation, compared to just 
three -- all of them on probation for a prior offense -- who received 
prison time.

As the cases make their way through the court system, the release rate is 
expected to climb as more defendants get placed on probation. Normally, a 
cocaine distribution conviction requires a two-year minimum sentence, but 
that minimum can be waived if a case is referred to one of the city's drug 
courts, a common practice in small-scale narcotics busts.

Rafael Goyeneche, president of the Metropolitan Crime Commission, a 
nonprofit watchdog group, questioned the outcome so far.

"I would be surprised if 10 percent of these people did any serious time in 
jail at the end of the day," Goyeneche said. "So what's the end result of 
all the resources and all this manpower that went into this operation? Is 
it any wonder that this has had a negligible impact on our crime problem?"

Police frustrated

An analysis of the 198 cases reveals a hodgepodge of dispositions as they 
snake through Orleans Parish Criminal Court, a reflection of differing 
judicial philosophies and personalities that make up the bench. For 
example, while 21 defendants posted commercial bonds to cover bail amounts 
ranging from $500 to $40,000, judges granted reduced bail to another 20 
defendants, 17 of whom got a free pass back to the streets through 
recognizance bonds or personal surety bonds.

Overall, the analysis of police and court records shows that in addition to 
the 47 percent of suspects on the street, 44 percent remained locked up, 
and 9 percent can't be tracked because they were juveniles or suspects with 
aliases. At one point, the percentage of suspects behind bars was even 
lower, records show, but 10 of the released suspects have been re-arrested 
on new charges and jailed.

In the finished cases, the 4-to-1 ratio of probation to prison time is a 
disappointing surprise to police. Several officers said they assumed 
convicted offenders would face sentences of two to 30 years as specified in 
the state criminal code for cocaine distribution, but the siphoning of 
cases to drug court has altered that math. Some officers argued that drug 
court should be reserved for small-time first-offenders, not the 
street-corner desperadoes targeted in the "Fellas" sting.

"That's not what we intended," said an officer involved in the operation. 
"But all we can do on our end is make good cases and good arrests."

Veteran defense lawyer Gary Wainwright, who is representing six defendants 
caught in the sting, offered another viewpoint in suggesting that "Playin' 
with the Fellas" could ultimately exacerbate the crime problem.

"This type of police activity does not decrease violence in our 
neighborhoods," he said. "First of all, you're disrupting the pecking order 
of dealers on the street when you conduct these sweeps. It leads to all 
kinds of people trying to fill the vacuum. . . . Then, you're sending most 
of the (defendants) back to the street on probation, with big fines and a 
felony record. As felons, do you think they're going to be able to get good 
jobs to pay those fines? No. It's just a recipe for more crime."

Prosecutors, however, were quick to declare the operation a success.

"We consider this to be a model crime-fighting operation," Jordan said. 
"All of the cases are strong cases with quality audio and video. This kind 
of crime-fighting will result in more convictions, even if a lot of them 
end up being handled by (the state office of) probation and parole."

The Police Department also stands strongly by the operation, though some 
officers grumble about the sting being diluted by other components of the 
justice system. Even without an immediate and obvious impact on violent 
crime, the "Fellas" operation has made a difference, spokesman Capt. Marlon 
Defillo said.

"We believe that any time an effort is made to remove street-level drug 
dealers, it benefits the community," Defillo said. "Maybe more than the 
shootings and other violence, these types of criminals bring a general 
deterioration in many neighborhoods. We're making impacts on the quality of 
life in a lot of neighborhoods."

A tale of two judges

Both police and prosecutors, however, questioned the manipulation of bonds 
in some of the cases, a long-standing complaint voiced by previous police 
administrations and by Jordan's predecessor, Harry Connick, during his 
lengthy tenure as district attorney.

For example, Jarell Brown, 20, was assigned to a court-ordered diversion 
program when he was caught with illegal drug paraphernalia in June. But 
after he allegedly sold crack to an undercover officer two months later, 
his original bond of $20,000 was reduced to a free recognizance bond by 
Judge Frank Marullo, records show.

In another case, Kevin Maxwell, 25, and Freddie Maxwell, 19, were each 
charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine. Judge Charles 
Elloie reduced Freddie Maxwell's bail from the $25,000 set by a magistrate 
to a free recognizance bond, even though he was on probation for 
third-offense possession of marijuana, records show. Kevin Maxwell has an 
even more serious rap sheet, with felony cocaine and robbery convictions, 
but Elloie reduced his bail from $35,000 to $5,000, the records show. Kevin 
Maxwell gained his release with a commercial surety bond.

It wasn't long before both Maxwells were back in court for drug tests, and 
both tested positive, records show. The penalties? Each was slapped with a 
$500 fine and released.

Another case shows a stark difference between two judges.

Kenneth Dede, 54, is listed as a career criminal with convictions for 
aggravated battery, possession with intent to distribute crack, possession 
of crack, possession of cocaine and possession of marijuana. He's served 
two prison sentences for probation violations. Days after Dede was caught 
in the sweep and booked with distribution of marijuana, Elloie reduced his 
bail from $20,000 to $5,000, which Dede covered by purchasing a surety 
bond. But when the case was allotted to Judge Dennis Waldron for trial, 
Waldron raised Dede's bond to $50,000. He remains locked up.

Jordan said bond reductions only serve to "complicate the crime-fighting 
efforts of law enforcement."

"We're not happy with reductions of bonds that we feel are appropriately 
high," Jordan said. "The modifications should not occur, but that's 
something in the discretion of the court. . . . We've simply not been able 
to prevail on the courts to hold these type of people on high bonds."

Defillo said police can't concern themselves with elements of the system 
beyond their control. "We're just one leg of the judicial process," he said.

Goyeneche, though, said he thinks the Police Department took a good first 
step with the drug sweep. But for the operation eventually to be labeled a 
success, the other parts of the justice system need to do their part.

"There has to be some consequences for this type of behavior beyond a bunch 
of people put on probation," Goyeneche said. "The tale of the tape is going 
to be seen as these cases come to trial. The Police Department can't do 
much more than what they did. Now it's up to the rest of the criminal 
justice system to do its part."
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MAP posted-by: Beth