Pubdate: Sun, 02 May 2004 Source: Dallas Morning News (TX) Copyright: 2004 The Dallas Morning News Contact: http://www.dallasnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/117 Author: Robert Tharp, The Dallas Morning News DEPUTY SPECIAL PROSECUTOR JOINS FAKE-DRUG INVESTIGATION PANEL Attorney Has Worked With Team Leader on Previous Cases The special prosecutor investigating a series of bogus drug arrests in 2001 has brought in a longtime friend and trial partner to help prepare and conduct criminal trials that result from the ongoing investigation. David Lewis is the second deputy special prosecutor to join attorney Dan Hagood's special investigation. The 52-year-old former state and federal prosecutor, who is now in private practice, was sworn in by District Judge John Nelms shortly after the indictments of two Dallas police officers last month. Mr. Lewis said Friday that he agreed to join the team because of the seriousness of the allegations, which already have been the subject of a two-year federal investigation. "I think the case is important for Dallas to get a resolution to this fiasco," he said. Mr. Hagood, who was appointed by District Attorney Bill Hill in December, and Mr. Lewis worked together as assistant district attorneys in the early 1980s and teamed up as defense attorneys in some high-profile Dallas County trials in the 1990s. The two men represented an East Dallas homeowner who fatally shot a vagrant man going through trash at the curb of the homeowner's house. The homeowner was acquitted of murder in June 2000. They teamed up again that same year, successfully defending a former Woodrow Wilson High School band director accused of molesting a 17-year-old male student. "Dan and I have ridden shotgun with each other many, many times," Mr. Lewis said. In February, Houston defense attorney Jack Zimmerman was appointed to help investigate whether any laws were broken by attorneys, prosecutors or judges related to the bogus cases. Some questions remain about how soon prosecutors learned that the seized substances were not real drugs and whether anyone continued to prosecute cases after learning about the problems. Mr. Hagood said at the time that it was important to bring in an attorney without Dallas County ties to avoid any appearance of a conflict of interest. 2001 busts The investigation stems from a series of large drug busts in 2001 in which confidential informants working with Dallas narcotics officers planted fake drugs on innocent people. Those arrested - primarily poor Mexican immigrants - spent months in jail, and some pleaded guilty to offenses they didn't commit so they could be released. Three confidential informants have pleaded guilty to federal civil rights charges and have admitted planting fake drugs on innocent people. The informants were paid nearly $300,000 from the police for their help, although the men dispute receiving all of the money and their attorneys question whether the Police Department's documents are authentic. In November, former Dallas Officer Mark Delapaz was acquitted on federal civil rights charges alleging that he lied in police reports about witnessing drug transactions that never occurred. New indictments Mr. Delapaz and former Officer Jeff Haywood were indicted April 15 on multiple state charges of tampering with physical evidence. The indictments charge that Mr. Delapaz lied in police reports and that Mr. Haywood lied about conducting field tests of the seized substances. If convicted, the men face up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine for the third-degree felony charges. The grand jury hearing testimony about the scandal continues to meet, and more indictments are possible. On Thursday, the panel heard testimony from Layne Jackson, a drug-court prosecutor, and defense attorney Cynthia Barbare, who represented several people who were charged with possessing illegal - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake