Pubdate: Sun, 29 Apr 2007 Source: Ledger, The (Lakeland, FL) Copyright: 2007 The Ledger Contact: http://www.theledger.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/795 Author: Lonnie Brown Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) FROM COCAINE BOAT TO FEDERAL COURT The view from the 15th floor of the Sam M. Gibbons U.S. District Courthouse in downtown Tampa is impressive this bright, clear Monday morning. There are about a half dozen Polk Countians, including myself, standing among 35 prospective jurors outside the courtroom of District Judge Richard Lazzaras. I am in a better mood than most waiting to go in back into the courtroom: I have been excused from jury duty. But curious to find out of whom I would have sat in judgment, I stuck around for the criminal trial that my group had been assigned. Out of the 35 jurors will be selected 12 jurors and three alternates. The courtroom is cavernous and well-lighted. It's a good thing: Besides the judge, there is a court reporter, a clerk, three U.S. marshals, three U.S. assistant district attorneys and three other court-support people of unknown duties. There are 10 people grouped around the defense table. Five are wearing headphones - they are the defendants, all from Mexico, none English- speaking. Two interpreters will take turns translating for those wearing the headphones during the trial. The other five people are all attorneys: four men, one woman. Including the prospective jurors, the five defendants have affected the lives of more than 50 people this morning. It is a trial that will continue through the week, and possibly may last until month's end on Monday, the judge tells the group. The indictment was read by the judge. Stemming from a Friday, July 7, 2006, action by the U.S. Coast Guard, all five are charged with possession of a large amount of cocaine, as well as a second charge of conspiring to sell and distribute it. (Once the jury is selected, the members will learn from opening arguments that there are several hundreds of pounds of cocaine, worth several millions of dollars, involved.) The judge conducted the questioning of jurors. Know any of the defendants? Lawyers? Marital status? Job? Kids? Ever been sued? Family members in law enforcement? Would anything keep you from making an impartial decision in the case? Among the prospects this morning are a Bartow school teacher, a professional driver from South Lakeland, an office manager from Winter Haven, an Auburndale power-plant worker, the owner of a Winter Haven well-drilling company and a citrus-industry employee from Frostproof. After lunch, the lawyers conferred with the judge. The 15 jurors were decided on and sworn in by 1:45 p.m. The government's case was straightforward: A helicopter had been launched from a 378-foot-long Coast Guard cutter on a patrol mission well off the coast of Mexico. The pilot spotted a wake in the water - the boat having long since left. The pilot followed the wake to a "go- fast boat," said the assistant district attorney, so called because it was powered by four enormous outboard motors. No flag, no name, no markings. There were - and here is an interesting point - 10 people on the boat. The helicopter issued a series of visual warnings similar to those on a police car, said the attorney. The boat continued. Verbal warnings to stop were issued through a loudspeaker. No response. Three lines of bullets sprayed up "stitchlines" in the water in front of the bow of the boat. Still it sped on. It was then that the helicopter gunner turned his attention to the four motors. The boat slowed - but only because one motor after another was disabled. A shot into the fourth motor stopped the boat. By this time, the helicopter was low on fuel. It returned briefly to the cutter, now speeding its way toward the boat. Upon return, the pilot found nine men hanging onto a make-shift raft, while the 10th built a bonfire on the boat deck. He jumped from the boat when the fire started and headed for the raft. The helicopter began a rescue operation; the cutter arrived and put out the fire, saving the evidence. All this, by the way, will be shown to jurors on videotape. Five of the men rescued were turned over to Mexican authorities. The other five are sitting at the defense table. Now, for the defense opening statements from each attorney. All are the same. To paraphrase: These gents have no connection to the cocaine. They didn't even know it was onboard. They had no idea what was in the bales. It was all put on there before they got on the boat. Could be. Maybe the five in custody thought the boat had four outboards the size of a small car so that the other five guys could water ski. Or maybe they were all making a quick trip over to Havana for an authentic mojito or two. Maybe so. I didn't go back for the details, although I do plan to find out the outcome. It's just as well I wasn't called to serve on the jury. I expect loud snickering during opening arguments is contempt in any judge's courtroom. Lonnie Brown, The Ledger's associate editor, could have been a jury foreman. He'll report back on the trial's outcome. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake