Pubdate: Sat, 06 Nov 1999 Source: Houston Chronicle (TX) Copyright: 1999 Houston Chronicle Contact: http://www.chron.com/ Forum: http://www.chron.com/content/hcitalk/index.html Page: 37A Author: Deborah Tedford JUDGE CITES JAIL ABUSE, CUTS YEAR OFF DRUG DEALER'S SENTENCE A federal judge Friday cut a year off a drug dealer's sentence after learning he had been extremely mistreated at the Montgomery County Jail. U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas told attorneys at a sentencing hearing for onetime lawyer J. Brent Liedtke that other federal prisoners had also complained of mistreatment at the jail -- and she knew of no other way to send a message to authorities. Liedtke testified he was beaten eight times after being placed in a holding cell with violent prisoners. He said he was the only white prisoner in the cell, despite an outbreak of racial hostilities among the inmates. He also said he was kept in an isolation cell and deprived of sleep for 10 days because the light was always on and guards rapped on the window every 15 minutes. Sheriff Guy Williams said all allegations of mistreatment are investigated, but that neither Liedtke nor the U.S. Marshal's Service ever reported the alleged abuse. Williams said he dislikes having federal prisoners because they overcrowd the facility, but the county is under contract to provide 200 beds daily for federal prisoners. "The federal prisoners whine more than other inmates," he said. Atlas sentenced Liedtke to 223 months in prison for conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine. A former criminal defense attorney, Liedtke conspired with a former client and another person to manufacture the illegal drug, prosecutors said. He aided in buying 100 pounds of phenyl acetic acid -- for using to make the drug -- from a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent. Liedtke, 47, was convicted in March after acting as his own counsel during a five-day jury trial. Attorney Robert Fickman, who represented Liedtke during the sentencing phase, cited his client's mistreatment in asking Atlas for a sentence less than that mandated by federal guidelines. During his three-four months' confinement at the jail, Fickman said, Liedtke was repeatedly mistreated and forced to sleep on the bare floor under a sink. "It's always a tragedy to see a gifted attorney convicted of a crime," Fickman said. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek Rea