Irondale Drug Case Detailed

COUNCILMAN'S SON LED POLICE TO DRUG SUSPECT

An Irondale City Councilman's son was neither arrested nor charged
with a crime because he led investigators to a man they believe is a
significant drug dealer, Irondale's acting police chief said Wednesday.

Irondale police found Matthew Chandler Jackson on April 28 with
several gallon-size bags of marijuana in his car, Acting Chief Norman
Stapp said, but the 19-year-old Jackson avoided arrest because he
provided information that led to the arrest of Mario Bustos, 37, who
is suspected of drug dealing.

"That is the way we handle drug cases," Stapp said. "It is a
connect-the-dot deal. We have offered this deal to others. We didn't
do this just because he was a city councilman's son."

Jackson's father is Councilman Ray Jackson.

Stapp's department now is under investigation by Jefferson County
District Attorney David Barber because of how it handled the Jackson
case.

A criminal law professor and a narcotics investigator interviewed by
The Birmingham News offered differing views on how drug cases are
typically handled.

The differences they highlight indicate some of the issues swirling
around Irondale's handling of the case.

Don Cochran, a Cumberland School of Law professor and former state and
federal prosecutor, said the standard procedure is to arrest a suspect
even if he is willing to cooperate.

But a former Jefferson County narcotics investigator and current
instructor at the county Law Enforcement Academy said it is not
unusual for drug investigators to hold off on arresting a suspect if
he is willing to provide information that would lead to the arrest of
a higher-up.

"Drug investigators are looking to make the bigger case," said Sgt.
Drummond Liddell.

For Irondale, the bigger case was busting Bustos. Police arrested the
Wauchula, Fla., man on April 30 in connection with suspected drug
trafficking.

Stapp said Bustos had around 25 pounds of marijuana and several guns
at the time of his arrest at an Irondale motel.

Bustos' case is expected to go before a federal grand jury today,
Stapp said.

Cochran said that in his experience suspects are normally arrested at
the time drugs are found in their possession. Investigators then go to
the district attorney's office to determine if there is enough
evidence to try the case.

Liddell said that doesn't always happen when a suspect is willing to
cooperate with further drug investigations.

"That doesn't mean that their case will go away," Liddell said. "That
depends on the district attorney's office."

Stapp said his department has not made a final decision on whether it
will seek to have Jackson charged.

Jackson reported to St. Clair Correction Facility earlier this week to
serve three years of a 20-year sentence on armed robbery convictions
unrelated to the drug case.