SHERIFF TO MEET WITH WORRIED LAWYERS ABOUT VISITS TO CLIENTS IN JAIL

Knox County Sheriff Tim Hutchison said Tuesday he plans to meet with
lawyers who are worried stricter rules could be in the works for
attorney-client visits at the county jail. Several lawyers have expressed
concern over the potential for greater restrictions stemming from last
week's arrest of lawyer Keith Eric Haas, 34, for allegedly trying to
smuggle cocaine into the maximum-security facility in the City County Building.

"We're certainly having to take a look at what's going on," Hutchison said.
"We're also looking at information and complaints that there are others
doing some of the same violations."

Haas, a Sevierville lawyer, was charged last Thursday with possession of
more than .5 grams of powder cocaine with the intent to sell or deliver. If
convicted, he faces an 8- to 12-year prison term and up to $100,000 in
fines, according to state sentencing guidelines.

Hutchison said the cocaine was delivered to Haas at a downtown eatery by an
undercover sheriff's deputy. Officers then followed Haas while he "drove
around downtown" before parking his vehicle by another restaurant near the
University of Tennessee campus.

When the deputies confronted Haas, he gave them consent to search his
vehicle, and an envelope containing one ounce of cocaine was seized from
his briefcase, according to the arrest warrant.

The warrant contains no mention of any attempt to smuggle the cocaine into
the jail, an omission which raised the eyebrows of several lawyers
concerned that the incident may be used as a "pretense" to block
face-to-face meetings with their clients.

"My question would be why haven't they charged him (Haas) with introducing
contraband?" asked lawyer Don Bosch.

Citing the ongoing nature of the probe, Hutchison declined to discuss why
investigators believe Haas meant to give the cocaine to an incarcerated client.

"Let's wait a little bit," Hutchison said. "There are several things we are
looking at, and other charges may be pending. ... Some of the charges may
not be solely related to drugs."The issue of attorney-client visits at the
jail has been a thorny one since 1999, when a group of lawyers sued the
Sheriff's Department for allegedly denying their clients the right to
effective counsel by not allowing contact visits between them.

Hutchison maintained that the restrictions were necessary for security
reasons, but the case was ultimately settled out of court with inmates
being guaranteed contact visits with their lawyers when necessary.

From 1999 until the recent investigation into Haas' alleged activities,
there have been no "serious" problems dealing with lawyers and security
procedures, Hutchison said.

Bosch, one of the six lawyers who sued Hutchison in 1999 and a member of
the Knoxville Bar Association's Board of Governors, said Haas should be
disciplined if convicted of the cocaine charges.

"If this has indeed happened - and keep in mind that Mr. Haas is presumed
innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law - it's a disgrace to our
bar, and it should be dealt with appropriately and harshly," he said.

Bosch also said the incident involving Haas shouldn't affect how other
lawyers are allowed to meet with incarcerated clients.

"There are concerns about how this might affect our ability (to represent
our clients)," Bosch said. "We hope the sheriff doesn't use this to place
unnecessary and retaliatory restrictions on lawyers who are trying to see
their clients."

Hutchison said he plans to meet with lawyer John Eldridge - who has been
representing the attorneys who filed suit in 1999 - to discuss security
issues in light of Haas' arrest.

Eldridge said that he and other attorneys involved in the lawsuit have been
meeting with Hutchison periodically since the settlement "to keep the
dialogue open."

"We've had no problems since the settlement," he said. "I am very
concerned. ... We would hope that the sheriff would not change the current
attorney visitation procedure for everyone if his allegation is true with
respect to one (Haas)."