NAACP SCHEDULES RALLY ABOUT DRUG BUST

AMARILLO, Texas (AP) - The NAACP scheduled a rally Saturday evening
to call attention to drug policy concerns following a controversial
1999 drug bust in Tulia in which 46 people - 40 of whom were black -
were arrested.

Opponents of the sting have alleged that the investigation and
arrests were racially motivated.

"We want to refocus on Tulia, but we also want to show that this kind
of thing goes on all across this state and this country," said
Alphonso Vaughn, president of the Amarillo chapter of the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

"This reaches far beyond the borders of the Panhandle. There are lots
of Tulias in this country."

The Justice Department is investigating the Tulia bust, which brought
national attention and questions about the way the state's drug task
forces conduct investigations. A civil lawsuit brought by one of the
black men arrested in the bust also is pending.

Many of the cases against black Tulia residents were based solely on
the testimony of an undercover officer who was charged with theft and
abuse of power. About 250 blacks live in the small farming community.

After the first jury trial resulted in a 60-year sentence for one of
the defendants, 17 people entered guilty pleas.

Another 10 were later found guilty at trials based solely on the
testimony of undercover officer Tom Coleman, who himself was charged
with theft and abuse of power during his 18-month long investigation.
The charges against Coleman were later dropped.

Along with the bust, the Justice Department is investigating the
roles Coleman, Swisher County District Attorney Terry McEachern and
Sheriff Larry Stewart. Some in Tulia alleged Stewart provided Coleman
with a list of suspects to target.

Harvard law professor Deborah Peterson Small, director of public
policy and community outreach of the Lindesmith Center in New York,
was among the speakers expected to attend the rally at the Amarillo
United Citizens Forum Cultural Center.

"She is an excellent speaker who has a wide range of knowledge on
drug issues," Vaughn told the Amarillo Globe-News. "This is a rare
opportunity to hear someone with this kind of expertise."

Jeff Blackburn, an Amarillo attorney involved in the civil lawsuit,
as well as several Tulia residents involved in the bust, also were
expected to attend.