MURPHY: CHARGES DESTROYED HIS CAREER

Former Snohomish County Sheriff Patrick Murphy Thursday tearfully recounted
what life was like after he was charged with prescription drug fraud in 1995.

He had severe depression and was unable to find a job, even after the
charges had been dropped.

He once got an interview for police chief in a small Oregon city, but "I
usually don't make it beyond the background check," Murphy testified in the
civil case he has brought against the state Board of Pharmacy. The suit is
for up to $10 million.

Murphy feels like a burden on his family and has memory lapses, he told
jurors, often in subdued tones.

His reputation was extremely important to him after a law enforcement
career of more than 20 years, about 13 of them as police chief in
Snohomish. Now, he said, it's ruined.

"You can't get it back after you lose it," he said of his reputation. "You
can't buy back time."

The Snohomish County Superior Court lawsuit alleges representatives of the
board conspired to illegally disclose confidential information to others,
including Snohomish County Executive Bob Drewel and the county's chief
deputy prosecutor, Jim Townsend.

The information was confidential prescription data gathered in a survey of
area pharmacies after pharmacists complained about the large number of
prescriptions for narcotic painkillers that Murphy had from multiple
doctors and dentists.

The board counted about 260 prescriptions in a 17-month period.

According to testimony, the painkillers were for a chronic jaw disorder, as
well as a series of other injuries Murphy suffered when he was Snohomish
chief and after he was appointed county sheriff in early 1995.

Deputy prosecutor Townsend hired a special prosecutor, who filed charges
against Murphy in late October 1995, about a week before he was up for
election. Murphy lost to current Sheriff Rick Bart.

The charges were dismissed in 1996 after a judge ruled the board had
improperly seized information about Murphy's prescriptions without first
getting a search warrant.

Under questioning by Mark Northcraft, his attorney, Murphy, 49, adamantly
denied any wrongdoing leading up to the investigation and charges.

Did he ever accept narcotic pain medication from a physician when he had no
pain?

"Never," the former sheriff responded.

Did he every fraudulently seek prescription pain medication?

"No. I never did that."

Murphy became emotional when Northcraft asked him how he learned of the
charges from his former Seattle attorneys.

His wife, Susan, and several of his children have been in the courtroom for
most of the three-week trial. When he talked about being booked in the
jail, his wife broke down and was comforted by a son. One daughter broke
into tears and walked briskly out of the courtroom.

Murphy also told the jurors about his last day as sheriff, Nov. 23, 1995.
When he left the courthouse in Everett, he decided to walk home to Snohomish.

"I needed the walk to figure out what I was going to do with my life," he
said. "I felt like my life was over. I felt there was no way I could ever
combat this media assault I've been through."

However, under questions by assistant attorney general Greg Jackson, Murphy
said he really didn't blame the news media, just "the facts that were
reported."

Jackson took Murphy through details of a 1988 confrontation when a man
socked him in the face and started the chronic jaw problems, pointing out
there were discrepancies between what he related Thursday on the witness
stand and what he wrote in a report in 1988.

He also tried to poke holes in Murphy's description of an accident in 1993
when Murphy reported falling on the tarmac in Alaska and filed a claim
against an airline. Murphy told jurors the accident put him out of work for
a few days, but Jackson pointed to a letter from Murphy's lawyer in 1993
that indicated he was out of work nearly six months.

"I don't know how long I was off," Murphy said.

Earlier Thursday, an economist testified that Murphy's damages from lost
future and past earnings could amount to more than $1.1 million.

The trial is expected to continue into next week. Judge Ronald Castleberry
reminded lawyers that testimony must conclude by next Friday, because the
judge has other commitments.