TULIA DRUG BUST BILL ON WAY TO SENATE

AUSTIN -- A measure filed in response to the controversial 1999 drug bust
in Tulia has cleared its first hurdle in the Texas Legislature and is on
its way to the full Senate.

Senate Bill 1583, sponsored by Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio,
would open to public inspection letters that describe certain substantiated
claims of an officer's criminal misconduct to the Texas Commission on Law
Enforcement Officer Standards and Education.

The bill is one of the three Tulia Proposals, legislation drafted by the
Texas chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union and the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People in response to a
controversial 1999 drug bust in Tulia.

Of those arrested, most are black and received lengthy prison terms based
on the word of undercover agent Tom Coleman, whose reputation has been
tarnished with the appearance of a letter to the agency from his previous
employer in Cochran County.

During a Senate Criminal Justice Committee meeting, members viewed a
"20/20" news segment about the drug bust.

"I observed the entire committee and staff look on in horror, and with
that, the bill swept through the committee," Will Harrell, executive
director of the Texas chapter of the ACLU, said.

The bill is scheduled to be heard in the House Committee on Urban Affairs
next week, and Harrell said several Republican members already have
expressed their support for the measure.

But just this provision alone wouldn't necessarily prevent another botched
drug investigation, Harrell said.

The remaining two proposals, which require corroborating evidence for an
undercover agent's testimony and restrict a judge's ability to exclude
evidence, are pending in both the House and Senate.

Harrell said substitutes for the bills will be presented, likely within the
next two weeks. The amended versions address narcotics investigations
exclusively, Harrell said.

Prosecutors had legitimate concerns that the measures could hinder rape and
murder investigations, he said, but drug operations require special
oversight and accountability.