PETITION ALLEGES POLICE THREATS IN FORFEITURE CASE

Law enforcement officials are threatening to have the prison sentence of a
convicted drug dealer doubled if he does not drop his forfeiture lawsuit,
according to a petition filed Wednesday in Jackson County Circuit Court.

Mark Wynn, 31, is awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty in federal
court to selling drugs. This year Wynn filed a lawsuit against the Kansas
City Police Department that was the first class action in Missouri against
police agencies that seized drug money and property. The lawsuits claim
police illegally turned the money over to the federal government.

In his petition Wednesday, Wynn said he was warned to drop the lawsuit in a
"Gestapo-like proceeding" on March 21 when he met with Kansas City
detective Gregory Pelter, assistant U.S. attorney Michael Green, two
unidentified FBI agents and his criminal defense lawyer.

His petition requests an injunction to stop the Police Department from
further action.

"Such conduct is unlawful, unethical and a complete outrage to the proper
administration of justice," Wynn's attorneys wrote in the petition.

Police Chief Rick Easley would not discuss Wynn's allegations because the
legal action is pending, his spokesman said.

Chris Whitley, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office, said the
litigation was between Wynn and the Police Department.

"For me to start arguing the Police Department's case for it would be
completely inappropriate," Whitley said.

But, he added, "It would be wise to not necessarily take the allegations
that he is containing in his request for this action as gospel."

Wynn was arrested in 1999 by Kansas City police and Missouri Highway Patrol
troopers. Later the police and troopers seized $38,000 from a safe in
Wynn's home and then asked the federal government to take the money and the
criminal case.

By giving the money to the federal government instead of going through a
state court, the state and local law enforcement agencies could receive up
to 80 percent of the money back.

Under state law, they could not have kept any of the money. Forfeited
property normally is paid to a fund for public education.

Last year the Western District of Missouri Appellate Court in another
forfeiture case ruled that police agencies are breaking the law when they
transfer money to the federal government without a court order. A circuit
judge ordered Kansas City police to pay a state prison inmate $34,000 they
had transferred in violation of the law.

Jim McMullin, the attorney who handled that case, and Kansas City attorney
George A. Barton subsequently have filed class-action lawsuits, including
Wynn's, in five counties.

Wynn's plea agreement with the federal government included a stipulation
that he would not contest the forfeiture of his money. McMullin said,
however, that the agreement pertained only to federal court, not to state
court, where the forfeiture lawsuit has been filed.

W. Geary Jaco, Wynn's criminal defense lawyer, acknowledged that he was in
the March 21 meeting and advised his client to drop the forfeiture lawsuit.

"I'm interested in protecting him in his sentence," Jaco said.

Wynn faced up to 40 years but was expecting a much lighter sentence because
he informed on others suspected in the drug trade, Jaco said.

David Harris, a law professor at the University of Toledo in Ohio and an
expert in forfeiture issues, said any threat to increase Wynn's sentence
would be improper.

"It really smacks of the worst kind of misuse of governmental power,"
Harris said.

On March 21, guards took Wynn from the Leavenworth prison to the federal
courthouse in Kansas City, where he met with law enforcement officials and
Jaco, according to the petition.

In the meeting, Green and Pelter insisted repeatedly that Wynn drop his
lawsuit against the Kansas City Police Department, according to the
petition. Pelter told Wynn his sentence doubled if he proceeded with the
lawsuit, the petition said.

Green gave Wynn a deadline of noon Monday to drop the lawsuit, the petition
said. Jaco, Wynn's attorney, faxed Wynn two letters on Friday and Monday,
urging him to drop the lawsuit. If he did not, Jaco wrote that he would
file a motion to withdraw as his attorney because of a conflict of interest.