DETAILS EMERGE ON COP ARRESTS

Chief Says Investigation to Continue After 2 Mobile Officers Are
Charged With Drug Possession

An investigation into police misconduct will go beyond the arrest of
two patrolmen charged with felony possession of crack-cocaine, Mobile
Chief Phillip Garrett said Thursday.

"We would like to think it stops with this," Garrett said. "Wherever
it goes, we need to go with it."

Both Desmond Ryan Brooks, 28, and Aaron Porter, 32, have bonded out
of Mobile County Metro Jail and have been suspended with pay from the force.

On Wednesday, officers arrested the 3rd Precinct patrolmen after
finding less than an ounce of crack-cocaine in each of the officer's
possession.

"I don't think they were selling. ... I don't think they were using.
I don't know what they were doing," Garrett said in an interview from
his office at police headquarters.

But, the chief said, "I do believe they knew what each other were doing."

However, an affidavit used to obtain a warrant to search Brooks' home
and vehicle said the police received information that Brooks was
involved in illegal "shake downs," when answering calls involving
possible drugs or money. "Specifically that Officer Brooks was
unlawfully seizing money and converting it to his personal use," the
affidavit said.

The affidavit, obtained from the Mobile County District Attorney's
Office, describes how two undercover officers set up Brooks to see if
he would take drugs and money without reporting it. Brooks took the
bait and did not report what he found, according to the affidavit.

Mobile County District Attorney John Tyson Jr. said the affidavit
speaks for itself.

"The good news is that the good guys got a couple of bad guys," he said.

He added that it is obvious the "the police chief does not put up
with any foolishness."

No one answered the door at either of the patrolmen's homes Thursday
afternoon, and Garrett said he was unsure if the men had hired lawyers.

Both patrolmen were in the same squad -- typically about 10 officers
assigned to a specific shift.

An internal hearing will be held next week to determine the men's
future with the department, Garrett said. The officers could be fired
before any criminal trial gets underway, he said.

Brooks, of Theodore, was released on $8,500 in bail on two felony
counts of possession of a controlled substance, a charge of theft of
lost property and one misdemeanor count of possession of marijuana.
Brooks is scheduled to attend a preliminary hearing on Feb. 20.

Porter was released on $5,000 in bail on a felony charge of
possession of a controlled substance.

Porter, of Mobile, is scheduled to attend a preliminary hearing on Feb. 19.

Brooks, an eight-year veteran of the force, was arrested Wednesday
afternoon after officers searched his home and found a few grams of
crack-cocaine and about $360 in cash, said Deputy Chief Jim Barber.
According to the affidavit, $360 was the amount of money left in a
vacant house as bait to see if Brooks would take it.

Barber said he did not know the precise amount of crack-cocaine, and
that the Drug Enforcement Agency was weighing it.

In addition to searching Brooks' home, officers searched his car and
found a small amount of marijuana, Barber said.

Brooks is charged with theft of lost property because Garrett said
that while Brooks did not necessarily steal the cash, it did not
belong to him. The officer obtained the cash, in addition to the
drugs, while he was on duty, Garrett said.

Following Brooks' arrest, Porter, a rookie, was taken into custody
after officers searched the premises of his home and found less than
an ounce of crack-cocaine, Barber said.

Garrett said the information leading to the second officer's arrest
Wednesday night "came up pretty quickly," but he did not elaborate.

The investigation started about a week ago when a department employee
sat in the chief's office and raised concerns about certain officers,
Garrett said.

Other officers names have been mentioned in connection with the
inquiry, Garrett said, but at this point he does not believe those
allegations are true. Internal affairs investigators will continue to
follow any leads, he said.

"If it's over, it's over," Garrett said.

Garrett did not detail the allegations but said they were too serious
to wait until after Mardi Gras to follow up on. The department
immediately launched a criminal investigation, he said.

According to the search warrant affidavit, on Fat Tuesday, two
undercover officers placed a pre-determined amount of crack-cocaine
and $360 in a vacant house located at 1002 Basil Street, just north
of downtown.

The undercover officer placed a call to a police operator, reporting
drug activity at the location and described himself as a security
guard for Bishop State Community College.

Then, the undercover officer asked a confidential informant to wait
in the parking lot of Bishop State. The informant was told to advise
Brooks that he saw several black men going to a vacant house and getting drugs.

Brooks arrived on the scene and talked with the informant, then
retrieved the drugs and money from the vacant house and put it in his
police cruiser, according to affidavit.

Brooks never reported seizing either the drugs or the money, and did
not turn them in to the department's property or evidence section,
the affidavit said.

The affidavit does not mention Porter, the other arrested officer.

The search warrant was returned to the district attorney's office
listing the items seized at Brooks' home. The list included $360,
which had the same serial numbers as the money placed at the vacant
house, plastic bags containing the drugs, a box of "crack pipes" and
three guns. Other money was also confiscated, the affidavit said.

Before this week, neither patrolmen had had any noteworthy
disciplinary problems, nor had they received any commendations for
good work, Garrett said.

He said that since the arrests, the department has confiscated all of
the equipment issued to the officers, including their guns and police cruisers.

Garrett said preventing police corruption is partly the
responsibility of those in charge and that he plans to discuss with
supervisors ways to avert further problems.

On Thursday morning, Garrett spoke with Capt. Dewayne Hill, who has
been the 3rd Precinct's acting commander since late last year.
Thursday was the officers' squad's usual day off, but they will be
briefed on the situation when they return to work, Garrett said.

He said the squad should be relieved that Porter and Brooks have been
suspended, because their actions have brought embarrassment and
discredit to the department. However, it wasn't easy for officers to
arrest two of their own, Garrett said.

"We do have compassion for them," he said.