MAN FALSELY ACCUSED OF DELIVERING DRUG-LACED COOKIES SAYS HIS CHARACTER WAS ASSASSINATED

FORT WORTH -- Christian Phillips said today he wanted nothing more
than to complete his community service when he was accused of
delivering tainted cookies to area police stations.

Mr. Phillips, 18, of Watauga spent 54 hours in jail before tests
confirmed that the chocolate chip cookies left for officers in Lake
Worth and Blue Mound did not show any traces of drugs.

"The emotional toll is staggering," Mr. Phillips said. "There are
points when you feel angry. We are just frustrated with the process.
My dad should know before the media tells him."

Mr. Phillips was arrested Tuesday by Lake Worth officers and charged
with tampering with a consumer product. His bond was set at $75,000.

Lake Worth Police Chief Brett McGuire said he regrets the perception
that police were overzealous in arresting Mr. Phillips.

He said officers had probable cause to make the arrest. Officers in
Blue Mound had reported a strong smell of marijuana coming from the
cookies.

Mr. Phillips was released from jail early Thursday evening after the
Tarrant County medical examiner's office completed tests that showed
no presence of drugs in the cookies.

"I felt like a lot of people made a lot of assumptions about me," Mr.
Phillips said. "A lot of facts were thrown up in the air. I got my
character assassinated. I was telling the truth the whole time."

Mr. Phillips was delivering the cookies as part of a court-approved
community service project with Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

He plans to complete the project but will fulfill that agreement with
another idea.

"He will not deliver cookies," said his attorney L. Patrick Davis.