SHERIFF BLAMES SLOPPY WORK IN BOTCHED CAMPUS DRUG CASE

Akron -- The Summit County Drug Unit will be more closely supervised
and work under tightened procedures, Sheriff Drew Alexander said
Wednesday, after an investigation of a 2004 undercover operation at
the University of Akron.

The office reviewed the case of Charles Plinton, 25, a graduate
student who was arrested and charged with selling marijuana. A jury
acquitted him in August 2004. Plinton was suspended from school for a
semester but never returned. He committed suicide last December.

Alexander said the unit did not follow departmental policies. He said
Plinton's case showed that every investigation is important, whether
it involves a minor marijuana sale or a major operation.

"Bottom line, we did sloppy police work," he said. "There is nothing
I can do to go back and fix that case, but I can make sure it never
happens again."

Alexander said he still believes enough probable cause existed to
indict Plinton, who had an alibi for the times he was accused of
selling marijuana.

"The way it was presented at trial, it was sloppy, and I don't blame
any jury for finding him not guilty," Alexander said. "The system worked."

A University of Akron police officer, who was also a member of the
drug unit, suggested doing a drug investigation on campus, according
to the report, prepared by Sheriff's Inspector Keith Thornton. More
than 200 campus complaints had been received between January 2001 and
February 2004.

After attempts by undercover officers and off-campus informants were
unsuccessful, an undercover drug informant - who had made buys for
the drug unit since October 2003 - was placed in a dorm room in
February 2004, the report said. The university police officer supervised him.

The informant, wearing a transmitter, paid a total of $90 to buy
marijuana from a man named Mark on March 3 and 11. The officer
witnessed the purchases. But neither was able to identify Mark from
photos of men who had been arrested before. The informant later
provided a video from a nearby dormitory, and the men agreed that
Mark was Plinton.

A University of Akron sergeant, who said Plinton told him after he
was arrested on April 24 that he was selling marijuana for a friend,
did not type up or submit his report until July 28, a week before
Plinton's trial.

The sheriff's report released Wednesday says that reports on the drug
buys and the attempts to identify Mark lacked detail and credibility.
The quality of the recordings was poor.

As part of the reforms, all drug cases will be reviewed regularly by
supervisors. The Sheriff's Office will buy better digital recording
devices, and everyone involved in an undercover operation will fill
out reports.

"Rules and regulations are your Bible in police work," Alexander
said. "We can't take shortcuts."