BEXAR DEPUTY NABBED IN DRUG BUST

An off-duty Bexar County sheriff's deputy was arrested Monday on two
felony drug charges after fellow officers reported spotting him buying
illicit drugs on the Northeast Side.

Authorities said they believe Michael John Hernandez, 25, intended to
sell 12 grams of methamphetamines and 7 grams of cocaine inside the
jail, where he is assigned.

The arresting officers had been trailing Hernandez for about a week
after receiving a tip accusing him of smuggling drugs inside the facility.

A dismayed Ruben C. Garcia, deputy chief for criminal investigations,
said: "It's hard arresting one of your own. One of the things we can't
teach our officers is integrity."

Garcia said he believed the arrest would "further" the agency's
ongoing investigation into other drug smuggling operations but
declined to elaborate on how serious a problem drugs have become
inside the 1,800-inmate county jail.

Charged with two counts of possession with intent to deliver, the
14-month employee, who completed his mandatory one-year probation
period in December, was being held at the jail Tuesday evening in lieu
of bonds totaling $50,000.

He is being placed on administrative leave without
pay.

Garcia said the jail guard was making small talk with investigators
but so far was refusing to discuss the allegations against him.

Hernandez, who worked an overnight shift, would have faced more
serious charges had he been arrested with drugs while entering the
jail, Garcia said.

However, officers with the Special Crimes and Narcotic Unit believed
it would not have been prudent to wait.

"It was a judgment call," Garcia said.

Hernandez is being held at the infirmary for his own protection.