EX-COP GUILTY OF STEALING DRUG MONEY

A Mobile County Circuit Court jury Monday found a former city police
officer of the year guilty of stealing $4,960 in drug investigation
money entrusted to him, and he now faces as much as 20 or more years
in prison.

Former officer Rodney Patrick will appeal the conviction, according
to John Wayne Boone, one of his two defense attorneys. He labeled the
conviction "unreal," saying that Patrick was prosecuted for doing his
job.

"It was proved in this trial that the money was spent catching crooks,
getting dope off the street, catching dope dealers," Boone said.

Nicki Patterson, Mobile County chief assistant district attorney, said
that she was both saddened and encouraged by the conviction.

"This is an officer that all of us in our office knew and had worked
with ... and I think anytime a law enforcement officer takes the wrong
turn it's a sad thing for everyone," Patterson said outside the courtroom.

She said it's encouraging that the Police Department's Internal
Affairs division initiated the investigation of Patrick's use of the
drug money and assisted in his conviction.

It took the jury three hours to find Patrick guilty of two counts of
first-degree theft of property and two counts of second-degree theft
of property. He was acquitted of one count of second-degree theft of
property.

Patrick was arrested in January and released the same day on $10,000
bond. He remains free on bond pending his sentencing Jan. 16.

Patrick showed no emotion when the guilty verdict was read. He later
declined comment, referring all questions to Boone.

The trial began Dec. 9 and testimony ended Friday. Circuit Court Judge
Ferrill D. McRae then sent the jurors home instructing them to return
Monday for deliberations.

Patrick was accused of pocketing $950; $2,000; $1,760; $700; and $500.
He was acquitted of stealing the $950, a second-degree theft of
property charge. The thefts occurred between June 2000 and February
2001, prosecutors said.

The money Patrick was ac cused of taking was provided by the Mobile
County Street Enforcement Narcotics Team (MCSENT), the Mobile Police
Department and other area law enforcement agencies.

Mobile police Lt. Christon Dorsey testified earlier in the trial that
between January 2000 and July 2001, Patrick was given a total $26,625
to pay informants and to buy drugs.

Patterson said Monday following the conviction that the $5,910 that
Patrick was charged with stealing was never recovered. The other
$20,715 entrusted to the former officer also has not been properly
accounted for and still is missing, she said.

Patterson said she will decide later whether to pursue additional
charges against Patrick concerning the rest of the money.

Boone and Patrick's other attorney, Rick Williams, maintained
throughout the trial that their client was a good cop who followed
procedure in paying confidential informants for information on dealers
and giving the informants money to purchase drugs in order to expose
the dealers.

Patrick's narcotics undercover work netted about $500,000 worth of
drugs, money and confiscated property, the defense lawyers said.

Ashley Rich, the assistant district attorney who helped Patterson
prosecute the case, said Monday she too was pleased with the outcome
of the trial.

"We do feel sad in some way because of this situation and that we did
have to put a police officer on trial," Rich said. "This case took a
lot of effort on the part of Mobile Police Department."

Rich said she pursued to case as diligently as she would have pursued
a murder case.

"We put our faith and confidence in law enforcement every day," the
assistant district attorney said. "We teach our children that law
enforcement officers are to be respected and revered.

"We put them on a pedestal, so to speak. They have to be accountable
for what they do. And in this particular case Rodney Patrick was
accountable for every thing that he did, and the jury found him guilty."