CORNYN OPENS STATE INVESTIGATION INTO 1999 DRUG BUSTS

AUSTIN (AP)-- With a federal investigation dragging on, Texas Attorney
General John Cornyn has opened a state investigation into a 1999 Tulia drug
bust that civil rights groups say was racially motivated.

"There has been some confusion over whether there even was an ongoing
investigation," Cornyn said. "I became concerned things had gotten bogged
down."

In a letter Monday to R. Alexander Acosta, deputy assistant attorney
general for the U.S. Department of Justice civil rights division, Cornyn
said he told his staff to open an investigation and has asked the Texas
Department of Public Safety to join.

Cornyn said he didn't want to interfere with a federal investigation but
said a state review is needed to see if any Texas laws were broken.

In his letter, Cornyn asked that state investigators be allowed to review
the federal case. A Justice Department spokeswoman would say only that the
federal investigation is still open and declined further comment.

Swisher County authorities arrested 43 people in a drug sting, including 37
blacks. Of those arrested 11 were found guilty and another 17 accepted plea
agreements.

Civil rights groups have vigorously protested the Tulia bust, which brought
national attention and questions about the way the state's drug task forces
conduct investigations.

Many of the cases against black Tulia residents were based solely on the
testimony of officer Tom Coleman, who said he spent 18 months working
undercover to make drug cases against a large portion of the town's black
population.

Coleman worked alone and used no audio or video surveillance. Little or no
corroborating evidence was introduced during the trials. Coleman himself
was charged with theft and abuse of power during the investigation. The
charges against him were later dropped.

The charges against the last defendant were dropped in July.

Jeff Blackburn, an Amarillo attorney who represents several of the Tulia
defendants, said the investigation is long overdue.

"We have demanded an investigation for well over a year now," Blackburn
said. "However, it's one thing to investigate, it's another to take real
action. And Mr. Cornyn is in a position to take action. His office needs to
take over these cases and see to it that some justice finally starts
getting done."

Swisher County Sheriff Larry Stewart and the district attorney, Terry
McEachern, have denied allegations of racial bias and stand by the arrests
and convictions. So has Coleman, who no longer works in law enforcement.

McEachern did not immediately return telephone calls seeking comment.

The case has drawn national media attention in recent weeks with Cornyn
running for U.S. Senate. The Republican said Monday his decision to open an
investigation during his campaign was a coincidence.

"This is part of my job," he said. "I do that regardless of whether I am up
for election or not."

While Cornyn's office investigates the arrests, it also has received a
habeas corpus appeal from one of the Tulia defendants. The attorney
general's office will have the job of defending the state in federal court.

Cornyn said the state investigation shouldn't conflict with the appeal.

"The job of every prosecutor is not merely to convict but to see that
justice is done," Cornyn said. "There is no limitation to finding out what
the facts are."