RELATIVES ATTEMPT TO STAY STOIC

With grim faces and stiff backs, family members and friends of four accused
San Antonio police officers came to court on Monday wearing their hearts on
their sleeves.

Wives, mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, lifelong friends and even
some children turned out to stand behind the officers, who are accused of
providing protection for sham drug deals orchestrated by undercover agents
in an FBI sting.

The bond hearing for Peter Saenz, Arthur Gutierrez Jr., Lawrence Bustos and
Manuel Cedillo drew more than 100 relatives, colleagues and friends to the
federal courthouse.

Less than half could fit inside the tiny courtroom where U.S. Magistrate
John Pomomo heard testimony to decide whether the four officers would be
released from jail while their cases are pending.

Bond hearings are scheduled today for eight other defendants — San Antonio
Police Sgt. Conrad Fragozo Jr.; Police Officers Patrick Bowron, Alfred
Valdes and David Anthony Morales; Bexar County Deputy Sheriff Richard
Rowlett Buchanan; former Bexar County Deputy Constable Gilbert Andrade Jr.;
and civilians Edward Fragozo and Albert Mata.

Monday's event was a typical federal court bond hearing, marked by the
formality and decorum that the officers likely witnessed numerous times
during their years on the police force. But this time, the officers were at
the defense table.

Prosecutors showed undercover video which, they said, showed the officers
engaged in what they believed were drug transactions. The prosecutors added
that several officers have admitted their roles in the drug scheme.

Some of the videos were dark and grainy, but others were clear, appearing
to show the officers swigging beers or Cokes, flashing pistols and
pocketing cash offered by undercover agents. Sometimes the officers joked
and laughed with the undercover agents about the deals they apparently had
just done.

For their relatives, it was a tough day. They jammed shoulder to shoulder
into the stuffy courtroom, hugging each other for support and fanning
themselves with scraps of paper as the videos rolled on for 20 minutes.
Faces were glum, but there were few tears.

Afterward, family members said the government's evidence didn't dampen
support for their loved ones.

"I love my brother," said SAPD Sgt. Frank Cedillo, called to testify on
behalf of his brother Manuel Cedillo. "I'll always love my brother. We've
gone through so many crises together."

Tears flowed at the start of the afternoon, when the defendants first
stepped into the courtroom wearing jailhouse garb — white or blue tops and
loose white pants, plus identifying orange bands around their wrists.

Warned in advance not to try to communicate with the defendants, even
through eye contact, family members still occasionally exchanged glances
with the officers as they sat with attorneys in the front of the room.

The defendants themselves were stoic for most of the proceeding, showing
little emotion until the end, when Cedillo appeared to wipe away tears as
witnesses testified on his behalf.

Saenz's sister, Suzette, clung to a picture of her brother and a rosary as
the officer's wife, Melissa Reyna, took the stand.

Reyna held back tears as she described the dozens of relatives and friends
she has contacted, all of whom were willing to make financial pledges to
win her husband's release from custody.

They have been common-law husband and wife for seven years, but are
planning a church wedding April 7, Reyna said.

"We are married, but we want to validate our marriage," she said.

Denise Bustos, wife of Lawrence Bustos, described her husband as an
excellent father, a dedicated provider and a workaholic who was so
mild-mannered he seldom even would raise his voice to her or the children.

But her voice turned almost inaudible under cross-examination, when she
acknowledged the figure on one videotape was her husband, dressed in his
Air Force Reserve uniform during what appeared to be a sham drug
transaction last September.

She acknowledged that she was shocked to find herself in court, with her
spouse accused of drug trafficking charges.

"Yes," Denise Bustos said, holding back her tears. "Very much so."