BREAD CRUMBS NEARLY EARN MAN CRIMINAL SENTENCE

BELLEVILLE, IL. - Talk about being left holding the
bag.

A Belleville man charged with possessing drugs that later turned out
to be bread crumbs from his cousin's lunch pleaded guilty so he could
get out of jail and avoid losing his new job at Granite City Steel.

On Tuesday, a judge dismissed the charge after lab results delivered
minutes before James McClain's sentencing hearing revealed what was
really in the plastic bag that police found in his coat pocket
following a traffic stop Feb. 14.

``I told them that there wasn't any drugs, but they didn't believe
me,'' McClain said.

McClain, 33, was wearing a coat borrowed from a cousin who later told
him the bag contained the remnants of a sandwich.

He spent 18 days in jail worried that he would lose his job before
agreeing to plead guilty. He did not have $2,500 to make bond and
hoped entering the plea would lead to a speedy resolution of the case.

At the sentencing hearing, Chief Judge Stephen Kernan lambasted
McClain's lawyer, Herb Lantz, for allowing McClain to plead guilty.
But Lantz said he did the best he could.

``I had no reason to believe it wasn't drugs,'' Lantz said. ``He was
in jail, had a new job and wanted to get out.''

McClain, who managed to keep his job, said everyone should go easier
on his lawyer.

``I blame St. Clair County and the Fairmont City Police. If they are
going to charge me with having a controlled substance, they should
have checked it. It's not Mr. Lantz's fault,'' McClain said.