THE WHOLE STORY

I would like to comment on an article that appeared in the Lubbock
Avalanche-Journal on April 24 and the Amarillo Daily News on April 25,
concerning the Tulia drug busts and subsequent tax increase.

It contained a statement made by me to Avalanche-Journal reporter
Linda Kane, who contacted me for comment. I was quoted accurately up
to a point, but perhaps the most important part of my statement was
omitted, giving readers a false sense of where I stand.

I believe strongly that everyone is innocent until proven guilty
beyond a reasonable doubt. It appears to me that if jurors are willing
to convict a person based on his or her background, as one juror
publicly stated, then the background of the only witness to the
alleged crime should certainly be taken into account.

I have nothing but the utmost respect for Swisher County Sheriff Larry
Stewart, both as a man and as a law enforcement officer. I do not
believe that he compromised his principles in any way before, during
or after the 1999 drug busts. But the question remains: Was undercover
officer Tom Coleman's background thoroughly investigated before he was
hired by Swisher County?

Ms. Kane wrote that I understood why it was necessary to raise taxes
(to cover the cost of the trials). I was ignorant of the fact that our
taxes had been raised for that reason. She asked if I would mind if my
taxes were raised in order to get drugs and drug dealers off the
streets. I said I wouldn't mind at all, if the evidence was airtight
and everything was done properly - but was it?

This is the way my statement to Ms. Kane should have appeared in the
article:

"As far as getting the drugs off the streets, they (drugs and drug
dealers) need to be out of here and away from my kids. If I can pay a
few extra dollars in taxes to get them out of here, that's fine, as
long as no one is railroaded and no one's constitutional rights are
violated in the name of the drug war."

PENNY McCLURG,
Tulia