DRUG CASE HAUNTS LATINO APPOINTEE

A week that started on a high note for Paterson Latino activist Juan
A. Torres ended on a low one.

Torres was named by the county's ruling Democrats early this week as
their top choice to become personnel director of Passaic County
government. The $59,000 job would make him the highest-ranking Latino
among the county's 2,400 employees.

By Friday, however, the 49-year-old Torres was facing questions by the
county freeholders about why he had not disclosed an arrest for drug
possession in 1993. The case was dismissed in Paterson court.

In interviews both Thursday and Friday, he denied the
arrest.

According to the Municipal Court, Torres was arrested July 17, 1993,
on a charge of drug possession later downgraded to a disorderly
persons offense. The case went to Municipal Court, where it was
dismissed 11 months later, the court administrator said Friday.

Shortly after the arrest, an article in a local newspaper said police
alleged they saw Torres drop a bag of heroin at Governor and Summer
streets. While Torres would not comment, the article quoted City
Councilwoman Maria Magda, a longtime political ally, saying that
Torres was with his mechanic fixing his car when police found heroin
nearby and arrested him.

Democratic freeholders, who hold a board majority, planned to hire
Torres at the next meeting in March. They said Friday they had not
known of the arrest, and are looking into it.

"I was unaware of it," Freeholder Lois Cuccinello said. "I'm going to
be discussing this with Mr. Torres to see if it has any merit. We'll
be reviewing it, absolutely."

Cuccinello added that the freeholders should be cautious in judging
Torres, considering the case was dismissed.

But some Republican freeholders, who had earlier questioned Torres'
qualifications, said that now they will definitely not support him.

GOP Freeholder Michael Mecca said Torres should have disclosed his
arrest to the freeholders.

"If he didn't think this was important for the freeholder board to
know, I think it's a disgrace," Mecca said. "This is a department
head; this is not a guy or woman that has a job for $20,000 or $21,000."

Torres would not discuss the matter. He twice said he had never been
arrested, even after he was informed that the arrest was on record at
Municipal Court.

"I'm not going to dignify any of this garbage," Torres
said.

His campaign manager in the city's 5th Ward council race said later
that Torres had evidently had the mistaken impression that the arrest
record had been expunged. People who have been been arrested or
convicted can seek a court order to have the record sealed from the
public. It's not clear whether Torres ever sought such a court order.

The campaign manager, Jerry Luis Rosado, said police made a mistake
when they charged Torres with possession. He added that Torres' record
speaks for itself: "He's a clean-cut individual, a family man, a
public servant who's helped his community all his life."

Torres is a board member of the Hispanic Multipurpose Center, a large
social-service agency in Paterson, of which Magda is director. Magda
is backing a bid Torres also is making for a City Council seat this
spring.