QUESTIONS: TASK FORCE, TEENS, ALCOHOL AND DRUGS

Roy Parrish was working for the police, but he didn't act like it.

While cooperating with the Hays County Narcotics Task Force -- a joint
effort of the San Marcos Police and Hays County Sheriff's Departments -- on
a four month marijuana investigation in Wimberley, the informant frequently
threw huge parties at his Task Force financed hotel room, supplying booze
and barbecue, often to minors.

At least that's the accusation raised in a recent Texas Observer article on
the May 24 shooting death of 25-year-old Alexander "Rusty" Windle -- a
Wimberley resident killed during the Task Force's raid of over a dozen
homes that night. The comments have raised eyebrows around San Marcos, a
town that, earlier that month, committed another task force to aggressively
enforce underage drinking laws.

Though he checked into cabin number 14 at the 7-A Ranch resort in Wimberley
under the name Roger Dalton, court records related to the March 24 roundup
confirm Parrish as the Task Force's confidential informant and place him in
the room from where he made numerous drug buys.

Kasia Zinz, a secretary at the resort, told the Daily Record his loud
parties were the source of frequent complaints -- Parrish disappeared
before the sting owing the resort over $100 -- and the management was
considering evicting him.

"It was free reign," Zinz said. "No matter what age you were, there was
always beer in the fridge and whiskey on the counter. He (Parrish) was a
hypocrite because there wasn't one time I didn't see the man when he wasn't
looped."

Zinz, who was also arrested in the drug sting, said she knew the minors
from Wimberley and that some were as young as 14.

Other employees at the quiet resort confirm Parrish stuck out like a sore
thumb. Frequently inebriated, resort management said his parties were the
center of attention for scores of area teens.

"There was a tremendous amount of traffic and it was all teenagers all
going to his cabin," said one manager who, out of fear of Parrish -- she
has since learned of his criminal record -- asked not to be identified. "I
never would have thought this guy was working for our law enforcement," the
manager said. "It seems like an informant would need to be sober."

The article, recently reprinted in other Central Texas publications,
brought the accusations to the attention of local drug policy reform
activist Harvey Ginsburg, and he's hopping mad. During public comment, he
brought the issue to the attention of the San Marcos City Council last
night.

"Is it right or wrong for police to provide alcohol to a minor, it's
wrong," said Ginsburg, a psychology professor at Southwest Texas State
University. "If you can't say that, I will consider doing my civic duty and
propose a 'non binding' ballot initiative resolution to allow local voters
to say it...if they won't," Ginsburg said previously, "that says something
about the character of this 'zero tolerance' town."

Council did not comment on the matter, and because it was not an official
agenda item, no action was taken.

Ginsburg has some experience bringing controversial issues before voters.
In 1997 he spearheaded an initiative asking the San Marcos Police
Department to "turn its head" to the medicinal smoking of marijuana. He
succeeded in getting the proposition on the ballot, but not in passing it.
Voters denied it two to one.

Even if Zinz's allegations are true -- Task Force officials say they have
no "verifiable knowledge" that they are -- it's not likely that city or
county funds were used to purchase the alcohol as each entity pays for only
the salaries, vehicles, and equipment used by its committed officers. The
city police department pays for five officers, the sheriff's department,
six. A federally funded Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms agent rounds out the
core 12 member unit.

The rest of the task force's operating expenses come from asset forfeitures
- -- currency, vehicles, weapons, even real estate associated with illegal
activity and awarded by a court of law after a drug bust. While twenty-five
percent of these drug-related assets go to the district attorney's office,
the rest is divided between SMPD and the county sheriff's department for
Task Force investigative expenses.

An earlier Hays County Narcotics Task Force disbanded after a five year run
in 1994 because these asset forfeiture funds were "kind of drying up" said
then sheriff Paul Hastings. The Task Force was reorganized in June 1998
under new leadership: sheriff Don Montague and police chief Steve Griffith.

Though whether Parrish provided alcohol to minors with this money is
unclear, Task Force Commander Regis DeArza says the world of illegal drug
trade is rife with unsavory behavior, the least of which may be underage
drinking. Confidential informants provide law enforcement with a link to
that world.

"Using these people (informants), we try to take every precaution we can,"
said DeArza, a 27 year veteran of the Department of Public Safety. "In many
cases we're dealing with somebody who has a questionable background to
begin with."

According to state DPS records, Parrish was an ex-con who had served
separate two year prison sentences for burglary and drug possession. Though
the exact terms under which Parrish was retained are not available, all
informants are required to sign "cooperating agreements" with the Task
Force in which, among other things, they agree not to violate any laws in
the gathering of information. Depending on the quality of their
information, they may be given reward money from asset forfeiture funds, or
may negotiate with the district attorney for lighter sentences.

"We're certainly not going to knowingly ply alcohol to a minor to get them
to go do something, that's just not reality," DeArza said. "But in that
kind of environment, it's plausible a minor could be drinking, smoking
marijuana, using methamphetamine, cocaine all those things could be taking
place."

Regardless, Ginsburg believes the under age drinking allegations -- Zinz
has nothing to gain or lose by sticking to her account, he says -- and
wants the city council to put a stop to it. DeArza says he supports any
city council direction on the matter.

In a twist of fate, Ginsburg -- who says his marijuana initiative was
defeated in part by a DEA and Hays Caldwell Council on Alcohol and Drug
Abuse information campaign that told the local business community it would
be hurt by the proposition -- wonders what effect publicity surrounding the
May Task Force shooting will have on San Marcos' and Hays