DEA LIES

Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Mark Nelson falsified records
and lied about it, according to the government's attorney prosecuting John
Dalton, the Redwood Valley, CA man Nelson pursued with a lawless zeal which
has rebounded on him and the DEA. Assistant US Attorney Davis conceded the
truth of the perjury accusations against agent Nelson before Federal Judge
Susan Illston Monday morning at a hearing for "Outrageous Government
Conduct" in the John Dalton marijuana cultivation case. (in San Francisco)
Dalton, pursued by a cadre of local federal agents who believed that Dalton
was getting rich from marijuana plantations on property he owns in the
hills above Branscomb, has been confined to the federal prison at Dublin
for nearly two years awaiting trial on the charges.

Dalton's lawyers, Tony Serra and Shari Greenburger, are seeking dismissal
of all charges against the federal government has brought against John
Dalton because, in the words of Tony Serra, "Nelson's actions where so
outrageous as to shock the conscience."

Nelson's and the DEA's actions also are a jolt to common sense and, if
tolerated by the courts, are a menace to political democracy.

But Monday's confirmation of agent Nelson's errant behavior in his
Ahab-like pursuit of Dalton, was welcomed by the Dalton defense team, who
only learned of it over the weekend; perjury charges will now be added to
the long list of crimes committed by agent Nelson and the DEA in their zeal
to bust the Mendocino County mechanic.

Judge Illston has granted the defense a full evidentiary hearing (virtually
unheard of in a federal drug case) to explore the actions of agent Nelson,
who is alleged to have seduced Dalton's wife, Victoria Horstman, and sworn
her in as a Special Agent of the DEA. Connie Kellerman, a witness in the
case, will testify that Horstman divorced Dalton at the insistence of agent
Nelson "so she could testify against him.," and that agent Nelson,
apparently not content with destroying Dalton's marriage, had also vowed,
"I will do anything, and I mean anything, to get him (Dalton) and send him
to prison for the rest of his life."

Ms. Kellerman has said that on numerous occasions she heard agent Nelson
say "his case against John Dalton was personal and it didn't matter if it
was legal or not," and that Nelson wanted the then-Mrs. Dalton to assist
him to "set him up." Kellerman said Nelson was unusually intent upon this
particular suspect --- the hapless Dalton --- because the Nelson-Horstman
"affair was in fact very sexual."

But before Monday's hearing on Nelson's conduct could begin, Assistant US
Attorney Davis told Judge Illston that agent Nelson had falsified the
September 14, 1994 date on Horstman's fingerprint card, changing the date
to September 17, 1994. Defense attorney Serra explained the significance
of the forgery to the judge, telling her that not only did Nelson
"intentionally insert the wrong date," he later lied about it in a sworn
affidavit that was part of an Internal Affairs investigation into his and
Horstman's torrid affair. Davis admitted he'd changed the date on the
document and had subsequently lied about it to his superiors.

The mildly disbelieving Judge Illston commented, "You're telling me your
witness committed perjury. I'm very concerned about this; he's a
government agent."

Federal attorney Davis did not challenge the judge's remarks at the time,
but later complained it was unfair of the judge to characterize Nelson as a
perjurer before he has been convicted of the charge.

The judge then rhetorically asked why Nelson would do such a thing?

Serra replied, "He's hiding his rendezvous with Horstman at the 'Safe
House'." The "Safe House," a Ukiah house supposedly devoted to stamping out
marijuana, was also known as the COMMET House, and is believed to be the
site where agent Nelson, himself a married man, first seduced Dalton's
wife, Victoria Horstman. Later, Nelson would have Horstman call him when
Dalton was out of the house so he could search it and place a recording
device under Dalton and Horstman's marital bed.

But Nelson's "alleged" perjury short-circuited the hearing on Outrageous
Government Conduct, which has been rescheduled for today (Wednesday). Agent
Nelson now has his own lawyer who is likely to advise his client to invoke
the protection of the 5th Amendment to deflect questions concerning his
"alleged" affair with Horstman. Judge Illston granted the delay to give
Nelson and his new lawyer time to discuss agent Nelson's looming testimony.

If Nelson does take the 5th, that leaves only Horstman who can testify to
the sexual nature of the affair. Although Horstman has told her friend
Connie Kellerman about her and Nelson's strenuous, and apparently gymnastic
encounters, their encounters are hearsay, legally speaking.

Serra pointed out that Horstman's veracity is questionable at best,
something even the government recognized when they removed her from their
witness list.

"Horstman is way, way in left field," Serra told the judge. "Then she's way
out in right field. Frankly your honor, I don't know how she will testify."

Serra was referring to the many contradictory statements about the case,
both verbally and in writing, Horstman has made. Judge Illston got a
first-hand look at how bold Horstman's lies can be recently when Horstman
called Serra to say she was in the judge's chambers and that Judge Illston
said she didn't have to testify. Horstman went on to inform the startled
attorney that the judge had vacated the court date. Horstman even claimed
she had surreptitiously recorded her conversation with the judge.

Monday's hearing was the first time the judge had ever seen or spoken to
the former Mrs. Dalton. Since neither Nelson nor Horstman can be trusted
to tell the truth, the government has dropped them --- the two primary
witnesses against Dalton --- from their witness list. But if the case goes
to trial, Dalton's defense will call them as hostile witnesses.

If the nullification of their primary witnesses is not ironic enough, the
government now says they plan to have someone very familiar to Tony Serra
and Mendocino County residents testify Wednesday on agent Nelson's behalf.
Former Mendocino County Sheriff's Department deputy Dennis Miller will
testify for the prosecution, most likely about a domestic disturbance call
he responded to originating with Horstman who, at the time, was still
married to, and living with, John Dalton.

If Miller testifies to what is in his report of the incident, the court
will learn that Horstman called the Sheriff's Department to report John
Dalton had beaten her. But when Miller responded to the couple's Redwood
Valley home, he found Horstman with a baseball bat in her hand and Dalton
with a very large knot on his head. Miller was aware that Horstman was
working for the DEA at the time of the domestic dispute, and, contrary to
Sheriff's Department policy on domestic violence, did not arrest Horstman
for assault. Neither did he arrest Dalton. But, given the fluid nature of
Dennis Miller's testimony in the Bear Lincoln trial, where he attempted to
explain away his constantly changing versions of events by saying he had
had a "recovered memory experience," any elaboration beyond what is in his
report will be viewed with extreme skepticism by Serra, who was Lincoln's
attorney in that trial.

The government's strategy now appears to be to paint Dalton as an abusive
husband, though what this has to do with growing pot is unclear. Besides
Miller, the government's witness list for Wednesday now includes a
psychiatrist who has evaluated Horstman. The psychiatrist is said to be
prepared to testify that Horstman, who was sexually abused by her father,
is suffering from "battered woman syndrome." It's unclear how the
psychiatrist will place responsibility for Horstman's present state of
mental disarray on Dalton and not her father. Perhaps the psychiatrist is
unaware of Connie Kellerman's sworn declaration that: "(Nelson) would tell
Victoria in front of me on numerous occasions to call the cops anytime she
could on Dalton to 'set him up, accuse him of beating you etc., because
it's a felony.' I have personally witnessed Victoria Horstman cause
selfinflicted wounds to her face, neck, and arm, and then call the police
and claim John Dalton did it."

We will have a full account of Dalton's hearing to dismiss all charges
against him because of outrageous government conduct next week.