`I JUST WANTED TO GET AHOLD OF MY KIDS'

12 In Texas Free After Years In Jail On Just Agent's Word

Judge Urges Appeals Court To Overturn Convictions

TULIA, Texas - After as much as four years behind bars, 12 people
imprisoned in a drug bust that brought cries of racism in this Texas
Panhandle town were freed Monday by a judge who said they were railroaded
by a white undercover agent.

"I got something to smile about today," Freddie Brookins said after the
release of his son, Freddie Jr. "It's been a lot of hard work that's gone
into this."

The 11 black defendants and one white defendant were released on bail while
they await a ruling by the state's highest criminal appellate court, which
ordered evidentiary hearings last year. A special prosecutor has said he
will dismiss all charges if the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals grants them
new trials. The judge has recommended the appeals court overturn all
convictions.

The racially charged case tore apart this town of 5,000 people and led to
investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and the Texas Attorney
General's office.

A bill passed by the Legislature and signed by Gov. Rick Perry two weeks
ago allowed them to be released until a decision was made on their cases.

"There are a great number of people who have a great deal of time, effort
and faith in each of you invested," state Judge Ron Chapman said in
ordering the 12 released. Chapman was brought out of retirement to preside
over a review of the case.

"We have good people here in Tulia," 26-year-old Freddie Brookins Jr. said
as he walked free after serving four years of a 20-year sentence. "There's
no doubt about it; we have great people here in Tulia."

A 13th defendant, Daniel Olivarez, 22, will remain in custody because he
faces a drug charge in another county. A 14th defendant, Cash Love,
included in the bill signed by the governor was ineligible for bail because
his conviction in the case is tied up in a separate appeal.

Love's wife, Kizzie White, 26, was among those freed. "I just wanted to get
ahold of my kids," she said of 6-year-old Cashawn and 9-year-old Roneisha.

The undercover agent, Tom Coleman, who worked for a regional drug task
force, has been indicted on perjury charges.

All 12 were released from the Swisher County Jail on personal recognizance
bonds, meaning they did not have to post any money.

Forty-six people, 39 of them black, were arrested and accused of possessing
cocaine following an 18-month undercover operation. Coleman claimed he
bought drugs from the defendants, but he worked alone and used no audio or
video surveillance. And no drugs or money were found during the arrests.

Thirty-eight defendants were convicted in 1999 and 2000 on Coleman's
uncorroborated word or accepted plea bargains for fear they would get long
prison sentences. In seven other cases, the charges were dismissed. And one
defendant died before his trial.

The rest of the 38 not covered by Monday's release had already been paroled
or released on probation.

In late April, Coleman was indicted on three charges of aggravated perjury
stemming from his testimony during hearings held by Chapman.

In a filing to the appeals court which Chapman signed, Coleman was called
"the most devious, nonresponsive witness this court has witnessed in 25
years on the bench in Texas." He is no longer in law enforcement.

Coleman's "blatant perjury" during the Tulia prosecutions "so undermines
the court's confidence in the validity of the convictions entered in those
cases that it would be a travesty of justice to permit the applicants'
convictions to stand," Chapman told the appeals court.