TEX. LAWMAKERS PASS DRUG CONVICTIONS BILL

AUSTIN, Texas - Thirteen mostly black people sent to prison in a
drug case built on testimony by a now-discredited undercover agent
will be freed if Gov. Rick Perry signs a bill unanimously approved
Wednesday by the Texas House.

The legislation, unanimously approved by the Senate two weeks ago,
would allow the inmates to be released before they are officially exonerated.

Perry had not seen the legislation Wednesday but ``the principle
behind the bill is one the governor supports,'' spokesman Gene Acuna
said. This month Perry asked the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to
immediately review their cases.

The inmates -- 11 of whom are black -- were among dozens of mostly
black residents in the predominantly white town of Tulia convicted in
1999 and 2000 on the uncorroborated testimony of a single undercover
agent, Tom Coleman. The 13 are the only ones still imprisoned.

Coleman, who is white, is no longer in law enforcement and was
indicted in April on charges of lying about the arrests at evidentiary
hearings.

``In this case all the parties agree that the case presented against
these people who are in prison was rife with inconsistencies,'' said
Rep. Terry Keel, who sponsored the bill. ``Perjury was committed in
their convictions.''

The measure would allow the inmates to be freed on bond until their
cases are considered by Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, which could
take up to two years to act, Keel said.