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PROSECUTOR SAYS TACTICS IMPROVED; DEFENSE ATTORNEYS QUESTION METHODS, TARGETS

The Drug Task Force is perhaps the most covert law enforcement unit in the
1st Judicial District, but its agents make some of the bigger splashes in
the courts, local jails and state prisons.

Most law-abiding residents of Carter, Johnson, Unicoi and Washington
counties have no contact with the DTF and only know about the agency
because its leader and other law enforcement officials often hold news
conferences to tout the latest bust. The agents do not drive cars with a
DTF decal on the side, and, unlike most police forces, this group's
headquarters is not advertised.

But for those people who have been charged with selling drugs and those who
work in the court system, the DTF is a well-known entity. Whether it be a
run-of-the-mill street deal or a major distribution operation from another
part of the country into Northeast Tennessee, there is a good chance a DTF
agent will be a witness in the case's prosecution.

An organization with such an impact naturally will have its supporters, but
it will have its critics as well.

"I don't like some of the things that they do, but it starts on an
institutional level," said Jim Bowman, a defense lawyer who insists his
views are not directed at officers personally. "Recognizing that this is a
districtwide organization, my perception is in a lot of cases, there's not
some overall policy that's being followed."

Counter that with the opinion of District Attorney General Joe Crumley, who
says the agency has improved quite a bit since he ordered a number of
changes in its operation three years ago. He said the quality of the
recordings of drug transactions and the paperwork done by the agents have
improved.

Crumley is particularly pleased with the work the DTF has conducted in
Johnson County, where agents have put together cases about methamphetamine
labs and heroin that are big enough to interest federal prosecutors, who
can seek stiffer sentences in the federal system.

One of the most common complaints is the DTF arrests people whose deals
involve a relatively small amount of drugs or who are simply selling to
support their own addiction. Stacy Street, another defense lawyer, said the
DTF should spend its time pursuing dealers who sell to minors and those at
the top of the distribution chain.

Crumley had many of the same sentiments three years ago when he said, "I
would rather prosecute one big drug pusher who is getting rich at the
expense of our community than to prosecute three addicts who are selling
small amounts of drugs simply to support their habit. My goal is to see
more investigations that will take down a whole operation."

The DTF has responded by working with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency
and nabbing some bigger fish. Three weeks ago, the DTF used a search
warrant to obtain powder cocaine estimated to be worth more than $200,000.

About a year ago, the DTF was confronted with an influx of newcomers from
North Carolina who were selling drugs and committing other crimes.
Officials now believe that operation is essentially out of business because
many of the people involved are now in federal custody and the rest have
left town.

While agents are delving into larger operations, that cannot be their sole
focus, Crumley said.

"The problem is you can't ignore the small deal," he said. "You can't
ignore the car wash (on Belmont Street) and Wilson Avenue."

Bowman is highly critical of the informants the DTF uses and the role they
play in planning a deal. Many drug deals consist of an informant wearing a
hidden microphone and making the transaction while an agent listens nearby.

The downside to this system, Bowman said, is that the DTF will rely on the
informant to decide who should be the next target. He compares that to the
federal government, which has in mind who it wants to pursue.

"They decide who to investigate versus the DTF, who asks you who you can
buy drugs from," Bowman said.

He said there are problems with some people the DTF uses for informants.
They steal money from the organization, hit the trail after the deal or
commit crimes that make them unusable witnesses. He said the organization's
procedures for monitoring informants is "abysmal."

"Their snitch program almost makes a mockery of drug enforcement," Bowman said.

Crumley said there is a reason for using informants.

"Sometimes it is distasteful because they might be setting up their
competition or are motivated by thoughts of revenge," he said. "But we have
no choice but to use informants. That's how we find out who's selling."

The prosecutor agrees "to a certain extent" that the informant is picking
the next seller, but he said that person knows from whom he can buy drugs.
He said the DTF might say it has its eyes on someone but the informant
might respond, "I don't know him." And if that is the case, it is unlikely
the drug deal will go through, he said.

Three years ago, Crumley was upset with some of the informants the DTF used
and instituted a policy that required the organization to clear a person
with one of his prosecutors before he could be used. He said prosecutors
try to pay close attention to a potential informant's criminal record and
the reason he wants to work with the DTF. If the person has a record of
theft or dishonesty, Crumley said he is not interested in him because that
will pose problems if the case goes to trial and the informant has to testify.

But if someone wants to be an informant because he has seen the effects of
drugs and wants to "get it out of the community," Crumley is interested. He
said some informants get clearance for the limited purpose of introducing a
DTF agent into a drug network. He said it is not possible for the DTF to
always forgo using someone as an informant who has a criminal record.

If an informant is part of the transaction, he is searched by agents,
Crumley said.

Street does not think the DTF should use informants but if the organization
is going to operate with them, they should be used against big-time drug
dealers.

Bowman has another beef with the seizure laws associated with drug cases.
In addition to the obvious confiscation of money and drugs directly
associated with a deal, agents can seize other items they believe were
obtained with drug proceeds.

But Bowman said there are a few problems with the law. First of all, he
said, a person can contest the seizure and recover the property but has to
pay $350 for a hearing and possibly hire a lawyer. As a result, a person
might have a "legitimate claim" but cannot afford to pursue it, he said.

The amount of items DTF agents take in a seizure is another issue. Bowman
cited one case in which agents took most of the items in a house, only to
be ordered to return them.

Crumley considers most of the seizures by DTF to be "rational," but said he
has seen some cases in which he has questioned the items collected. He said
there was a case involving the Sullivan County DTF in which an agent took a
deer head from a wall.

Bowman said there is also a "popular perception" sheriffs and police chiefs
in the 1st District send troublesome deputies and officers to the DTF.
Crumley said that used to be the case "years ago" but believes that does
not happen now. He believes the agents who work with DTF want to work for
the agency and their bosses believe they will do a good job there.

The well-publicized raid of The Weed, a bar on Claude Simmons Road, in 2000
is a source for another complaint from Bowman. In that case, the DTF used
the Washington County Sheriff's Department's Special Weapons and Tactics
Team to enter the business and put everyone on the ground before agents
entered to serve a search warrant. The state Court of Appeals, in a ruling
dealing with a defense request to suppress evidence in that case,
criticized the SWAT team's actions.

Bowman, who represented the defendant, Jack Roger Norton, said the response
he has heard from public officials is that they would take the same
approach again.

"There seems to be an attitude that if it's a drug case, it's OK to act in
that manner, and you got a court decision that says it's not OK," he said.
"I think that attitude comes from the war-on-drugs mentality, and it's
going to get someone hurt."

Overall, Crumley said he is pleased with the way DTF is operating these
days but said the unit always will face challenges in penetrating drug
networks, particularly in Unicoi County because its small population makes
it harder to infiltrate with an outsider. He also said dealers are smart,
too, knowing, for example, that they need to keep a cocaine sale at less
than one-half gram because that is the dividing point between different
grades of felonies.

Street contends the DTF will always have a tough row to hoe and will not be
able to end the drug trade in Northeast Tennessee.

"I think all in all, they intend to do a good job," he said. "(But) they're
fighting a losing battle."