BEND PAIR SUE OFFICERS AFTER SEARCH

BEND - A couple have filed a federal lawsuit against nine law enforcement
officials, saying they vandalized the couple's trailer home and stole
money, jewelry and auto parts during a drug investigation in October 2000.

In the lawsuit filed earlier this month in U.S. District Court in Portland,
Wayne Roberts and Christy Winters allege members of the Central Oregon Drug
Enforcement Team handcuffed them for seven hours while searching their home
and smashed paint balls on their trailer.

The drug enforcement team includes police and deputies from Crook,
Deschutes and Jefferson counties.

Listed as defendants in the lawsuit are Robert Short, a Deschutes County
sheriff's detective, and eight unnamed law enforcement officers.

Roberts and Winters are seeking unspecified damages from the defendants for
economic losses and emotional distress. Their attorney, Spencer Neal of
Portland, characterized the incident as a situation that flew out of
control. "I'm just mystified why they (the police) did this," he said.

Jim Soules, the police chief in Prineville and chairman of the committee
that oversees the drug task force, declined to comment on the lawsuit,
except to say the agencies' attorneys and insurance carrier were reviewing it.

Soules also confirmed that an internal investigation of the incident had
been done but would not comment on what it found.

None of the police agencies for whom the officers work is named in the suit.

"I'm assuming a lot of the things these officers did were not authorized by
their agency. This amounts to vandalism," Neal said.

According to the complaint, the travel trailer was parked on U.S. Bureau of
Land Management property in rural Deschutes County east of Bend on Oct. 6,
2000. The drug team allegedly came to the trailer while serving a search
warrant on the owner of adjacent private land.

The suit says after handcuffing them, the officers arrested Roberts and
Winters on drug accusations. Roberts was also accused of being a felon in
possession of a firearm.

Neal says all charges against his clients were later dismissed. The
Deschutes County district attorney's office confirmed there are no criminal
charges pending against either person.