APPEALS COURT TOSSES OUT SENTENCING OF TULIA DRUG DEFENDANT

The 7th Court of Appeals in Amarillo tossed out the sentencing of one
of the defendants convicted in the controversial 1999 Tulia drug sting
last week.

Kizzie Rashawn White, serving a 25-year sentence after being convicted
on seven charges, will face a new sentencing hearing after the appeals
court reversed the sentencing on one of her convictions Wednesday.

"I want to take my hat off to the 7th Court of Appeals for at least
stepping up and saying this is obviously incorrect sentencing," said
White's attorney, Ron Spriggs. "We argued they should have gone
further and tossed out the conviction, but at least we're halfway there now."

The appeals court ruled that the state didn't meet its burden of proof
in arguing for enhancement on one of the seven charges that White was
tried for, but affirmed sentencing on the other six and rejected the
appeal of the convictions on all charges.

Enhancement is a technique where a narcotics charge against a
defendant can be enhanced one felony degree if it occurred within
1,000 feet of a school or playground.

White was convicted on six counts of delivery of a controlled
substance, with three of the charges enhanced.

She was also convicted on one count of delivery of marijuana in a
drug-free zone. She was given sentences between one and 25 years,
which were ordered to be served concurrently.

In the case in question, White was charged with delivery of a
controlled substance within 1,000 feet of the Tulia Community Nursery
Association Head Start. At trial, undercover agent Tom Coleman didn't
testify to the precise location where he allegedly bought drugs from
White, voiding the jury's decision that it happened within 1,000 feet
of a school or playground, the court ruled.

Because all seven of White's charges were tried together, sentencing
for all of them must be done again, Spriggs said.

District Attorney Terry McEachern, who represented the state in
White's trial, characterized the ruling as a minor setback. He pointed
out that White's convictions all were upheld and the sentencing in all
but one case was affirmed by the appeals court.

"Obviously I'm disappointed, because I think it was a technicality and
it should have been caught by me," McEachern said. "I take full
responsibility. But we'll have another sentencing hearing, present the
case again and I'm sure the result will be largely the same."

Due to the length of her original sentence, White will remain in
prison awaiting a new sentencing hearing, McEachern said.