KEEPING ON TASK

The DPS Will Oversee State Drug Forces Troubled By A
Track Record Of Abuses

Governor Rick Perry has ordered that the Department of Public Safety
begin monitoring the state's 49 narcotics task forces following
allegations that some of the drug teams were little more than
vigilantes run amok. "What the DPS involvement will do is make sure
all the bases have been touched," says Jay Kimbrough, executive
director of the governor's criminal justice division.

Several task forces, especially those in rural areas, have been
accused of gross injustices, specifically the unit working in the
Panhandle. Almost two years ago, the national press grabbed on to the
story there about the tiny town of Tulia, where a task force arrested
more than 10 percent of the city's black population on drug charges.
The charges were based on the unsubstantiated claims of one officer
with a murky past.

Authorities uncovered similar problems last year in Hearne, a town
about 120 miles northwest of Houston (see "Drug Money," by Tim Carman
and Steve McVicker, September 6, 2001).

"Tulia was not an aberration," says Will Harrell, executive director
of the Texas American Civil Liberties Union. "It's happened in every
region of the state. We do think [the order] is finally a step in the
right direction in addressing a problem that's existed for some time.
But [its success] will depend on the actors in the system."

Under the order, which took effect earlier this year, task forces --
which include the Harris County Sheriff's Organized Crime and
Narcotics Task Force -- will be overseen by DPS regional captains. In
the past, such units filed monthly activity reports with the state on
the number of arrests made and the amount of drugs seized. But the DPS
will now play an integral role in the task forces' daily operations.

The new rules require task forces to make regular reports to the DPS
captain and get approval from that official before interrogating
underage informants conducting undercover drug buys and operating
outside their jurisdictions.

According to Harrell, the rules address concerns of civil rights
activists who say these areas are most vulnerable to abuse by task
force officers. For example, the ACLU says there are several cases
where police have illegally questioned minors when their parents were
not present or had not given their permission.

"These are the principal issues, as well as racial profiling," says
Harrell.

The new regulations also call for the DPS to keep closer watch on labs
used by task forces to test suspected drugs.

"Before, we did not necessarily know who was involved in the analysis
and storage of evidence, and we didn't know how secure the evidence
was," says Kimbrough.

The order also creates a DPS database to track task force members.
According to Harrell, injustices often stemmed from the use of
so-called gypsy cops, who make a living moving from one agency to
another, racking up arrests. It was this kind of rogue officer who was
responsible for the arrests in Tulia. Now, a task force will be aware
of an officer's record with other task forces.

"We think the database will be a great benefit in terms of dealing
with negative issues," says Kimbrough. "And conversely, if you've got
a star, you're going to know that too."

Some cities, such as Fort Worth, argue that the new DPS oversight
undermines local authority, although that does not seem to be the case
in the Houston area.

"So far it's been a pretty easy transition," says Lieutenant Rickie
Williams of Harris County's Organized Crime and Narcotics Task Force.
Williams says the task force always followed proper procedures, making
the DPS's involvement a minor issue.

"We've had to reorganize a few things," he says. "But the general
sense is this is a good thing."

The task forces began forming with federal grants in the late 1980s. A
task force could opt not to be monitored by the DPS, but that decision
would lose the unit its federal funding. According to Kimbrough, all
state task forces have signed on.

And while Harrell applauds the governor's order, he warns that the
hunger for federal grants has fostered abuse in the system before.

"They get money from the federal government to make these arrests,"
says Harrell. "They've evolved into highway bandits."

The governor's order, Harrell adds, does not undo the damage created
by the task forces from years past.

"Finally there will be some oversight," he says. "But no one's talking
about the dozens and dozens of people in prison right now who were
caught in unscrupulous drug raids."