UNDERCOVER AGENT PROUD OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN DRUG STING

While opponents of a Tulia drug bust still maintain it was
discriminatory, the undercover agent involved in the sting says he is
proud of what he accomplished and expects to be proven right in the
end.

The 1999 Panhandle bust prompted an investigation by the U.S. Justice
Department. The bust in which 46 people _ 40 of whom were black _
were arrested brought national attention and questions about the way
the state's drug task forces conduct investigations.

Some, however, say the investigation and arrests were racially motivated.

"This undercover deal, everything was checked, double-checked,
triple- checked," undercover agent Tom Coleman told the Amarillo
Globe-News in a telephone interview Tuesday night. "We did not put
anybody in jail that shouldn't have been there. It was a top-notch
deal."

Coleman, now a private investigator in Waxahachie, said he wanted to
return to law enforcement.

The Justice Department investigation continues.

"That deal in Tulia, it wasn't just a drug deal," Coleman said.
"There was automatic weapons in that town. There was pistols being
carried in that town. I'm proud of what I did there, and I'd do it
again in a heartbeat."

One criticism was that Coleman had no corroboration to support the
drug cases he made. He said he worked himself so deep into the
community that he couldn't bring in a second officer or obtain audio
or videotape.

Coleman said if he ever goes undercover again, he would make some
changes to ensure he never suffers through a similar controversy.

"I would absolutely have to figure out a way to carry a tape
recorder," he said.

Coleman said a higher proportion of blacks were arrested because he
started hanging out with blacks in the community and therefore
couldn't buy drugs from whites.

"When I started mixing with the blacks, I was black to everybody else
in Tulia," Coleman said. "I'm going to tell you right now, there's
some prejudice in Tulia, Texas."

He said he believed he would have been beaten by whites if he tried
to switch over.

Tulia's population is about 5,000, of which about 250 residents are black.

Eleven of those arrested in Tulia were found guilty and another 17
have accepted plea agreements.