Tennessee Safety Department Official Concerned About Use of Drug Money

Associated Press

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- Law enforcement agencies that seize drug money to facilitate a contribution to their drug funds circumvent state law and expose themselves to criminal allegations, a Tennessee Department of Safety lawyer says.

Joe Bartlett, the lawyer in charge of Tennessee's asset forfeiture program, condemned the practice.

"We don't want agencies extorting money from individuals or giving the appearance of extorting money," Bartlett said.

The issue was spotlighted in December when two Loudon County sheriff's deputies were indicted by a grand jury on extortion charges. Chief deputy Tony Aikens, 46, and deputy Paul E. Curtis, 35, were accused of coercing Eddie W. Witt, 54, of Soddy-Daisy into contributing more than $9,000 to the sheriff department's drug fund after a traffic stop in 2002.

In exchange, Witt was allowed to keep $10,000 of about $20,000 seized and his car.

Law enforcement agencies can used such funds to help finance anti-drug operations.

Witt, who was never charged with a drug crime, later sued. The parties settled for the return of the "contribution."

Lawyers for the deputies said such roadside negotiations were common practice, not only in Loudon County but also in Knox and Blount counties. If that's the case, Bartlett said, they're operating outside the law.

"There's no such thing" as a contribution in such instances, Bartlett said. "This is exactly the problem we were trying to avoid."

Under state law, money or property suspected of being tied to drugs can be seized or held pending a Safety Department hearing. A seizure may be avoided by a settlement, also subject to a Safety Department review and approval.

Settlements involve property only and do not preclude law enforcement officers from filing charges on a related criminal offense.

Supporters of the law say it lets law enforcement use drug money to fight drug crimes, but critics contend it makes it too easy to seize property from people who have not committed a crime.

The deputies' lawyers, T. Scott Jones and Craig L. Garrett, claim circumventing the law allows suspects to get at least a portion of their property returned without going through the red tape of a legal process. They also save a $350 filing fee that goes to the state.

Blount County Sheriff Jim Berrong confirmed his office sidesteps the state process.

Loudon County Sheriff Tim Guider has referred all questions about seizures to Jones and Garrett, while Knox County Sheriff Tim Hutchison could not be reached for comment.

The Department of Safety does not have regulatory authority over the agencies. The state's only oversight, Bartlett said, would come through annual audits conducted in every jurisdiction.

After reading the lawyers' statements, Bartlett called the district attorneys general in Blount, Knox and Loudon counties. None of them said they were aware of any backroom dealings, Bartlett said.

Bartlett said he believes defense attorneys would have to at least condone such deals.

"For this to be routine, a defense attorney would have to know about it and keep silent about it," Bartlett said. "That would be an ethical violation, in my view."

Several Knoxville area lawyers said it would be easy to keep them in the dark about roadside deals.

"Once they've reached their agreement on the side of the road, it's not likely anybody would report that," lawyer Mike Whalen said.

Some of the lawyers expressed frustration with the civil forfeiture process, even when it's run properly.

"It's legal extortion," Bruce Poston said. "It was meant to get the Yukon and the Uzi and the million-dollar house. It wasn't meant to get Aunt Suzy."

Bartlett defended the Department of Safety process, saying the system works and safeguards are in place for both police officers and private citizens.

"That's why we have this paper trail," Bartlett said. "To protect everybody."