Wednesday, July 10, 1996

Officer: Sloppy handling of evidence could've contaminated Irvin's bag

DALLAS (AP) - The tiny amount of cocaine found on the only item belonging to Michael Irvin could have been spread inadvertently by police's sloppy handling of evidence, a narcotics officer testified Tuesday in the drug possession trial of the Dallas Cowboys star.

A test tube taken from atop Irvin's jewelry bag may have picked up the .0005 gram of cocaine found on it while lumped in a plastic grocery bag with other items taken during the drug bust, said Irving detective James Hallum, a narcotics investigator who helped with the case.

"It depends how it was packaged," Hallum said.

The items were not placed into standard evidence bags until returned to police headquarters. Hallum testified that officers could have called the office and asked for the bags to be brought to the scene.
He added that it was not standard for beat cops to carry them.

Hallum told lead defense attorney Kevin Clancy he couldn't put odds on whether loose cocaine in the plastic bag could have spread to other evidence, but he said it was possible.

Clancy illustrated the point by pouring a package of artificial sweetener onto a plate, then putting it into a bag like the one used to carry away the evidence.

The trial's ninth day also marked the first time Irvin's family from Florida joined him in the courtroom.

His mother, an aunt, a sister and her 7-year-old daughter sat quietly in the front row, about eight feet from him. Irvin looked at them only during breaks and left the courthouse for the day with his arm around his mother.

"I think his family is here because they love the man and they want to be here with him," defense attorney Don Godwin said. "They've traveled a long way to be here with him, and I personally respect that."

Irvin, charged with second-degree felony cocaine possession, could receive probation or up to 20 years in prison if convicted. He also faces a misdemeanor marijuana possession charge that will be heard later.

Irvin and topless dancers Angela Beck and Jasmine Nabwangu also face charges stemming from a March 4 incident at an Irving motel. Former Cowboy Alfredo Roberts also was in the room but was not indicted.

Police, responding to a disturbance call, found cocaine, marijuana and drug paraphernalia throughout the room's two levels.

Officer Brian Crum testified Tuesday that he pulled a golf ball-sized chunk of rock cocaine from an unzipped compartment in a gym bag belonging to Beck, the only person arrested at the scene.

"I said it can't be crack - it's way too big," Crum said. "I've seen crack before, but never that big."

Crum also discovered two baggies of marijuana under bed covers and a plate underneath the spot on a loveseat where Irvin was sitting once the furniture was lifted. The plate contained loose marijuana and a white powder residue later determined to be cocaine.

Officers also found more drugs on an end table near the loveseat and they seized the glass vial from atop Irvin's jewelry bag, which was on a nearby sofa.

Crum and officer Les Motheral both said Tuesday they did not see Irvin handle any drugs while they were present. Motheral said nothing was taken off Irvin's person.

All evidence was gathered onto a breakfast bar, then put into a plastic grocery bag by Matthew Drumm, the lead officer at the scene.

Drumm testified last week he carefully stacked the items and Crum demonstrated Tuesday that Drumm laid the bag flat and carried it horizontally.

On questioning from defense attorney Royce West, Crum acknowledged it was possible he contaminated the evidence on the plate by touching it himself, raising the question of whether crime scene technicians should have been called.

West - whose questioning of Motheral and Crum seemed intent on proving his opening statement that Irving police made a "comedy of errors" in this case - later read a passage from the police manual that states patrol officers DO NOT (in capital letters) gather or disturb evidence.

Hallum later testified that in his eight years as a narcotics officer he's never heard of crime scene specialists being called for a drug case.

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