STATE BAR FINDINGS SHOULD WARRANT PROSECUTOR'S DISBARMENT

Justice arrived slowly for the 38 Tulia residents wrongly convicted of drug felonies on the now discredited testimony of a rogue undercover law enforcement officer.  Last week, the State Bar of Texas took steps to restore integrity to a system that broke down on several levels.

The multimillion-dollar financial settlements by several cities and counties, including Amarillo, certainly will help the Tulia residents rebuild their lives and families shattered by the bogus drug stings.

But we can expect more people to be wrongly convicted and imprisoned in Texas jails as long as cheating prosecutors are allowed to bend or break the rules with impunity.  That's why the state bar's actions are welcome.  The officer, Tom Coleman, faces felony perjury charges for his role in the convictions that thrust Tulia and Texas justice into a national spotlight.

We'll await the judgment of a court to determine what happens to Coleman.  He now appears to have targeted Tulia residents because their "real" crime was being poor and black.  Most of the 38 people who were ultimately convicted were African Americans on the white officer's say-so.

As prosecutor in the Tulia case, Terry McEachern had a duty to seek justice -- not just convictions.  Instead, McEachern vigorously pursued convictions he almost certainly knew were based on disreputable and questionable testimony and evidence.  To win, McEachern cheated, the state bar asserts.

The extent of McEachern's alleged misconduct and deception is outlined in the legal brief filed by the state bar this week.  It states that McEachern knew Coleman had been charged with theft and abuse of office while working as a peace officer in Cochran County before coming to Tulia, in Swisher County, but failed to disclose those details to defense attorneys, who had requested background information on Coleman.

The brief further states that McEachern lied to the trial court, representing that Coleman didn't have a criminal history, though he knew otherwise.  Unbelievably, Coleman had been arrested as he carried out his drug sting in Tulia for the charges he faced in Cochran County for which he made restitution by paying $7,000.  Yes, McEachern knew this, according to the bar's petition, but permitted Coleman's supervisor to testify that Coleman was an exceptional officer with no problems.

The bar's role as a check and balance on prosecutors has gained momentum and importance as the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has pushed back from its responsibility to ensure that defendants get a fair trial.  In recent months, the U.S.  Supreme Court has rebuked Texas and reversed cases because of cheating prosecutors who have won convictions by violating defendants' civil rights.  The bar should turn its attention to prosecutors in the Delma Banks case, the Texarkana man whose death sentence recently was reversed because the district attorney's office in Bowie County suppressed evidence and permitted key witnesses to give false testimony.

McEachern's case now moves to a district court.  If a judge or jury sustains the bar's allegation, punishment ranges from a public reprimand to disbarment.

Disregarding the truth, McEachern played havoc with lives that didn't belong to him and with taxpayer money that wasn't his.  If sustained, the allegations are serious enough to warrant disbarment.