- Mississippi Police Arrest Commentary -
ofr...@hotmail.com
Date: Nov 05 2000 19:16:28 EST
From: "ofr...@hotmail.com" <ofr...@hotmail.com>
Subject:
- Mississippi Police Arrest Commentary -
Nov. 5, 2000
Those who know cops shocked by arrests
By Pamela Berry
and Gregg Mayer
Clarion-Ledger Staff Writers
Watching several former colleagues being led in chains into the
federal courthouse, former Jackson police officer Kevin Lavine
said his thoughts jumped to a line from Shakespeare.
"I thought about the words which were said about Julius Caesar
after he died," said Lavine, an investigator with the Mississippi
Gaming Commission. "The good a man does is buried with him
when he dies, but the bad often lives on forever."
Charged with accepting bribes to protect cocaine traffickers are
Sgt. Ronald Youngblood, 35; Sgt. Fred Gaddis, 37; Detective
Joe Wade, 47; Detective Stanley Butler, 34; Patrolman Tim
Henderson, 46; and Patrolman Nate Thomas, 41.
Lavine said the line from Shakespeare is appropriate because the
allegations against the officers, proven or not, will probably
outlive any good deeds they've done during their careers.
The officers are all veterans with service ranging from eight to 23
years.
"I detest drugs," said Lavine, a former Precinct 3 patrolman.
"Because of that, I can't feel sorry for them. But before you
criticize the man, you've got to understand the man."
Former Jackson Police Chief Jim Black, who knows most of the
accused, said police can't let the crime they see daily rub off on
them. "I don't care how many times you see criminals get out."
"You can't be a policeman and a crook," said Black, now chief
of the Richland Police Department. "You've got to make a
choice. What they have on them now, you can't wash off with
soap. Acquitted or not, they will have this stain on them forever.
People will say, 'Hell, if they weren't guilty they wouldn't have
arrested them.' "
23-year veteran
For the past 23 years, Detective Joe Wade has worked his way
up the ranks to become one of the most respected detectives on
the force.
Described by colleagues as "thorough," Wade has been a
homicide detective about six years, with one of those years
serving in the Cold Case Unit formed last year to investigate
unsolved homicides.
Since April, Wade has been assigned to a unit doing background
investigations on Jackson police recruits.
Wade, married with two children, is charged with extorting or
attempting to extort money.
FBI investigators say he accepted $200 from a cooperating
witness to provide protection for alleged drug dealing.
If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison. He is out on a
$10,000 bond.
Those who know Wade said, of all the officers charged, his
alleged involvement is the most shocking.
"That's freakin' stupid," Black said. "If you are going to put in
that many years at a place, be clean."
Black, 73, said when he served as JPD chief he once had to
discipline Wade in 1984 for his role in the release of confidential
police reports to a Jackson defense attorney.
Wade was accused of picking up the reports from the
department's records division and supplying them to a clerk who
worked at the Jackson Community Crime Prevention office at
the police training academy.
The clerk said she gave the report to the lawyer, who denied any
involvement.
Black said he suspended Wade for 30 days without pay and
busted him from the burglary division back to patrol.
"I don't think Joe was quite as much involved in this as the clerk
was so I only suspended him," Black said. "I never had any other
problems out of him after that."
Over the last few years, friends said Wade's attention has turned
more towards his church, Anderson United Methodist in
northwest Jackson.
Wade routinely sings during the early morning, mid-morning and
evening services, friends said.
His pastor, the Rev. Jeffrey Stallworth, said he will pray for
Wade and the other officers charged.
"We all are tempted and any one of us can fall," Stallworth said.
Fellow Homicide Detective Willie Mack said he finds Wade's
alleged fall disturbing because he views the officer "just like a
brother."
"We've been real close," said Mack, 50. "We did the teaching of
the homicide classes together at the police academy. When I
needed to paint my house last summer, he helped me because he
paints houses. He's a good man."
Mack said the Wade he knows is full of humor and often played
practical jokes on him at police headquarters.
"He was serious at what he did in homicide, but he was
humorous, too," Mack said. "There's really nothing negative I
can say about Joe ... other than the charges."
'Pac Man'
Known on the streets as "Pac Man," Detective Stanley Butler
grew up in Jackson well known and respected in the community.
Butler, the youngest in the group charged, has served eight years
with the Police Department.
Since June 1999, Butler has investigated crime in Precincts 1 and
2. He also has experience as a homicide detective.
Lavine described Butler as "one of the nicest guys you ever want
to meet."
Lavine said he became friends with Butler when the two
attended Callaway High.
"I would put my life in his hands and wouldn't take a second to
think about it," Lavine said of the short, stocky officer. "Bad
things do sometimes happen to good people."
Tim Wiley, who said he grew up with Butler on Wabash Drive,
described Butler as a "good guy."
"We used to play football together at Grove Park," Wiley said. "I
still can't believe what happened. I saw it in the paper and said,
'Oh, man.' But if it happened, it happened."
Butler is charged with extorting or attempting to extort money
and faces up to 20 years if convicted. Like Wade, he posted a
$10,000 bond Thursday.
Officials say Butler received $200 to provide protection for
alleged drug dealing.
Wiley, who also wrestled and played football with Butler in
Grove Park, said he still talks to his friend every now and then.
"I can trust him with anything," Wiley said. "If he did it, I find it
hard to believe."
Hezekiah Watkins, president of the Dalton Street Neighborhood
Association, said he and his son are both close friends of Butler.
"I just spoke to him 15 minutes ago," Watkins said Friday
afternoon. "He's down. He said he wants to clear his name. He
doesn't want to bring shame to his family, his friends or anyone
else."
Quentin Watkins said his family and Butler's spend a lot of time
together, including going to the recent Jackson State-Tennessee
State football game in Memphis.
"He takes pride in his job and always talks about his work,"
Quentin Watkins said."I don't feel he would do anything to
jeopardize that.
"I don't think he would be the kind of person who would ever
participate in anything corrupt. He was always talking about how
much he loved his job."
Johnnie McAllister, who has done lawn work for Butler, said he
didn't think Butler did anything wrong.
"He's just not that type of fellow," McAllister said.
The quiet one
Patrolman Timothy Henderson, who worked out of Precinct 2,
has been on the force for 17 years. Those who know him say he
is quiet and keeps to himself.
On his beat, he spent a lot of time at the S&S Mini Service on
South Gallatin Street. Customers there, like T.C. Montgomery,
say they used to talk with the hazel-eyed officer frequently.
"He's an easy-going fellow," said Montgomery, 57. "If he could,
he'd give you a break.
"I respect the man."
S&S owner Billy Sanders said Henderson stopped in regularly
and sometimes was there before he opened the store.
Henderson gets along with everyone who knows him, Sanders
said. "I never heard anybody say anything bad about him."
But Kenneth Saxton, owner of Spiro's Package Store across the
street from S & S, said he thought Henderson spent too much
time at the service store.
"He'd come in during the mornings and be out there for a couple
of hours," Saxton said. "He didn't hardly do anything on his
beat."
FBI officials say Henderson attempted to distribute and possess
with intent to distribute cocaine.
If convicted, he faces 10 years to life in prison.
Henderson is being held in federal custody pending his bond
hearing next week.
Always happy
Those who know Precinct 2 Patrolman Nate Thomas say you
can always hear him enter a room before you actually see him.
"He's always happy, friendly and boisterous, but in a fun way,"
Lavine said. "He enjoys being a police officer. You can tell he
genuinely cared about his job."
Like Butler, Thomas, 41, an eight-year veteran, is charged with
extorting or attempting to extort money. The amount: $150.
He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
He is one of two accused officers who has not been taken into
custody. Youngblood is the other.
Thomas has been recovering at an area hospital from a broken
foot suffered during a car accident in late October while off duty.
Married with several small children, Thomas got his start in law
enforcement as a member of the Jackson State University
campus police unit.
--
- Outlaw Frog Raper -
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