Jerry Summers
The very thorough and detailed critique of the use of informants by the Chattanooga Police Department (CPD) in the Sunday, October 20, 2024 edition of our main local newspaper by writer Sophia Saric, is a stark and sobering touch with reality that has plagued the CPD and other law enforcement agencies for endless years at the local, state and federal levels.
The accompanying evaluation by a local criminal justice professor is informative (pun) from a legal perspective as to how the use of paid witnesses or individuals with potential criminal charges of their own are often used to abuse the rights of guilty or innocent potential defendants.
Efforts to control or monitor the actions of informants are sometimes shoddy or ignored (read the lengthy article starting on page 1.)
The facts displayed in “Black Eye For Policing” are shocking, but are not new, and should not adversely affect the positive image of the vast majority of reputable men and women police officers in the CPD and other agencies. However, the old cliche that “when you mix money with justice, justice often loses,” does have some applicability.
During the administration of the former District Attorney General Neil Pinkston, 11 defendants had their criminal charges dismissed because a confidential informant working with the CPD planted evidence in their cases (Chattanoogan.com- Thursday, January 28, 2021.)
Flamboyant Hamilton County Sheriff, (1958-1963) and City of Chattanooga Fire and Police Commissioner, (1963-1971), James E “Bookie” Turner also had some embarrassing experiences with a paid informant, “The Baron”, who allegedly was a crime busting citizen, but in reality, was a convicted con man out to make a profit by being a paid “snitch”.
Fast forwarding to the present, there are at least two potential federal informants from the Chattanooga area who have already “accepted responsibility” (magical federal term for pleading guilty and cooperating with the government law officials to provide truthful evidence and/or testimony against others.)
They are:
1) a former minor league baseball team executive involved in a Ponzi scheme, who pled guilty in federal court in Hotlanta and accepted responsibility, who is presently serving time at a minimum security prison, but may be eligible for a further sentence reduction for providing additional “new substantial assistance” to help the government prosecute others on corruption or other charges to further lower their sentences; and
2) a former state legislator who pled guilty in Federal Court in Nashville in March 2022, to one count of “honest services fraud” (sounds contradictory), whose sentencing hearing has been passed several times in order that they may or may not provide testimony in the pending trial of others in 2025.
(Whether any of the two above individuals or others have or have not cooperated to provide information that may lead to further changes is beyond the scope of this article. However, the excellent front page Sunday article raises many issues in the public and private areas that might be relevant and bird seed is selling at a reasonable price. With the Gig City economy booming, ample free and government funds, interested individuals in prominent positions of influence, the potential for the elements of profit and greed in the local communities may exist to possibly justify investigations by local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies of individuals or businesses, etc.)
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If you have additional information about one of Mr. Summers' articles or have suggestions or ideas about a future Chattanooga area historical piece, please contact him at jsummers@summersfirm.com)