Police report remains secret

A federal judge determines that the report on a St. Petersburg police lieutenant is part of an ongoing investigation.

By JOUNICE L. NEALY

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 28, 2000

TAMPA -- A report that details an investigation of St. Petersburg police Lt. Donnie Williams, who was accused by an informant of buying drugs in 1998, will not be released to the public, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

The report is considered the property of the federal government and part of an ongoing federal investigation, U.S. District Judge Richard A. Lazzara ruled. The information in the report was gathered in the presence of federal drug agents for their use, he said.

The document will remain confidential because it contains information that "if made public would frustrate an ongoing" investigation, Lazzara decided.

"This investigation is not over," he added, but he strongly warned that local police agencies should not attempt to keep their records from the public by giving them to federal investigators.

The St. Petersburg Times and the Pinellas County Police Benevolent Association originally sued the city of St. Petersburg and the U.S. government in state court.

The case was supposed to go to trial Sept. 7, but in a last-minute maneuver, federal prosecutors got the proceedings moved to federal court. Federal officials have long argued that the report is part of an ongoing investigation.

But the newspaper and the union maintained that the city's Police Department investigated the accusations; thus, its criminal investigation had ended.

"It appears it was a cursory investigation at best," said PBA attorney Bill LauBach.

Lazzara read the report, which was only a few pages, that the union and the newspaper were seeking.

It had a 1986 case number that referred to the federal case and mentioned Williams and Bennie L. Phillips, who was indicted this year in an investigation of a multimillion-dollar crack cocaine ring, the judge said during the hearing.

"This was supposed to be a vigorous investigation. It didn't seem very vigorous to me," said Thomas McGowan, a Times attorney.

As part of his ruling Wednesday, Lazzara determined that he had jurisdiction over the case. And, because the documents are considered federal papers, state public records law does not apply.

McGowan and LauBach said they were disappointed and that they will look at their options before deciding what to do next.

Assistant City Attorney Robert Eschenfelder said the city and police Chief Goliath Davis were pleased with the outcome and that the city never tried to evade the truth. It just wanted to protect information that would probably be needed for future prosecution, he said.

St. Petersburg City Council member Kathleen Ford, who sat through the 11/2-day trial, said the ruling was fair.

"I don't want any investigation compromised," she said. "I want the U.S. Attorney's Office to investigate all the drug dealing in St. Petersburg."

Lazzara gave great weight to the testimony of Assistant U.S. Attorney Joe Ruddy, who said large investigations often spin off smaller investigations and that there's no possibility of separating the investigation into the allegations against Williams from the rest of the case.

It's "akin to trying to unscramble an omelet," Ruddy testified Tuesday. And because the investigation is continuing, Lazzara said, "the book may not be closed on Mr. Williams."

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