Wednesday, April 04, 2007

Mills is accused of stealing more than $268,000 from the agency that she led for almost two decades. Since Mills’ resignation last summer, Downtown Waco Inc. has lost city and county funding — about three-quarters of its budget — and has closed its doors, possibly forever.

Until her resignation, however, Mills was widely credited with and praised for the revitalization of Waco’s downtown, including renovation of the Waco Hippodrome Theatre.

Law enforcement authorities and defense lawyers say it’s not uncommon for those with outstanding warrants, especially those who already have hired lawyers, to make arrangements with police officers to turn themselves in. In reality, they say, it’s known as the path of least resistance, decrying television stereotypes that depict police in ninja garb crashing through doors.

Sgt. Ryan Holt of the Waco Police Department says detectives working the alleged theft of Downtown Waco Inc. funds cooperated with attorneys for Mills to get her booked in and out of the county jail, just like they would with almost any defendant.

“She was absolutely not shown any special treatment,” Holt said. “We do that all the time when we are allowed to do it by both the suspect and the lawyer. It is a matter of course. We issue a lot of warrants, and we don’t have the manpower to go out and look for everyone you issue a warrant for. People who know they are wanted generally come in and take care of their business. It is an accepted practice.”

Even so, many commenting on the Mills arrest on the Tribune-Herald Web site believe Mills was given preferential treatment.

Rick Bostwick, one of Mills’ attorneys, said that’s not true.

“I think that is absolutely normal where there is a party with a lawyer,” Bostwick said. “Unless there is a risk of flight or risk of violence, that is done oftentimes, and to say this is special treatment is absolutely not the case.”

In fact, Holt said, police have made arrangements for people charged in violent crimes to surrender themselves to police, either at the jail or at police headquarters. It’s standard practice, he said.

A ‘very common’ practice

“It is very common and kind of something that an agency works out with either the defendant or the attorney who is representing the defendant and the jail,” McLennan County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Randy Plemons said. “Our focus is to receive them and process them accordingly. However they get to the jail is totally insignificant to the sheriff’s office. We have people turning themselves in on a daily basis as well as law enforcement bringing people in.”

In similar situations, such as when former McLennan County District Clerk Joe R. Johnson and former McLennan County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Rita Norred pleaded guilty to stealing funds from the county, it could be argued that they were afforded special treatment.

Johnson was not arrested or processed through the jail until after he entered a guilty plea and was placed on probation in late 2005. He recently was released from court supervision after serving 17 months of a four-year probationary term.

Norred, convicted in 1997 of stealing cash from the jail bail bond account, was processed by former Chief Deputy Dan Weyenberg and allowed to make a bail bond from the comfort of her own living room, county officials have said.

Waco criminal defense attorney Russ Hunt, who represented Johnson among a number of other high-profile criminal clients, said it is “very common” for defendants who have lawyers to arrange to surrender to authorities and to make a quick trip through the jail booking station without spending too much time in custody.

“If the arresting officer knows they are not going to run off, it makes it as convenient as possible for all involved, for the officers and the arrested defendant and the attorneys,” Hunt said.

Busy day for jail

Mills’ arrest wasn’t the only high-profile case to be handled in such fashion Tuesday.

Famed honky-tonk crooner and Waco resident Billy Joe Shaver, the subject of two arrest warrants issued in connection with a Saturday night shooting at a Lorena bar, tried to turn himself in Monday but Austin police wouldn’t take him, saying they had no record of the warrants.

Local authorities were more obliging, however, and Shaver arrived at the McLennan County Jail to be arraigned and booked just after noon Tuesday — right about the time Mills was leaving.

He posted bond and was out two hours later.

twitherspoon@wacotrib.com

757-5737