Separate trials sought in Chattanooga 'worst of worst' case

Chattanooga City Hall
Chattanooga City Hall

Attorneys for two men arrested on federal drug charges asked a judge to sever their cases Wednesday on grounds a jury would be prejudiced by media coverage of a roundup city officials touted as netting the city's "worst" drug offenders.

Both Adrian Washington and Johnny Caldwell Jr. were listed by city and federal officials as the target of a years-long drug investigation that resulted in a roundup of 32 men on several different federal indictments. But the men's attorneys argue that if the two are tried together, statements made about the roundup and subsequent news articles will make it impossible to select a pool of unbiased jurors.

"This has been the centerpiece arrest in Chattanooga, I would say, over the last 12 to 18 months," said Christopher Varner, attorney for Washington.

Varner went on to say that city officials including Mayor Andy Berke and former Chattanooga Police Chief Bobby Dodd violated local rules prohibiting speculation as to his client's guilt or innocence through various comments made at a news conference in November 2013 and in quotes published since then, including in the Times Free Press.

photo In this file photo, David Kennedy, right, listens as Mayor Andy Berke fields questions at a March 2014 press conference inside City Hall to address gang violence. Kennedy is the architect of the Violence Reduction Initiative, and is quoted as saying that residents should be able to tell fairly quickly if the strategy isn't working. The rate of shootings in Chattanooga is basically unchanged year-over-year.

Both Washington and Caldwell are charged with conspiracy to distribute narcotics and selling or distributing narcotics.

Varner said the roundup was a "dog and pony show" meant to prove that the mayor's Violence Reduction Initiative is a fitting replacement for the disbanded gang task force.

Both attorneys argued that trying their clients together created a tie to the "Worst of the Worst" label, and said that all men arrested in the case were lumped together under that label. Varner said he did not ask for a change of venue, as Caldwell's attorney did, because he believed severing the defendants would serve the same purpose but cost the court less money.

Caldwell's attorney, Paul Cross, said the aforementioned news conference made reference to previous arrests of some of the men on felony charges.

"None of this has anything to do with him," Cross said, pointing to Caldwell.

Judge Harry S. Mattice told Cross that touting the roundup was part of the mayor's job.

"What would be news is if the mayor got up and said we rounded up these 33 people and they're really pretty small fish," Mattice said.

U.S. District Attorney Chris Poole asked Mattice to leave the question of finding an unbiased jury pool until jury selection.

Wednesday's hearing also addressed several other motions made ahead of the men's trial. Mattice said he will issue a written order on the motion to sever at a later date.

Contact Staff Writer Claire Wiseman at 423-757-6347or follow her on Twitter@clairelwiseman.

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