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U.S. NEWS Friday 9 February 2018

Jury deliberates in Baltimore police corruption case

ex-detectives admitted ing there was insufficient
to everything from armed evidence to convict Taylor
home invasions to staging of anything.
fictitious crime scenes and Detective Daniel Hersl's
routinely defrauding their lead attorney, William Pur-
department. pura, did not deny that
Assistant U.S. attorney Leo his 48-year-old client took
Wise described the two money — an act that "em-
detectives on trial as "hunt- barrassed" the city and the
ers" who "preyed upon the detective's family — but
weak and the vulnerable" that didn't rise to charges
when their rogue police of robbery or extortion.
unit wasn't scouring the city He attacked the veracity of
In this October 2016 photo released by the Baltimore police, officers, Det. Evodio Hendrix, Det.
Marcus Taylor, Sgt. Wayne Jenkins, Det. Jemell Rayam, Det. Maurice Ward, from left, are seen in trying to find large-scale the four disgraced detec-
Baltimore. drug dealers to rob. tives, noting that they've
(Baltimore PD/Baltimore Sun via AP) Defense attorney Jenifer admitted to lying for years
Wicks delivered a fiery clos- to juries, judges, colleagues
By DAVID McFADDEN The trial in a federal court- The former law enforcers ing argument on behalf of and their families.
BALTIMORE (AP) — Jurors house has been domi- testified that the unit was Detective Marcus Taylor. “They want that ‘get out
started deliberating Thurs- nated by testimony of four actually made up of uni- She told jurors the govern- of jail free’ card,” Purpura
day in a case involving ex-detectives who worked formed thugs who broke ment went to the "depths said.
one of the worst U.S. police alongside the defendants into homes, stole cash, of the criminal underworld" The detectives on trial did
corruption scandals in re- in an elite unit known as the resold looted narcotics to find a parade of "profes- not testify. The out-of-con-
cent memory after hearing Gun Trace Task Force. and lied under oath to sional liars" as witnesses. trol unit’s onetime super-
nearly three weeks of tes- Those former detectives cover their tracks. Wear- "It's deplorable and it's nau- visor, Sgt. Wayne Jenkins,
timony from drug dealers, pleaded guilty to corrup- ing lockup jumpsuits, the seating," Wicks said, assert- also did not testify. q
a crooked bail bondsman tion charges about their
and disgraced Baltimore time on the squad, which
detectives who detailed was once praised as a
astonishing levels of police group of hard-charging of-
misconduct. ficers chipping away at the
The two detectives on trial tide of illegal guns on city
face robbery, extortion streets. They testified on be-
and racketeering charges half of the government in
that could land them up the hopes of shaving years
to life in prison if convicted. off their prison sentences.

Utah investigating allegations

on lawmaker hiring prostitute

By MICHELLE L. PRICE 2017.
Associated Press But House Chief of Staff
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — The Greg Hartley said he was
Utah House of Represen- checking legislative re-
tatives was investigating cords to see if the cham-
Thursday whether a law- ber paid for hotel stays and
maker who abruptly re- the cellphone that the re-
signed used a state-issued port alleges Stanard used.
cellphone and hotel room Elections officials also said
paid for with taxpayer they were reviewing his
money to arrange trysts campaign finance reports
with a prostitute. to see if campaign cash
House Speaker Greg may have been used. He
Hughes declined to com- voted last year in favor of a
ment on a report in British law that made state pros-
newspaper the Daily Mail titution laws stricter, includ-
that alleged former Re- ing raising the penalty for
publican Rep. Jon Stanard people who are convicted
twice hired a prostitute in twice of solicitation. q