Interesting Texas Arrests

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Texas Independent Bar Association Austin, Texas 78767

Alan Curry John G. Jasuta Doug O’Brien Helena Faulkner Charles Mallin Greg Sherwood Jeffrey S. Garon Gail Kikawa McConnell David A. Schulman Lee Haidusek Angela J. Moore Kevin P. Yeary

Editor-in-Chief: John G. Jasuta

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Volume 21, Number 34 ~ Monday, August 26, 2013 (No. 975) Featured Article A Few of Texas’ More Interesting Arrests

John Wesley Hardin: On August 23, 1877, Texas Ranger John Armstrong arrested John Wesley Hardin in a Florida rail car, returning the outlaw to Texas to stand trial for murder. Three years earlier, Hardin had killed Deputy Sheriff Charles Webb in a small town near Austin. Webb's murder was one in a long series of killings committed by the famous outlaw-the 39th by Hardin's own count. Killing a lawman, however, was an especially serious offense. The famous Texas Rangers were determined to bring Hardin to justice. For three years, Hardin was able to elude the Rangers. Moving between Florida and Alabama, he adopted an alias and kept a low profile. Nonetheless, the Rangers eventually unmasked his secret identity and dispatched John Armstrong to track him down in Florida. Acting on tip, Armstrong spotted Hardin in the smoking car of a train stopped at the Pensacola station. Armstrong stationed local John Wesley Hardin deputies at both ends of the car, and the men burst in with guns drawn. Caught by surprise, Hardin nonetheless reacted quickly and reached for the gun holstered under his jacket. The pistol caught in Hardin's fancy suspenders, giving the lawmen the crucial few seconds they needed and probably saving Hardin's life -- instead of shooting him, Armstrong clubbed Hardin with his long-barreled .45 pistol. As the Texas Rangers had no authority in Florida, they spirited Hardin back to Texas on the next train. Tried in Austin, a jury found Hardin guilty of killing Sheriff Webb and sentenced him to life in the Texas state prison at Huntsville. While in prison, Hardin wrote a autobiography, and studied law. He was released from prison on February 17, 1894, after serving seventeen years. He returned to Gonzales, and a month, on March 16, Hardin was pardoned. Hardin passed the Texas bar examination that July, and moved to El Paso the following January. In August of 1895, following an argument with an El Paso lawman, John Selman Jr., Hardin was killed in a saloon by Selman’s father, Constable John Selman, Sr., who came into the saloon, walked up behind Hardin, then shot him in the head. Hardin was certainly not Texas’ first celebrity arrest. Many more have followed. Johnny Cash: In 1965, the legendary singer / musician was arrested at El Paso, after he was stopped by narcotics agents at the border. The agents suspected Cash of smuggling heroin from Mexico. After a search of the car turned up massive amounts of prescription pills but no heroin, Cash received a suspended sentence. Ozzy Osbourne: On February 19, 1982, while in a “drunken state,” rock star Ozzy Osbourne, unable to locate a public restroom, relieved himself in downtown San Johnny Cash Antonio, on the Alamo Cenotaph. The monument, which commemorates the Texans who died at the famous battle 1836, is adjacent to the Alamo. Osbourne was arrested for public urination and intoxication. He was released on $40 bond, which was posted by Jack Orbin, who was promoting Osbourne’s concert at the HemisFair that night. That show was marred by fans who threw rocks because they were Ozzy Osbourne unable to get into the sold-out show. Twenty-four people were arrested for their part in the riot. These two events caused Osbourne to be banned from San Antonio by the city council. Ten years later, Osbourne was pardoned after he donated $10,000 to the Daughters of the Republic of Texas, who maintain and manage the Alamo, which is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Texas. Carlos Santana: Legendary Grammy award winning guitar player busted at Houston Airport in 1991 for transporting five grams of marijuana from Mexico. In 1991 Carlos Santana was arrested at the Houston airport for transporting 5 grams of marijuana from Mexico. Santana claimed he "forgot to dump his bag" on his way back into the States from Mexico. Santana has long been an advocate for legalization, so his arrest came as a shock to absolutely no one. He did not serve time paid a fine and received a slap on the wrist.

Carlos Santana Willie Nelson: This Texas icon Nelson has been arrested several times for marijuana possession. The first occasion was in 1974, in Dallas. Twenty years later, in 1994, Willie was arrested in Waco after he pulled off the road to sleep after an all night poker game. Police found marihuana in his car and the resulting court appearance caused him to cancel his appearance at the Grammy awards. The charges were dropped later when search was subsequently determined to be illegal. Willie Nelson - Dallas 1974 On November 26, 2010, Nelson was arrested in Sierra Blanca, for possession of six ounces of marijuana found in his tour bus while traveling from Los Angeles back to Texas. He was released after paying bail of US$2,500. Prosecutor Kit Bramblett supported not sentencing Nelson to jail due to the amount of marijuana being small, but suggested instead a US$100 fine and told Nelson that he would have him sing "Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain" for the court. Judge Becky Dean-Walker stated that Nelson had to pay the fine but did not require him to perform the song, explaining that the prosecutor was joking. Willie Nelson - Sierra Blanca 2010

Matthew McConaughey: In October of 1999, the popular actor and Austin celebrity was charged with possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia after a neighbor called to complain about music blaring from the actor's crib. When the police arrived, they found McConaughey dancing around naked and playing bongo drums. The drug charges against McConaughey were eventually dropped, though the Matthew McConaughey - Austin 1999 star did plead guilty to violating Austin's noise ordinance, for which he paid a $50 fine. Judge Steve Mansfield: On November 27, 1998, Mansfield, then a judge on Texas’ highest criminal court, was arrested by UT police and charged with criminal trespass, a Class B misdemeanor. According to UT Police Chief Silas Griggs, violators typically receive a warning the first time police see them trying to sell tickets, and, if police catch someone selling tickets after receiving a warning, they arrest the person for criminal trespass. Griggs said Mansfield was warned once not to sell the tickets to the UT-Texas A&M game, Griggs said. A plain-clothes officer watched him after he received the warning and saw him offer the tickets for sale. Mansfield’s attorney said Mansfield was unaware he was breaking university rules by selling the tickets at the Alumni Center. "Naturally, the judge is mortified by this," he added. Armie Hammer: An actor who starred in such films as "The Social Network" and "J. Edgar," spent a night in the Hudspeth County jail in November 2011. Hammer made the mistake of driving through Sierra Blanca with marijuana in his possession. Drug-sniffing dogs found 0.02 ounces of the drug in his car, along with three medicinal marijuana cookies and one medicinal marijuana brownie. Snoop Dogg: Musician, Armie Hammer - Sierra Blanca 2010 Calvin Broadus (aka Snoop, Snoop Dogg, Snoop Lion), has also spent time in the County Jail in Sierra Blanca. Hudspeth County sheriff's office said in a statement that Snoop Dogg, whose name is Calvin Broadus, was arrested Saturday at the Sierra Blanca highway checkpoint and cited for possession of drug paraphernalia. A Border Patrol agent smelled marijuana smoke coming from the bus and ordered everyone off so that a dog could inspect the vehicle. A prescription bottle with several marijuana cigarettes was found in a trash can, and more marijuana was found in two other containers. In all, 0.13 pounds of the drug were found. Snoop Dogg Broadus admitted the drug was his and was released. Fiona Apple: Yet another musician who spent an unplanned night in Sierra Blanca, Apple was arrested during a Border Patrol stop on September 19, 2012. Authorities used drug dogs to search Apple's tour bus and uncovered hashish and marijuana. Reports say that Apple admitted that yes, the drugs were hers. She was taken into custody and incarcerated at the Hudspeth County Jail. Apple was later released, and in the days following her arrest, she claimed she was "mistreated" by officers. During a concert in Houston, Texas, Apple gave a bizarre, rambling statement, telling the audience: "Most of the people were very nice to me. There are four of you out there -- I want you to know that I heard everything you did, I wrote it all down, with your names and everything you did and said, stupidly thinking I couldn’t see or hear you. I then ripped the paper up, but not before I encoded it." Apple wasn't finished: She then explained, "I’ll make you f—ing famous" (talking about the supposedly corrupt cops). Fiona Apple - Sierra Blanca 2012 Randy Travis: In August of 2012, six months after being arrested for public intoxication in Sanger, Texas, country singer Randy Travis was in trouble with the law in Grayson County. Police found Travis lying naked in the street and reeking of booze, on a remote stretch of roadway in northern Texas just before midnight. The singer was arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated and felony retaliation, after allegedly threatening to fatally shoot highway patrol troopers who responded to a concerned caller who notified authorities of "a man lying in the roadway."

While in custody, Travis allegedly threatened "to shoot and kill the Randy Travis - Sherman 2012 troopers working the case." Judge Ken Anderson: The long time Williamson County Judge and former District Attorney was arrested in Georgetown in February 2013, on an arrest warrant issued by Judge Louis Sturns, who had been appointed to conduct a Court of Inquiry. Sturns was very blunt when he stated “This court cannot think of a more intentionally harmful act than a prosecutor’s conscious choice to hide mitigating evidence so as to create an uneven playing field for a defendant facing a murder charge and a life sentence . . . [and] Mr. Anderson consciously chose to impair the availability of the exculpatory evidence so he could obtain the conviction of Mr. Morton for murder," Sturns said. Judge Sturns found probable cause existed and issued two Judge Ken Anderson - Georgetown 2013 felony warrants for tampering with physical evidence, a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison; for concealing documents to impair their availability as evidence; and for tampering with a government record and one show cause order for contempt of court. Naomi Gonzalez. In March of 2013, the state representative from El Paso was charged with driving while intoxicated near Downtown Austin after crashing into a car -- slamming it into a bicyclist. The accident happened at Congress Avenue and Barton Springs Road. Police say a Fiat sedan was hit from behind by Gonzalez’ BMW sedan, which collision caused the Fiat to hit a cyclist directly in front. The cyclist and Gonzalez were transported to University Medical Center Brackenridge hospital with non-life threatening injuries, and a passenger in the BMW Naomi Gonzalez 2013 was taken to a South Austin hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Rosemary Lehmberg: In April of this year, Travis County deputies arrested District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg on a charge of driving while intoxicated in western Travis County. According to the probable cause affidavit, a citizen called in Lehmberg's Lexus around 10:45 p.m., saying she was driving in the bike lane for at least a mile on southbound FM 620. She also was seen weaving in out of traffic. The affidavit described Lehmberg's demeanor as both polite and excited, insulting and cocky. The smell of alcohol was moderate, and her eyes were bloodshot and watery. She also was described as disoriented with slurred speech. She lost her balance during the field sobriety test and started before the instructions to start. Lehmberg said she had two vodka drinks earlier in the evening, as well as a prescribed medication. An open bottle of vodka was found on the passenger seat of the car. Later reports regarding her overnight stay at the county jail's central booking facility described Lehmberg as alternating between disrespectful, combative, and despondent. A blood test taken at the jail several hours after her arrest put her blood-alcohol content at .239 -- nearly three times the legal limit for driving. Sandy Jenkins: The former controller of a famed North Texas fruitcake bakery has been arrested and charged with embezzling almost $17 million from the bakery. An arrest affidavit says Sandy Jenkins managed a scheme to defraud the Collin Street Bakery in Corsicana by writing almost 900 fraudulent checks from 2005 through June of 2013. Jenkins had been empowered to prepare and print checks with the electronic signature of Robert McNutt, the bakery president. According to the affidavit filed with the complaint, Jenkins caused company checks to be written to his personal creditors and then manipulated Collin Street’s computerized accounting system to show that the checks had been voided. In order to keep company books in balance and further disguise his fraudulent activity, Jenkins created checks in bakery’s accounting system purporting to go to an approved vendor in the same amounts as the checks to his personal creditors. The checks to Jenkins’ personal creditors were used to bankroll a lavish lifestyle that included a house in Santa Fe, New Mexico, 43 luxury automobiles, frequent travel on private planes and a watch and jewelry collection worth approximately $3 million. The government’s investigation shows that Jenkins caused 888 fraudulent checks to be sent to his personal creditors, resulting in approximately $16.65 million in losses to the bakery.

TIBA’s Texas Law Reporter - Vol. 21, No. 34 - August 26, 2013 - Page 6