Pubdate: Sat, 01 Feb 2003
Source: Courier-Journal, The (KY)
Copyright: 2003 The Courier-Journal
Contact:  http://www.courier-journal.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/97
Author: Gregory A. Hall, The Courier-Journal

EX-DETECTIVE SAYS PARTNER FULLY TO BLAME

Richardson Testifies She Knew Nothing About Corruption

Former narcotics detective Christie Richardson testified yesterday that her 
ex-partner, Mark Watson, is responsible for all of the charges she faces in 
one of Jefferson County's largest police corruption scandals.

''I feel like he took my life away,'' Richardson said, speaking publicly 
for the first time since she was charged.

The indictment issued last year accuses Watson, who pleaded guilty last 
week, and Richardson of creating bogus search warrants bearing photocopied 
judges' signatures, of signing as witnesses to payments that confidential 
informants say they didn't get and of claiming overtime for work on cases 
that didn't exist.

Since being charged in March, Richardson had let her attorney speak for 
her, until yesterday, when she took the stand for three hours to testify in 
her own defense.

Richardson said she never photocopied a judge's signature onto a warrant, 
never knew that Watson had done that and always paid her informants. She 
said she believed Watson was paying his informants and signed as a witness 
when she was there -- even though she didn't actually see money exchange 
hands. She also said she claimed overtime only on cases that she worked, 
blaming any discrepancies on her platoon's practice of copying a partner's 
overtime before turning it in. Prosecutors have said Richardson had to know 
Watson was creating bogus search warrants.

Richardson appeared to struggle during questioning about a 2000 warrant in 
her handwriting that bore her signature and a photocopied signature of 
Jefferson District Judge Matthew Eckert that also appeared on earlier 
warrants used by Watson.

Under questioning by her attorney, Steve Schroering, she implied Watson was 
responsible for the photocopied signature. ''I have no idea what Mark would 
do to this warrant.''

Under cross-examination by prosecutor Scott Davis, she initially said 
Eckert's signature on her warrant appeared to be different. But she later 
changed her assessment, saying that the signatures looked the same.

She also told Davis that she had gone to Eckert to have her warrant signed. 
She then recanted that when the prosecutor asked whether Eckert had lied 
when he testified Thursday that he didn't remember signing a warrant for her.

''Obviously, he didn't sign that warrant,'' she said.

Richardson's warrant pre-dates the 13-month period that is covered by the 
indictment against her and Watson.

Prosecutors didn't find out about the warrant in her handwriting until 
Watson told them about it during his plea negotiations, according to 
testimony yesterday.

Testimony in the trial, which began Jan. 14, ended yesterday when 
prosecutors called two witnesses to testify in rebuttal to Richardson. 
After that, Jefferson Circuit Judge Steve Mershon told jurors to return on 
Monday afternoon to listen to the instructions for their deliberations. 
Closing arguments will be delivered Tuesday, he said.

''There is light at the end of the tunnel,'' Mershon told the jury.

Richardson, 36, has pleaded innocent. She could be sentenced to 70 years in 
prison if convicted. She and Watson were Jefferson County police officers 
assigned to the Metro Narcotics Unit. Both resigned after being indicted.

Richardson is charged with 15 counts of burglary, 130 counts each of 
criminal possession of a forged instrument and tampering with a forged 
instrument, six counts of theft by deception over $300 and one count each 
of bribery, theft by deception under $300 and official misconduct.

Richardson maintained her composure on the stand, even during cross 
examination, when Davis wrote ''LIES'' with a red marker on an easel in the 
courtroom, and kept a tally as she spoke.

''We're up to 84 lies,'' Davis said. ''That's in about 15 minutes.''

Davis asked Richardson about her friendship with Watson and how much time 
they spent together during work, at another part-time job and off-duty. Her 
answer was given in several pieces, before Davis estimated 62 hours a week, 
which he considered a conservative figure.

Richardson admitted that she and Watson went to movies together when they 
were supposed to be on duty. She also said she had dinner with Watson just 
before the trial because that was the only way she could find out about 
Watson's plea negotiations.

Testifying in the morning, Richardson said she would trust Watson with her 
life when they were partners between 1998 and their suspensions early last 
year.

Even as the investigation against them unfolded last year, Richardson said 
she didn't know what Watson had done. ''It probably took me a long time to 
believe that he did these things.''

Schroering questioned her both about the allegations generally and about 
some of the specific cases.

Regarding one allegation that she tampered with records, Richardson said 
Capt. Jeff Sherrard told her to recreate a form for a controlled buy that 
was missing.

Sherrard, who testified near the beginning of the trial, took the stand 
again yesterday and said that he never told her to re-create the form. He 
also said he wasn't her supervisor, so he wouldn't have known about 
problems with that case.

Richardson's husband, Michael Richardson, testified earlier in the day that 
she became upset last year after reading about the discovery of photocopied 
judges' signatures on Watson's warrants. Richardson said his wife called 
Watson and yelled at him about the signatures.

Michael Richardson said he later spoke to Watson when he helped Christie 
Richardson move out of an apartment she had. Michael Richardson said Watson 
told him that he would ''make it right.''

The husband said he told Watson: ''Mark, you better make this right.''
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jo-D