Pubdate: Sat, 20 Feb 1999 Source: Houston Chronicle (TX) Contact: http://www.chron.com/ Forum: http://www.chron.com/content/hcitalk/index.html Copyright: 1999 Houston Chronicle Author: ED ASHER THE OREGON CASE FEDERAL GRAND JURY A federal judge refused Friday to issue a gag order sought by six police officers involved in the fatal shooting of Pedro Oregon and denied their request to order that they not be deposed by the family's lawyers until a federal criminal investigation of the incident is complete. Also on Friday, Oregon's brother-in-law and a family friend, both of whom were in his apartment the night he was killed, testified before the federal grand jury that began investigating the shooting this week. Oregon, 22, was shot 12 times in a July 12 drug raid at his apartment. He was hit nine times in the back, once in the back of the head, once in the back of a shoulder and once in the back of a hand. The officers, who had no warrant, have said Oregon pointed a gun at them. Although a gun was found in the apartment, it had not been fired. No drugs were found. Five of the officers were nobilled by a state grand jury for their roles in the shooting; the sixth was indicted on a misdemeanor criminal trespass charge. In his ruling on the gag order, U.S. District Judge Sim Lake said he had to balance the officers' right to a fair trial against the family's First Amendment right to free speech. The officers said the family's lawyers have been making prejudicial statements to the news media. "Although there has been considerable publicity about this case, I'm not persuaded the publicity will affect the defendants' right to a fair trial," Lake said. Instead, he cautioned all lawyers involved that professional ethics prohibit public statements that could affect the fairness of a trial. The officers also wanted Lake to issue an order specifically allowing them to invoke their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when they are asked questions by the family's lawyers in a pending civil suit against the city. The judge agreed that they have that right under the Fifth Amendment, but said they did not need a court order to invoke it. Although Lake's ruling clears the way for depositions and discovery to begin, the officers presumably will simply invoke the Fifth Amendment when questioned. Lake also denied a routine motion by the city of Houston to dismiss the case. The family's lawyers were pleased with the rulings. "It was a good day," Oregon family attorney Richard Mithoff said. "(Judge Lake) made clear what the law is, and that is they are entitled to claim the Fifth Amendment. But we are entitled to proceed with our discovery, to ask questions of the officers and to let them claim Fifth Amendment if they so choose." Robert Thomas, the attorney for four of the six officers, said he is ready to proceed with the civil case. "We're going to trial. We're ready to go forward. We will work hard and we look forward to our day in court," Thomas. Thomas said "several" of the officers had not fired their guns at all, but he declined to elaborate. Also expressing satisfaction with the day's events was Gilberto Velarde Meixueiro, in charge of the protection division of the Mexican Consulate in Houston, which is monitoring the case. "It shows that it is possible to obtain justice in the States," Velarde said. "Pedro Oregon was a Mexican who we believe was unfairly killed." Salvador Lopez, Oregon's brother-in-law, and Nellie Mejia, the girlfriend of one of Oregon's brothers, testified before the grand jury. Their lawyer declined to say what they had told the panel. About two dozen people demonstrated outside the federal courthouse as the grand jury took testimony. Several held placards reading, "End the cover-up. Justice for Pedro Oregon. Indict the killer cops." - --- MAP posted-by: Rich O'Grady