Drug cartels may have way into U.S. courts
South Texas case raises concerns that gangs bribing those with access
Associated Press
Dec. 7, 2008, 11:34PM
MCALLEN — The case of a South Texas paralegal who allegedly leaked information to members of a violent drug cartel is highlighting fears that smuggling networks are using bribes to reach into the U.S. halls of justice.
Federal authorities allege that Joel Carcano Jr., a college-educated paralegal, unlawfully provided confidential court information to the Texas Syndicate drug mafia.
Carcano maintains his innocence, and the government has not given detailed information about the alleged leak.
But the case underscores the threat posed by violent gang members who are willing to bribe their way inside the U.S. justice system, according to The (McAllen) Monitor, which reported on the case in Sunday's editions.
"There's a lot of money in the drug business," said Jack Wolfe, a criminal defense attorney and former federal prosecutor. "Sometimes, I think the temptation may be too much for some people."
Corruption within the legal profession in the United States is not commonplace, but over the past decade, there have been instances of malfeasance among a small group of probation officers, lawyers and court staff.
A probation officer who worked in the federal courthouse in McAllen pleaded guilty in April to taking $5,000 in bribes to provide sealed records to an undercover agent. The agent was posing as a member of a Mexico-based smuggling operation. In the late 1990s, there were also corruption cases in South Texas involving a former assistant district attorney and a juror selected in a drug trafficking case.
"It's always been a bit of an issue, but never a chronic problem," said Eric Reed, who prosecuted a jury-tampering case as a former assistant U.S. attorney. "But situations like these are always a concern — especially where violence is already a big part of the allegations."
Lawyer says data was public
In the Carcano case, prosecutors allege that the paralegal helped the violent Texas Syndicate identify one its own gangsters as a source of information being provided to the government. A grand jury last year linked members of the cartel to six murders and multiple drug deals over the past eight years.
Carcano worked as a legal assistant for the firm representing gang member Marcelino "Mars" Rodriguez Torres, who then decided to cooperate with federal authorities. Rodriguez's body, shot and badly burned, turned up weeks after his decision to become a federal witness.
Carcano's lawyer, Ralph Martinez, denies his client sought to help drug traffickers by giving them confidential information. Martinez also said the information about Rodriguez's participation in the case as a witness was available in a plea agreement and could have been easily obtained by reviewing public documents.
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