Harris County prosecutors said Friday they will seek to dismiss 27 active criminal cases due to concerns about the credibility of two former Houston police officers under investigation for their roles in a deadly January drug raid in Pecan Park.
Questions have been raised about whether the two officers, Gerald Goines and Steven Bryant, may have lied about some of the circumstances surrounding the botched raid on Jan. 28.
Goines and Bryant retired from the Houston Police Department under investigation weeks after the bust.
“Truthfulness is essential in a case that must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said Friday in a statement. “We can’t vouch for these officers’ credibility.”
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The botched bust remains under investigation by the DA’s Office, the FBI, and the Houston Police Department.
Police burst into the home of at 7815 Harding Street looking for heroin, kicking off a gun battle that killed Dennis Tuttle and his wife, Rhogena Nicholas. Goines and three other officers were shot in the ill-fated raid, which netted only a small amount of marijuana and cocaine.
Goines came under scrutiny after investigators accused him of lying on the search warrant affidavit used to justify the raid. Family and friends have said the couple were not drug dealers.
The two officers were relieved of duty following the raid and later retired.
The DA’s office said it would file motions Friday seeking to dismiss all open cases in which Goines or Bryant were material witnesses who could be required to testify. Prosecutors had already dismissed several other pending cases.
“Police corruption erodes public trust and through methodical, deliberate and independent investigation, we will get to the truth,” Ogg said.
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