Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 6, 1990 TAG: 9007060783
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B2 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: NEAL THOMPSON NEW RIVER VALLEY BUREAU
DATELINE: RADFORD LENGTH: Medium
Charles Daniel "Danny" Dalton of Route 6 had been charged with selling a gram of cocaine two years ago to an informant at Sackett's restaurant in Radford.
But Dalton was not indicted until September 1989 - 16 months after the alleged drug sale.
Commonwealth's Attorney Randal Duncan inherited the case against Dalton after defeating 28-year incumbent John D. Buck in November's election.
Thursday's trial was Duncan's first jury trial since taking over as commonwealth's attorney in January. But the case never went to the jury.
About halfway through the trial, Circuit Judge Duane E. Mink dismissed the jury, ruling that there was not enough evidence to convict Dalton on the cocaine distribution charge.
Duncan said he was disappointed, but said there were "strange issues" involved in the 2-year-old case.
Dalton was accused of selling the cocaine on April 28, 1988, to the informant, who was working as a waitress at Sackett's.
But Dalton's indictment was delayed until September 1989 and he wasn't arrested until December.
It was that delay and the "prejudice caused by the delay" that caused problems in the case, said Dalton's attorney, Byron Shankman of Pulaski.
"It was just one of those cases that was snakebit from the beginning," Shankman said.
Mink agreed that the delay caused problems.
After Duncan agreed to reduce the charge to possession of cocaine, Mink put Dalton on probation for a year and took the cocaine possession charge under advisement.
Mink did not find Dalton guilty on the possession charge, and will dismiss it after a year if Dalton isn't arrested.
Dalton faced a maximum of 40 years in prison if found guilty of distributing cocaine.
The drug sale allegedly took place in an upstairs room at Sackett's. State police special agent W.B. Taylor testified that he gave the informant $100 and watched from a booth as she and Dalton went upstairs.
Later that night, the informant gave Taylor three bags of cocaine she had bought. He sent the bags to a Drug Enforcement Agency testing lab in Washington, and the chemist there found that the bags contained cocaine.
However, drug analysis certificates must be accompanied by a statement from the chemist who performed the test that they were the only one to handle the evidence.
The analysis in the case was performed in June 1988, but the statement was dated in May of this year.
Mink, ruling on a motion by Shankman, said that was too long after the initial analysis for it to be allowed as evidence.
by CNB