Key Testimony in Officers’ Trial Stricken : Crime: The prosecution failed to reveal that the witness could not identify the suspects from photos.

A federal judge in the civil rights trial of six Los Angeles County narcotics officers threw out testimony from a key prosecution witness Wednesday after it was revealed that the government had failed to reveal evidence that defense attorneys say undermines the witness’s credibility.

U.S. District Judge Robert M. Takasugi struck the testimony of convicted drug dealer Robert Robinson, who told jurors that several defendants beat him during a 1987 drug raid, stole $30,000 from his Inglewood home and attempted to plant cocaine in a safe.

The judge issued his ruling after government attorneys conceded that they had overlooked a key document that should have been turned over to defense attorneys. The document stated that Robinson had been unable to identify any of the defendants from photographs.

It was the second time in a month that the trial of the five sheriff’s deputies and one Los Angeles police detective was interrupted because of the government’s handling of crucial documents.

Three weeks ago, Takasugi had declared a mistrial after it was disclosed that FBI agents had destroyed draft reports of interviews with a key prosecution witness. The judge, however, reversed himself after government attorneys found new documents to help piece together the missing reports--and after Takasugi concluded that neither the FBI agents nor prosecutors had engaged in misconduct.

But on Wednesday, the judge brushed aside government claims that it had made another “good-faith mistake” and said the latest error had almost posed “serious problems of constitutional proportions.” He told the jury to disregard Robinson’s testimony.

Takasugi noted that the Robinson memorandum may never have been revealed if defense attorneys had not elicited testimony from the former dealer that he had been shown photographs of the officers.

“The tragic part . . . is that the information came out through happenstance,” Takasugi said.

Prosecutors said the internal memorandum by two Los Angeles Police Department investigators shows that last year--minutes before he was to appear before a federal grand jury--Robinson viewed a “photo spread” of the defendants but could not positively identify any of the officers as participants in the 1987 drug raid.

Prosecutors said they were not at that brief meeting. An FBI agent told Takasugi on Wednesday that he was present but failed to alert government attorneys of the photo identification session.

“It just so happens that this has fallen through the cracks, and we apologize for that,” said Assistant U.S. Atty. Michael Emmick, who urged Takasugi not to strike Robinson’s testimony.

But defense attorneys disagreed and said this was only the latest episode of government misconduct. “How many last chances does the government get?” asked Bradley Brunon, who represents Deputy Edward D. Jamison.

During his testimony, Robinson said Jamison had stolen cash from his home but that he could not pick him out of a photo lineup.

Robinson also named Sgt. Robert S. Tolmaire as the officer who hit him with his fists during the raid. According to prosecutors, the memorandum shows that Robinson could only say that the picture of Tolmaire was “familiar.”

In the federal indictment, Tolmaire is accused of beating Robinson with his fists. Jamison, Tolmaire and LAPD Detective Stephen W. Polak are charged with stealing the cash from Robinson and his roommate, another drug dealer named Ollie Newell. The narcotics officers are also accused of beating Newell, kicking him and trying to smother him with a plastic bag.

Tolmaire also is charged with falsely arresting Robinson for possessing cocaine for sale and of attempting to plant what he thought was cocaine in Newell’s safe. According to prosecutors, the substance turned out to be a white powdery substance called “bunk.”

Since Robinson’s testimony has been thrown out, the government is left with Newell, who has not testified about the alleged incident, and with former Sgt. Robert R. Sobel, who testified that he arrived after the alleged beatings.