Money Raised for Denny Suspect’s Bail, Family Says : Court: But judge decides to hold hearing to find if property used to secure bond was acquired legally. The action angers supporters of Damian Williams.

Supporters of a man charged in attacks on seven motorists in the early hours of the Los Angeles riots said Wednesday they have accumulated enough money to post his bail, raising the possibility that he could go free as early as next week.

But before Damian Monroe (Football) Williams, 19, can be released, a special hearing must be held to determine whether the property used to secure his bail was acquired legally. And that condition angered Williams’ supporters, especially his mother.

“Why do I have to go through this?” Georgiana Williams asked during an impromptu news conference outside the courtroom where her son had just appeared for a brief hearing. “They’re treating me like I’m some sort of drug dealer. I’m not a drug dealer. I’m a working mother from South-Central.”

Williams’ bail is set at $580,000, and his lawyers say his family can demonstrate that they own enough property to cover that amount.

Special hearings to review property are common in cases where suspects are accused of drug crimes or gang affiliations, and prosecutors say Williams is a member of the Eight-Tray Gangster Crips, a well-known South Los Angeles gang. But supporters of Williams and two other suspects charged with attacking a dozen people--including truck driver Reginald O. Denny--are sensitive to any hint that the defendants are being treated differently than the police officers in the Rodney G. King case.

No special hearing was conducted to review the property used for bail in the King case, and bail for the officers was set much lower than for the Denny beating suspects. Prosecutors say the differences are justified because, unlike the Denny suspects, the officers had no criminal records, were not considered flight risks and were not believed to have gang affiliations.

Although Williams’ lawyers would not say exactly where the bail money is coming from, they said that a significant portion of it is in the form of property owned by the Williams family. Dennis Palmieri, one of Williams’ lawyers, said he hopes a hearing can be held early next week to review the property.

“I hope to show the judge that this property has been purchased in a way that is good, honest and legal,” he said. “These are legitimate pieces of property.”

Bail for the other two principal suspects--Antoine Eugene (Twan) Miller and Henry Keith (Kiki) Watson--has been set at $580,000 and $500,000, respectively. So far, neither has been able to produce that amount.

The attack on Denny was aired on live television, and millions watched as the truck driver was dragged from his vehicle, beaten and kicked. One man fired a shotgun at the gas tank of Denny’s truck while the trucker lay bleeding and unconscious just a few feet away.

The attack left Denny near death, and has come to symbolize the rage and destruction that erupted in Los Angeles after the not guilty verdicts in the trial of the officers who beat King. As a result, every development in the Denny case has been the subject of intense and emotional scrutiny.

Williams, Miller and Watson were arrested in pre-dawn raids last month and originally were charged with attempted murder, mayhem, torture and robbery in the attack on Denny. Bail was set for all three suspects, but before any of them could post it, they were charged with attacking 11 other people, including a 7-month-old child and two firefighters.

A fourth suspect, Gary A. Williams, is charged with robbing Denny after the trucker was unconscious. He is not accused of beating Denny or anyone else, and his case is being handled separately. His bail has been set at $50,000, which he has been unable to raise.

With the suspects still behind bars and their supporters becoming increasingly frustrated, tensions flared outside the courtroom Wednesday. Supporters scuffled with reporters in a hallway, and Georgiana Williams half-jokingly brandished an umbrella, warning a cameraman and other reporters, “I’m going to spank you like I spank a little kid.”

The action was less intense inside the courtroom. A preliminary hearing had been scheduled for the three principal suspects, but defense lawyers received permission to take more time to review evidence being gathered by the prosecution. The hearing was rescheduled for July 31, and a preliminary hearing for Gary Williams was set for June 30.

Meanwhile, the supporters stepped up their complaints that many of the people raising money for the legal defense efforts are acting on their own and are not forwarding the funds to the families or lawyers.

Gary Davis, a friend and neighbor of Damian Williams, said some people are selling T-shirts and other items while falsely claiming they are donating the proceeds to the defense fund. “They’re just trying to make a buck,” Davis said.

Mark Jackson, Damian Williams’ brother, agreed. He said that he and others have urged that something be done to monitor the fund-raising efforts and ensure that the money is used to help the suspects.

In addition to street vendors, several organizations have sponsored fund-raising drives, but only one organized by the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church is recognized by family members and lawyers.

Attorneys representing Williams had drafted a motion asking the court to intervene and appoint an auditor, but that motion was withdrawn Wednesday after a session in chambers with Municipal Judge William R. Chidsey Jr.

Palmieri said the attorneys for all four defendants are planning to draft a proposal for combining the fund-raising campaigns into a single effort with a single bank account.

“We will come up with a joint proposal and take it to any groups we know of that are engaged in fund raising,” Palmieri said. Palmieri said that if the groups cannot agree on a common effort with outside monitoring he would consider returning to the judge with the request that the court intervene.