D.A. Won’t Prosecute Deputy Accused of Pocketing Drugs

San Diego County Dist. Atty. Ed Miller has announced that his office will not prosecute a sheriff’s deputy who allegedly stole methamphetamine given to him during a sting operation.

As with another deputy, who was ordered to stand trial Monday, the Sheriff’s Department began to investigate Deputy James P. Beaty after several citizens complained that he had stolen the drug from them while he was on duty.

During the June 9 sting, an undercover operative handed over to Beaty a pouch containing 19 bags of methamphetamine and $329 in cash she said she had found. According to investigators, Beaty labeled all of the money as recovered property, but turned in only 16 of the bags containing drugs.

Beaty was arrested June 10 after the investigating officers determined that nearly 7 grams of methamphetamine--worth as much as $1,000--was missing. Beaty’s property was searched, but the drugs were never found.

Because “the missing drugs passed through several hands after being given to Deputy Beaty,” Miller said in an Oct. 29 letter to Sheriff Jim Roache, there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the case.

“The possibility that the drugs were lost cannot be overcome since the drugs were not recovered,” Miller wrote.

The district attorney also declined to prosecute Beaty in three other cases submitted by investigators.

In a 1990 case, a dispatcher on a ride-along said he observed Beaty recover a bag that Beaty identified as methamphetamine. The witness said Beaty placed the purported drugs into the trunk of his patrol car, never to be seen again.

A man involved in a domestic dispute said Beaty had taken methamphetamine from his girlfriend, but prosecutors discovered that the woman denied possessing the drug.

In the final case, investigators wanted Beaty prosecuted for stealing about $110 from the Boy Scouts Explorers’ post at the Vista station. Miller decided there was also insufficient evidence to prosecute because it was also a reasonable conclusion that the money was merely unaccounted for.

“Although we cannot file criminal charges against Deputy Beaty, we are concerned about the conduct reflected in this letter,” Miller wrote to Roache.

Another officer assigned to the Vista station, former Deputy Samuel Priest, was ordered Monday to stand Monday on charges of stealing money that had been turned over to him during another sting operation. Priest is also charged with stealing from two people during traffic stops.

Beaty, 38, was a 12-year veteran of the Sheriff’s Department. He was fired but is contesting the termination.