Garden Grove Chief Responds in Dallies Case

* Re “Dallies Suspect May Be Free, but Police Can’t Let Case Go,” Dana Parsons column, Aug. 20:

I did not know Police Officer Howard Dallies, as I took the chief’s job in Garden Grove on June 1, 1998, after retiring from a police department in another state. But as chief I feel compelled to respond to comments made about and criticism leveled at my department.

Stephen Biskar, the attorney for John J.C. Stephens [who was accused of killing Dallies but was freed Aug. 18], has chosen to attack the Garden Grove Police Department.

This case was investigated by over 100 dedicated and experienced investigators, not only from Garden Grove but also from almost every agency in Orange County, including the Orange County district attorney’s office.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of the witnesses in this case have checkered pasts and criminal backgrounds. They lied to the police and changed their stories many times.

This put the prosecution in the awkward position of having to present conflicting testimony and made witness credibility the issue in the case. By taking advantage of these conflicts, Biskar has helped put an accused cop killer back on the street.

Putting aside all other witnesses, Lola Duvall, Stephens’ girlfriend at the time, is close to death. Her motivation to come clean and provide critical information about Stephens’ involvement in Howard Dallies’ murder was simple. She wanted to leave this world with a clear conscience.

This 80,000-plus-page case was reviewed by a staff of senior Orange County deputy district attorneys, and charges were filed in July 1997. There were many other pieces of evidence supporting these charges. A judge agreed, issuing a warrant.

If Stephens is the innocent man Biskar would have us believe, why would he waive his time and sit in jail for over two years?

Had I been wrongfully charged with the murder of a police officer, I would have made sure my attorneys moved quickly to secure my release.

The Garden Grove Police Department believes that a jury would have been sophisticated enough to sort through the issues of credibility and arrive at an independent finding that John Stephens murdered Howard Dallies.

The district attorney’s office recognizes that we get only one shot at trying Stephens for the murder of Dallies. Deputy Dist. Atty. Rick King stated, “Every instinct in me, as a prosecutor, wants me to go forward and get a cop killer convicted,” referring to Stephens.

Biskar would have the public believe that Stephens is an innocent victim of the criminal justice system. The fact is he is a convicted felon with a lengthy rap sheet. He is currently on parole from a seven-year sentence for shooting someone in the face.

The one thing I can agree with Biskar on is the sage advice he gave his client. There is no statute of limitations on murder. The criminal justice system should be engaged in a search for the truth, and the truth will ultimately prevail in this case.

The Garden Grove Police Department has a clear conscience about this investigation. I can only hope Biskar never has to face his conscience should his client victimize someone else.

JOE POLISAR

Chief of Police

Garden Grove

* I find it appalling that Garden Grove police detectives coerced witnesses in their attempts to build a case against suspected cop killer John J.C. Stephens (Aug. 17).

This sounds like an episode from a late-night New York cop show. Stephens is now a free man after his case was dismissed for lack of evidence and the recent findings of witness coercion by Superior Court Judge John J. Ryan.

We are now left with the troubling fact that an officer’s death goes unsolved. Even more disturbing, however, are the actions of Garden Grove police who coerced witnesses and obstructed justice in the process.

If Stephens is guilty of killing Officer Howard E. Dallies, the end result is a cop killer now free because of police coercion. If Stephens is innocent of the killing, then police attempted to toss an innocent man in prison for the rest of his life.

No matter how you slice it, this case exemplifies the need to hold officers accountable for their actions. If any citizen did what the cops did to the witnesses, be sure that charges of witness tampering, conspiracy and obstruction of justice would be filed.

The district attorney’s office should hold Garden Grove detectives responsible for their actions and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law.

There is no excuse for such behavior. The expense and burden of its consequences rest with Orange County residents who expect a higher level of professionalism and accountability from their police officers.

FRANK R. GULLION

Dana Point