Defense Rests in Retrial of Former Drug Agent
After presenting less than three hours of testimony, the defense rested Tuesday in the federal court retrial of Richard Wayne Parker, a state Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement agent accused of stealing 650 pounds of cocaine from a Riverside evidence locker and selling it through a former girlfriend.
Defense attorney Richard A. Hamar said the prosecutor’s case against Parker was so weak that he saw no need to present a long defense. In particular, he said testimony by the government’s star witness, Parker’s former girlfriend Monica L. Pitto, was so inconsistent and obviously untruthful that he didn’t think that jurors would believe it.
“We think we blasted her [on cross-examination],” he said. “Her credibility was destroyed.” Federal prosecutors declined to comment on Tuesday’s proceedings.
Hamar also said he made the decision not to call Parker, who testified at the first trial on his own behalf. Hamar said he saw no reason to put the agent on the stand, given what he described as the government’s lack of convincing evidence.
In June, a jury deadlocked 10-1 for acquittal on the most serious charges against him, including conspiracy and drug trafficking.
The jury acquitted Parker of drug possession and money laundering, and convicted him of only a single count of tax fraud.
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