Drug Charges Filed Against Ex-Officer

Orange County prosecutors filed drug charges Thursday against a former South Pasadena police officer who allegedly ran a methamphetamine lab out of his San Clemente home.

Officers arrested James Avery Brisco and his girlfriend, Angie Corado, on Tuesday as the couple left the house in separate Mercedes-Benz cars, said Tori Richards, spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office.

Detectives from a county task force targeting meth labs discovered half a pound of methamphetamine, a pound of solution capable of manufacturing the drug and other drug paraphernalia inside the couple’s home and one of the cars, Richards said. The house was also equipped with surveillance monitors, she said.

Brisco, 35, worked as an officer for six months in 1991, said South Pasadena Police Capt. Mike Ward. He declined to say whether Brisco quit the agency or was fired, citing privacy concerns.

Brisco and Corado pleaded not guilty to the charges. They each face up to 12 years in prison if convicted.