LITTLE ROCK — A federal judge ruled Monday that statements federal agents said were voluntarily given in 2009 by North Little Rock Alderman Sam Baggett about his relationship with a convicted felon would be allowed at his Dec. 7 trial.
Baggett is scheduled for trial in two weeks alongside George Wylie Thompson, 65, of Cabot.
Baggett, formerly a federally licensed firearms dealer, faces charges of providing firearms and ammunition to Thompson, a convicted felon. Thompson is to be tried on gambling, marriage fraud and gun charges.
Tuesday’s hearing of more than three hours was on a motion by John Wesley Hall, Baggett’s attorney, to suppress statements Baggett gave federal agents on June 5, 2009, concerning Thompson on a patio outside Baggett’s barber shop on West 44th Street in North Little Rock.
The motion claimed agents detained Baggett and never informed him that his conversation was voluntary or that he was free to leave or stop questioning at anytime.
After the interview, other agents were called in to serve a search warrant of Baggett’s barbershop, where he had several firearms.
Special Agent Glen Jordan of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and FBI Special Agent Carrie Land asked Baggett 37 questions. The agents testified that Jordan wrote out Baggett’s answers but that no recording was made.
U.S. District Judge Bill Wilson Jr., said he is “troubled by there being no recording,” leaving him to “depend on which side I believe.”
“A recording might reveal whether Mr. Baggett is telling the truth and not the officers,” Wilson said.
Land testified that it is “FBI policy” to not record interviews but didn’t know why. Jordan said it isn’t a policy of the ATF to not use a recording device but he has rarely used a recording device while having done “several hundred interviews” in his 24 years as an agent.
Wilson said during his ruling that he wants to have in writing by the trial whether the agencies actually prohibit electronic recordings of such interviews in order to know how to instruct a jury on consideration of the statements.
Baggett testified that he had to tell customers who came up for a haircut that he couldn’t cut hair that day and that Jordan told him at that time “Don’t wander off.”
Jordan countered in his testimony that the interview with Baggett “was very cordial” and that the two shook hands afterward and even “chatted” outside while other agents searched the barber shop.
“It was probably one of the more pleasant interviews I’ve done in my career,” he said.
Baggett also testified that he believed he was “being held by the FBI” and that Jordan told him he would probably lose his firearms license. Both agents testified they never restricted Baggett, threatened him or denied him anything during their 30-45 minute interview.
“Agent Jordan didn’t want any explanation. He wanted yes or no answers,” Baggett said. “I wanted to explain to them about the sale of ammunition. [Jordan] was perturbed, upset ... He made this grunting sound when I said I wanted to explain.
“As soon as they asked me if I sold George ammunition, I said yes and I tried to explain,” Baggett said.
Thompson is also to be tried again Feb. 1 with former North Little Rock Alderman Cary Gaines. The two are jointly accused of conspiring to defraud the city through a kickback scheme that would have allowed Gaines to pay off gambling debts he owed Thompson.
Thompson was convicted in October with purported Mafia street boss Ralph Francis DeLeo of Massachusetts in a federal cocaine-trafficking case.
Arkansas, Pages 10 on 11/23/2010