Copyright © 1992, The Austin American-Statesman

Jim Phillips, Murder trial clouded by discounted confession., 10-31-1992.

A 3-week-old capital murder trial crashed to a halt Friday when a prosecutor disclosed that he had just learned from police that someone other than the defendant had confessed to the killing. Defense attorneys immediately moved for a mistrial.

The jury was sent home, and attorneys in the case against Alva Eziel Curry were given the weekend to study the law and decide how to argue the case Monday morning.

Curry was found guilty Thursday of capital murder in the Oct. 16, 1991, shooting death of convenience store clerk David Vela.

District Attorney Ronnie Earle said the disclosures about the prior confession would be investigated. "All of these allegations will be investigated by the district attorney' s office and by other appropriate authorities after this trial is over."

The head of a police association said Friday that several officers were being questioned about why prosecutors were not told of the confession, which was determined to be false. He said he feared officials were looking for a scapegoat.

Bruce Bowser, the former suspect who gave the confession, told a reporter that he agreed to help police after then-Sgt. Hector Polanco threatened him and his family. Polanco was fired after his supervisors determined that he lied on the witness stand about an undisclosed statement in an unrelated murder trial.

Randy Leavitt, an attorney for Polanco, said Friday that he did not think the new accusations against his client were true.

The revelation about the undisclosed confession came as the punishment phase of the trial, in which the jury was to decide whether Curry receives life in prison or death, was to begin.

State and federal law requires that information possibly favorable to the defendant be given to defense attorneys well before trial.

Assistant District Attorney Robert Smith, the lead prosecutor in the case, told state District Judge Bob Jones that he first learned of the other confession

Thursday night. Sources said the confession was not included in the police offense report on the slaying. Police sources said department policy requires

that one or several of the officers put details about the false confession in their reports.

Bowser is serving a prison term for unrelated crimes. Interviewed by telephone Friday, he initially denied confessing but then said he was threatened. He

said Polanco told him that Bowser's mother and grandmother could be killed by a man who had been a victim of a robbery committed by Bowser.

Sources said that up to six officers participated in the questioning of Bowser. The questioning took place for more than six hours overnight.

Within about an hour of Bowser's statements, police determined that he could not have done the crime, sources said. They then asked Bowser why he confessed, and he said he was tired and was willing to tell the officers what they wanted to hear, the sources said. Bowser's statement was never put in writing.

Bowser, 22, said Friday, "I told them, but it wasn't a written confession. Before it was even over, I told them it was a lie." He said one officer later questioned him about why he was willing to confess, and he said, "I told him I was scared," and described the threats. "He told me, `Your rights have been violated. You didn't have to do all this.'

"I think they just wanted me to confess to it because they didn't have any evidence at all, but he wanted me to have something to do with it."

Courthouse sources could not confirm Friday whether Polanco, who formerly headed the task force investigating the yogurt shop murders of four girls, was heavily involved in the questioning.

Leavitt, one of Polanco's attorneys, said Friday that he had received little information from prosecutors about the allegations "other than the investigation is ongoing. We'll just have to take a wait-and-see attitude."

Of Bowser's charges, he said: "I can't imagine there's any truth to it."

Ron DeLord, head of the Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas, said the organization is providing attorneys for several of the officers involved in the Bowser case.

"I would hope this doesn't turn into a witchhunt," DeLord said. "Everyone' s in a panic to blame someone because it looks like they may have to retry this. At most, the loss here is time and money. Nobody went free."

DeLord said many officers were involved in the investigation. Of Boswer's confession, he said, "Somehow that didn't get to the district attorney, but I haven't found anybody who withheld anything intentionally.

"Everybody is being called in and put under the spotlight like this is some criminal thing. They feel they are being brought out like some kind of sacrificial lamb."

After Bowser was released, Curry and another suspect were arrested, and Curry confessed to the killing.

Earle said, "There is no evidence to show that (Bowser) had anything to do with the crime. This new information does not affect the guilt of Alva Curry, and there is no reason to doubt the correctness of the jury's verdict."

The judge will have to decide whether withholding the information of the Bowser confession could have affected the outcome of the Curry trial.

Copyright © 1992, The Austin American-Statesman

Jim Phillips, Murder trial clouded by discounted confession., 10-31-1992.