Perry sent DPS to neonatal unit

State Rep. Craig Eiland has accused Governor Perry of ordering a DPS trooper to search the neonatal intensive care unit where his premature twins are being kept as part of the hunt for the Killer D's.

Rep. Kevin Bailey, D-Houston, chairman of the House General Investigating Committee, said a DPS officer, Lt. William Crais, told him that the DPS went to the hospital under the governor's orders.

Bailey said Crais was one of three DPS officers in a command post behind the House chamber, which Perry visited on the evening of May 12, the first day of the Democratic walkout.

Speaker Tom Craddick had enlisted the DPS' help in tracking down the missing lawmakers after he had put a call on the House, demanding their return. DPS officers visited the Democrats in Ardmore but lacked the authority across state lines to compel their return.

Bailey said Crais told him, in an interview last week, that Perry had a letter that Eiland had previously written to Craddick, informing him that attention to his hospitalized infants could cause him to miss some House sessions.

"Perry gave him (Crais) the letter and said, `This is the hospital, send the Texas Rangers there and see if Eiland's there,' " Bailey said.

"Crais told me that directly," the lawmaker added.

[...]

Eiland said, if Bailey's report were true, that the governor's conduct was "abusive and unnecessary."

"They went to the hospital after they knew we were in Ardmore," he added.

Eiland said a Texas Ranger visited the neonatal unit late Monday night, after visiting hours, asking for Eiland or his wife, who had already gone home.

Eiland said he called the officer, told him he wasn't in the state and that the DPS already knew where he was. After the call, he said, the ranger then went to his house and rang the doorbell about 10:30 p.m.

Perry denied the charges through his spokeswoman Kathy Walt. He said he had no such letter and that at the time they believed Rep. Eiland was at his home. This is unlikely to amount to much more than a political he said/she said unless one of those troopers comes forward and supports one side or the other.

However, buried at the end of this article, is a hint that such a thing may indeed occur:

Bailey, who was among the dissident Democrats, said Crais also told him that the DPS wasn't in charge of the search for the missing lawmakers.

He said Crais complained that he and two other DPS officers assigned to help coordinate the search were "basically puppets being controlled by the political people."

Today is the day that Rep. Lon Burnam is supposed to be deposed about his sources within DPS. If he delivers the goods, we might just have the kind of scandal that otherwise disinterested people will take notice of. If not, he'll look like a fool and the Republicans will claim vindication, with good reason. Check back later to see what happened.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on June 02, 2003 to Killer D's | TrackBack