2 men claim to be victims of DUI scam Crime Arrests similar to those linked to investigator

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Looking back, David Dutcher realizes the gorgeous blonde who approached him through an online dating service came on too strong.

During their 2008 date at the Old Spaghetti Factory in downtown Concord, Dutcher said the woman chugged shots of hard alcohol and punctuated each with a kiss to his lips.

After a second flirtatious woman showed up, the blonde told Dutcher, then a 46-year-old recent divorcee, that their night would continue if he followed the ladies home to join them in a hot tub.

Dutcher never got there - minutes after he left the restaurant, a Concord police officer pulled him over for drunken driving.

His arrest, and a 2007 case involving a Clayton man that The Chronicle reviewed, bear similarities to three drunken-driving stops referred to by a Contra Costa County sheriff's deputy who allegedly participated in them as "dirty DUIs" - setups intended to sully husbands embroiled in divorce proceedings.

All the cases trace back to the same private investigator - 49-year-old Christopher Butler of Concord, who was arrested last month along with a state narcotics agent, Norman Wielsch, and has been charged with stealing and dealing drugs.

The sheriff's deputy who allegedly called his arrests "dirty DUIs," 47-year-old Stephen Tanabe of Alamo, resigned from the department last week after being arrested on suspicion of possessing drugs and an illegal assault rifle. He has not been charged and has not returned calls seeking comment.

In court, a prosecutor spelled out a scheme in which Butler, a former Antioch police officer, would hire attractive women to get investigative targets drunk. Then, the prosecutor said, Butler would work with his contacts in law enforcement to make sure the men were stopped as they drove under the influence.

When Tanabe was arrested, a law enforcement source close to the investigation said authorities suspected that police from other agencies may have been working with Butler.

David Dutcher, on Wednesday March, 9, 2011, in Matinez, Ca. Dutcher believes he was setup for a DUI arrest by his ex-wife's attorney. Dutcher says that the attorney used a private investigator, hired a female decoy to hit on Dutcher at a bar, then suggested they go back to her place. Ran on: 03-13-2011 David Dutcher says his drunken-driving arrest in 2008 was a setup. His case is similar to the ones a deputy allegedly made as part of a scheme to discredit husbands. less David Dutcher, on Wednesday March, 9, 2011, in Matinez, Ca. Dutcher believes he was setup for a DUI arrest by his ex-wife's attorney. Dutcher says that the attorney used a private investigator, hired a female ... more Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle Photo: Michael Macor, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close 2 men claim to be victims of DUI scam 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

The Chronicle learned of Butler's connections to the Concord and Clayton drunken-driving arrests through a former colleague of a San Ramon divorce attorney, who said the lawyer had hired the private investigator to obtain information about her clients' estranged husbands.

In the Clayton arrest, the decoy who went drinking with the man confirmed to The Chronicle that she had been working for Butler.

Both sources asked that their names not be used, saying they feared they could be the victims of reprisals. The men's stories were corroborated through court records, including arrest reports and divorce filings.

Although he faces drug charges, Butler has not been charged in connection with the drunken-driving arrests. He is free on $900,000 bail.

His attorney, William Gagen, did not return phone calls seeking comment. In court, he said that if Butler was involved in the arrests, it was no different than a citizen behind the wheel alerting police to a drunken driver.

'A lot of shame'

Both men arrested in Concord and Clayton acknowledged that they were driving drunk. But they have always been suspicious of the events that led to their traffic stops.

"That DUI brought me a lot of shame," said Declan Woods, a 46-year-old Clayton contractor mired in a divorce at the time of his 2007 arrest. "I did it, I was wrong, I admit it. But I've also been telling people for years: I was set up."

In Dutcher's case, he was arrested by a decorated Concord police officer, Don Lawson - a two-time recipient of the department's Officer of the Year award bestowed by the Kiwanis Club - who was also an identity-theft consultant for Butler's private investigations firm, according to Butler's website.

Dutcher, a father of three, was returning to dating after his 15-year marriage had ended when the attractive blonde contacted him through Match.com in December 2008.

After an initial meeting at E.J. Phair, a Concord brewery, they exchanged more than 20 e-mails. In one, she told Dutcher she longed for their next date.

'Yummy'

"Thanks for walking me to my truck AND the kisses good night," the woman wrote in one e-mail. "Yummy. I liked it when you were holding and caressing my hand. You have strong, large hands. ... You know what they say!"

That next date was Dec. 12, 2008, at the Old Spaghetti Factory. After the blonde and her friend pulled away in one car, Dutcher followed in another.

Less than a mile away, on Clayton Road, Lawson pulled over Dutcher's pickup truck.

According to Lawson's signed offense report, he randomly spotted Dutcher's vehicle before he pulled in behind. The officer wrote that he had visually paced Dutcher's truck traveling 53 mph in a 40 mph zone, and that Dutcher's vehicle was tailgating a sedan in front of him. Lawson wrote that his suspect had mentioned, "I was following a couple of ladies."

Dutcher's blood sample revealed an alcohol content of 0.12 percent, above the legal limit of 0.08 percent. He pleaded no contest, paid a fine of $2,200 and performed three days of community service.

Over the past couple of years, Butler and several of his "P.I. Moms" - women who could gather information on targets without arousing suspicion - made numerous media appearances. Butler was publicizing a reality show he hoped to develop, "P.I. Moms of San Francisco."

In one of the appearances, Dutcher recognized the blonde he had dated.

The woman did not respond to e-mail and phone messages from The Chronicle seeking comment.

Lawson retired in July 2009 after a 28-year career and eight months after Dutcher's arrest. He now runs an identity-theft consulting firm in Clayton. After Butler was arrested, Lawson wrote a letter to a judge supporting the private investigator's attempt to have his bail lowered.

Lawson did not respond to e-mails, phone messages, or a letter asking to discuss his relationship to Butler and Dutcher's 2008 arrest.

Concord Police Chief Guy Swanger, who took over after Lawson left the department, declined to comment, citing the Contra Costa district attorney's investigation into Butler and the state drug agent.

Court motion

Three weeks after Dutcher's arrest, his ex-wife's lawyer, San Ramon family law attorney Mary Nolan, filed an emergency motion in court seeking to discuss Dutcher's visitation hours with his three children, according to court records. Nolan wrote that she had inadvertently learned of Dutcher's drunken-driving episode and wanted to make the court aware of his run-in with the law.

Dutcher said a judge had reduced the time he could spend with his children.

Cynthia Hannon, Dutcher's attorney at the time, did not comment directly on her client's case. But she said that in family law disputes, allegations of drug and alcohol abuse levied at one spouse can sway a judge to favor the parent with the unblemished past.

Nolan, who represented Butler during his 2009 divorce, did not respond to e-mails, phone messages or a mailed letter to discuss her relationship with the private investigator.

Dutcher's ex-wife, Susie, also did not respond to an e-mail and phone message.

"It devastated me," Dutcher, a Lockheed Martin engineer, said of his conviction. "I went from father of three, past Cub Scout master, stable provider and homeowner to criminal and deadbeat dad in 16 months."

'I've been set up'

If it took Dutcher the clarity of hindsight to connect the events, Declan Woods knew he was the mark in a ruse before the handcuffs closed around his wrists.

According to Woods' arrest report from July 10, 2007, he told the arresting officer, "I've been set up."

Woods was going through a divorce when a prospective client asked for a quote on a kitchen remodel job. During the inspection, Woods was approached by a younger woman who said she was new to Clayton. She soon invited herself to join Woods for a happy hour drink at Ed's Mudville Grill.

A second woman showed up, and the two suggested they walk across the town square to the Clayton Club Saloon, the only bar nearby that served hard alcohol.

Woods' female interest straddled his lap, kissed him, and told him to follow the ladies to Walnut Creek if he wanted the party to continue.

Less than a mile later, he was pulled over. He blew a 0.21 in the field breathalyzer test, more than 2 1/2 times the legal limit. Woods pleaded guilty, paid a fine and performed community service.

Unlike Dutcher, Woods never saw his comely friend again. But 19 months after his arrest, he did receive an e-mail from the woman who said she had been paid to target him.

She apologized and wrote, "More than a year later, I still feel sad/bad about it. What I saw in the very short period of time I spent with you is a man with extraordinary love, devotion, and loyalty to offer; a heart, a work ethic, an aura of pure gold."

Contacted by The Chronicle, the woman confirmed she had been working with Butler.

Ex-wife in dark

Woods' ex-wife, Louise, said Nolan had represented her in the divorce. She said she had never heard of Butler nor discussed the arrest with her attorney.

"If that's really what happened, I would be pissed off," Louise Woods said of the "dirty DUI" scenario. "I wouldn't have been on board for that. I have no knowledge of it."

Declan and Louise Woods agreed the incident occurred after they had settled their custody arrangement for their two children. However, Nolan did file a document with the court saying there were "concerns regarding (Declan Woods') ability to fulfill his parental responsibilities" and cited his drunken-driving arrest.

Clayton Police Chief Dan Lawrence reviewed documents connected to Woods' arrest and said an anonymous tipster made two 911 calls that night to Clayton dispatch. The first came as Woods stepped into his truck, and the second was moments later as he drove from the parking lot.

The arresting officer was dispatched at random and pulled over Woods after noticing an unsafe driving pattern, Lawrence said.

The chief said it is rare for police to receive tips from the public about drunken drivers, and even more unusual for anonymous callers to ring twice and refuse to leave a name - which is what the tipster in the Woods case did.

Lawrence, aware of the investigation into Butler's alleged connections, said he was troubled to think his department was used to "implement someone else's dirty agenda," but stressed that no one had forced Woods to drive.

"In a weird way," the chief said, "our goals coincided."