FBI arrest 2 police officers, 911 caller linked to deadly Harding Street drug raid

Gerald Goines and Steven Bryant, the two former HPD officers who led the botched Harding Street raid, face additional federal charges for filing false information in government records. Gerald Goines and Steven Bryant, the two former HPD officers who led the botched Harding Street raid, face additional federal charges for filing false information in government records. Photo: Ken Ellis, Staff/Houston Chronicle Photo: Ken Ellis, Staff/Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 47 Caption Close FBI arrest 2 police officers, 911 caller linked to deadly Harding Street drug raid 1 / 47 Back to Gallery

A federal grand jury on Wednesday charged two former Houston police officers at the center of a failed January drug raid with civil rights violations, falsifying records and lying about use of confidential informants, marking the latest turn in one of the worst HPD scandals in decades.

Prosecutors also unsealed charges against a neighbor of Rhogena Nicholas and Dennis Tuttle, who were killed in the drug raid, for conveying false information after she called police and alleged drug use in the couple’s home on Harding Street in south Houston.

The unsealed indictment against former Houston officers Gerald Goines, 55, and Steven Bryant, 45, follows state charges against both officers. Goines was charged with two counts of felony murder, and Bryant was charged with tampering with a government document.

Wearing scowls and shackles, Goines and Bryant appeared in court Wednesday hours after they were arrested by the FBI. They scanned the crowded downtown courtroom while they waited to hear a federal magistrate read the charges against them.

Goines stood still, his eyes angled downward toward court paperwork arrayed on a table in front of him. When he spoke, he was barely audible. At one point, the magistrate asked if he understood he had a right to remain silent. He responded inaudibly.

“You have to say it out loud,” the judge said.

“Yes I do,” he said, hoarsely.

Bryant, Goines’ former partner, was released on $50,000 bail. Like Goines, Patricia Garcia, the 53-year-old woman accused of making false 911 calls that led police to the Harding Street home in late January, remained in custody pending a hearing. Federal prosecutors consider Goines a danger and a flight risk, according to a probation officer at the hearing.

The indictment includes seven charges against Goines. Authorities allege he fabricated an informant and lied on a search warrant affidavit, an offense report and the tactical plan made in preparation for the bust that turned into a gun battle that ended with the deaths of Nicholas and Tuttle and with five HPD officers injured.

Nicole DeBorde, who is representing Goines, called the latest charges surprising, particularly the indictment against Garcia.

“It appears at least on its face at this juncture, just looking at the indictment, inconsistent with the other charges that Bryant and Goines are facing,” she said, adding she looked forward to “vigorously defending” Goines in state and federal court.

“It’s a very stressful and lengthy investigation that’s been going on … he’s been cooperative,” she said. “He’s done everything that every judge or every police officer has asked him to do. We have a lot of decisions about how we will move forward in light of the federal charges”

Bryant is facing one count of falsifying records when he allegedly lied on an offense report. He claimed he’d helped Goines with a heroin buy at the Harding Street home — a purchase authorities say never really happened. The fabricated drug deal was part of the justification for the raid, which only turned up user-level amounts of marijuana and cocaine.

On HoustonChronicle.com: Federal grand jury hears testimony from Houston police officers about botched Pecan Park raid

Garcia is charged with providing false information because she allegedly lied when she called 911 and said that she could see her daughter inside the home. She also said the residents were drug dealers, that they were smoking crack and doing heroin and that they had machine guns inside.

Attorney Derek Collingsworth, who is representing Bryant on the federal charge, said after the court hearing Wednesday that his client has cooperated and is willing to cooperate with any rules of his bond.

Hours after federal authorities unsealed the multi-count indictment, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office issued a statement noting that it’s “not uncommon” for federal and local authorities to simultaneously pursue charges against defendants in complicated cases and that the local investigation is still ongoing.

“We all want to flesh out all the facts, all the evidence,” said spokesman Dane Schiller, “and ensure that the truth is known.”

Later on Wednesday, after the charges against his former officers were announced, Chief Art Acevedo portrayed the indictments as another step in holding Goines and Bryant accountable for their alleged misconduct.

“We have never been afraid of finding the truth as a police department,” the chief said, flanked by senior commanders and the lead investigator on the probe into Goines. “Our commitment is to the truth and our commitment is to the rule of law.”

In the weeks after the raid, Acevedo launched investigations into the shooting and a review of HPD’s undercover operations. On Wednesday, he declined to say when the department would release the findings of that probe.

On HoustonChronicle.com: HPD Chief Acevedo says narcotics cop committed likely crime by lying in affidavit for deadly raid

Goines, Bryant and other Houston narcotics officers burst into the house at 7815 Harding St. looking for heroin on Jan. 28. They’d zeroed in on that address after a tip from a worried mother — now identified as Garcia — alerted them to alleged drug activity there. To justify raiding the place, Goines allegedly fabricated an informant who he claimed bought heroin there on Jan. 27. After Goines signed an affidavit laying out the supposed drug purchase and illegal activity, police got permission for a no-knock raid.

As soon as the narcotics squad burst in the front door a day later, the bust erupted into gunfire. Four officers were shot, including Goines. One officer remains paralyzed from the waist down.

In the days that followed, an internal investigation sparked questions about the officers’ justification for the search warrant, and police quickly realized they could not find the informant Goines said made the buy.

Early on, the FBI launched its civil rights investigation, and the Harris County district attorney dismissed dozens of the officers’ active cases and announced prosecutors were reviewing more than 14,000 cases previously handled by Goines, Bryant and the rest of their squad. Meanwhile, attorneys for the families of the slain couple hired an independent forensics team to review the scene. They suggested that Tuttle may have been on the floor when he was shot and raised questions about whether he ever fired at police.

Mike Doyle, the attorney representing the Nicholas family, released a statement after Wednesday’s arrests, framing the FBI involvement as a move that would “expedite” the “quest” for justice.

“The investigation of the rogue Harding Street raid and the Houston Police Department must continue as far and wide as necessary,” he said. “If city officials continue to refuse to disclose what happened in these HPD killings, we hope federal authorities will do so.”

st.john.smith@chron.com

keri.blakinger@chron.com

gabrielle.banks@chron.com