A common police technique of using small-time criminals to catch drug dealers may have contributed to an atmosphere that allowed two Eugene officers to think they could demand sex from women they stopped on patrol, victim advocates say.
Known locally on the streets as "three-for-one," the practice is spelled out in the department's official policy manual and is an accepted investigation tool not just here but in cities across the country.
Eugene police allow petty offenders, both men and woman, to "work off a charge" by turning in their dealers or performing drug buys that result in the arrest of three others.
Though the use of confidential informants is generally seen as a benefit to both sides, it exploits people who are most vulnerable to coercion, say those who work closely with prostitutes and addicts. And the secretive nature of cutting deals on the street opens the door to potential abuse, they say.
"You would have to be naive to assume that the cops are using this kind of extortion for public safety only," said Ron Chase, director of Sponsors, an agency that provides transitional services to people getting out of jail and prison.
Chase and others point to recent revelations about two officers accused of using their power to force women into sexual contact.
One of them, Juan Lara, 30, was sentenced in February to five years and eight months in prison. The second, Roger Magana, 41, is scheduled for trial in June.
Lara's attorney said in court that the fired officer - who relentlessly stalked and propositioned women he encountered on the job - was in fact trying to develop some of them as drug informants to impress the county's narcotics task force.
Papers related to lawsuits against Magana show that at least one woman offered him information about drug dealers in a desperate attempt to avoid performing the sexual acts he allegedly demanded. He rejected the offer, according to the documents.
Police don't deny that the system - any system that relies on a person's individual integrity - can be manipulated by unscrupulous people.
"What can I say? It obviously was," said Eugene police Sgt. Lee Thoming, head of the Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team, which works frequently with confidential informants.
"These two clowns are going to get what they've got coming," Thoming said. "The bottom line is that no cops condone this and almost every cop will be glad to see them get what they deserve."
Police Chief Robert Lehner said through a spokeswoman that he's not aware of any pattern of violations of the informant policy and it currently isn't part of an ongoing review of police policies and procedures in the wake of the Lara and Magana cases.
People with information about violations should file a complaint with the department's internal affairs division, he said.
Same disrespect
Jean Daugherty, director of women's services at Sponsors, said she's glad that Lara and Magana were arrested.
But she said many women see the Eugene officers who work the prostitution beat as "just another john," not because of sexual demands, but because they treat the women with the same disrespect they get from their customers.
It's easy to see why they would feel at a disadvantage, she said.
"These women are coming from a place where sex is a main bargaining chip," Daugherty said. "They are powerless out there. They are slaves to their addictions. They don't have a choice."
The house rules at the Sponsors transitional shelter have long prohibited women from participating in three-for-one deals with police. Any woman who violates the rule faces expulsion from the program.
It's for their own good, Daugherty said. "Working with the police is not OK," she said. "It puts women back on the street and back in danger.
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