The inventory list also states that police found three 9mm pistols and 11 rifles and shotguns at the house. But the paperwork sheds no light on the Dec. 15 shooting, and police declined to comment about that issue.

Sgt. Andy Kancel, a police spokesman, referred questions to Police Chief Tom Shockley, who has scheduled a news conference for this afternoon.

According to the list, police found three marijuana plants in pots in the back yard, a plastic bag containing a green, leafy substance in a bedroom, and five pill bottles and film canisters containing marijuana seeds in a bedroom.

A glass bong, a scale, a "marijuana smoking pipe" and "miscellaneous literature on growing marijuana" also were found, the list states.

There were two "large industrial lights," irrigation equipment, electrical cords, timers, a humidifier, tools and "growing chemicals," the list states.

Assistant Police Chief Richard Kitchen said those items often are used to grow marijuana indoors.

Police have said they raided the house after receiving a tip from a confidential informant who said that Troy and Barbara Davis were growing substantial amounts of marijuana at their home in the 8200 block of Ulster Drive.

Police said they asked for a "no knock" warrant because Troy Davis had once been arrested in a weapons case, which was later dropped. Seventeen tactical officers helped serve the warrant. Police said the large number was necessary because they believed that Davis had guns in the house.

Police said Troy Davis was carrying a loaded 9mm pistol when he confronted three tactical team officers in the foyer of his mother's home. He was shot twice in the chest by officer Alan Hill and died at a hospital.

Although the inventory list includes three 9mm pistols and 11 rifles and shotguns, it does not indicate that police found any weapons in the foyer where the shooting occurred or in the hallway or the den that connect to the foyer.

The list states that police found a 9mm Beretta pistol and a 9mm Glock pistol in cases in a bedroom closet and a 9mm Sig Arms under a seat of a Ford Mustang convertible in the garage.

Barbara Davis' attorney Bill Lane said the inventory raises questions about whether Troy Davis was armed, but Lane stopped short of accusing the police of shooting an unarmed man.

"Where was the pistol he allegedly had in his hand?" Lane said."From what I've been told and from what I've read ... the reports I've heard are inconsistent with the physical evidence."

Kitchen declined to comment about whether Davis was armed.

"The chief's going to answer all that tomorrow," he said.

Barbara Davis has said that her son was cooking breakfast in the kitchen and that a gun was in his bedroom when police broke down the door. She said most of the guns on the property belonged to her late husband, James, who was a state trooper and an avid hunter.

Lane said police should have tried to confirm the informant's tip before they asked for a search warrant.

"Based upon the [search warrant] affidavit alone, there was insufficient evidence to justify a search of the house, much less a no-knock search with a SWAT team and kicking down the door," he said.

Barbara Davis worked in the Tarrant County district attorney's office until a few years ago, when she began writing for a living. She received publicity for writing a book about Darlie Routier, who is on Death Row for stabbing her son to death in 1996.

Davis' book pointed to Routier as the killer, but Davis said last year that she had changed her mind and was writing another book that she hoped would prove Routier's innocence.

Barbara Davis has been accused of possession of 2 to 4 ounces of marijuana, possession of the designer drug gamma hydroxybutyrate and attempted manufacture of GHB.

GHB was legally sold as a nutritional supplement and sleep enhancer until 1999. Davis has said she believed that the drug was still legal.

Davis has sued the city, asking a judge to order depositions from three officers: Hill, Kancel and Sgt. J.A. Wallace. Her civil attorney, Tom Carse, said he is considering filing a lawsuit for damages.

Until Wednesday, police had declined to release the inventory of items found during the search or to return the list to the district clerk's office, which is standard procedure. When the Star-Telegram requested the list under the Texas Public Information Act, city attorney Rex McEntire said it was part of an ongoing criminal investigation.

Mike Lee, (817) 685-3858

Send comments to mikelee@star-telegram.com

Published: January 6, 2000
© 2000 Star-Telegram, Fort Worth, Texas

Home    Comment    Email    Register    Recent Comments    Help