Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • 38

ca Austin American-Statesman Sunday, August 18, 1985 Feazell From CI them, and, one senses, because they were always right Feazell has a large picture of Wayne on his office wall, and said, "I hope I haven't let John Wayne down lately. I'm a lot more cautious than I used to be. I used to just put my head down and charge ahead." i Despite the full-speed-ahead mentality, and the fact that he has a staff member who serves as a full-time administrative assistant press aide, and political adviser, Feazell denies claims that he is an ego-driven, publicity-crazed politician. "I was always a shy boy. I didn't like recess.

I still see myself as a shy little After saying the whole Lucas-as-mass-murderer saga was "a big hype," he compared himself to the little boy in the fairy tale The Emperor's New Clothes. "The little boy says he's naked, and I'm that little boy, and I've got the king mad at me." Moore, the former district attorney and legislator, expressed confidence in Feazell but said the investigation is "very detrimental to the profession, the county, the courthouse, and all of us." If Feazell emerges from the investigation unscathed, "he's going to be king of the world," Moore said. "I think there's a lot of sympathy for him." There is not much sympathy in the county Republican Party, where chairman Craig Reid said, "In the entire leadership of the community, I think there's been a great deal of political damage done. I think the average voter still supports Vic, but I think that's eroding quickly. "We are targeting that race," he said, adding that a few months ago Feazell was considered unbeatable.

"I think Vic's ability to work with law enforcement has been damaged, and that may not be repairable." "I've never heard any difference between the way things are done now and the way they have deen done for the last four or five DAs that I know of," said former District Attorney Don Hall. None of this means, as Mattox and others pointed out that Feazell might not be found to have committed crimes. Mattox said he is convinced the federal government stepped up the investigation of Feazell because of the Lucas Inquiry. The attorney general said: "Regardless of why it started, if it produces evidence of wrongdoing by Feazell he should be held accountable for that "I think he's a courageous young man. That doesn't mean he couldn't have done anything dishonest" The political fallout from the investigation has been difficult for the Waco political establishment to assess.

readily acknowledged that several of the cases were dismissed for reasons other than legal problems with the evidence. But during his 1982 campaign, Feazell had said, "We need to cut out the plea bargaining and the cases that are swept under the rug." The practice of dropping cases because of extenuating circumstances is called, especially in McLennan County, prosecutorial discretion. In some places it is called the good-old-boy system. It is a practice that has withstood' the test of time, except in Travis and a few other counties where policies have been changed in the past few years. In McLennan County, defense attorneys and two former district attorneys said, prosecutorial discretion has been a part of the Judicial system for many years.

If anything, these sources said, Feazell was less likely to drop a case than many of his predecessors. Feazell said the adverse publicity he has received in the past six weeks has only strengthened his support at least among the people he said elected him. "The farmers, the union people, the blacks, the Hispanics, they're all with me." But he said the events of the past few months, primarily the investigation of his activities, have been "a real awakening." "I never thought of myself as a naive person," he said. "Now I realize that naivete is Just a matter of degrees." Asked if he would pursue the Lucas investigation, if he had it to do over again, Feazell said: "I don't know. I doubt it My opinions haven't changed that I've done the right thing.

I've always considered myself a very strong person, so it's a sad commentary to sit here and tell you I don't know." Two of Feazell's heroes are John Wayne and Audie Murphy, because one could always count on 5:00 OPEN SUNDAY the dead, "when he rode Into Jerusalem they laid palm branches in front of him," Feazell said. "It wasnt too long after that they crucified him. But you can't keep a good man down." Biblical references come naturally to Feazell. The son of a Baptist minister and an ordained minister himself, Feazell once was pastor of two Temple-area churches and still preaches sermons to area congregations on Sundays. A graduate of Leander High School, Feazell ran for the Waco City Council in the late 1970s and lost In 1982, he mounted a more successful, and much more expensive, race for district attorney against six-year incumbent Felipe Reyna.

One of his selling points during the campaign was that he had won a then-record Jury award in a civil trial against a Waco bank. The suit was over the bank having foreclosed on the man's property, a perfect case for a populist candidate. Feazell in fact was second-chair during the trial, which was led by Gary Richardson, an Oklahoma lawyer who initially had the case and brought in Feazell to assist as local counsel. Richardson later developed his own reputation as hard-hitting and fearless when he was a U.S. attorney and obtained convictions on a number of public officials in Oklahoma.

Richardson, who has offices in Oklahoma and Dallas, now represents Henry Lee Lucas. He was brought in by a court-appointed Waco lawyer who obtained his name from Feazell. A former motivation instructor and salesman, Richardson said he had a contract with Lucas that allowed him to pick the cases in which he will get Involved. Asked if he had a book or movie deal with Lucas, he said he did not discuss his contracts with clients. II ST to stock on hand.

SI; ill Sjiyl 05 sZ Some unfinished. 3fc3Zi m0 Sonie one of a kind. I fVS sC- JtWSiI NOW "859 ENTERTAINMENT TV-VCR Cabinet, Oak-unfinished, reg. $399 $199 TV Cart, unfinished oak, reg. $129 $79 TV Cart -VCR Rollout Shelf, reg.

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$899 "Oakcrest" Rolltop Desk reg. $1 395 "Oakcrest" 54" executive desk, reg. $995 "Oak Crest" Reproduction Rolltop, reg. $2995 "Link Taylor" Queen Anne Desk, reg. $1 080 9 One of Richardson's first acts was to file a lawsuit against DPS investigators and Williamson County officials who had housed Lucas for almost two years.

The Williamson County connection In the Lucas case was the first issue raised by detractors of Feazell and Mattox when they began their high-profile grand jury investigation. Ed Walsh, as Williamson County district attorney, had obtained the only death penalty against Lucas. Walsh had switched to the Republican Party in January, and was considering a race for attorney general. The scenario presumed that one motive of the Waco grand Jury inquiry was to discredit Walsh as a potential opponent of Mattox, or Feazell if Mattox decided to run for governor and Feazell chose to run for attorney general. Feazell's response was to dismiss Walsh, who later announced for attorney general, as a "gnat" unworthy of such concern.

He also suggested Walsh was too ugly and talked too slowly to be a serious threat to Mattox. Told of the gnat comment, Mattox said last week, "I'm glad he said that" As to the anti-Walsh charge, he said, "I don't consider him a serious threat" He said the grand Jury investigation was simply an attempt to "clean up a mess that's been made" by law enforcement officials. Adams disputed the charges that investigators fed Lucas information, and that police agencies blindly accepted Lucas' claims at face value. "I think there has been a lack of recognition that the police agencies conducting these investigations have determined by themselves in many, many cases that Henry Lee Lucas was not telling the truth." He said Texas Rangers and local agencies rejected claims by Lucas or his occasional companion, Ottis Toole, to 47 Texas slayings. And, Lucas described 69 killings in which no matching cases could be found.

"It's nothing new that Lucas has claimed to have killed far more people than he committed." SOFAS (subject to prior sale) Wing Chair, reg. $444 Country Camelback Sofa, reg. $619 Country Sleeper, reg. $1799 Wing Chair, reg. $995 $559 $99 $299 $699 $199 $299 i 'J i 4 BEDROOM $599 $299 $99 $99 $129 $389 $69 $249 $159 $99.

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$499 $199 "Richardson Brothers" Extension table finished reg. $839 $399 Oak Butcher Block Table 36x60, unfinished, reg. $399 $149 Solid Oak 48" Round Contemporary Table and 4 chairs. Finished -reg. $1388 a 'On 0 One of the few people who will confirm being questioned by federal investigators regarding Feazell is Tony Duty, a Waco defense lawyer.

Duty said he was quizzed about buying $1,000 in tickets for a Feazell fund-raiser, and was asked if the purchases were connected to a decision by Feazell's office to dismiss a DWI case against Duty's daughter. Duty said the two events were unrelated, and said his daughter was warned by Feazell that if she got Into trouble again he would prosecute her. His daughter was arrested again for DWI, and she received an uncommonly stiff sentence, he said. The Dallas television reports referred to a number of other dismissals by Feazell's office. Feazell 5 -r- 4fllA ott I IT I 7713 Burnet Road 451-0213 10-6 Monday thru Saturday.

Till 9 on Thursday OPEN SUNDAY 12:30.