3-Strike Stories: F. Barron

I am myself a victim of this draconian law. I am 64 years old facing 75 years to life for trumped up charges of 2 Sales and a possession for sale of Heroin. In actuality all I'm guilty of is possession of 2 ($20.00) bags of heroin for personal use.

How can this be? Well , I am the victim in a vindictive prosecution orchestrated by one San Jose P.O. officer named Paul Ayoob. This officer has taken advantage of the opportunity to ruthlessly set me up. Knowing that once arrested I'd be under this law.

If anyone there knows this unscrupulous rogue police office, I'm certain they will attest to the man's unprofessional, unlawful scandalous tactics. He has a penchant, that is a driving obsession to harass, intimidate and arrest, both, legally but mostly, illegally, all known addicts of heroin. I venture to say that all narcotic user's in East San Jose either know him or about him; and by all means do all in their power to avoid him in order to escape unwanted, adverse consequence.

Everyone knows about him, the D.A., P.O.'s as well as the probation Dept. And possibly even the courts and some Judges. I'm told no one challenges him because he is good!, meaning BAD!! He knows what to say and when to say it and how to say it! He not only hides behind, but he, also grossly abuses the color of authority.

This personnel file is scandal-ridden; full of complaints and grievances against him, he has been investigated by his own Internal Affairs time and again. He has worked for 3 different law enforcement agencies in the last 20 years. In 85, he was a top-notch undercover narcotic officer, but because he puts himself above the law, instead of promotions he has brought upon himself demotions. He is now a common patrol cop in San Jose East side.

Now as to my arrest and the alleged charges it is all rather bizarre. I was arrested in front of 4-5 eye witnesses who saw what was found on me, 2 ($20.00) bags of heroin. Officer Ayoob says in his police reports, hew saw 2 hand to had sales made by me. He claims to have been in a parking stall right next to where I entered a car to see why this guy had called me. He had his dope but no outfit, he was not feeling good and wanted to fix. He said he had his outfit at home in Gilroy but needed to fix before he went home.

I told him we can go around the block to see if this guy was home, maybe I could get him one. We left. He stopped at 7-11 to get change, while I waited in his car. After noticing the guys car wasn't at his driveway, I told him he wasn't home to take me back to the liquors store. He did and left. He was arrested somewhere near Aborn and So. King Rd. He was uncooperative, and refused to give blood / urine.

Now back at the liquors, this girl shows up also needing a rig. She tells me she's got 2 bags she'll split one with me, if I can get her a rig. I told her what had just happened and she wanted me to sell her mine. No way, I told her to try King and Story, that they sold for a dollar all day long. She said she didn't know anybody, could I go with her? Can't. I'm waiting for someone to pick me up. I told her to just ask anyone who was loitering and looked like a user. She left and got arrested at Tully and Alvin St. She made no statement to arresting officers.

Then they arrested me on the word of Ayoob. Now up to this point, according to police reports, it appears a picture perfect surveillance and arrest, but thing just didn't happen like that!!

Ayoob has lied from beginning to end. He put himself in that stall, actually, he was in an adjacent parking lot, 150 yards away surveillance through binoculars. He was seen there. He claims there was some one else with him who, supposedly also observed what he claims, yet this other person did not do a police report at all. Ayoob wrote and speaks for his supposed partner.

Another thing, the people never parked in the exact same stall and he never witnessed any sales because no sales were made. He assumed all of that, knowing what he had intention of doing. He claimed to have me under constant surveillance but yet failed to see another individual who was in fact, dealing, get away. Yet he claims to have been only 75 feet away! From 75 feet away he claims to have seen me and another person 5 to 10 feet into the store that I was handed a package of unknown origin. This claim is physical impossibility as the story windows on the parking lot side are covered with signs and advertisements. Plus the store video cameras would not have shown this because I never entered the store that morning.

When arrested, I was exactly in front of the store by a trash container. A friend who I was talking with, the proprietor who was wiping store windows of the front doors, and two other individuals saw me arrested and searched. They witnessed what was found on me.

Taken to Chuckie Cheese parking lot, I was told, by Ayoob, I was facing 3 strikes ad that at my age I was through, but you don't have to go through all that, give me a street murder or a bank robbery, something big or you can make it real easy for your self, just give me M. M. I never even acknowledged hearing him.

Arriving at pre-booking, the 2 people who had gone looking for outfits were there just waiting for ne to get there. We all went through pre-processing, finger prints, mug-shots and all that, them taken to jail for booking and housing. At pre-processing they were both interrogated by Ayoob. I said nothing to them and they said nothing to me. As I entered the booking desk area, Ayoob eases up to me and says,"We might've F-----D up on the probable cause but we'll just have to wait and see"., and he left.

Now at the time of arrest, I only had $18.00 on my person, yet I was supposed to have made 2 sales! Where did the money go? There was no money, no dope was sold! Anyway, I got booked in and taken to be housed, thinking we all went to jail. A couple days later I went for arraignment, and the judge issued warrant for their arrest. They had, both been released. I knew they had not gotten out on bail or OR'd cause it would've been documented for the court. It wasn't till 3 2 to 4 months later, when a P.D. was appointed and I received police reports and supplementals that I realized how they had gotten out!!!

Ayoob first threatened, then propositioned them to say I sold them dope. He threatened to take the guy's driver license for DUI, he documented over a half dozen in symptoms of being under the influence so he could be convincing. The guy was good and sick by them so he lied!! The girl apparently cried to Ayoob that she needed help with her drug problem. She coincidentally, ends up with diversion. So what he did was promised them, he'd cut them loose if they cooperated so they did, but he tricked them cause they arrested them after 2 days.

Then at that time I also found out they had tampered, illegally and unlawfully, with evidence. In order to justify or just to make it convincing about the sales. They added 4 balloons to my 2, thus the alleged charges.

The P.D. from day one has refused to even make a good faith effort to expose their criminality. Claiming the strikes would still be valid because possession even for personal use is still a felony. After many re-refusals to exercise my due process rights, I asked the court for a Marsden Hearing; it was denied but an evidentiary hearing was granted to see if radio transmission communication taper were made of the field surveillance. They testified they didn't have any tapes, that it was their Agencies (AANET) policy not to ever tape any of their activities.

I believe radio transmissions from any field activity must be recorded or computerized by any law or narcotic Agency, it is my belief they are bound by Government mandate; I am just having a hard time proving it.

Return to Index.

Please send questions or comments to facts@mediaone.net.

Everything on this web site can be distributed to the general public, reprinted, or reposted without permission of Families to Amend California's 3-Strikes.

Date last modified: 6/19/98.