Hall
Kristen Helm of the TBI noted the task force is under a TBI investigation for “possible misconduct,” however, Hall denied the allegations.
Helm said the investigation began after a request from the District Attorney General’s Office was made in June.
Bebb said Saturday evening during a phone interview that all agents with the DTF had passed their drug tests.
Former Cleveland detective Duff Brumley said he was “under an investigation for investigating former director of the Drug Task Force, Mike Hall.”
“Interestingly, director Hall resigned from his job around this time,” wrote Brumley in his response Friday regarding his credibility and District Attorney General Steve Bebb’s motion to dismiss charges against Michael Younger, a defendant in the triple murders of three young people on Valentine’s Day 1999.
Younger is charged with capital murder in the deaths of Cayci Higgins, O. J. Blair and Dawn Rogers.
“The process of me moving away has been coming since 2003 or 2004,” Hall said Saturday during a telephone interview from his home in Florida. “I was in the process of the decision months before allegations of drug use arose.
“I had three drug tests — all willingly — two were surprise and one was a DNA (hair) test. I wanted to prove the fact their was no drug activity in my system.”
The DNA testing could have indicated drugs taken as far as six-months back.
Hall left DTF to return to his native Florida where he is working with two churches — one in Miami and the other in the Keys, he said.
“I have nothing to hide,” he said. “The hours of the DTF director are long and demanding. I couldn’t be an effective law enforcement officer and deal with the small-town politics. It was time for me to get out of it and myself and family decided to move back home. It certainly wasn’t the allegation which help me make my decision.”
Brumley said the “investigation began after receiving three tips Hall was misusing drugs.” He also said, “in March 2010, a preliminary check was made of Hall’s pharmaceutical purchases by a third party and nothing was found.
“It was very preliminary, very brief,” Brumley said. “There was no basis to proceed from.”
Brumley said he didn’t contact the TBI regarding the allegations about the Drug Task Force director.
“I won’t comment on Brumley’s response (published Friday),” Bebb said.
Helm said Saturday results of the investigation should be returned to the DA’s office soon because “the investigation is almost complete.”
