Deep-seated racism and abuse of power led a narcotics agent to unlawfully arrest 46 people
Steven Miller
Tulia, Texas is a documentary by filmmakers Cassandra Herrman and Kelly Whalen that investigates the story behind the case of Thomas Coleman, a freelance lawman of sorts, who was hired by the Panhandle Regional Drug Task Force to clean up the drug problem in Tulia as an undercover narcotics officer.
After 18 months of undercover work, the Swisher County Sheriff's department, under the direction of Coleman, rounded up 46 people that Coleman had claimed had sold him cocaine, despite their consistent assertions of innocence. Of the 46 people arrested, 39 were black and the remaining seven were Hispanic or had ties to the black community. In the small town of 5,000 residents, these arrests accounted for 15 percent of the black population.
Steven Miller
Tulia, Texas is a documentary by filmmakers Cassandra Herrman and Kelly Whalen that investigates the story behind the case of Thomas Coleman, a freelance lawman of sorts, who was hired by the Panhandle Regional Drug Task Force to clean up the drug problem in Tulia as an undercover narcotics officer.
After 18 months of undercover work, the Swisher County Sheriff's department, under the direction of Coleman, rounded up 46 people that Coleman had claimed had sold him cocaine, despite their consistent assertions of innocence. Of the 46 people arrested, 39 were black and the remaining seven were Hispanic or had ties to the black community. In the small town of 5,000 residents, these arrests accounted for 15 percent of the black population.