Dugan Arnett

She's been told to stay close by, but out of court. Today there's several New Bedford police officers. Detectives have been subpoenaed and are expected to show up. I've also heard that Paul Oliveira, the current police chief, has also been subpoenaed and is expected to be here. So we'll see what happens. Yeah. Ortiz and his co-defendants are clustered in the hallway outside the courtroom.

She's been told to stay close by, but out of court. Today there's several New Bedford police officers. Detectives have been subpoenaed and are expected to show up. I've also heard that Paul Oliveira, the current police chief, has also been subpoenaed and is expected to be here. So we'll see what happens. Yeah. Ortiz and his co-defendants are clustered in the hallway outside the courtroom.

They're waiting for the proceeding to begin. Lawyers hustle in and out, including Ortiz's attorney, Rosemary Scappiccio.

They're waiting for the proceeding to begin. Lawyers hustle in and out, including Ortiz's attorney, Rosemary Scappiccio.

We'll wait. Scappiccio took on Ortiz's case two years ago, after he called her office over and over. She's a big deal in Boston legal circles. She did not seem happy that the officers she'd subpoenaed are not here.

We'll wait. Scappiccio took on Ortiz's case two years ago, after he called her office over and over. She's a big deal in Boston legal circles. She did not seem happy that the officers she'd subpoenaed are not here.

And some sarcastic language was asking where they might be hiding, so. And now, discreetly, she's giving us a heads up.

And some sarcastic language was asking where they might be hiding, so. And now, discreetly, she's giving us a heads up.

You're not going to want to miss this, she says. Scappiccio walks over to her client. He and his three co-defendants start to smile.

You're not going to want to miss this, she says. Scappiccio walks over to her client. He and his three co-defendants start to smile.

This story, this case, is what first led me to New Bedford. And what I discovered was that Operation High Stakes wasn't the heroic feat of detective work that police hailed it as. The case was tainted from the start. You see, Carly figured out that the cop, Jared Lucas, used her, not just for sex, but for information. Information that made its way from the bedroom to the courtroom.

This story, this case, is what first led me to New Bedford. And what I discovered was that Operation High Stakes wasn't the heroic feat of detective work that police hailed it as. The case was tainted from the start. You see, Carly figured out that the cop, Jared Lucas, used her, not just for sex, but for information. Information that made its way from the bedroom to the courtroom.

And in police reports and official documents, Lucas said the intel came not from his lover, but from a confidential informant. More than two years after I broke this story, one drug trafficking case has already been tossed. Now, an even bigger case hangs in the balance, and it could all lead to a reckoning for New Bedford police and the way that they use confidential informants.

And in police reports and official documents, Lucas said the intel came not from his lover, but from a confidential informant. More than two years after I broke this story, one drug trafficking case has already been tossed. Now, an even bigger case hangs in the balance, and it could all lead to a reckoning for New Bedford police and the way that they use confidential informants.

I'm Dugan Arnett, and this is Spotlight, Snitch City. Episode 6, Case Dismissed.

I'm Dugan Arnett, and this is Spotlight, Snitch City. Episode 6, Case Dismissed.

The first order of business this morning is the Ortiz case, and Scappiccio wants it thrown out.

The first order of business this morning is the Ortiz case, and Scappiccio wants it thrown out.

With prejudice is important. It means the case can never be brought to court again.

With prejudice is important. It means the case can never be brought to court again.