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Alleged victim denies he was police informer
by Art Hughes, Minnesota Public Radio
October 17, 2003

Stephen Porter, who has accused two Minneapolis police officers of sexually assaulting him during a drug raid, denies a published report that he is a police informant. "I'm not an informant. Never will be," he says. (MPR Photo/Art Hughes)

The man who accuses two Minneapolis police officers of sexually assaulting him says he fears for his life after a newspaper report identified him as a police informant.

Minneapolis, Minn. — The Star Tribune of Minneapolis quoted an unnamed source, who says Stephen Porter supplied information about criminal activity to one of the officers accused of assaulting him.

In the violent world of gangs and drug dealers, anyone identified as a snitch is a target for deadly retribution.

"Whoever wrote the story, I'm not mad at you. You were doing your job," Porter told reporters during a news conference Friday. "But is your story worth my life? Is that what you're telling me?"

	Spike Moss and Porter

Porter was arrested during a police drug raid Monday. He claims two of the officers brutalized him with the handle of a toilet plunger during the raid. He was booked at Hennepin County Jail but never charged.

Flanked by supporters at the minority youth social service agency City, Inc., Porter, who has a criminal drug record, said he pleaded guilty to previous charges and served 78 months in prison rather than comply with police requests to inform on other suspected criminals.

"My friends don't talk to me anymore," Porter said. "My whole life changed. I'm scared. I don't know what to do."

Spike Moss, a community activist and vice president of City, Inc., referred to Porter as his client. Moss says the media is complicit in a police scheme that endangers Porter's life.

"I could not believe that the media would engage in trying to get him killed, or the police would engage in trying to get him killed, knowing he's the only witness," Moss told reporters. "Your willingness to participate in murder is beyond me."

Police spokesman Ron Reier said leaking the name of an informant is frowned upon.

"Would the police engage in leaking informants' names -- and should the police do that -- are two different things," Reier said. "If the question is, should the police give out informants' names, the answer is no."

At a news conference after he was released from jail earlier this week, Porter appeared to be in pain. He collapsed after meeting with reporters and was taken away by ambulance. However, he was not admitted to the hospital.

Moss and the Rev. Randy Staten ended Friday's news conference before Porter could answer questions about his medical condition. When a reporter asked why appeared to be walking normally as he left the jail, but limped and held his back in front of the TV cameras, Moss answered angrily.

"This is not about a walk," Moss said. "This is about police brutality."

The FBI is investigating Porter's claims. Two Minneapolis police officers remain on administrative leave, pending the outcome of that investigation.

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