2 Lawmen Arrested On Charges Of Ticket-Fixing

ABERDEEN - A state trooper and a McCleary police officer were arrested on accusations of offering to fix a drunken-driving ticket in exchange for $4,000.

Trooper Scott Cutshaw, 28, and policeman Samuel Duane Buckingham, 25, were jailed Sunday and released yesterday pending completion of an investigation. No charges were filed.

"This is a sad day for police officers," Grays Harbor County Sheriff Dennis Morrisette told a news conference yesterday. "Police hold dear to their hearts their professional and ethical conduct and honesty. When some of our family . . . have this occur, we have a range of different emotions - anger, disgust, sadness."

Chief Criminal Deputy Rick Scott said the investigation centered on a driving-while-intoxicated citation issued Feb. 5 by Cutshaw.

The man who received the citation, whose name was not available, was also facing reckless-driving and misdemeanor drug charges, Scott said. Authorities allege the man was offered dismissal or reduction of the DWI charge in exchange for $15,000.

The man contacted his attorney, who told police, Scott said, and detectives advised him to ask the officers if they would accept $4,000 for deferred prosecution. Scott said the officers accepted the deal.

State patrol spokesman Bill Burkett said Cutshaw has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation. Cutshaw was assigned to the patrol's Hoquiam office in a transfer from King County in 1988.

Buckingham has been suspended without pay.