Former Fresno Deputy Police Chief Keith Foster prepares to speak in own defense

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Fresno's former deputy police chief is getting ready to take the stand in his own defense against drug charges.

The prosecution revealed it will not be calling a key witness in the case against Keith Foster, but they have already made most of their case through wiretapped phone calls, searches, and perhaps Foster's own words.

The day's proceedings started with word the government's key witness against Foster, his nephew Denny Foster, would not be testifying.

Foster's attorney Marshall Hodgkins told Action News that's a significant development.

"The reason they've made a decision not to call him is they know how bad of a witness he is," he said. "They know what my cross-examination would be of him."

Hodgkins believes Denny agreed to testify against his uncle in exchange for a plea deal. In other developments, FBI agents testified about searching Foster's car and home and finding OxyContin bottles, labels, and pills, along with cash.

Some of which, they assumed, he obtained from selling OxyContin pills to another nephew, Randy Flowers. Hodgkins refuted testimony from one FBI agent who claims Keith basically confessed to him while driving him to court.

Agent Daniel Harkness testified that Foster said "his family had gotten him into this. He'd let his boys down, let his community down, let his children down, let Police Chief Jerry Dyer down. He planned to resign, he would have been next in line to be chief."

Hodgkins said the agent's account of the conversation was not accurate.

"Can you imagine a deputy chief, in some way, confessing to a crime in the back seat of an FBI car as they are going to court?" he asked. "It's ridiculous, they didn't record it, we'll tell you the exact statement that was made. It wasn't that."

Hodgkins says Foster will explain the pills, bottles and prescription labels when he takes the stand next week. The prosecution is expected to wrap up its case when court resumes on Tuesday.

They plan to call and FBI chemist, a Fresno Police narcotics detective and current deputy chief Pat Farmer as their final witnesses. Keith Foster is expected to testify in his own defense on Thursday.