Ex-drug agent leaves his trial, drives to interstate and steps into path of truck

Tuesday, April 11, 2000 | 12:04 p.m.

Speculation about the reasons for the final act of Stephen Michael Swanson, 56, of Incline Village, Nev., have varied.

Some supposed the former agent feared the result of his trial, which was winding down Thursday when he borrowed a van and drove to Interstate 75. He had worked for DEA for 17 years, but now faced 10 years to life in a federal prison if convicted.

But his lawyer thought it might have been out of concern for his cancer-stricken wife.

"I think whatever happened was an act of courage for other people," defense attorney Bill DeCarlis said.

Swanson's wife, Louise Swanson, suffers from terminal breast cancer. If convicted, Swanson would have lost medical benefits his wife needed.

"He wanted to eliminate that possibility," DeCarlis told the Gainesville Sun on Monday. "He's a fallen hero as far as I'm concerned."

Federal prosecutors had finished closing arguments last Thursday and DeCarlis was set to start his closing arguments when a lunch break was called.

Swanson, who was free on bond, borrowed van keys from a member of DeCarlis' staff. He drove to the interstate, parking the van on the shoulder.

He then stepped in front of a Great Dane tractor-trailer driven by Gary Lee Elliott, 42, of Mulberry, a Florida Highway Patrol traffic report shows.

The court case against Swanson stemmed from an investigation into the drug-smuggling case of Claude Louis DuBoc. In 1994, DuBoc pleaded guilty to conspiracy to launder money and import up to 120 metric tons of hashish and marijuana into the United States.

Swanson was one of three people indicted in 1998 on charges of money-laundering and racketeering involving the drugs.

Swanson, who retired from the DEA in 1984 and later worked as a private investigator, claimed the government knew about his involvement because he was helping investigators with their case against the drug operation.

"Basically, most of his defense was that he was working for the government and there was testimony to that fact," DeCarlis said. "I thought that our defense had a realistic shot at succeeding."