BY CURTIS MORGAN

 Criminal charges are likely to be dropped against many of the 362 protesters arrested in Little Havana two weeks ago.

 While there are no final decisions yet, Miami Police and the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office admit some cases, particularly minor arrests like disorderly conduct, may not stand up in court. Because of the volume of arrests and the chaotic circumstances, a lot of the legal paperwork lacks specifics.

 ``It happens a lot after these kind of mass disturbances,'' said William O'Brien, the former Miami chief of police who resigned last week after his department came under intense criticism from exile leaders and Mayor Joe Carollo during and after the federal raid on the home of Elian Gonzalez's relatives.

 Politics, he said, would not play a part in considering the cases.

 ``There is no policy of blanket dismissal,'' said O'Brien, who has credited the sweeping arrests, broad use of tear gas and tough tactics of officers for quelling a potentially catastrophic outbreak of unrest.

 But a large number of dismissals would indicate Miami Police had gone overboard cracking down on demonstrations, said John de Leon, president of the Miami chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union. Many of those arrested claimed they were bystanders or waving flags -- not burning trash or throwing rocks.

 ``There's something fundamentally wrong with anyone being arrested or charged with a crime, regardless of whether the state goes forward with the charges,'' he said. ``Someone's liberty can't be taken so easily when they were not involved in an unlawful activity.''

 The ACLU also is looking into accusations that some officers used excessive force in making arrests. As of Friday, Miami Police had received nine complaints of abusive treatment by officers and seven about discourtesy, said Miami Police Lt. Bill Schwartz. The internal affairs division is investigating those charges.

 Prosecutors are still reviewing the arrests, 303 by Miami Police and 59 by Miami-Dade officers, said Don Ungurait, spokesman for State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle. The office had paperwork for 64 felony arrests, he said, and there may be up to nine more serious criminal cases, ranging from arson to attempted murder.

 Prosecutors have until May 12, when arraignments are scheduled for most of the felony arrests, to decide how to proceed on those cases, he said. They will review arrest records, interview officers and witnesses before making the calls.

 Charges could be reduced, increased or dropped, he said. ``It's ultimately up to our discretion on what we believe the evidence will support.''

 With some many misdemeanors, he said, prosecutors typically rely on the arrest forms. Those used during the April 22 arrests were, for the most part, short emergency operation sheets, almost like traffic tickets. Records from the Miami-Dade Corrections Department show dozens of those forms lack the description and details of regular arrest forms.

 ``Defendant was advised to leave area due to a civil disturbance,'' reads a typical one. ``He refused several times at which time he was placed under arrest.''

 ``Quite frequently, a lot of the narratives are deficient,'' O'Brien said. The problem didn't necessarily reflect on an arrest, police said. Under the stress of a disturbance, there's little time for paperwork, said Schwartz, and officers are performing different duty and making judgment calls.

 Complicating the problem for prosecutors, said Ungurait, is that officers frequently can't recall one arrest from another in the midst of civil disturbances -- at least not well enough to swear to it in court.

 Felix Martin, a Coral Gables attorney whose firm is representing more than 20 people arrested during the protests, said he had seen several ``weak'' forms and said officers rushed to make too many arrests.

 One of his clients, he said, was under court-ordered psychiatric care and should have been taken to the hospital. Another was a middle-aged, infirm man walking to church with his Bible and lunch bag after being dropped from a detoured bus. ``The only thing he tells me he can remember is suddenly eating grass when some officer jumped on him,'' said Martin.

 Martin, of Cuban descent, got his clients when he went on Radio Mambi three days after the arrests to over the services of his firm, Martin & Lopez, to poor protesters.

 ``I sure hope they're going to drop charges,'' he said. ``I'm doing this for free.''

                     Copyright 2000 Miami Herald