In his testimony, Coleman gave inaccurate descriptions of the "dealers" from whom he had allegedly bought cocaine. One suspect had his charges dropped when he was able to prove he had been at work during the times he had supposedly sold Coleman cocaine. Another produced bank and phone records indicating she was in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, at the time of her alleged crime. Many of the accused, however, seeing the long sentences dealt by all-white juries in earlier cases, pleaded guilty in return for lighter sentences, despite their proclaimed innocence. The remaining defendants were convicted solely on the basis of Coleman's testimony. The Texas Department of Public Safety awarded "Lawman of the Year" to Coleman. Amarillo civil rights attorney Jeff Blackburn began investigating the Tulia defendants' cases, along with civil rights organizations and a handful of attorneys from firms around the country. Eventually, the case became a "cause célèbre", and money was raised to legally challenge the cases. Many had already served several years in prison before this process gained momentum. By 2004, Blackburn and his team had freed most of the "Tulia 46" and a $6,000,000 collective settlement was reached to avoid further litigation in civil court. Local authorities remain defiant, promising their town will not become a "slot machine" in the face of a new lawsuit stemming from an alleged incident of police brutality during the sweep. In 2005, Coleman was convicted of perjury and sentenced to 10 years' probation and a $7,500 fine. Federal laws titled after Tulia have twice been introduced in the United States Congress, but not enacted, to increase the evidentiary standard required to convict a person for a drug offense and to require screening of law enforcement officers or others acting under color of law participating in drug task forces. Tulia is located at . It is located south of Amarillo in the Texas Panhandle. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Tulia has a semiarid climate, "BSk" on climate maps. Record Low  Tulia holds the record for the lowest temperature in Texas, , set during the Great Blizzard of 1899. The temperature was matched by Seminole, Texas, in 1933. As of the census of 2000, 5,117 people, 1,698 households, and 1,222 families resided in the city. The population density was . The 1,898 housing units averaged . The racial makeup of the city was 66.45% White, 8.40% African American, 0.43% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 22.14% from other races, and 2.48% from two or more races.