Ed Woods Unmasked

Ed Woods Unmasked

by

William Leeman

Introduction

Cincinnati is truly a “charming” city. During the 1990’s, the Ku Klux Klan regularly erected a cross during the Christmas season in Fountain Square. It is a town where the late Marge Schott, former owner of the Cincinnati Reds baseball team, not only directed slurs towards African-Americans, Jews, Japanese, and gays, but proudly proclaimed that Hitler was good when he came into power. In April of 2000, Cincinnati became the scene of largest urban disorder since Los Angeles riots of 1992. Four days of rioting ensued in reaction to the fatal shooting of Timothy Thomas, a 20-year old black male, by police.

Cincinnati is the place retired FBI agent Edward P. Woods calls home. Given the political and social atmosphere of Cincinnati, Woods undoubtedly feels quite comfortable there. Ed Woods, as he likes to be called, is the person behind No Parole Peltier Association (NPPA). NPPA was launched on April 30, 2000 by Woods, with the help of his brother, “a seasoned private investigator,” to spread disinformation regarding Native American activist and political prisoner, Leonard Peltier. Peltier was wrongfully convicted in the United States District Court for the District of North Dakota in 1977 for the 1975 the shooting deaths of two FBI agents at the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. In 2003, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit recognized that, “Much of the government’s behavior at the Pine Ridge Reservation and in its prosecution of Mr. Peltier is to be condemned. The government withheld evidence. It intimidated witnesses. These facts are not disputed.” See Peltier v. Booker, 348 F. 3d 888, 896 (10^th Cir. 2003).

Since that fateful day in April of 2000, Woods has churned out misleading information and half truths about Leonard Peltier and his case. The question to be asked is who is Ed Woods and why has he “become somewhat obsessed” with Leonard Peltier?

Woods had as he describes it, a “miserable childhood.” He had “no fond memories growing up” and “left home at 18.” Woods grew up in an all white Long Island suburb. Woods entered the army not long after high school and later became a Green Beret officer.

Cover-Up

Woods spent 30 years with the FBI. Half of his career was spent in New York and the remainder was spent in Cincinnati. While assigned to the FBI field office in New York, Woods concealed information for well over a year from the New York Police Department (NYPD) regarding the death of Mr. Samuel Charles.

On July 10, 1972, Mr. Charles, a black male, was brutally stabbed to death in the vicinity of 45^th and Broadway. Prior to his death, Mr. Charles had been involved in an altercation with Alfred Ianniello, the owner of the Broadway Pub. Ianniello asked an individual by the name of Warren “Chief” Schurman if he would kill Mr. Charles. Schurman agreed to kill Mr. Charles. After murdering Mr. Charles, Schurman reportedly stated, “Nobody’s going to worry about that nigger, so I killed him, so what.” Special Agent Woods came into possession of information concerning the identity of Mr. Charles’ killer in December of 1982. In spite of this fact, he did not furnish this information to the NYPD for well over a year! At the time, Woods claimed that disclosure of the information would disrupt a “sensitive” undercover investigation. The reality was that Woods wanted to protect FBI informant, “Crazy” Eddie Maloney, who had been paid thousands and thousands of dollars for his snitching activities by authorities. Maloney, it should be noted, was involved in a wave of kidnappings that took place in New York City in the early 1970’s. Schurman, who is white, was indicted on June 14, 1984 for the murder of Mr. Charles and was subsequently convicted after trial and sentenced to an indeterminate prison term of from 25 years to life. Schurman was released from the Fishkill Correctional Facility in Beacon, New York on April 21, 2010.

Birds of a Feather

Shawn Kenny of Cincinnati is an admitted bank robbery conspirator for the Southern Ohio Chapter of the Aryan Nations, and an associate of the late Timothy McVeigh. Woods became acquainted with Kenny as a result of his involvement in the BOMBROB probe. BOMBROB was an FBI investigation into a series of Midwest bank robberies committed by members of the Aryan Republican Army in 1994 and 1995. United States military regulations prohibit recruits who have visible swastikas or other racist tattoos. Kenny sports two such tattoos. Kenny called one of his tattoos a “crucified skinhead.” The second is “Toten Kopf,” German for “death head.” Under the skull is “SS,” the initials for Hitler’s storm troopers. In addition to his racist tattoos, Kenny had a 1990 felony weapons conviction. Nonetheless, these things did not keep Kenny out of the military. Kenny was sworn into the United States Army on February 3, 1995, where he served until he was honorably discharged in 2005. Kenny now makes his home in Cincinnati, where he works with CTL Transportation, LLC. He is also pursuing an Associates of Arts degree in business management from Phoenix University.

While in the army, Kenny was formally charged with violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, Article 128, assault; and Article 134, indecent acts and liberties with a child. Kenny had provided alcohol to and inappropriately touched and kissed his 11-year old niece. After serving a minimal administrative suspension and sentence in an Article 15 proceeding, Kenny received a promotion to Senior Non-Commissioned Officer (E-7).

Alarming numbers of white supremacists, neo-Nazi, and skinhead groups have taken advantage of lowered armed services recruiting standards and lax enforcement of anti-extremist military regulations by infiltrating the United States armed forces in order to receive combat training and gain access to weapons and explosives. By joining the ranks of the fiercest fighting machine, the United States military, these racists are preparing for a racial holy war or “rahowa.” Most recently, in August of 2012, four members of the 4^th Brigade Combat Team of the 3^rd Infantry Division in Fort Stewart Georgia were charged for being involved in a plot to overthrow the government and assassinate President Barack Obama.

In spite of the increasing number of racists infiltrating the military and the fact that Kenny was clearly ineligible to join the ranks of United States armed forces, Woods had no qualms about helping Kenny enlist in the United States Army. Woods felt that Kenny deserved to have his life changed. Perhaps Woods was making his contribution to the rahowa by helping Kenny gain entry into the army?

Birth of NPPA

In establishing NPPA, Woods claims that “someone had to do it.” The facts reveal that altruism was not what prompted Woods to set up NPPA. Rather, it appears that a $6,000 allocation of taxpayer funds may have gotten got Woods’ attention, not to mention his cushy federal pension that he has been collecting for over a decade. A memo dated November 29, 2000 from the FBI Criminal Investigative, VCMOS/Indian Country Unit/Room 11163 to Criminal Investigative, Attention: AD Ruben Garcia, Jr., Room 7116, indicates that a retired agent would be paid $6,000 to prepare a final and definitive summary of the events surrounding the RESMURS case. The source of this funding came from the Violent Crime and Law Enforcement Act of 1994. The name on the November 29, 2000 memo has been redacted, so it cannot be said with one hundred percent certainty that Woods is the retired agent mentioned therein. However, Woods is one of only a handful of retired agents who has relentlessly waged a disinformation campaign against Leonard Peltier. Further, on November 2, 2000, Mr. Fernando E. Mata provided Woods via email and regular mail a copy of a letter Miami Mayor Joe Carollo sent to President Clinton opposing clemency for Leonard Peltier. This communication makes it clears that Woods was coordinating his anti-Peltier efforts with his cohorts at the FBI. The objective of the FBI in assisting with the establishment of the NPPA website and blog is to continue the unjust incarceration of Leonard Peltier and to obfuscate the FBI’s misconduct in his case.

Conclusion

Between 1956 and 1971 the FBI established the counterintelligence program (COINTELPRO). FBI COINTELPRO tactics included, but were not limited to, discrediting targeted individuals and organizations through psychological warfare, smearing individuals and groups, using forged documents, and planting false reports in the media. Although COINTELPRO was allegedly ended by the FBI in 1971, the conduct of Ed Woods, as he spews out his venom about Leonard Peltier from his home in lily-white southeast Cincinnati, makes it clear that COINTELPRO is alive and well.

Response to Ed Woods:

Response to Ed Woods:

http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/article-8818-cover_story_queen_city_terror.html

http://www.wnd.com/2005/04/29919/

Cover Story: Queen City Terror

http://www.kennethtrentadue.com/pdf/declaration2.pdf

"Testimony from FBI agent Edward Woods, revealed that authorities were
aided in their investigation by a Cincinatti man named Shawn Kenney. FBI
agents interviewed Kenney 12 days before they arrested Guthrie in
Cincinnati on Jan. 15th, Woods testified. Kenney was a friend of both
Langon and Guthrie, Woods added. He did not detail what information
Kenney provided." Oklahoma City Bombing trial transcript

       In Ed Woods' recent blog titled, "Peltier.....Critical Postings," he has accused Leonard Peltier and the LP-DOC of "slander," and
"libel," in regards to an article that we posted titled, "Ed Woods and FBI Misconduct." First of all, this is highly ironic in that it could be
interpreted that Ed Woods and his fabled website have been "libeling," and "slandering," Leonard Peltier consistently since its inception.
But let's address the accusation. I authored the article and the majority of the information was culled from the above articles that were
published by the Cincinnati "City Beat," and from trial transcripts related to the Oklahoma City bombing investigations. Most publications
of this sort have extensive legal departments that test information for "libel," and "slander," before releasing this information to the public.
Otherwise, they themselves are liable. It seems that if Mr. Ed Woods has an issue then it should be directed at the primary sources
themselves? We invite you to re-read the above articles and decide for yourselves on the validity of the information  regarding, "our friend,"
Ed Woods. I'll personally stick with the assessment that I presented in the article. It's my opinion that the information is valid and that
Woods is indeed, "just another crooked law enforcement agent that has violated his oath to protect the constitution of the U.S.A."
And it's Leonard Peltier's opinion, based on the provided information, thatWoods is also a "Traitor," guilty of treason against the U.S.
Why? Because he used a known member of the Neo-Nazi party as an FBI "snitch," and then got him illegally instated into the U.S
army, despite a history of Child Molestation and Domestic abuse. The U.S never, "made peace," with the Nazi party so therefore Woods
did not only exhibit poor judgement as an active FBI agent, but in our assessment he also has committed a treasonous act. Is this a man
that could be trusted to comment honestly on the case of Leonard Peltier? We'll leave it up to you to decide.

Ed Woods and FBI Misconduct

"I, [name], do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter.... So help me God."

"After joining up, Kenny became a shooting star: In 2004, he was promoted to sergeant first class with less than 10 years of service – not far outside of normal promotions if Kenny hadn’t been charged in 1996 with providing alcohol to his 11-year-old niece and inappropriately touching and kissing the kid. But he received only an Article 15 nonjudicial punishment for actions that would have led to administrative separation, if not court-martial, for any less-connected soldier. No big surprise, since Leslie Blade says guardian-angel Woods( ED WOODS) is adamant that the sergeant deserves to have his life changed"
http://youtu.be/KPEXoW05qYk
http://youtu.be/KPEXoW05qYk
"Many friends have no idea what I'm talking about when I mention FBI abuses. I myself could NOT BELIEVE what I was seeing
when I worked on the Racial Squad in Los Angelous.
Although only about a dozen agents were die hard racists, urged on by J.Edgar Hoover and his Sycophants on the Racial Desk
at the Bureau, just a handful of bad apples are enough to spoil the whole bushel. In fact, the whole LA office was nothing like Memphis , Chicago , Louisville or New York City ." Swearingen F.B.I
"Many friends have no idea what I'm talking about when I mention FBI abuses. I myself could NOT BELIEVE what I was seeing
when I worked on the Racial Squad in Los Angelous.
Although only about a dozen agents were die hard racists, urged on by J.Edgar Hoover and his Sycophants on the Racial Desk
at the Bureau, just a handful of bad apples are enough to spoil the whole bushel. In fact, the whole LA office was nothing like Memphis , Chicago , Louisville or New York City ." Swearingen F.B.I
Cover Story: Queen City Terror

http://www.kennethtrentadue.com/pdf/declaration2.pdf
Cover Story: Queen City Terror
http://www.kennethtrentadue.com/pdf/declaration2.pdf
http://www.kennethtrentadue.com/pdf/declaration2.pdf

Many Peltier supporters are aware of his long time nemesis, self righteous, ex- F.B.I agent, Ed Woods. Woods has created an “anti- Peltier,” website and has made it his life’s mission to see that Leonard Peltier, an innocent man, will never again see the light of freedom. But who is this “Ed Woods,” and what is this organization that he worked/works for really all about? So this piece will be about, “investigating the investigators,” so to say.

Quoted above is the constitutional oath that all F.B.I agents and law enforcement agents swear on upon entering office. While perusing Mr. Woods’ infamous website, I came across an article in which former director of the F.B.I, Louis Freeh, was quoted:

"Mr. Freeh goes on to state, "I believe in the basic truth that lying, cheating or stealing is wholly inconsistent with everything the F.B.I stands for and cannot be tolerated." This is a very ironic statement in that anyone who has studied the true history of the F.B.I would know that, “lying, cheating and stealing,” is the cornerstone of how the F.B.I in reality operates. One need only examine the illegal COINTELPRO policies that were instituted by F.B.I founder, J. Edgar Hoover that targeted almost every single minority group in this country, for a prime example.

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/FBI/COINTELPRO_Untold_Story.html

There was recently a conference in Sioux Falls , SD , on the AIM occupation of Wounded Knee in 1973. Two of the participants were former F.B.I men, Joseph Trimbach and David Price. In the conference these two men were confronted on their personal wrong doings and on F.B.I misconduct in general related to Pine Ridge and the Wounded Knee occupation. Both men were arrogantly defiant regarding their own culpability. Trimbach held to the lie that his committing of Perjury during the Wounded Knee trials by lying about an affidavit that he signed ordering an illegal wire tap and denying knowledge of F.B.I informant, Douglass Durham, was a simple oversight. 

Price, when confronted about Myrtle Poor Bear and a letter by 8^th circuit judge, Heaney that stated that the F.B.I agents were, “equally responsible,” for the death of the two agents during the Jumping Bull conflict was equally evasive and defiant. For a little history, Price was one of the agents that while cultivating Louis Moves Camp as a phony witness for the Means/Banks trial took him out on the town and got him liquored up. When he met a young woman they looked the other way when Moves Camp took the woman back to his room and allegedly raped her. The next day Price was hard at work getting the rape charges dropped so they can continue their cultivation of the false witness to put on the stand ( it was later found out that M.C was actually in California and not at Wounded Knee regarding the events he was testifying about). Agent Ron Williams, one of the men that was killed at Jumping Bull along with Joe Stuntz and Jack Coler, assisted Price in the cover up and the manufacturing of the false witness. This does not necessarily justify his fate, but from this you can see that Williams and all the other agents that were in SD at the time were no angels worthy of statues made for them or buildings named after them. Regarding Myrtle Poor Bear, Price was the one that interrogated the mentally fragile woman by showing her pictures of Annie Mae Aquash’s mutilated body while threatening to do worse to her and take her children away if she did not cooperate with them to forge the phony affidavits that were used to extradite Leonard Peltier from Canada . But when Price was asked about his involvement/culpability during this conference he danced around the questions as if he were Muhammad Ali. “Lying, cheating and stealing,” indeed, and remember the oath that these public servants took before GOD on the constitution of the U.S.A?

“Judge Heaney of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, who heard an appeal in Peltier's case (denied on a technicality) wrote in a 1991 letter to Sen. Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii: "The United States government overreacted at Wounded Knee . Instead of carefully considering the legitimate grievances of the Native Americans, the response was essentially a military one which culminated in the deadly firefight on June 26, 1975 ... The United States government must share responsibility with the Native Americans for the ... firefight ... the government's role can properly be considered a mitigating circumstance." Judge Heaney, in this letter, recommended clemency/commutation of sentence for Mr. Peltier as part of the healing process.”

But what about “All-American, “ex F.B.I agent,” Ed Woods? Would he engage also in such illegal behavior and break his constitutional oath as well? Research by one of Peltier’s attorney’s has uncovered some startling revelations on Mr. Woods himself to confirm the affirmative. It was uncovered that Woods, while on active duty in Cincinnati , was involved in the investigation of the Oklahoma City bombing. During a raid in which a suspect was cornered, Woods had a tape recorder and was recording the proceedings. The suspect, Peter Langon was shot repeatedly and then interrogated/ tortured by Woods himself. When the witness was being interrogated he screamed out to be able to consult with his attorney but was this captured by Woods’ tape recorder? Let’s consult the court records:

“During his testimony, Woods told jurors he turned on a tape recorder in his surveillance car as fellow agents were about to close in on Langon. Five minutes later he shut off the recorder, Woods said.

He never turned the recorder on and off during those five minutes or erased any portion of the recording, Woods testified.

Anthony J. Pellicano, owner of Forensic Audio Lab, disagrees.

His nine-hour analysis of the tape shows that someone turned the recorder on and off NINE TIMES during the 1996 taping, Pellicano told the Dispatch yesterday. Also, someone erased a portion of the tape between the gunfire and Langon's SHOUTED requests for an attorney, he said."

Strike 1. Woods commits Perjury, lying to GOD under oath. But what was Woods trying to cover up by lying about the tape recorder? Did it have something to do with illegal TORTURE and interrogation? Let’s consult Langon’s own testimony:

23) On Jan. 18th, 1996, I was arrested in Columbus , Ohio , while leaving Guthrie's house. During my arrest, I never fired or even pointed a weapon at anyone. Nevertheless, despite being an informant for the Secret Service, a SWAT Team comprised of FBI agents, Deputy U.S Marshals and other law enforcement personnel fired 48 rounds at me that day. They never offered me an opportunity to surrender prior to shooting me.

24) After being stomped and kicked by arresting officers and undergoing surgery for gun shot wounds in the hospital emergency room, I was chained to a wall in a police station and questioned by FBI Special Agent, ED WOOD'S. I did not want this interrogation. I wanted a lawyer, and I asked for one repeatedly. My requests for an attorney, however, were refused.

25) Instead of obtaining an attorney for me, Agent Woods insisted on playing phone messages from Guthrie's answering machine on a tape recorder. When Agent Woods TAUNTED ME with the inference that my associates had betrayed me, and would testify against me, I had had enough. I told him: "You're going to have problems with your witnesses, because they have the blood of Oklahoma City on their hands." Agent Woods definitely took note. "You certainly have my attention now" he said. This turn of events put an end to the interrogation soon thereafter.

STRIKE 2. Illegal Interrogation, Torture and denying the suspect the right to consult an attorney.

So the investigation continues and Woods/ the F.B.I, like Douglass Durham in AIM, are in need of an informant/snitch to rat out the others. So who does Woods turn to? None other then convicted felon, Neo Nazi, White Supremacist, Wife beater, and child molester, Shawn Kenny. But it’s not enough for Woods to use this monster as an informant. He takes it a step further by taking on the role of ,”personal savior,” for Kenny by helping him to get illegally instated into the army and then by making sure that he’s, ‘taken care of,” once he’s in there:

“Why? Because Somebody Up There, probably FBI agent Ed Woods, now retired, has been watching over Kenny, at least since he turned snitch when caught red-handed – literally – passing dye-stained bills related to a bank robbery. Tabatha says: “Thank God my husband was never charged. God was looking out for him.”

God and the U.S. government.

For example, when the Secret Service searched Kenny’s trailer back in the bad ol’ days and found unauthorized weapons, Kenny got a pass even though it’s a serious violation of the law for convicted felons to possess firearms.

And Kenny’s buddies ranged from the neo-Nazi bank robbers to Timothy McVeigh. But while they all got their due, Kenny got the Army – and the Army apparently got the Snitch Promotion Program.

After joining up, Kenny became a shooting star: In 2004, he was promoted to sergeant first class with less than 10 years of service – not far outside of normal promotions if Kenny hadn’t been charged in 1996 with providing alcohol to his 11-year-old niece and inappropriately touching and kissing the kid. But he received only an Article 15 nonjudicial punishment for actions that would have led to administrative separation, if not court-martial, for any less-connected soldier.

No big surprise, since Leslie Blade says guardian-angel Woods is adamant that the sergeant deserves to have his life changed.”

STRIKE 3. Fronting for a Neo-Nazi monster.

So let’s stop and digest this for a moment. Woods is intent on keeping Peltier, an innocent man that got convicted in a farce of a trial that was overflowing with F.B.I misconduct similar to what has been illustrated above, for the rest of his life yet he’s willing to front for this Nazi monster and believes, “he deserves to have his life changed?” Does anyone else besides me see the blatant moral inconsistency? Is Woods a racist and does he have direct ties to the Neo- Nazi’s himself? It wouldn’t surprise me considering the Bureau’s well documented past ties to Hitler and the Nazi party: 

“J. Edgar Hoover, the first director of the FBI (and virulently anti-communist) was a great admirer of the Nazis and was a pen pal of Heinrich Himmler (Reichsfuhrer of the Nazi SS, head of the... Gestapo, and second most powerful leader of the ...Nazi party). Hoover sent Himmler a personal invitation to attend the 1937 World Police Conference in Montreal , and in 1938 welcomed one of Himmler's top aids to the U.S. In June 1939, when the Nazi SS was conducting savage attacks against Jews, Gypsies, and homosexuals throughout Germany , Hoover personally autographed a photo of himself and sent it in response to a request, to KRIPO, the Nazi criminal police agency. He continued communication with Nazi police until December 4, 1941 (three days before Pearl Harbor ).”

And then there is Mr. Woods’ own email conversation that he had with former F.B.I agent, Wesley Swearingen, that’s documented on Woods’ website that sheds some more light on the racist history of the Bureau: 

" I began to help Geronimo Pratt's attorney's in 1979. The FBI claimed from 1979 to 1997 in several court hearings, that Pratt was guilty of murder. I attended

a court hearing in L.A in 1984 and heard my fellow agents testify that Pratt was guilty of murder. The FBI denied that they had paid Oakland police to operate an illegal wiretap, having received information from that tap that placed Pratt in Oakland at the time of the murder. This all came out in a hearing in 1997, when an honest Judge ordered the FBI to produce the original documents. Some of the same agents who framed Pratt worked on AIM cases. Pratt was released in 1998, pending a new trial. The L.A district attorney did not retry Pratt, because the FBI informant perjured himself during the 1972 trial. Pratt sued the L.A.P.D and the FBI, and in 2000 he won a settlement of 4.5 million." Swearingen F.B.I

So what can be concluded from all this? Is Ed Woods a credible voice that can be trusted to comment impartially on Leonard Peltier’s case or is he just another lying, crooked law enforcement agent with an agenda that has violated his oath to defend the constitution of the U.S.A. ? I believe the answer, based on what has been shared thus far, is obvious. So, in my opinion, Mr. Woods can go on whining about Peltier as long as he wants but more and more it’s becoming apparent that his assertions are dubious and it’s F.B.I misconduct, not a fair trial, that lead to Peltier’s false conviction. To quote the moniker of the promising young film maker, Preston Randolph’s, upcoming film, the heart of Leonard Peltier’s case represents, “The imprisonment of an innocent man by the lies of a guilty government.” And for a taste of irony, Woods in his most recent babbling on his website, attacked the young filmmaker and compared him to a well known Nazi film maker/ propagandist. Was this filmmaker also a friend and associate of Mr. Hoover’s, I’m wondering? Hoover himself engaged in, “Nazi-like,” propaganda when he inserted informants into the media to manipulate how the Bureau was portrayed. In fact, Mr. Woods website itself can be considered a remnant from this same mold of old F.B.I propaganda.

So what can be asserted from this? Instead of being given the privilege and being “puffed up” to look like someone important by being granted the permission to testify against Leonard at his parole hearing, this twisted, sycophant low life, Ed Woods, should rather be in prison himself. Why? To quote one of the most notorious of J. Edgar Hoover’s COINTELPRO victims, Martin Luther King JR., “Injustice anywhere is a threat to Justice everywhere.”  

And let’s end up with some quotes from Ed Woods himself from his fabled website:

“But an important question to be asked is why are we even discussing these Agents at this juncture? The answer is simple, because FBI Agents are held to a higher standard; higher than the average citizen, and by most accounts, above that of other law enforcement. And so they should be. They reach a standard that many would not care to maintain for themselves or others. Regrettably, only a handful have damaged the reputation of many loyal, dedicated and professional public servants. It can easily be proven that the record of the approximately eleven thousand current Agents, and the tens of thousands of former and retired agents who have served honorably over the past ninety-four years, exceed the performance of any other organization; in law enforcement or not. The percentage of those who have not met this extraordinarily high standard is almost too small to measure and is barely a fraction of the total. But the actions of a very few who cannot conform to the highest standards demanded does not condemn the entire organization. The standards for entering the Bureau are arguably the highest of all public or private sector jobs. If there is any doubt about that claim; pick up an application. Yet, there is no shortage of those who are willing to join.

The Media

There are those who would like nothing better than to dismantle the FBI. They smell blood in the water and are in a frenzy for headlines. But with all the negative press, what is lost in the process are the countless accomplishments and thousands of successful investigations and prosecutions every year that the public is not reminded about. There are far too many to even begin listing here. And even through all this turmoil, the FBI is still doing its job, and doing it very well.

A paramount example is the Oklahoma City Bombing case itself. This investigation, arguably the most significant domestic case ever, was handled professionally from beginning to end as revealed by the massive amounts of evidence and thousands of leads and interviews that were handled properly and expeditiously resulting in swift justice for America's most notable mass-murderer. On this point, ICT and the NPPA, as well as the vast majority of Americans from all corners, are in full agreement; categorizing McVeigh for what he was, "the most horrific of terrorists." Although, as with Peltier, we must ensure that due process is followed to the letter, even as we all agree unequivocally on one point, McVeigh is guilty. ED WOODS

* There is more irony in this in that based on what has been presented, Woods himself strayed far from, “playing it straight,” in the Oklahoma City Bombing investigations and he himself has fallen way bellow the high standards that he has set for the Bureau. Another blow to his own, already questionable, credibility. One Neo- Nazi monster is given the chair while another one is granted an illegal pass into the army with privileges and someone somewhere calls this, “justice?”

“How Kenny got into the Army in spite of his criminal history -- and his white supremacist tattoos -- is something of a puzzle. So is his promotion just months after the Army convicted him on morals charges involving an 11-year-old girl.

But what really distinguishes Kenny is his alleged relationship with the man who killed 168 people by blowing up the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995. A new book based on death row interviews with McVeigh mentions Kenny five times.

Kenny couldn't be reached for comment, of course. His wife, Tabatha Kenny of Cheviot, told a reporter she'd ask him to contact CityBeat. She also said the Army has greatly benefited her family. She means the U.S. Army. It was Kenny's membership in the other army, the Aryan Republican Army (ARA), that ties him to McVeigh.

Kenny and other ARA members met with McVeigh in Elohim City , a right-wing militia center in Oklahoma , before the Oklahoma City bombing, according to Secrets Worth Dying For: Timothy James McVeigh and the Oklahoma City Bombing. But the book isn't the first to raise questions about a Cincinnati link to the Oklahoma City bombing. A CityBeat investigation shows that, within days of the massacre, the FBI and the U.S. Secret Service were asking the same thing.

But perhaps most troubling of all is Kenny's own account of his mission before joining the military. In 1996 he gave secret testimony to a federal grand jury in Philadelphia detailing the ARA's violent intentions. CityBeat obtained a transcript of the testimony.

"We had planned on robbing banks and armored cars," he testified. "Proceeds were to fund the cause, the movement or whatever. Buy guns, ammo, distribute out to other people, like-mindedness groups, to further their cause."

Contributed by Mark Holtzman

Sources:

http://www.citybeat.com/cincinnati/article-8818-cover_story_queen_city_terror.html

http://www.wnd.com/2005/04/29919/

FBI Special Agent Pleads Guilty in Federal Court to Embezzling More Than $43,000 in Public Funds

United States Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña Northern District of Texas
____________________________________________________________________________
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE MEDIA INQUIRIES: KATHY COLVIN 214.659.8600 FRIDAY, JULY 13, 2012
www.usdoj.gov/usao/txn

FBI Special Agent Pleads Guilty in Federal Court
to Embezzling More Than $43,000 in Public Funds
Oklahoma City, OK — This afternoon, FBI Special Agent Timothy Klotz, 45, of Yukon, Oklahoma, pleaded guilty before Chief U.S. District Judge Vicki Miles-LaGrange to an Information charging one count of embezzlement of public money, announced U.S. Attorney Sarah R. Saldaña of the Northern District of Texas. Klotz faces a maximum statutory sentence of 10 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine and restitution. Judge Miles-LaGrange ordered a presentence investigation report with a sentencing date to be set upon completion of that report.
According to documents filed in the case, from October 2007 through mid-December 2011, Klotz embezzled a total of $43,190 from a Confidential Human Source (CHS) fund that is used by the FBI to develop information about criminal activities. Klotz submitted 66 false CHS payment receipts on which he forged the signature of at least one of seven special agents of either the FBI or the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.

As part of his agreement with the government, Klotz agrees to pay $43,190 in restitution to the FBI prior to sentencing.

U.S. Attorney Saldaña praised the investigative efforts of the Department of Justice Office of the Inspector General, which led the investigation. The FBI in Oklahoma City discovered the embezzlement during an internal audit and provided valuable assistance in the investigation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Walt M. Junker, from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas, serving as a Special Attorney to the U.S. Attorney General, is in charge of the prosecution.
###

Failures at the FBI crime lab

By Washington Post Editorial Board, Published: April 20

KIRK L. ODOM was incarcerated for 20 years and Donald E. Gates for nearly 30 for crimes they did not commit. Santae A. Tribble spent 28 years behind bars, even though DNA evidence now shows he almost undoubtedly was not the culprit.

All of the men were erroneously convicted in the District, in part, on the basis of forensic evidence analyzed by the FBI. Problems within the FBI lab, particularly with hair-sample analysis, were well known to the agency and the Justice Department; a task force spent some nine years reviewing cases after a whistleblower revealed possible shortcomings.

In a series of articles, The Post’s Spencer S. Hsu and a team of reporters documented how the Justice Department failed to notify lawyers representing prisoners whose fate hinged on the FBI analysis. Some prisoners spent years behind bars before becoming aware of the lab issues.

The problem continues to this day. The full results of the Justice Department task force’s investigation have not been made public. Even when the task force discovered flaws in a case, the information was turned over only to prosecutors, who were then left to decide whether the results needed to be brought to the attention of defense lawyers. In addition, the task force reviewed only cases involving one FBI analyst whose work was called into question; The Post identified cases where other analysts’ work resulted in convictions of innocent defendants.

The FBI argues that hair-sample analysis — in which samples from a suspect are analyzed microscopically and compared with samples found on a victim or crime scene — is a vital and legitimate tool. Advances in DNA testing, which allows for genetic analysis of evidence, “should not be perceived as diminishing the value of prior practices and testimonies,” according to an FBI statement. Administration law enforcement officials say that all hair samples collected after 1996 have been subjected to DNA testing, when possible; they point out that such testing is sometimes off limits because of the size or condition of the sample. “In cases where microscopic hair exams conducted by the FBI resulted in a conviction, the FBI is evaluating whether additional review is warranted,” the statement said.

This does not go far enough. The agency should not be considering “whether additional review is warranted” but how such a review should be conducted; members of the defense bar should be part of these discussions. Any review should, as a start, include DNA testing of hair samples in all cases that ended in conviction — regardless of which analyst performed the work — for which the defendant is still imprisoned or on parole. The Justice Department should make its task force results public; if such broad disclosure presents privacy or security problems, the department should at least make all FBI forensic analysis and task force material available to defense lawyers.

The failings documented by The Post point to the need for better scientific standards in forensic testing and a more open process for the disclosure of evidence and information in criminal proceedings. Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) is weighing legislation to expand the role of the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Standards and Technology to set such standards.

Congress also should change the law regarding discovery. Prosecutors should not be deciding which pieces of evidence seem exculpatory and must be turned over to the defense. They should be required to open their files to defense lawyers, with exceptions for witness protection or national security.


Source URL:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/fbi-lab-failures-should-lead-to-reform/2012/04/20/gIQAe6lYWT_story.html

FBI moves into new Minnesota headquarters, protest outside slams repression

FBI moves into new Minnesota headquarters, protest outside slams repression
By Mick Kelly |
February 18, 2012

Protest against repression of anti war activists at new MN/Dakotas FBI Field Office (Fight Back! News/Kim DeFranco)

Brooklyn Center, MN – Protesters gathered outside the new headquarters of the FBI here, Feb. 17, to protest the agency’s targeting of anti-war and international solidarity activists. The protest coincided with the FBI’s announced move-in day to their new fortress-like building.

Participants in the protest included peace activists whose homes were raided by the FBI Sept. 24, 2010.

“The FBI is waging a war on civil liberties,” said Jess Sundin of the MN Committee to Stop FBI Repression. “We are here today to send a message: ‘Opposing U.S. wars is not a crime.’ We will not be silenced or intimidated by the FBI.”

The FBI, along with U.S. Attorneys in Chicago and Minneapolis, are trying to make a case for indicting the activists on ‘material support for terrorism’ charges. To that end, a grand jury is meeting in Chicago. Barry Jonas, Assistant U.S. Attorney in Chicago, recently stated that the investigation will continue.

As part of the same investigation, the FBI manufactured charges against longtime Chicano activist Carlos Montes in Los Angeles.

The new FBI Field office, located at 1501 Freeway Boulevard, cost about $64 million to build. About 300 agents and support staff will work in the building. The jurisdiction covered by the new headquarters extends to North and South Dakota.

The Minneapolis Field office has a long history of trampling on democratic rights. In the 1950s its agents hounded communists in the labor movement. In the early 70s, the office was pivotal in the federal government’s attempt to destroy the American Indian Movement. Over the past ten years the office has carried out a campaign against the Somali community which includes a massive spying program and arrests for material support for terrorism.

For many years the Minneapolis FBI office was the base of operations for Nicholas O'Hara, an infamous former FBI supervisor who has made it his life’s work to keep Native American political prisoner Leonard Peltier in jail.

Speaking in front of the new FBI complex, Jess Sundin stated, “The people inside this building are targeting those of us who speak up for peace and justice. That’s what the FBI does. They raided our homes and offices of the Anti War Committee. The FBI thinks it’s a crime to stand in solidarity with people around the world, who are struggling to be free. It not a crime to stand in solidarity with the people of the Middle East or Latin America, or anywhere else. It’s the right thing to do.”

Declassified documents show FBI, MI5 spied on Chaplin

17 February 2012

According to declassified documents quoted in The Guardian, the FBI had a 2,000-page file on Charlie Chaplin and reached out across the pond for help spying on him. In 1952, J. Edgar Hoover contacted the UK's MI5 security agency because he was concerned that Chaplin was a Communist sympathizer; meanwhile, the Brits wondered if the actor was actually - quelle horreur! - French.

The MI5 eventually concluded that Chaplin was "not a security risk" but, oddly enough, couldn't find proof of his birth in England or France. Regardless, Chaplin was banned from re-entering the U.S in 1953.