-Caveat Lector-
Class-action suits allege CIA
kept information on cocaine
smugglers from law
enforcement
March 16, 1999
Web posted at: 1:11 a.m. EST (0611 GMT)
LOS ANGELES (CNN) -- Newly-filed
federal class-action lawsuits allege that
the
CIA knew of "dozens of people" smuggling
drugs into the United States but did not
report that information to law enforcement
agencies.
The suits allege that an epidemic of crack
and other
narcotics trading harmed
African Americans and others, and placed
enormous burdens
on the social
service system.
Filed Monday in California, the suits
allege that the CIA
and the Department
of Justice had an agreement that allowed
the CIA to keep
information about
drug traffickers to itself instead of
turning it over to
law enforcement officials.
In the "opening phase" of the crack
cocaine epidemic of
the 1980s, the
CIA-Justice agreement allowed cocaine
suppliers
"connected with the
(Nicaraguan) Contras or other U.S. covert
operations" to
bring cocaine into
the United States, according to the
allegations.
The plaintiffs in the suits -- one filed
on behalf of
people in Los Angeles and
the other on behalf of people in Northern
California --
fall into two
categories: inner city residents "largely
African-American (who) experienced
particular economic, physical and/or
emotional injuries"
from the crack
epidemic; and other people "who
experienced injuries
suffered by the
community as a whole, such as: lack of
safety,
overburdened social services,
loss of local businesses and damage to the
tax base."
The lawsuit bases its claims in part on
testimony by CIA
Inspector General
Frederick Hitz before the House
Intelligence Committee in
1998 on his
investigation of possible links between
the CIA, the
Contras and crack
cocaine, originally raised in media
reports.
Hitz testified that beginning in 1982, the
CIA entered
into an undisclosed
agreement with the Justice Department
under which the CIA
had no duty to
report drug crimes, according to the suit.
An attorney for the plaintiffs, Katya
Komisaruk, said it
was not legal for the
CIA and the Justice Department to enter
into such an
agreement.
No dollar figure is listed in the request
for damages,
but Komisaruk said "we
know it will be lots and lots. No amount
of money will
bring back lives that
were lost (to crack cocaine.)"
The lawsuits cite a 1989 report from the
Senate Foreign
Relations
Committee which said that "the credibility
of government
institutions" had
been jeopardized by the administration's
decision to turn
"a blind eye to
domestic and foreign corruption associated
with the
international narcotics
trade."
The lawsuits demand a jury trial, money to
rebuild
crack-affected
communities and an order requiring the CIA
to report all
drug crimes to the
Justice Department.
The Contras were a Nicaraguan rebel group
that attempted
to overthrow the
country's leftist Sandanista government in
the 1980s with
Reagan
administration support.
"We are not afraid to entrust the American people with
unpleasant facts,
foreign ideas, alien philosophies, and competitive values.
For a nation
that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and
falsehood in an open
market is a nation that is afraid of its people."
(John F. Kennedy)
William Hugh Tunstall wrote:
>
> -Caveat Lector-
>
> As president, GB2 would be a complete disaster for the United States...
> even more disastrous than having Gore as prez. With Dubba, we would see
> an
> escalation of the New World Order extermination program of the poor and
> lower middle class.
>
> It's not that Dubba is a monster. On the contrary,
> he's warm and personable....kind of an overgrown frat boy rich white kid
> who has had intimate experience with booze, women and recreational drugs.
> Hell, I kind of like the guy. He's not your typical holier-than-thou
> bigoted fascist reptile that is so typical of the Grand Old Party.
> Personally, I like the idea of having a president who was once a bigtime
> sinner... He speaks Spanish fairly well...(..."sus ninos son mis
> ninos..") That goes over well in the hispanic community. The fact that
> he had his fingers in the cookie jar on more than one occasion, well,
> that's typical for Republican party honchos...
>
> But what worries me about Dubba is not Dubba.... It's his Daddy. A Dubba
> presidency will be the equivalent of having George Walker Bush sitting in
> the White House. We can then expect MORE brushfire wars, MORE Christian
> Right efforts to push their loony agenda on the rest of us, MORE defense
> contracts for fat cat corporations....more of the same old same old.
>
> On Fri, 23 Jul 1999, Kris Millegan wrote:
>
> >
> >
>
> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
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DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER
==========
CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic
screeds are not allowed. Substance�not soapboxing! These are sordid matters
and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright
frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects
spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL
gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers;
be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and
nazi's need not apply.
Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector.
========================================================================
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http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html
http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
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