-Caveat Lector-
From:
Washington Times-September 20, 1999
Answers darker than the questions?
By Lawrence Criner
Former Sen. John Danforth has been appointed fireman to put out
the flames that continue to burn over the Davidian Compound in
Waco, Texas.
. . . . That may be hard to do.
. . . . What if the official record was cooked to obscure the
truth of what happened at Waco? What if agents were explicitly
told not to generate the standard reports required by law so that
a paper trail of their actions wouldn't come back and later bite
them?
. . . . Documents show this happened, which explains why new
evidence continues to surface that suggest there's a lot more to
the Waco story than originally believed.
. . . . As Mr. Danforth begins his inquiry, he might want to look
at the public record, specifically Tim Evans' testimony on July
21, 1995, before the joint House Subcommittees on Crime and
National Security that conducted the last hearings on Waco. Mr.
Evans' statement goes into those "dark questions" at the heart of
Mr. Danforth's investigation.
. . . . Mr. Evans is a Texas defense attorney who cleared British
citizen Norman Allison of false charges that he conspired to
murder federal agents in Waco on the morning of the botched raid.
. . . . At the Waco hearings, Mr. Evans furnished sensitive
government memoranda that showed prosecutors had instructed
federal investigators not to generate any unfavorable material
about "what went wrong" that might make them the subject in an
inquest.
. . . . Contrary to basic law enforcement procedure, not one of
the ATF agents at Waco made a written report of his observations
or conduct during the Feb. 28, 1993, raid, according to Mr.
Evans.
. . . . Robert M. McNamara at ATF headquarters suggests why in an
interoffice memorandum dated April 14, 1993. He writes, "DOJ does
not want Treasury to conduct any interviews or have discussions
with any of the participants, who may be potential witnesses; the
prosecutors do not want us to generate additional Jencks, Brady
or Gigolo material or oral statements which could be used for
impeachment." In other words, prosecutors don't want a damaging
record of the agents' activities at Waco that they would have to
give to defense attorneys.
. . . . A memo from Ron Noble, then assistant secretary for
enforcement at the Treasury Department, dated April 9, 1993, also
indicates pressure on Treasury from the Justice Department. He
writes, "Web Hubbell, associate attorney general [designate], is
so concerned about the potential impact of our review . . . that
he plan[s] to raise it directly with the president. . . . [I]f we
don't throw some 'bone' to the Justice Department . . . this may
exacerbate Hubbell's concerns."
. . . . Just what the White House's role was in Waco has never
been clearly determined. One thing is certain, Clinton confidant
Vince Foster died thinking he was responsible for what happened,
his wife reported.
. . . . Another memorandum from Sarah Elizabeth Jones, also at
Treasury, refers to the decision not to make routine reports
about the initial raid. It states, "ATF initiates a shooting
review. David Troy and Bill Wood interview [agents] Rodriguez and
Mastin (3/1), Chojnacki (3/3), Cavanaugh (3/3), Sarabyn (3/2).
Troy tells Review they immediately determined that these stories
did not add up.[Italics added] (Note -- Johnston at this point
advised Hartnett to stop the ATF shooting review because ATF was
creating Brady material.)"
. . . . What federal officials are talking about is sanitizing
the record so we'll only learn their version of Waco.
. . . . These memoranda not only raise serious questions of
legality but they may explain why vital exculpatory material now
surfacing was hidden even from Congress. . . . . At the time Mr.
Evans revealed these disturbing documents, Justice Department
aides were in the congressional hearing room passing out a
curious press release from Assistant Attorney General for the
Criminal Division Jo Ann Harris, who described these deceptive
practices as merely "Prosecution 101." Little wonder the whole
story about Waco is still unknown. . . . . It is inconceivable
Janet Reno didn't know about all this -- if she didn't, who's in
charge? Either way, she should resign to let somebody else
restore trustworthiness to her office. . . . . No doubt more is
to come out as the surviving Davidians have their day in court. .
. . . There was a plethora of ATF cameras on the morning of the
raid. Many agents carried personal cameras; three agents in the
helicopters had video cameras. However, very little film has been
produced of the raid or the ensuing standoff although many
investigators have requested it. When Mr. Evans asked for the
tapes and photos, he was told there were none, and the only
explanation given was that the cameras must have malfunctioned.
Then there's other missing evidence, too, such as the compound's
big metal front door that could prove if the ATF shot first.
Somehow the other metal doors survived the fire, but not this
one. . . . . Mr. Evans presented Congress with a "list of
half-truths, misrepresentations and outright falsehoods"
perpetrated by the ATF and FBI "throughout" the debacle at Waco.
What Mr. Evans uncovered in preparing for Mr. Allison's trial was
a scheme to obstruct justice by those sworn to protect us and
uphold the law. . . . . Unfortunately, his remarks at the time
went largely unnoticed by the press, which was quick to see other
sides of the story, and by our elected representatives, who were
more interested in scoring political points than in finding out
what really happened at Waco. . . . . Mr. Evans says the actions
of law-enforcement before, during and after the tragedy at Waco
cannot be assumed to be an isolated aberration. Democracies must
be ever mindful of government's never-ending grab for more
unchecked power, fewer restrictions and broader statutes. Too
often these result in "law" being handed out at the end of a
nightstick or through the barrel of a gun. Who protects us from
police vigilantism? . . . . In the end, the lesson of Waco is an
old one: We must protect the rights of those at the fringe to
make sure our rights are safe, too.
. . . . As Mr. Danforth says, "Let the chips fall where they
may."
. . . .
Lawrence Criner is associate senior editor of the World & I
magazine, and a frequent contributor to the Commentary pages of
The Washington Times.
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