Frequent Errors In FBI's Secret Records Requests

Audit Finds Possible Rule Violations
A Justice Department investigation has found pervasive errors in the FBI's use of its power to secretly demand telephone, e-mail and financial records in national security cases, officials with access to the report said yesterday.

The inspector general's audit, mandated by Congress over Bush administration objections, found that 22 of the errors were possible breaches of internal FBI and Justice Department regulations -- some of which were potential violations of law -- in a sampling of 293 "national security letters." The letters were used by the FBI to obtain the personal records of U.S. residents or visitors between 2003 and 2005. The FBI identified 26 potential violations in other cases.

Officials said they could not be sure of the scope of the violations but suggested they could be more widespread, though not deliberate. In nearly a quarter of the case files Inspector General Glenn A. Fine reviewed, he found previously unreported potential violations.

The use of national security letters has grown exponentially since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. In 2005 alone, the audit found, the FBI issued more than 19,000 such letters, amounting to 47,000 separate requests for information.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/08/AR2007030802356.html

Industrial Espionage
Witness Intimidation
Extortion
Price Fixing
Bid Rigging
Monopolizing
Political Coercion
Blackmail
. . . . It was a mistake."

:kick:

This is posted on Yahoo! News - http://news.yahoo.com/

No article yet. Has anyone heard or read anything?

Carried similar synopsis--including a statement
that Muellar, Head of FBI will appear before
Congress(tomorrow or Monday). Will watch
for further updates. You might wish to check
C-Span periodically tomorrow in case they
carry the appearance.

..and a couple of corrupt county commissioners.

I'm not sure if that violates the guidelines or not, but it sure as hell violates the spirit.

I hope this debate isn't about how to get the FBI to follow the guidelines better. The real issue should be that this anti-American "Patriot" Act is playing with fire, and the people of this country are bound to get burned - repeatedly - if it remains the law of the land.

So they can put in hacks that will do their bidding unfailingly.

Inspector general report criticizes Justice, FBI on terrorism statistics
Edited on Tue Feb-20-07 10:40 AM by maddezmom
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Justice Department and FBI often used inaccurate terrorism statistics in describing the government's successes in the battle against terrorism, according to a report released Tuesday by the Justice Department's internal watchdog.

The detailed report by the inspector general says analysis found that 24 of 26 statistics were inaccurate for a variety of reasons.

"Department components could not provide support for the numbers reported, could not provide support for a terrorism link used to classify statistics as terrorism-related, and could not document that the activity reported occurred in the period reported," the report said. --From Justice Producer Terry Frieden (Posted 11:03 a.m.)

link: http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/02/20/tuesday/...

Audit: Justice anti-terror data flawed

WASHINGTON - Federal prosecutors counted immigration violations, marriage fraud and drug trafficking among anti-terror cases in the four years after 9/11 — despite no evidence linking them to terror activity, a Justice Department audit found Tuesday.

Overall, nearly all of the terrorism-related investigations, referrals and cases examined by Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine were either diminished or inflated. Only two of 26 sets of department data reported between 2001 and 2005 were accurate, the audit found.

Responding, a Justice spokesman pointed to figures showing that prosecutors in the department's headquarters either accurately or underreported their data — underscoring what he called efforts to avoid pumping up federal terror statistics.

The numbers are used to monitor the Justice Department's progress in battling terrorists. They are reported to Congress and the public and help, in part, shape the department's budget needs.

link: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070220/ap_on_go_ot/terror_...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2738282

FBI underreported use of USA Patriot Act
By LARA JAKES JORDAN, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 27 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - The FBI underreported its use of the USA Patriot Act to force businesses to turn over customer information in suspected terrorism cases, according to a Justice Department audit.

One government official familiar with the report said shoddy bookkeeping and records management led to the problems. The FBI agents appeared to be overwhelmed by the volume of demands for information over a two-year period, the official said.

"They lost track," said the official who like others interviewed late Thursday spoke on condition of anonymity because the report was not being released until Friday.

The FBI in 2005 reported to Congress that its agents had delivered a total of 9,254 national security letters seeking e-mail, telephone or financial information on 3,501 U.S. citizens and legal residents over the previous two years.

Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine's report says that number was underreported by 20 percent, according to the officials.
(snip/...)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070309/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/national_security_letters;_ylt=A0WTcUiCHfFFUlYAZhes0NUE

:kick:

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/N/NATIONAL_SECURITY_LETTERS?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=HOME

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FBI underreported how often it used the USA Patriot Act to force businesses to turn over customer information in suspected terrorism cases, according to a Justice Department audit.

One government official familiar with the report said shoddy bookkeeping and records management led to the problems. The FBI agents appeared to be overwhelmed by the volume of demands for information over a two-year period, the official said.

"They lost track," said the official who like others interviewed late Thursday spoke on condition of anonymity because the report was not being released until Friday.

The FBI in 2005 reported to Congress that its agents had delivered a total of 9,254 national security letters seeking e-mail, telephone or financial information on 3,501 U.S. citizens and legal residents over the previous two years.

<snip>

So, it was actually more like 11,100 letters in 2005 instead of the reported 9254.

keeping track of it (or so they say!!!!)

to find this out.

Justice: FBI Misused Patriot Act Powers

Friday March 9, 2007 9:46 PM

By LARA JAKES JORDAN

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - The FBI improperly and, in some cases, illegally used the USA Patriot Act to secretly obtain personal information about people in the United States, a Justice Department audit concluded Friday.

And for three years the FBI underreported to Congress how often it forced businesses to turn over the customer data, the audit found.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who oversees the FBI, described the problems cited in the report as unacceptable and left open the possibility of criminal charges. He ordered further investigation.

``Once we get that information, we'll be in a better position to assess what kinds of steps should be taken,'' Gonzales told reporters following a speech to privacy officials.

``There is no excuse for the mistakes that have been made, and we are going to make things right as quickly as possible,'' the attorney general said.

FBI Director Robert Mueller said he was to blame for not putting more safeguards into place.

``I am to be held accountable,'' Mueller said. He told reporters he would correct the problems and did not plan to resign.

``The inspector general went and did the audit that I should have put in place many years ago,'' Mueller said.

The audit by Justice Department Inspector General Glenn A. Fine found that FBI agents sometimes demanded personal data on individuals without proper authorization. The 126-page audit also found the FBI improperly obtained telephone records in non-emergency circumstances.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6469811,00.html

and should be repealed immediately.

:grr: