EXCLUSIVE: How the FBI Botched the Anthrax Case

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=5276220&page=1

Former Agent Explains What Went Wrong in the Investigation
An Analysis By BRAD GARRETT
June 30, 2008
The anthrax investigation, almost from the beginning, was hampered by top-heavy leadership from high ranking, but inexperienced FBI officials, which led to a close-minded focus on just one suspect and amateurish investigative techniques that robbed agents in the field the ability operate successfully.

Brad Garrett retired from the FBI and is now an ABC News consultant. He was one of the key investigators in the anthrax case.
(ABC)
I saw it firsthand as one of the FBI agents assigned to the anthrax case and directly involved in the investigation of Dr. Steven Hatfill. While I cannot comment on the guilt or innocence of Hatfill, I think I have a sense of some of the things that went wrong inside the FBI and what lessons can be learned from this embarrassing case.


Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Justice agreed to pay $5,825,000 to Hatfill, whom former Attorney General John Ashcroft once described as "a person of interest" in the investigation into the anthrax murders of seven people in 2001.


The vaguely-worded settlement agreement appeared on the online docket of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia on Friday. The original complaint accused several government officials, including Ashcroft, of deliberately leaking information about the criminal probe into Hatfill in order to harass him and to hide the FBI's lack of hard evidence. The written settlement agreement contained no admissions of leaks or wrongdoing by government officials, however.



There are many lessons learned from the missteps in the anthrax investigation. As an FBI agent for more than 20 years with experience on other high profile cases, I was involved in the anthrax investigation along with countless other hard-working, decent FBI agents, federal prosecutors, and investigators.

Lesson One: Stay focused and professional regardless of the atmosphere.


The FBI's motto, "Fidelity, Bravery, and Integrity," cannot be ignored, even in times of high anxiety. The anthrax case was unprecedented even in terms of other high-profile cases: two members of Congress, Sen. Tom Daschle (D-ND) and Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), and a prominent member of the television media, Tom Brokaw of NBC received anthrax-laced letters. A letter is also believed to have been mailed to ABC News, where the young child of a producer there was infected, though no letter was ever found.

and was Senate majority leader, not just a Senator.

"top ranking, but inexperienced" makes it sound like there were mistakes caused by arrogance and incompetence. In truth, the anthrax was mailed by the Bush administration and the same people deliberately torpedoed the investigation. The 'mistakes' made of the investigation were deliberate, not accidental.

You have someone with dangerous skills ... how do you keep him quiet? It's sad we've gone through this over and over, but if you keep a skeptical mind, the stories merge into a comprehensive narrative where there are no saints.

I am a postal worker who was effected by this "attack".

I work in the Trenton, NJ Mail Processing Facility where the anthrax letters were processed.

Who did it? We'd like to know. My personal opinion is that it was an ally of the right-wing gov't we have now, not some Islamic terrorist.

I believe the investigation was intentionally botched to cover the tracks of these fascist bastards running the US gov't.

It was an "inside job" to intimidate the dems... and I must say I believe it was quite effective given their behavior ever since. x(

started to close in on the perp. And I find it interesting that the DoJ had no problem paying this guy millions without even trying to make a case. How often does this DoJ settle cases like this, for this kind of money. Makes you wonder.

Remember how everybody who was anybody in the White House was on Cipro BEFORE the anthrax mailings?

http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/frameup.html

Who's running whom?