September 20, 2010
Des Moine Register
By WILLIAM PETROSKI bpetroski@dmreg.com
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20100920/NEWS/9200318/Iowa-activists-drew-FBI-scrutiny
The FBI's surveillance of a protest group in
Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn., two years ago was
far more extensive than initially reported, newly obtained FBI
documents show.
Agents staked out the homes of political activists, secretly
photographed and shot video of them, pored through their garbage, and
studied their cell phone and motor vehicle records, according to
records detailing the FBI's counterterrorism investigation.
Federal agents and other law enforcement officers also watched and
documented the protesters' comings and goings at such places as the
the Red Avocado restaurant and the Deadwood Tavern; and the Wesley
Center campus ministry of the
The FBI's nine-month investigation in 2008 is detailed in more than
300 pages of documents obtained through the federal Freedom of
Information Act by David Goodner, a former member of the University of
The heavily redacted records indicate the FBI believed the
activists were part of a national network of radicals intent on
disrupting the Republican convention in
Democratic National Convention in
learned of the
monitoring its Internet site. Names of most of the activists were
deleted from the documents before they were released.
Goodner, 29, of Des Moines, who participated in the
and who is named in the documents, said the records show the federal
investigation was a waste of time and taxpayer money.
"There's no evidence presented in hundreds of pages that anybody with
either the
collective had any plans for anything other than a nonviolent, if
confrontational, direct action street protest at the 2008 Republican
National Convention," Goodner said. Most of the
did not attend the Democratic convention in
About 25 members of
Paul demonstrations, but
one
subsequently dropped.
Eugene O'Donnell, a professor at the
Justice at City University of New York, cautioned that law enforcement
faces a balancing act in monitoring political activist groups.
There is a legitimate need for law enforcement to be aware of groups
that can potentially cause violence and disruption, said O'Donnell, an
ex-prosecutor and former
time, some law enforcement agencies have had a history of overreaching
in such investigations, gathering information on groups that had
neither the capacity nor the intent to use violent means, he added.
"Hindsight is 20-20 on these things. When the threats turn out to be
empty threats, there is a tendency to say, 'Why did law enforcement go
in there with such urgency and dedicate such resources?' But should
there be a failure by law enforcement to protect the public, then some
folks will be screaming bloody murder about their ineptitude and that
they were asleep at the switch."
The FBI documents showed the
2008 and was closed in December 2008. The probe ended after agents
said they had identified an "association with other anarchist
extremist networks" but found no involvement in "specific criminal
activities."
The Register reported last year that the FBI infiltrated the
protest movement in 2008 by planting a paid informant who attended
meetings and hung out with activists. In addition, confidential FBI
documents obtained by the newspaper showed an undercover deputy from
the
to attend an anti-war conference in April 2008.
The
conducted with the knowledge of then-U.S. Attorney Matthew Whitaker of
investigation of the
all appropriate investigative techniques to identify any criminal
activity," according to an FBI document.
The FBI agents conducting the surveillance were assisted by officers
from the University of Iowa Department of Public Safety, the
Police Department and the Coralville Police Department, FBI records
show. As many as six agents and officers were involved in some
surveillance operations.
Weysan Dun, special agent in charge of the FBI's Omaha field office,
issued a statement today defending his agents'' handling of the
City investigation.
"Adherence to the
activities protected by the First Amendment are the foundation upon
which the FBI conducts its investigations. The FBI initiates
investigations only when there are allegations or information that
indicates possible criminal activity or threats to national security.
"In this instance, the FBI Omaha Field Office initiated an
investigation into allegations that certain individuals were possibly
going to engage in criminal activity to disrupt the national
conventions of one or both major political parties. Every
investigative technique that was employed was authorized under the
attorney general guidelines and was deemed necessary to resolve the
allegations," Dun said.
Whitaker, now in private law practice in Des Moines, said last week
that he was aware the FBI was looking into potential criminal acts
relating to the 2008 Republican National Convention, "but I don't
remember any specifics at all."
"We worked very closely with the FBI on a lot of different things and
interacted. They would ask us if we would work with them to
investigate potential crimes. That happened all the time," Whitaker
added. Asked whether the FBI's
overkill, he declined to comment, saying he was not involved on a
day-to-day basis in the investigation.
Iowa City Police Chief Sam Hargadine said last week that
authorities contacted him in 2008 before the undercover sheriff's
deputy was dispatched to the anti-war conference. But he said he was
not aware of the FBI's extensive investigation of the Wild Rose
Rebellion and other
report stating that one of his officers assisted FBI agents during
more than four hours of surveillance on a Tuesday night, and said he
didn't think anyone from his department took part in the operation.
Chuck Green, the university's public safety director, didn't respond
to a request for comment. But Lt. Shane Kron, a spokesman for the
Coralville Police Department, said his department routinely cooperates
with other law enforcement agencies and does not judge the nature of
the request.
The Wild Rose group, which the FBI described as an "anarchist
collective," was planning to help organize street blockades to disrupt
the convention, at which Republicans nominated the presidential and
vice presidential ticket of U.S. Sen. John McCain of
then-Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
Robert "
contact person, said last week that the newly released documents show
the FBI doesn't understand "either anarchy or the protest movement ...
if they think it's worth going through our garbage." He said most
people who were members of the group remain involved in social and
political causes, but not under the Wild Rose banner.
Goodner said he obtained and released the FBI records because he
thought the public had a right to know about the extent to which the
government was spying on its own citizens. He described the
surveillance in
About 3,700 police officers - many in riot gear and some on horses -
used tear gas, pepper spray and other methods to control protesters
and quell disturbances outside the
protesters shattered windows at retail stores, and others threw urine
and feces at police, authorities said.
About 800 demonstrators were arrested, although most charges were
subsequently dismissed. However, four members of a group known as the
RNC Welcoming Committee still face criminal charges and are scheduled
to go on trial in October in
Randall Wilson, legal director of the American Civil Liberties
of
forces continue to misdirect their efforts at peace activists rather
than true terrorists. The
their activities, meeting at the
"There probably isn't a group more opposed to terrorism than these
people. Any self-respecting terrorist would not try to bring attention
to himself by engaging in the type of activities that these people
do,"
government using its investigative powers for political suppression."
The Rev. Paul Shultz, executive director of the
City, said last week that he found it "laughable" to learn that
surveillance documents show five FBI agents and another officer spent
nearly 12 hours on a Saturday in 2008 staking out visitors to the
campus Methodist center. He said he was not aware of anyone gathering
there to plot illegal activities.
"We have had a variety of lecturers and speakers here. Sometimes
anti-war people use our building. We have no political stances
officially, but our building is a resource to the community," Shultz
said.
--
David Goodner can be reached at 515.991.6357 or david.a.goodner at gmail.com or Dingman CW House,
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