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The FBI Laboratory: An
Investigation
into Laboratory Practices and Alleged
Misconduct in
Explosives-Related
and Other Cases (April 1997)
RESPONSE/REPLY APPENDIX DOCUMENTS
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Documents in the Response/Reply Appendix
Dr. Frederic Whitehurst has responded to the final version of the OIG's FBI Lab Report. His response is located on the Internet homepage of www.forensicjustice.org/oigrebuttal.htm and is available by mail on request to Forensic Justice Project, 3238 P St., NW, Washington D.C. 20007.
Dr. Whitehurst's response is entirely his own product and does not in any way reflect the views of the Inspector General. The OIG has not read or reviewed Dr. Whitehurst's response and is not responsible for its content.
This reference to Dr. Whitehurst's response is being provided pursuant to a settlement agreement between Dr. Whitehurst and the Department of Justice. Because of the OIG's policy of limiting disclosure of the draft report to individuals and entities with first-hand knowledge of the underlying facts, Dr. Whitehurst was precluded from discussing the draft report with counsel. Dr. Whitehurst, therefore, declined to respond in February 1997.
(Disclaimer: Because the pagination of these documents in hypertext format is different than the pagination in hardcopy, the page numbers reflected in the text will not be accurate.)
1) The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) Comments dated February 12, 1997, on the Office of the Inspector Generals (OIG) draft report titled, "The FBI Laboratory: An Investigation into Laboratory Practices and Alleged Misconduct in Explosives-Related and Other Cases."
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- A. Introduction
- B. The FBI's Commitment to Quality
- C. The FBI's Comments on the Draft Report
- I. COMMENTS ON THE OIG'S ANALYSIS OF PARTICULAR MATTERS
- A. World Trade Center
- B. Oklahoma City
- C. Florida v. George Trepal
- D. Avianca
- E. Other Matters
- 1. VanPac
- 2. O. J. Simpson
- 3. Paolo Borsellino
- 4. Gino Negretti
- 5. Conlon
- 6. Judge John Shaw
- 7. The FBIs Office of Professional Responsibility and
- Office of the General Counsel
- II. COMMENTS ON THE OIGS FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS CONCERNING INDIVIDUALS
- A. Roger Martz
- B. David Williams
- 1. World Trade Center
- 2. Oklahoma City Bombing
- C. J. Thomas Thurman
- D. Other Individuals
- 1. Michael Malone
- 2. Richard Hahn
- 3. Robert Heckman
- 4. J. Christopher Ronay
- 5. Robert Webb
- 6. Charles Calfee
- 7. Wallace Higgins
- 8. Alan Jordan
- 9. Kenneth Nimmich
- 10. Rod Asbury
- 11. Thomas Mohnal
- 12. Howard Shapiro
- 13. Frederic W. Whitehurst
- III. PLAN OF ACTION
- A. Quality Assurance
- 1. ASCLD/LAB Accreditation and External Review
- 2. Restructuring the Explosives Unit
- 3. Principal and Auxiliary Examiners
- 4. Report Preparation
- 5. Adequate Peer Review
- 6. Case Documentation
- 7. Record Retention
- 8. Examiner Training and Qualification
- 9. Examiner Testimony
- 10. Protocols7
- 11. Evidence Handling
- 12. The Role of Management
- B. FBI Request to the OIG for Further Inspection
3) The FBIs Comments dated April 4, 1997, on Part Three, Section D: The Bush Assassination Attempt.
4) FBI Supervisory Special Agent Roger Martzs reply dated February 4, 1997, to the OIGs draft report.
5) FBI Supervisory Special Agent David Williams reply to the OIGs draft report.
13) OIGs Replies to responses to the draft report.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. REPLIES TO GENERAL RESPONSE MADE BY FBI IN THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF ITS RESPONSE