-Caveat Lector- From: "Jim Barnes" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >From: Carl Alexander >Sent: Thursday, December 24, 1998 12:00 AM >Subject: An Illusion Of Justice > >AN ILLUSION OF JUSTICE > >The only thing worse than being convicted of a crime and sent to prison >when you are innocent... is when the government deliberately does it, >and then tries to keep you there. > >In July, 1996, John Irvin Pitner was arrested at his home in Deming, WA, >and charged with six counts of conspiracy to overthrow the US Government. >Among other charges, he was accused of conspiring to manufacture pipebombs, >convert weapons to fire on full-automatic, and to assault & kill federal >officers >in the performance of their official duties. > >These charges stemmed from a year-long undercover FBI investigation >into the activities of the Washington State Militia, of which Pitner was the >founder & former Executive Director. They were based largely on the >testimony of Edward G. Maeurer, a three-time convicted felon (fraud), >who had infiltrated the militia group as a paid FBI informant beginning >in June, 1995. > >Maeurer's official reports to the FBI claimed that he had seen & handled >fully-automatic M-16's, dynamite, grenades, sacks of fertilizer & night- >vision devices stolen from Ft. Lewis, WA, at a 'fortified' room in Pitner's >garage. He claimed the militia group was planning to kill federal officers, >blow up government buildings, and assassinate David Rockefeller while >he attended a conference on the Olympic Peninsula, in WA State. >Maeurer's reports led to a full field investigation of the WSM being >conducted, and the placement of an undercover FBI agent into the group. > >Seven people, including Pitner, were eventually arrested & brought to trial. >After six weeks, the jury could not reach a verdict on the conspiracy charges, >and a mistrial was declared. Pitner, along with three other militia members, >was found guilty of separate illegal-weapons charges in March, '97. Pitner, >who has never been sentenced for that crime, remains incarcerated at the >Federal Detention Center SEATAC, in Seattle, WA. > >Astoundingly, according to the sworn testimony of informant Maeurer and >the FBI agents participating in this case, the following facts were made known >during the trial: > >1. Maeurer had lied to his FBI handler's all during the investigation. On >or about >20 February, 1996, Maeurer was given a series of polygraph examinations by >Special Agent Raymond Lauer, a certified polygraph examiner for the FBI, >concerning what he had seen and done at Pitner's home. Maeurer recanted ever >having seen or handled any M-16's. He recanted ever having seen any grenades,>or dynamite. (The stolen military night-vision devices had earlier been >recovered >& were never in the possession of the WSM.) Instead, he "might have" seen an >M-16. Or, it might have been "a toy". Instead of actually seeing or >handling any >dynamite or grenades, he now claimed to have seen boxes which he "knew" >contained those explosives. > >2. There was no 'fortified' room in Pitner's garage. A storage room, >constructed of >plywood & two-by-fours, had been built in the garage and the door was not even >kept locked. > >3. Under questioning by federal prosecutors and defense counsel, as to why >he had lied about Pitner to his FBI employers, Maeurer said he thought Pitner>was dangerous and needed to be arrested. > >4. Maeurer owed in excess of $35,000 in summary judgement outstanding against>him, for passing fradulent checks, at the time he began informing on the WSM. >Under questioning, he admitted that he had never re-paid any of this >court-ordered >restitution. > >5. John Pitner had resigned as Director of the WSM three months prior to his >arrest, due to growing financial, marital and health problems. His wife >had left >him, he had suffered a small stroke that summer, and was no longer attending >any militia meetings. > >6. Michael German (the undercover FBI agent) and Maeurer (the paid informant)>assumed leadership positions within the militia group after Pitner's >departure, >becoming members of a three-man Leadership Council heading the WSM. > >7. German and Maeurer instigated every illegal activity performed by the >militia >members, after assuming leadership of the organization. It was German & >Maeurer >who first suggested building pipebombs to sell and raise money for the WSM, >through German's supposed 'contacts' in the military surplus business. It was>German & Maeurer who brought the idea up over & over again, until people >agreed to do it. It was German & Maeurer who first suggested converting >weapons >to full-automatic, and insisted on stockpiling them, and pushed the idea >until it was >acted upon. It was German who leased a warehouse in downtown Seattle, and >German who bought milling equipment needed to alter the weapons, and German >who directed people to travel out-of-state to purchase bomb components. > >8. German and Maeurer caused suspicion and distrust of Pitner to develop among >the other militia members. They engendered the belief that Pitner had taken >money from a group yardsale & spent in for his own benefit. They encouraged >the other WSM members to ostracize Pitner & insisted he not be told about the>bomb-building and weapon conversions which were then taking place. They >forbade the group members from informing Pitner of the location or existence >of the downtown warehouse. > >9. Maeurer, in the presence of Special Agent German, elicited death threats >to be made over the telephone to Pitner and another WSM member who was >out-of-favor with the group. > >10. Maeurer's trial testimony accused Pitner of being an active participant in >the sale of an UZI submachine gun. Pitner did not own the gun, and no evidence >was presented that he knew the transaction was occurring between Maeurer >and another WSM member, or that he profited in any way from the sale. Despite>repeated references to Pitner (by Maeurer) on secretly-recorded tapes as the >transaction took place, the seller of the gun continually denied that >Pitner had >any part in what was taking place, stating at one point, "I don't know why you >keep talking about John... he doesn't have anything to do with this. I >don't even >think he knows I have an UZI." > >11. An illegal warrantless search was made of Pitner's home on 25 July, 1996,>by Special Agent In Charge Ramon Garcia and Special Agent Cathy Fahey, >of the Bellingham FBI office. Pitner's home was up for sale, and the two >agents >posed as interested home-buyers to Pitner's real-estate agent, inspecting >every >room in the house, and the garage. Garcia was alone in Pitner's bedroom, while >Fahey and the real estate agent were outside. In sworn testimony, Garcia >admitted >openly to searching the bedroom closet and water heater cabinet for >illegal weapons, >which he stated he would have confiscated - had he found any. > >12. Maeurer, who was paid in excess of $25,000 by the FBI over the course of >the investigation, was also drawing disability payments from the WA State >Department of Labor & Industries during that same time period. He never >reported >his income from the FBI to L&I, or to the IRS. He stated that the federal >prosecutors >were aware of that fact. > >13. Maeurer, a convicted felon, admitted that he was still in possession >of multiple >firearms at the time of the trial, six months after the investigation >concluded. He >stated that SAIC Garcia was aware of that fact. > >An detailed complaint about FBI conduct, and that of the federal >prosecutors at >trial, >was filed with the Office Of professional Responsibility, Department of >Justice, in >December, 1998. OPR responded on 1 July, 1999, stating that they "found no >mis- >conduct by the attorneys or agents, and we consider this matter closed." >Despite >a further FOIA request, they refuse to provide any basis of fact for that >conclusion. > >Pitner remains confined at FDC SEATAC because the presidng judge in the case >(John C. Coughenour, #CR96-500C) refused to sentence him for the weapon >conviction, >until an appeal to the 9th Circuit Court could be heard concerning the >matter of >retrial, >on the conspiracy charges. That appeal was filed 24 September, 1997 >(#97-30179), on >grounds of double-jeopardy. > > >In May, 1999, a three-judge panel heard oral arguments in the matter, and >in early >December, 1999, a motion for an emergency ruling was filed by Pitner's >attorney. > >On December 15th, 1999, the three-judge panel was directed by some unknown >higher authority to cease dliberations on the matter, as the issue was >non-appealable >and should never have come before them. DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. 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