Documents: Investigators told to not ask 'what went wrong' at Waco

Monday, September 20, 1999

Former Senator John Danforth (R-Mo.) has been appointed fireman to put out the flames that continue to burn over the Davidian Compound in Waco, Texas.

That may be hard to do.

What if the official record was cooked to obscure the truth of what happened at Waco? What if agents were explicitly told not to generate the standard reports required by law so that a paper trail of their actions wouldn't come back and later bite them?

Documents show this happened, which explains why new evidence continues to surface that suggests there's a lot more to the Waco-story than originally believed.

As Danforth begins his inquiry, he might want to look at the public record, specifically Tim Evans' testimony on July 21, 1995 before the joint House Subcommittees on Crime and National Security that conducted the last hearings on Waco. Evans' statement goes into those ''dark questions'' at the heart of Danforth's investigation.

Evans is a Texas defense attorney who cleared British citizen, Norman Allison, of false charges that he conspired to murder federal agents in Waco on the morning of the botched raid.

At the Waco hearings Evans furnished sensitive government memoranda that showed prosecutors had instructed federal investigators not to generate any unfavorable material about ''what went wrong'' that might make them the subject in an inquest.

Contrary to basic law enforcement procedure, not one of the ATF agents at Waco made a written report of his observations or conduct during the February 28, 1993 raid, according to Evans.

Robert M. McNamara at ATF headquarters suggests why in an interoffice memorandum dated April 14, 1993. He writes, ''DOJ does not want Treasury to conduct any interviews or have discussions with any of the participants, who may be potential witnesses; the prosecutors do not want us to generate additional Jencks, Brady or Gigolo material or oral statements which could be used for impeachment.'' In other words, prosecutors don't want a damaging record of the agents' activities at Waco that they'd have to give to defense attorneys.

A memo from Ron Noble, then Assistant Secretary for Enforcement at the Department of Treasury, dated April 9, 1993 also indicates pressure on Treasury from the Department of Justice. He writes, ''Web Hubbell, Associate Attorney General (Designate), is so concerned about the potential impact of our review...that he plan[s] to raise it directly with the President...[I]f we don't throw some `bone' to the Justice Department...this may exacerbate Hubbell's concerns.''

Just what the White House's role was in Waco has never been clearly determined. One thing is certain, Clinton confidant Vince Foster died thinking he was responsible for what happened, his wife reported.

Another memorandum from Sarah Elizabeth Jones also at the Department of Treasury refers to the decision not to make routine reports about the initial raid. It states, ''ATF initiates a shooting review. David Troy and Bill Wood interview [agents] Rodriguez and Mastin (3/1), Chojnacki (3/3), Cavanaugh (3/3), Sarabyn (3/2). Troy tells Review they immediately determined that these stories did not add up. [Italics added](Note- Johnston at this point advised Hartnett to stop the ATF shooting review because ATF was creating Brady material.)''

What federal officials are talking about is sanitizing the record so we'll only learn their version of Waco.

These memoranda not only raise serious questions of legality but they may explain why vital exculpatory material now surfacing was hidden even from Congress.

At the time Evans revealed these disturbing documents, Department of Justice aides were in the congressional hearing room passing out a curious press release from Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division Jo Ann Harris who described these deceptive practices as merely "Prosecution 101.'' Little wonder the whole story about Waco is still unknown.

It is inconceivable Janet Reno didn't know about all this -- if she didn't, who's in charge? Either way, she should resign to let somebody else restore trustworthiness to her office.

No doubt more is to come out as the surviving Davidians have their day in court.

There was a plethora of ATF cameras on the morning of the raid. Many agents carried personal cameras; three agents in the helicopters had video cameras. However, very little film has been produced of the raid or the ensuing standoff although many investigators have requested it. When Evans asked for the tapes and photos, he was told there were none, and the only explanation given was that the cameras must have malfunctioned. Then there's other missing evidence, too, such as the compound's big metal front door that could prove if the ATF shot first. Somehow the other metal doors survived the fire, but not this one.

Evans presented Congress with a ''list of half-truths, misrepresentations and outright falsehoods'' perpetrated by the ATF and FBI ''throughout'' the debacle at Waco. What Evans uncovered in preparing for Allison's trial was a scheme to obstruct justice by those sworn to protect us and uphold the law.

Unfortunately, his remarks at the time went largely unnoticed by the press who were quick to see other sides of the story and by our elected representatives who were more interested in scoring political points than in finding out what really happened at Waco.

Evans says the actions of law-enforcement before, during and after the tragedy at Waco cannot be assumed to be an isolated aberration. Democracies must be ever mindful of government's never-ending grab for more unchecked power, fewer restrictions, and broader statutes. Too often these result in ''law'' being handed out at the end of a nightstick or through the barrel of a gun. Who protects us from police vigilantism?

In the end, the lesson of Waco is an old one: We must protect the rights of those at the fringe to make sure our rights are safe, too.

As Dansforth says, ''Let the chips fall where they may.''

Lawrence Criner (larryc@worldandimag.com) is a senior editor at the World & I magazine, a monthly publication of the Washington Times Corp.