United States of America: State protection available to American political activists who feel they are being harassed by members of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) or the Michigan State Police

Several specialists on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) commented on the situation of a person who feels she is being harassed by members of the FBI. A Professor of History at Marquette University, who has published a wide range of works on the subject of the FBI, stated in a 16 June 1999 telephone interview that because of the ongoing lack of information on the FBI's current activities it would be difficult for a person who feels she is being harassed by members of the FBI, that it "would be difficult for an individual to establish the FBI was doing things" that led to this feeling. He said that a large part of the reason for this is that it would be difficult to find documentary evidence of FBI actions since the official recording of FBI activities would largely be hidden from an individual who is trying to establish that the FBI engaged in activities that caused her concern. The professor also said that the FBI would not release information related to ongoing investigations and that this is permitted under the Freedom of Information Act. As a result of these difficulties in accessing information, the professor stated that it would be difficult to go for help to other police forces, any sort of ombudsperson, or organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

The Washington D.C. representative of the National Committee Against Repressive Legislation, which grew out of the National Committee to Abolish the House Un-American Activities Committee, also stated that it would be difficult for an individual to support her claims that she was being illtreated by the FBI. She said that the "FBI does have a history of doing things to people that may appear crazy." She said that if a person were successful in convincing others to look into her allegations of FBI mistreatment, the FBI could scare those others off by making suggestions about the person such as that she is a terrorist or involved in drug smuggling. She also stated that it is difficult for an individual to attract attention to her situation, adding that there is a "sad lack of effective defence people, especially for poor people." She said that this lack of resources to defend poor people is getting worse through government cutbacks to resources going to public defenders. In conclusion, the Washington D.C. representative stated that a person who feels she is being harassed by members of the FBI faces two significant problems: an inability to support her allegations against the FBI and a lack of resources to defend herself.

A researcher and writer on political repression in the United States who has been published in such periodicals as Covert Action Quarterly, The Nation, and a range of African-American newspapers, who is also the Director of the Anti-Repression Resource Team in State College, Pennsylvania, stated in a 2 July 1999 telephone interview that there would be "practically nowhere to go" for a person who felt she is being harassed by members of the FBI. He claimed that organizations such as the ACLU were not typically responsive to cases involving only individuals and referred to it as "an upscale organization." He said that there is "a handful of organizations" that may be of assistance to individuals and referred to the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York City and the People's Law Office in Chicago. However, he stated that they are equipped with a minimum of resources and therefore are often unable to take on individual cases unless there are more issues involved than those affecting the individual alone. Please refer to the attached document, "If an Agent Knocks: Federal Investigators and Your Rights," from the Center for Constitutional Rights, which is a "pamphlet...designed to answer the most frequent questions asked by people and groups experiencing government scrutiny, and to help them develop practical responses" (n.d.).

The Director said that there is a unit attached to the Justice Department, which he believes is called the "Community Relations Service," and which is responsible for responding to complaints about FBI activities. He said that it was created in the 1960s and was intended to be independent of the FBI but, in his opinion, it "rapidly transformed into a surrogate of the FBI." However, he did recount an incident when the offices of an African-American newspaper, which had published critical stories on the FBI and COINTELPRO (Counter-intelligence program), were bombed. The Director related that the community was concerned that the FBI would not be able to impartially investigate the incident and that they passed on these concerns to the Community Relations Service. He stated that the FBI did subsequently arrest a suspect in the case, but described the arrest as a result of the national pressure applied through the Community Relations Service.

The Director of the Center for National Security Studies (CNSS), a non-governmental advocacy and research organization (details below, 10 Dec. 1997) stated in a 20 July 1999 telephone interview that she is unaware of this unit at the Justice Department. However, she stated that the Justice Department is unlikely to provide any independent information on the FBI as they are technically linked. As such, she "would not ask for an independent review of the FBI by the Justice Department." She said that a person who feels she is being harassed by members of the FBI, or who felt her life was being interfered with by the FBI or its surveillance activities, could approach a lawyer or a civil liberties organization for help. However, she said it would be difficult for the person to do this since the FBI would claim an interest of "national security" and refuse to release any information pertaining to the individual's allegations. Furthermore, she said there is no civilian oversight organization of the FBI besides the United States Congress and, in her opinion, help from there would depend on its current political make-up. The individual would have to approach her Congressional Representative to bring her case to the attention of the relevant committee.

The Director stated that FBI "interference" with a person's life often includes phone-tapping, following the person, placing agents in groups, etc.. However, she said that the activities of the FBI that were reported to have occurred under COINTELPRO  - such as writing letters to mislead the associates of an individual, or the shootings of Black Panther members in Chicago-are not believed by the CNSS to still occur. She said that the CNSS believes that FBI agents arrest people without cause, lie, mislead, and sometimes act as provocateurs in organizations, but not in the same fashion as during the time of COINTELPRO. She stated that the last incidents of what she referred to as "unjustified" shootings were at Waco, Texas which involved the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, and at Ruby Ridge, Montana where the wife of a suspect was killed by the FBI. She said that these two events provoked widespread protests and four years of lawsuits and are an indication that the FBI is no longer involved in surreptitious shootings.  She said if the FBI forced down a suspect's door and she moved quickly then she could be shot by FBI agents, but she indicated that this was quite different from FBI agents deliberately choosing to shoot a suspect. She concluded by saying that "there is a serious problem with the FBI engaging in surveillance based on a person's, or organization's, political beliefs but not in regard to deliberately interfering with peoples' lives in the way they did in the past and they certainly don't deliberately shoot people."

There are several reports of persons having sued the FBI for a variety of reasons although the Research Directorate was unable to determine the outcomes of those civil actions (The New York Times 3 Apr. 1981; ibid. 14 Jan. 1997; AP 3 Feb. 1999).

The Research Directorate found only one report of persons who claimed that it was not safe for them to remain in the United States because of harassment by the FBI. In allegations denied by the State Department, two supporters of the American Communist Party fled to the Soviet Union with their children in October 1986 because of an alleged "FBI-orchestrated campaign that included death threats, obscene phone calls, financial difficulties and pressure on their children from classmates" (UPI 20 April 1987).

No information on state protection available to American political activists who feel they are being harassed by members of the Michigan State Police could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. However, please consult Human Rights Watch (HRW) World Report 1999 for general information on police brutality in the United States, as well as the HRW report Shielded From Justice: Police Brutality and Accountability in the United States, available in Regional Documentation Centers, for more detailed information on the effectiveness and availability of avenues of redress for victims of municipal police brutality (1998). It is based on "research conducted in fourteen U.S. cities [including Detroit, Michigan] over two an a half years" but includes some general statements on police brutality in the United States. Please also consult "Amnesty International's Recommendations to the United States Government to Address Human Rights Violations in the USA" available in Regional Documentation Centres (6 Oct. 1998) and the United Nations Website at for access to the "Report of the Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions, Mr. Bacre Waly Ndiaye, Submitted Pursuant to Commission Resolution 1997/61; Addendum: Mission to the United States" (22 Jan. 1998).

Please note: This Response makes references to "an individual"; for ease of reading, the feminine pronouns "she" and "her" have been used. This in no way implies that the information does not equally apply to a male individual.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Anti-Repression Resource Team, State College, Pennsylvania. 2 July 1999. Telephone interview with Director.

Associated Press (AP). 3 February 1999. "A Package of Caribbean News Briefs." (NEXIS)

Center for Constitutional Rights, New York, NY. n.d. "If an Agent Knocks: Federal Investigators and Your Rights." [Accessed 2 June 1999]

Center for National Security Studies (CNSS), Washington. 20 July 1999. Telephone interview with the Director.

_____. 10 December 1997. "In More Detail..." A non-governmental advocacy and research organization, ... founded in 1974 to work for control of the FBI and CIA and to prevent violations of civil liberties in the United States. From 1978 to 1994, the Center was a joint project of the American Civil Liberties Union and the Fund for Peace and is now solely a project of the Fund for Peace. It is the leading expert on the legal and policy issues at the intersection of national security and civil liberties. [Accessed 19 July 1999]

National Committee Against Repressive Legislation, Washington, D.C. 2 July 1999. Telephone interview with Washington Representative.

The New York Times. 14 January 1997. Bloomberg News. "Former Executive Sues F.B.I. Agent." (NEXIS)

_____. 3 April 1981. Arnold H. Lubasch. "Marxist Group Charges Conspiracy as $40 Million Suit Goes to Trial." (NEXIS)

Professor of History, Marquette University, Milwaukee Wisconsin. 16 June 1999. Telephone interview.

United Press International (UPI). 20 April 1987. "Texas Defectors Settling Into Soviet Lifestyle." (NEXIS)

Attachment

Center for Constitutional Rights, New York, NY. n.d. "If an Agent Knocks: Federal Investigators and Your Rights." [Accessed 2 June 1999]

Additional Sources Consulted

Amnesty International. 1998. Amnesty International Report1998.

     Michigan Department of State. Website. [Accessed 21 July 1999]

Michigan State Police. Website. [Accessed 21 July 1999]

Resource Centre. United States country file. April 1997 - June 1999.

_____. United States: Amnesty International country file. March 1998 - June 1999.

Electronic sources: IRB Databases, LEXIS/NEXIS, Internet, REFWORLD.