News Story
Pa. Family Suing FBI for Raid
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com A suburban Pittsburgh family says sorry, sorry ain’t enough. The family said it’s suing the FBI for more than $50,000 in damages after agents and police officers in March mistakenly entered their Bellevue, Pa., home, guns drawn, looking for a suspect who moved out two years before and was not related…
Conn. Fed Jury Votes to Put Drug Dealer to Death for Triple Murder
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com For the first time since the federal death penalty was reinstated in 1988, a federal jury in Connecticut has voted to impose the death penalty. A federal jury in New Haven, Conn. voted Wednesday to unanimously condemn drug dealer Azibo Aquart, 30, of Bridgeport, Conn. to death for murdering three Bridgeport…
Column: I Wish I Had Good Friends Like Ex-Sen. Norm Coleman Has
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com I have some lousy friends, particularly those with money. They haven’t lavished me with tens of thousands of dollars in gifts. Maybe a beer. Maybe a meal. And oh yes, one once gave me a Jerry Springer “Uncensored” video for my birthday. I don’t get it. I’m a good guy. I…
Cousin of Slain Border Agent Thanks ATF Agents For Speaking Up and Risking Jobs
Robert Heyer (far right) sits on panel with agent Terry’s Mother and ATF agents/ticklethewire.com photo By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com A teary eyed cousin of slain U.S. Border Patrol agent Brian Terry urged ATF to be forthright and provide info to Congressional investigators about a controversial program — “Operation Fast and Furious” — that encouraged Arizona…
It Can’t Hurt to Hire Ex-FBI Director When Going Up Against the Justice Dept.
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com If you’re going to hire someone to help in a federal criminal matter, it can’t hurt to get an attorney who use to head up the FBI. Former FBI Director Louis Freeh was hired by Minnesota businessman Nasser Kazeminy, who was under investigation for allegations that he gave Sen. Norm Coleman…
FBI Wants Colo. Restaurant Video of Confrontation Between Lance Armstrong and Ex-Teammate
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com The FBI has an interest in a French restaurant in Colorado — and not for the the Escargots à la Bourguignonne or “Loch Duart” Scottish Salmon on the menu. The New York Times reports that FBI has requested surveillance video from the Aspen restaurant Cache Cache to look at a Saturday…
Report Says ATF Agent Predicted Death and Congressional Inquiry After ATF Launched Controversial Gun Program; Agents Worried Guns Might be Linked to Gabrielle Giffords Shooting
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com One ATF agent told Congressional investigators that someone was going to die from ATF’s controversial gun-walking program dubbed “Operation Fast and Furious”, and he predicted the program would become the subject of a Congressional inquiry. That prediction by agent Larry Alt was noted in a 51-page report released Tuesday Rep. Darrell…
Chicago U.S. Atty. Patrick Fitzgerald Defends Plea With American Terrorist
By Sebastian Rotella ProPublica The chief prosecutor in a landmark terrorism trial that ended last week in Chicago says a plea bargain with a confessed American terrorist was justified because of his value as a source of intelligence and as a key witness in any future prosecutions. Jurors last Thursday convicted Tahawwur Rana, a Chicago…