The Donald Eugene Gates case, once again highlights a persistent problem that exists at the FBI/DOJ, of framing people for crimes they did not commit, just to close out a case.
Gates spent 28-years in prison for a crime he did not commit, because 13 FBI employees, engaged in treachery and wickedness only the devil could be proud of, via lying in court and submitting falsified documents that send an innocent man to rot in a prison cell for over a quarter century. Does that sound like justice to you.
The aforementioned FBI employees criminal misdeeds constitute contempt of court, lying under oath, conspiracy, fraud and depriving the public of their honest services.
It is a nefarious habit the FBI has engaged in time and time again, as revealed by numerous court cases, resulting in widespread public condemnation of the agency, as with the aforementioned Gates case.
The question is should FBI/DOJ employees be imprisoned for framing people, via knowingly entering false evidence, testimony and documents in court, to seal convictions or keeping silent as innocent people they wish to be rid of are harmed or killed.
The answer is a resounding yes. Any FBI or DOJ employee that engages in such reprehensible conduct, should face years of imprisonment and massive federal fines.
There is no justification for such misconduct. If that is your definition of justice, you need to get out of that job before you do anyone else any injury.
The Nation: $75 And A Bus Ticket Home
Gates is now 58 years old, and for his three lost decades the government gave him some winter clothes, $75, and a bus ticket to Ohio. He had to pay his $35 cab fare to get from jail to the bus station.
The FBI analyst who testified against him was discredited — along with 13 other analysts — by a Justice Department review in 1997 for having "made false reports and performed inaccurate tests," according to the Washington Post. The judge has now ordered a review of every conviction in which this analyst testified.
Given the 1997 review, what the hell took so long?
And how many more men and women sit in jail awaiting DNA testing?
Justice delayed
Friday, December 18, 2009 - It is scary to think how Mr. Gates's release came about only because of valiant, individual efforts. His court-appointed attorney, Roger Durban, was about to retire but was so bothered by the case he wrote in 2007 to both the judge and the D.C. public defender's office, which took up the case. Their efforts to get new DNA testing would have gone nowhere if not for the work of two D.C. police officers, James Trainum and Grant Greenwalt, in tracking down long-lost evidence from the victim's body in the medical examiner's office. It's also scary to think that while Mr. Gates sat in jail, Ms. Schilling's real killer has gone unpunished.
Mr. Gates still must await another court ruling to be exonerated of the charges. Once that happens, he will be able to make a claim for compensation for time spent in prison. Federal law provides for up to $50,000 per year of incarceration; the District leaves the amount up to the court. As much as Mr. Gates gets, it won't be enough.
http://www.washingtonpost.com
