Operation Showtime was perhaps one of the best armed "police action" operations in American history. It was also one of the worst bungled actions in American history. And, most probably, it was a totally illegal action from beginning to end. Except, federal agents were the perpetrators, so the justice department and the courts helped cover up the most grievous errors.

Over the years, we have watched, read and written so much about the massacre at Waco the material almost fills a complete file drawer. Issues #63, 151, 152, 185 are typical examples of what has been published on these pages.

It’s not over yet, though. Last week, a report on Special Council Danforth’s whitewash was released by the Cato Institute.⁽¹⁾ This report is Cato Policy Analysis No. 395: "No Confidence -- An Unofficial Account of the Waco Incident," by Timothy Lynch, director of the Cato Institute’s Project on Criminal Justice.⁽²⁾

Lynch writes that former Missouri senator John C. Danforth’s official report "raises deeply disturbing questions not only about the tactics used at Waco but, more generally, about the mindset often found in America’s increasingly militarized law enforcement agencies."

A number of illegal acts were conveniently overlooked by Danforth. Lynch points out a few that would be easy prosecutions, if even an honest prosecutor looked into the fiasco.

For instance, "ATF agents were caught on tape assaulting a local television cameraman after he had filmed their retreat from the initial raid on the Branch Davidian complex." Yup! Assault and battery with show and tell available. There’s more, though. The ATF agents also committed federal felonies by lying to federal investigators. U.S. Marshals pointed out the offense to Justice, but Reno gave them a free pass.

Then there’s the little matter of gross disregard for human life by both ATF and FBI agents. Indiscriminately shooting into a building occupied by innocent mothers and children is obviously wrong. We know that the FBI killed at least one young child when they used hand-held grenade launchers to fire more than 350 "ferret" rounds into the windows of the residence. The FBI bragged that they fired many in every window and door. Killing children by crushing with an Army tank would also have a few penalties if prosecuted. Murder, these actions are called.

As Lynch appropriately points out: "Does anyone doubt that, if the Davidian adults had been holding children of senators and congressmen hostage within Mt. Carmel buildings, the FBI’s tank assault plan would have been rejected out of hand?"

Lynch also points out that some of those killers, suspended after misdeeds at the Ruby Ridge incident, later turned up killing again at the Waco incident. One of these jerks was eventually sentenced to prison for destroying evidence and lying to investigators about his role in the Ruby Ridge cover-up.

Michael Kahoe, chief of the FBI’s Violent Crimes and Major Offenders Section, who Reno identified as one of the supervisors at Waco, got 18 months in prison for destroying evidence and lying to investigators about his role in Ruby Ridge. At sentencing, his lawyer told the judge that Kahoe committed crimes to "protect the institutional best interests of the bureau."

So, as Lynch correctly reports: "With a convicted felon in a supervisory position on the Waco case, obstruction of justice seems not only possible but probable." But Danforth didn’t even look twice at these guys.

Lynch writes that the Waco incident, "has become the most controversial law enforcement operation in modern American history. Although the ’official’ investigation of the incident now places all of the blame for the carnage on the Branch Davidian leader, David Koresh, numerous crimes by government agents were never seriously investigated or prosecuted. If those crimes go unpunished, the Waco incident will leave an odious precedent -- that federal agents can use the ’color of their office’ to commit crimes against citizens."

The new report is 18 pages long and well worth reading. It sheds some new light on just how far the Justice and Treasury Departments are willing to go to cover up for their agents’ lawlessness -- even when it includes murder.

1. http://www.cato.org/
2. http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-395es.html

Copyright © 2001 by Doug Fiedor.
All Rights Reserved.

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