Louis Freeh
Louis Joseph Freeh (born January 6, 1950) is a former agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), assistant United States Attorney, and United States District Court judge who went on to become the 15th Director of the FBI. He was nominated by President Bill Clinton to the office of Director, and was confirmed by the United States Senate on August 6, 1993.
Background
Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, he was educated by the Christian Brothers and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Rutgers College in 1971. He received a J.D. degree from Rutgers Law School in 1974 and an LL.M. degree in criminal law from New York University Law School in 1984. Freeh was an FBI Special Agent from 1975 to 1981 in the New York City field office and at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C. In 1981, he joined the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York as an assistant U.S. attorney. Subsequently, he held positions there as Chief of the Organized Crime Unit, Deputy United States Attorney, and Associate United States Attorney. He was also a first lieutenant in the United States Army Reserve.
He is a devout Roman Catholic. He and his wife Marilyn have 6 sons.
"Pizza Connection" case
A notable case Freeh was associated with was the "Pizza Connection" case, in which he was lead prosecutor. The case involved the prosecution of those involved in a drug trafficking operation in the U.S. by Sicilian organized crime members who used pizza parlors as fronts. After a 14-month trial, 16 of 17 co-defendants were convicted. The "Pizza Connection" case was, at the time, the most complex investigation ever undertaken by the U.S. Government.
FBI Director
Freeh served as FBI Director from September 1, 1993, until he resigned on June 25, 2001, just short of the official end of his 10-year term.
Shortly before and during Freeh's tenure, the FBI was involved in a number of high-profile incidents and investigations. He took over an agency suffering from public criticism and was a strong proponent of the view that the FBI must itself obey the law and respect constitutional rights.
Civil liberties
Among other Justice Department officials (including Attorney General Reno), Freeh was named a co-defendant in Zieper v. Metzinger, a 1999 federal court case. The American Civil Liberties Union assisted the plaintiffs, who sued due to the FBI's conduct in investigating Military Takeover of New York City, a short film made in October 1999 that discussed riots and a military takeover of Times Square on New Years' Eve, 1999. [1]
He was criticized by civil libertarians for his staunch support of the Clipper Chip and restrictions on public access to encryption. He received praise for his principled call for independent investigation of Clinton administration fundraising practices.
Ruby Ridge
Investigation of the incident at Ruby Ridge, Idaho (in which an FBI sharpshooter killed the wife of a wanted suspect) was ongoing when Freeh became Director. A paramilitary FBI unit, the Hostage Rescue Team, was present at the incident; Freeh later said that had he been director, he would not have involved the HRT. FBI sniper Lon Horiuchi was later charged with manslaughter; Freeh said that he was "deeply disappointed" at the charges, which had been filed by the Boundary County, Idaho prosecutor (and were later dropped.) [2] [3] [4]
Freeh was not censured due to his actions in the investigation of the incident, although a Justice Department inquiry had made such a recommendation. [5]
Waco
Investigation of the events of April 19, 1993, when FBI agents opened fire on the Branch Davidian compound at Waco, Texas, was ongoing during Freeh's tenure. While the event had taken place before he was Director, a highly controversial investigation ensued, and tensions developed between Freeh and Janet Reno, then-Attorney General. Reno, who had herself been blamed for mishandling of the confrontation and investigation, sent United States Marshals to FBI headquarters to seize Waco-related evidence. [6]
Centennial Olympic Park bombing
The U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Government Information heard testimony from Freeh regarding the leaking of Richard Jewell's name to the media in connection with the bombing at the 1996 Olympic Games. Freeh said that he did not know how the name of Jewell, who had been falsely accused in the bombings, had been leaked to the media. [7]
Montana Freemen
Freeh, and the FBI, were praised for the handling of the 81-day standoff between the Montana Freemen, a fringe political group, and law enforcement. Director Abraham Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League (which had issued reports critical of the Freemen and encouraged their prosecution), commended the "peaceful conclusion" to the standoff. [8]
Unabomber
"Unabomber" Theodore Kaczynski was apprehended in 1996 after publication of his manifesto, Industrial Society and its Future, in the New York Times and Washington Post. Freeh and Attorney General Reno recommended that the manifesto be published, acceding to Kaczynski's offer to "renounce terrorism" if it were. A tip from the bomber's brother David, who recognized the writing style, assisted the FBI in his capture. [9] [10]
Other cases
- Investigation into the death of Vince Foster.
- Allegations of incompetence at the FBI crime laboratory.
- Investigation of Los Alamos scientist Wen Ho Lee.
- Investigation of the Campaign Finance Scandal. Recommended to Attorney General Janet Reno that a special prosecutor be appointed to investigate independently.
- Oklahoma City bombing (1995) and the prosecution of Timothy McVeigh.
- TWA Flight 800 airplane crash investigation.
- Apprehension of as the "Unabomber."
- Investigation of Robert Hanssen, a senior FBI agent who plead guilty to spying for the Russians.
Criticism
Among others, Business Week in 2000 called for the resignation of Director Freeh; it cited the Carnivore communications monitoring system, the Waco cover-up, and insubordination to Attorney General Reno as reasons.
Resignation
He resigned amid criticism that the FBI needed stronger leadership, particularly after allegations of spying by Robert Hanssen. Upon Freeh's resignation, he was praised by Attorney General John Ashcroft, who called the outgoing director "a model law enforcement officer." [11]
Post-FBI
Approaching acting New Jersey Governor Don DiFrancesco, Freeh offered to serve, without salary, as the state's anti-terrorism "czar." DiFrancesco approached both major-party candidates for governor to secure their approval; Bret Schundler, the Republican candidate, agreed "in principle." However, Democrat Jim McGreevey, who won the gubernatorial election, turned down Freeh in favor of Golan Cipel, who had no relevant experience. Furthermore, it was later revealed that McGreevey and Cipel had carried on a homosexual relationship. McGreevey was heavily criticized for giving the post to Cipel rather than Freeh or another experienced individual. [12]
Private sector
In September 2001, Freeh was appointed to the board of directors of credit card issuer MBNA; he is also the bank's general counsel, as well as corporate secretary and ethics officer. [13]
Likewise, Bristol-Myers Squibb elected him to its board of directors. [14]
Freeh is a member of the board of consultants of the Gavel Consulting Group, formed by current and former federal judges and high-ranking government officials to provide advice and counseling to the private sector. [15] [16]
Book and editorials
An editorial by Louis Freeh, critical of the 9/11 Commission, appeared in the November 17, 2005 edition of the Wall Street Journal. [17]
In 2005, Freeh (with Howard Means) published a book about his career in the FBI, entitled My FBI : Bringing Down the Mafia, Investigating Bill Clinton, and Fighting the War on Terror. It is highly critical of both President Bill Clinton and Richard A. Clarke. Freeh made an appearance on The Daily Show while promoting the book. [18]
A reviewer in the New York Times called the book "...a letdown, a breezy, middlebrow memoir that appears aimed at Oprah watchers rather than Foreign Affairs readers." [19]
