Cop memoir contains new revelations about police spying at RNC

[annm4peace]

( on 5/12 and 5/13, is the 2nd week of pre-trial hearing for the 8 members of RNC Welcoming committee that mention in the Cop's memoirs.. on very flimsy charges and major waste of tax dollars.. see their website http://rnc8.org/ )



http://centerforinvestigativereporting.org/blogpost/20100510copmemoircontainsnewrevelationsaboutpolicespyingatrnc

The autobiography of a former police officer in Minnesota discloses fresh details about the breadth of law enforcement spying on political protesters that took place leading up the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul.

The book has received only scant attention outside of Minnesota since first being published in June of 2009. But now-retired officer Richard Greelis from the Bloomington Police Department near Minneapolis reveals that local authorities quarreled over who would get to plant informants in political-protest groups, created their own activist organization with an “appropriately provocative name” and laughed about getting paid to participate in a monthly demonstration bike ride known as Critical Mass that encourages alternative transportation.

Political activists have posted sections of the book online and point to it as evidence that law enforcement officials overstepped their boundaries in gathering intelligence on protesters and infiltrating groups engaged in First Amendment-protected activities.

Titled simply “CopBook,” Greelis says that another “certain law enforcement administrator” who is not identified sought to be the lead official for security planning at the RNC among local authorities. Giving him the pseudonym “Chicken Little,” Greelis describes the official as wanting credit for “saving” St. Paul and the approximately 45,000 people who were expected to attend the Republican Party’s nominating bash.

It’s possible the unnamed official is Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher, who coordinated what became the most aggressive effort to collect information on political activists planning to protest the GOP’s agenda during the convention. Authorities considered the protesters – namely a group calling itself the RNC Welcoming Committee – a possible terrorist threat with plans to disrupt the convention, and eight locals were arrested at the height of global media attention on the city just as the event kicked off.

The eight people arrested were ultimately charged with “conspiracy to riot in the furtherance of terrorism,” a relatively new state law passed after Sept. 11 and used for the first time during the convention. A county prosecutor later dropped the terrorism enhancements, however, complaining that they “complicated” the case. The group still faces lesser charges today.

According to the book, Greelis worried of losing his own cover while secretly attending a meeting held by protesters at a public library. Greelis realized that among panel participants was a former FBI agent he knew named Colleen Rowley who in recent years has become a vocal critic of police spying on political activists. But Rowley didn't say anything.

[kickysnana]

1. K&R

[PM Martin]

2. k/r

[Liberation Angel]

3. k&r

yeah

thx for this

[Echo In Light]

4. K/R

[conscious evolution]

5. kicking the pigs

[Hannah Bell]

6. kick. i swear to god they spy on grandmas' knitting circles.

[leveymg]

12. But, somehow, they lose track of the REAL terrorists until AFTER planes crash and bombs detonate.

Anybody see a pattern here?

[pundaint]

29. Real terrorists are not scary ultimately they have no power over the monied interests.

Citizens, on the other hand, are real scary. If they ever begin to exercise their authority in the voting booth, the revolution could adversely affect those in power. Suppressing the aware is a central component of sheeple pacification.

[Coleen Rowley]

14. The group spied on was the "Northfield People of Peace and Goodwill"

[gratuitous]

17. I can see why they were under surveillance

I mean, can you imagine two more un-American activities during the Bush years than peace and goodwill? These dirty fucking hippies were just asking for it.

[knitter4democracy]

18. Maybe they should.

I'm in a few different knitting groups. Now, we Zombie Prom Date Knitters focus on charity work, partying, and helping out our alpaca farmer member with shearings and such, but you never know--we could be dangerous with our pointy sticks and sharpened shovels. ;)

[formercia]

7. "But Rowley didn't say anything. "

Makes you wonder,doesn't it?

[Bjorn Against]

10. Believe me she would have said something had she recognized him.

I personally know Coleen Rowley, she has done more to stand up to rogue cops than any other single person I have ever met. If she had recognized an FBI agent spying on this group she would have said something about it, when you are in a room with a large group of people however you don't always notice every face in the room.

[Coleen Rowley]

13. I didn't recognize Greelis but he tried to hide behind someone else

Greelis was sitting in the back and apparently tried to hide behind a person sitting in front of him in the library room. There were probably only 30 people, 40 max in the room so hiding behind someone should have been a clue. I think Greelis was kind of embarrassed about spying on the "Northfield People of Peace and Goodwill" in that small library room but certainly these are the types of crazy assignments that can happen in one's policing career. Most retirees keep things to themselves they are not proud about and dote only on the good aspects. I didn't have much contact with Greelis when he was assigned to the FBI's joint terrorism task force but of all the police and officers I worked with, Greelis seems to be one of the more honest and forthright and therefore one of the better officers.

[formercia]

15. My apologies.

Forgive my suspicious nature, but I've seen how things work from the inside as well.

[Coleen Rowley]

31. Suspicions are good!

No problem--I'm suspicious too and cynical by nature.

[formercia]

34. That's what happens

when you wind up at the wrong end of the stick.

[Morning Dew]

19. You are one my more admired Minnesotans

Still wish you would have unseated Kline.

[Liberation Angel]

26. Many many welcomes and homage to you!

my father and members of my family went through horrors after rebelling against intel corruption and political manipulation and crimes by the top guys. Glad to have you around and glad you spoke up!

I camped with the code pink folks in Denver and was with IVAW as a marshall during their march there: never been so proud of the courage and fearlessness of people who are really honest and good patriots who support our constitution AND international law and goodness.

Your insights will be very helpful here so please speak out when you feel it.

Thanks for all you have done!

LA

[leveymg]

32. Ms. Rowley - Did you ever talk to any members of the I-49 squad

about the withholding of the CIA/CTC files on al-Midhar and al-Hazmi, files that Cofer Black and Rich Blee refused to turn over to the FBI in June and July?

Was the existence of those files (that held materials about the Kuala Lumpur al-Qaeda planning summit attended by the pair in January 2000) known to you when you sought FISA warrants? Did you talk to I-49 at the time, and if so what did they tell you? Did you communicate with CIA/CTC to request evidence - if so, what was the response?

Have you talked to I-49 Squad members or CIA/CTC staff after 9/11, and what might they have told you later that they didn't when you were seeking warrants?

Deepest thanks for all you've done.

[Coleen Rowley]

35. Sorry, can't help much on this

The case agents, most prominently Agent Samit, who ended up testifying, were the ones doing the pre 9-11 investigation of Moussaoui and making all the contacts. I have just slight familiarity with the CIA's withholding of info on al-Midhar and al-Hazmi which I learned from the DOJ-IG investigative report (that my memo prompted), some of which made it into the 9-11 Commission Report and news articles. I don't think the Minneapolis agents were aware of the Kuala Lumpur summit when they sought the FISA warrant.

I don't know if they talked with I-49 at the time but the agents did contact the CIA/CTC to try to get more background information. I think that contact with CIA/CTC is what led to the two slide presentation "Islamic Extremist Learns to Fly" that went all the way to George Tenet on like August 23 or 24, 2001. That's why Tenet uttered something about wondering if the guy in Minnesota was connected when he was told about the WTC attack. I have never talked to either I-49 or CIA/CTC staff after 9-11.

[annm4peace]

11. don't' believe the cop

Yes, she would have said something. She taught ethics and constitutional law to the FBI agents.. she saw spying on peace groups as a waste of surveillance as well as unethical and against rights.

there were so many meetings. Many peace and social justice groups had meetings that were separate than RNC welcoming committee.

Even WAMM (women against military madness), a group of older women activists, was part of the surveillance as well as Veterans for Peace.


** National Vets for Peace had their National Convention in Bloomington at a hotel near the Mall of America on Aug 27-31s. the days before the Republican Convention which was just across the River in St. Paul.

The Vets for Peace members also was at the "convergence center" hours before the "raids".

Anyhow.. the Bloomington police walked through the Vets for Peace Convention with the twist ties.. they had to be turned out by Iraq Veterans Against the War.

It was so shameful of the Bloomington Police. i was so outraged. Here were Veterans from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, Iraq, Afghanistan.. and other Veterans.. having cops in their gear trying to intimate them by walking through the lobby, meeting area and main conference room. The cops were chased out and chastised. Many of call the press, and the Mayor. It was disgusting act by the cops.

I wonder if the author of the book wrote about that.

Coleen was with Vets for Peace when the convergence center was raided.

[ck4829]

8. K&R

[ThomWV]

9. K&R

[SpiralHawk]

16. Republicons = scaredy cats & occultist sneak freaks

What a pack O whiney, afraid-of-democracy pansies the TeaBagglicons are...They deserve their own Homeland -- far, far, far from the Home of the Brave in the USA.

[kenfrequed]

20. As a Minnesotan...

I was disgusted by the behavoir of the police and their cavalier disregard for the first amendment.

[G_j]

21. Amy Goodman and Democracy Now Producers File Lawsuit Over RNC Arrests

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=4369354&mesg_id=4369354

Wed May-05-10 03:33 PM

Amy Goodman and Democracy Now Producers File Lawsuit Over RNC Arrests

Source: Democracy Now!

Amy Goodman and Democracy Now! Producers File Lawsuit Over RNC Arrests

Democracy Now! host and executive producer Amy Goodman along with producers Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar are filing a federal lawsuit today that challenges the police crackdown on journalists at the Republican National Convention in 2008.

Democracy Now! host and executive producer Amy Goodman along with producers Sharif Abdel Kouddous and Nicole Salazar are filing a federal lawsuit today that challenges the police crackdown on journalists at the Republican National Convention in 2008.

The suit is filed against the Minneapolis and St. Paul police departments, the Ramsey County Sheriff and unidentified Secret Service personnel. The lawsuit challenges the policies and conduct of law enforcement during the RNC that resulted in the arrests, one of dozens among journalists arrested in St. Paul.

The lawsuit seeks compensation and an injunction against law enforcement’s unjustified encroachment on First Amendment rights, including freedom of the press and the independence of the media.
..more..

[pattmarty]

22. Amy Goodman and a producer were arrested during the convention........

.........and it is on film at Democracy Now. I saw the shit on DN and believe it or not another cable network (can't remember which one now for sure) and it was pretty fucking blatant fascist tactics with practically no coverage.

[MNmom]

23. Any idea what the cop's group with an "appropriately provacative name" was?

[sofa king]

24. Allen Dulles would be proud.

Dulles edited a popular review of 20th Century espionage, and he spend an unusual amount of time admiring the efforts of Nicholas II's counter-whateverism. At one point, Dulles points out that the leadership of most anti-Czar organizations were in fact Czarist plants, and most of the terrorist plots against the government were, in fact, operations planned by the Czar against the Czar with the intention of failing, though fairly often they failed to fail as planned, with casualties. One could argue that the entire fake terror apparatus, set up as an imaginary enemy of the state in order to justify the continued incompetence and totalitarianism of the Czarist state, failed to stop the Soviet revolution because it was too concerned with fighting imaginary enemies of its own creation.

And yes, I do feel like I'm looking in a mirror as I write this.

[Liberation Angel]

25. The Dulles brothers, in collusion with Prescott Bush, provided Hitler's banking needs and Auschwitz

legal cover.

They worked for the Schroeder Bank which financed Hitler in the early 1930's (They were actually ON the board of directors) AND their law firm, Sullivan and Crowmwell were the attorneys for IGFarben which built and ran Auschwitz as a petrochemical plant (with collusion from the Bushes and Standard Oil/Exxon/Rockefeller/Chase Manhattan Bank)/.

Allen was fired from the CIA by JFK (although he became, secretly and behind JFK's back, an independent contractor for them from the spooky Princeton spook group) then turned up ON the Warren Commission where it was HIS "judgment" that because whoever recruited Lee Harvey Oswald as a CIA operative would not tell that there was therefore MO EVIDENCE that Oswald was put in place for the JFK hit BY spooks in the CIA. Hale Boggs, the democratic congressman on the Warren Commission from Luisiana who challenged Dulles on this turned up "missing" when his plane disappeared shortly thereafter.

The techniques of the BushNazis was honed by a century of proNazi, profascist, proStalinist skullduggery, mass murder and deceit.

THAT is what was operating at the RNC AND the DNC in 2008 (I was in the "freedom cages" with IVAW under horrific conditions and frightening armed guards/swat/goonsquads.

So your point is well taken.

[Dr.Phool]

27. Oh goody. Just announced, we get the 2012 GOP convention in Tampa.

Expect more of the same.

[FarLeftFist]

28. RNC WELCOMING COMMITTEE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6PLwOt0Bls

[dwilso40641]

30. K&R N/T

[Rex]

33. Well they saw Der Chimperor piss on International Law and make

up intelligence and thought 'if HE can do it, why not we'? I believe cops become somewhat fascist under Repuke administrations and to date Dick/Bush had the most tyrannical rule over America since any president/vice president. This is why Dems needs to hold onto office, to keep Repukes from making America into a Fundamentalist-Fascist nation. It has become obvious that law enforcement will go right along with them.

Loyality oaths anyone!?