New Story for Firing Emerges (Ex-U.S. Attorney McKay Clashed w/ Bosses Over Murder Probe of Wales)

[maddezmom]

Source: Washington Post

By Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, May 5, 2007; Page A07

A U.S. attorney in Seattle was singled out for dismissal in part because he clashed with senior Justice Department officials over the investigation of a federal prosecutor's murder, and he was recommended for removal 18 months earlier than was previously known, according to newly disclosed documents and interviews.

D. Kyle Sampson, former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, told congressional investigators that he believes he may have recommended former U.S. attorney John McKay's removal in March 2005 because of conflicts with senior Justice officials over the investigation of the 2001 murder of federal prosecutor Tom Wales, according to congressional aides and Sampson's attorney.

Several officials familiar with the investigation said McKay and other officials in Seattle believed that senior Justice officials were not paying enough attention to the case. Sampson did not cite specifics, saying only that McKay had demanded actions that led to conflicts, congressional aides familiar with his account said.

The suggestion of a connection between the firing and the unsolved Wales murder case generated angry reactions from McKay and others in western Washington yesterday.

"The idea that I was pushing too hard to investigate the assassination of a federal prosecutor -- it's mind-numbing" that they would suggest that, McKay said. " . . . If it's true, it's just immoral, and if it's false, then the idea that they would use the death of Tom Wales to cover up what they did is just unconscionable."

Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/04/AR2007050402169.html

[Ian David]

1. Why did Karl Rove kill Wales?

Seriously.

[POAS]

3. What or who was he investigating---

that is where the answer lies.

[Kagemusha]

4. Well, it had nothing directly to do with Rove...

What I've heard is that the slain prosecutor was big on pushing gun control laws.Some believe this explains the lack of interest in the investigation.

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. Which means that the criminal may have been a God-fearing Republican

donor to the Bush Administration.

This is exactly what we all feared. That the right-wingers are committing heinous crimes, and covering for each other.

[Kagemusha]

9. Something like that.

It's not that I think the DoJ people know who the perpetrator is. They probably just don't want to know quite as much as McKay did.

Edit: See reply #6.

[calimary]

31. It leads me to suspect that "God-fearing" might mean there's a REASON

one might "fear" God.

I don't consider myself "God-fearing." I think God is Someone to love and thank and appreciate - Someone very wonderful with Whom to be in a personal relationship. Nothing fearful there - at least to me. We're told in the Bible that Cain feared God, so much that he ran and hid from Him - because he knew he'd done something rawther horrible (murdering his brother, Abel). Perhaps if I'd done something really awful, I, too, would fear God.

[janetle]

19. The murder suspect is a big gun collector

Tom Wales was very aggressive about gun control and one of the organizations araising out of his stance is called "Ceasefire". Speculation is that the person who murdered him was perhaps motivated by the anti-gun position. The suspect who they have had their eye on for a long time now is a gun collector so you can all come to conclusions about this....

As soon as I read in my paper that this murder investigation may have had something to do with the firing of McKay, my blood went cold--I'm not kidding. I have donated to Ceasefire.

[janetle]

22. Links for background on this "wowzer" case

Here are some links that touch on the investigation into the murder of Tom Wales and the suspect(s) involved. If this was a movie, I don't think we'd believe it. Now I am really wondering who all is involved. And if Rove is involved in this?? WHOA!!!! I have been interested in this case for years because the murder was so heartbreaking and cold blooded and inexplicable.

Read on:

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/288264_wales11.html

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/285026_wales14.html

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/288409_wales12.html

[maddezmom]

25. thanks for those links

:thumbsup:

[bleever]

30. Also: "FBI cuts agents looking into murder of Tom Wales"

Leaders of the FBI's Seattle office -- who have about 140 agents to cover the entire state of Washington -- made the decision to reallocate scarce FBI resources last month. It came on the heels of a routine inspection of the office by FBI headquarters, said federal criminal justice sources.

The decision to move Special Agents Ron Bone and Dave Sousa off the case -- leaving at least two others to continue the investigation -- generated controversy at the bureau and among Wales' colleagues at the U.S. Attorneys Office.

U.S. Attorney John McKay's office is recused from overseeing the investigation because Wales was a beloved friend and colleague. McKay made clear Friday that he was not happy with the decision to cut the number of agents on the case.

"I communicated my concern about staffing of the Wales investigation to the S.A.C. (special agent in charge)," McKay said.

...

But one federal criminal justice source who spoke on condition of anonymity said moving Sousa and Bone off the case is a good call.

It reflects the lack of progress in the Wales investigation, and balances it against other investigative priorities, the source said.

"A case like this is going to be like D.B. Cooper," the source said. "It's going to have to fall in our laps to solve it. A jilted ex-lover, a deathbed confession. In the meantime, it's time to reassign resources."

In 1971, Cooper, after receiving a ransom of $200,000, leapt from the back of a Boeing 727 as it was flying between Portland and Seattle, and was never found.

Other federal criminal justices sources have a different take. "They are not at a dead end," said one source.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/272702_wales03.html

[brentspeak]

32. Wasn't that one guy you're referring to cleared as a suspect?

[janetle]

35. I may be wrong but...

..it is in my head that the pilot suspect was also a gun enthusiast.

[janetle]

36. Yes, I am correct----

"One federal criminal justice source later speculated that the pilot, whom he called a "Second Amendment nut" who owned several guns, saw Wales on TV and "went over the edge.""

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/288264_wales11.html

[Joe Chi Minh]

39. I think "some gun-control nut" is a very convenient red herring.

[Greyskye]

37. This backstory is facinating!

Seeing the evolution of this whole story is amazing. Thanks for providing those links! :yourock:

[struggle4progress]

41. More background

December 19, 2001
Investigation into the shooting of Tom Wales moves slowly.
By Rick Anderson

~snip~ Though his 18 years as a prosecutor has been widely reported as a more likely motive for the murder, officials say Wales was a low-profile assistant U.S. attorney who worked on mostly nonviolent, white-collar crimes and almost always negotiated plea settlements. ~snip~

The shooting was also theorized as an act of anti-U.S. terrorism related to the Sept. 11 tragedies, one month to the day earlier. ~snip~

Where this leaves investigators is, for one, focusing more on Wales' anti-handgun efforts, officials say. ~snip~

http://www.seattleweekly.com/2001-12-19/news/unsolved-murder.php


Seattle Prosecutor Murdered
April 16, 2002

~snip~ "It was a very clear, well thought out crime," said Seattle Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske. "It was an assassination." ~snip~

All that is known for sure is Tom Wales’ murder was not a crime of passion. By all accounts, it was a cold, calculated, and carried out according to plan.

"This was very well planned," said Kerlikowske. "Very well thought out and it has, of course, not only the tragedy of Tom’s loss of life, but also an incredibly chilling effect, I think, on prosecutors across the country." ~snip~

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/04/16/eveningnews/main506332.shtml


FBI links letter to slain prosecutor
08:22 PM PDT on Sunday, April 16, 2006
Associated Press

~snip~ Wales, 49, was killed in his Queen Anne home on Oct. 11, 2001, when he was struck by several shots fired from the backyard through a basement window.
FBI officials told The Times they doubt the author's claims, saying it reads like a detective novel, contains unrealistic information and provides no details known only to the killer and investigators. ~snip~

http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_041606WABwalesletterJK.3fcab978.html


Saturday, June 3, 2006
FBI cuts agents looking into murder of Tom Wales
At least two will remain on case of federal prosecutor
By PAUL SHUKOVSKY
P-I REPORTER

The FBI has cut the number of agents assigned to the almost five-year dragnet to find the murderer of Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Wales.

A bullet to the neck killed Wales at 10:40 p.m. Oct. 11, 2001, as he sat in front of a computer in the basement office of his Queen Anne home. The murder deeply shook his colleagues at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle as well as the nation's federal criminal justice establishment. If the murderer was motivated by Wales' work as an assistant U.S. attorney, it would have been the first time a federal prosecutor had been slain on the job. ~snip~

U.S. Attorney John McKay's office is recused from overseeing the investigation because Wales was a beloved friend and colleague. McKay made clear Friday that he was not happy with the decision to cut the number of agents on the case.

"I communicated my concern about staffing of the Wales investigation to the S.A.C. (special agent in charge)," McKay said. ~snip~

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/272702_wales03.html


Wednesday, June 14, 2006 - Page updated at 12:00 AM
FBI yanks Wales case away from Seattle office
By Steve Miletich
Seattle Times staff reporter

~snip~ The officials took the rare step Tuesday of removing the case from the Seattle office and putting it under the direction of an FBI official in Portland.

The official, Robert Jordan, special agent in charge of the Portland office, will carry the special title of inspector in the Wales case, a designation previously employed in investigations of bombings of the Oklahoma City federal building in 1995 and Atlanta's Olympic park in 1996.

Jordan, who will report to top FBI officials in Washington, said Tuesday he expects to increase the size of the task force investigating the killing of Wales, who was gunned down in his Queen Anne home in 2001. He said that could include agents in Seattle and Portland.

But Jordan said he would not discuss details until he meets in Seattle on Monday with agents currently assigned to the case and with the special prosecutor, Steven Clymer. ~snip~
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003060068_wales14m.html

Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Pilot didn't kill Wales, lawyer says
FBI to reveal new details today on prosecutor's death 5 years ago
By PAUL SHUKOVSKY
P-I REPORTER
The lawyer representing the prime suspect in the killing of federal prosecutor Tom Wales publicly declared his client's innocence Tuesday, rejecting the notion that he held a grudge against Wales and protesting the government's inquisitionlike investigation. ~snip~

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/288264_wales11.html

Thursday, October 12, 2006 - Page updated at 12:57 AM
Five years later, FBI still after Wales' killer
By Steve Miletich and Mike Carter
Seattle Times staff reporters

Five years after the killing of Seattle federal prosecutor Thomas Wales, the FBI released a sketch Wednesday of a dark-haired man who may have information about the killing and announced a new Web site to take tips in the investigation. ~snip~

The man's presence in the neighborhood was first reported as suspicious before Wales was killed. But it was not brought to the attention of the Wales task force until 2004, Geeslin said. After trying unsuccessfully to identify the man, the FBI decided to make the sketch public.

Geeslin said the FBI is continuing its search for a unique silver gun barrel used in the killing. The gun used to kill Wales — an Eastern European pistol called a Makarov — had been fitted with one of the barrels, ballistics experts found.

About 3,600 of the barrels were sold in the U.S. before Wales was killed. The FBI has tracked half of them without finding the one used to shoot Wales, Geeslin said.
~snip~

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003300493_wales12m.html


December 14, 2006
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY JOHN McKAY ANNOUNCES RESIGNATION
Led Reorganization and Refocusing of Federal Law Enforcement Resources
Following 9-11 Attacks

United States Attorney John McKay announced today that he will resign as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Washington effective January 26, 2007. ~snip~ At McKay’s urging the FBI continues to make the investigation of the assassination of Assistant United States Attorney Tom Wales a top priority. ~snip~ United States Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez has the authority to appoint an interim United States Attorney whose term lasts until a new United States Attorney is nominated by President Bush and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. ~snip~

http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/waw/press/2006/dec/mckay.html


(May 03, 2007 -- 11:34 PM EDT)
A prosecutor from Washington state weighs in on today's Comey testimony
I've read TPM for years, and appreciate your work. I email you because I read something today about the firing of John McKay that finally put me over the edge.

Apparently during Comey's testimony today he said that one of the reasons McKay got himself in hot water with the DOJ heavyweights was because he was pushing for additional resources to investigate the murder of Tom Wales, who was an Assistant US Attorney in Seattle. Tom Wales was shot and killed in 2001. What nobody has talked about, and what you may not be aware of, is the fact that Tom Wales was extremely active in attempting to get tighter gun control laws passed here in Washington.

Think about that for a second. A pro-gun control federal prosecutor was shot and killed. John McKay was agitating for more resources to bring his killer to justice. That pissed off DOJ, who apparently thought that McKay should spend his time going after bogus voter fraud prosecutions rather than solve the murder of a guy who was in favor of gun control. If you don't think the fact that Tom Wales' political views weren't taken into consideration by the higher ups at DOJ when they decided to punish McKay for fighting to find his killer, you haven't been paying attention to the way these guys have operated for the last 6 years. Every single thing they do is about politics, and the political views of those they help or hurt.

The bottom line of this whole McKay firing could be summed up in this way: try to catch killers, you get fired. File BS charges of voter fraud, you keep your job. ~snip~

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/013970.php

[Name removed]

38. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[MADem]

2. And through it all, Rove is in it up to his eyeballs....

....In a separate development, officials said that presidential adviser Karl Rove attended a crucial planning meeting March 5, the day before House testimony by Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General William E. Moschella. Moschella and Deputy Attorney General Paul J. McNulty have told congressional investigators that Rove attended the meeting along with White House Counsel Fred F. Fielding, Deputy Counsel William Kelley and other White House aides, congressional aides said.

McNulty and Moschella said that the meeting focused on how Moschella should describe the reasons for firing the eight prosecutors, and that none of the White House officials disclosed the extent of White House involvement in the dismissals at the session.

White House spokeswoman Dana M. Perino said yesterday that "it is not at all unusual, nor is it inappropriate, for people at the White House to meet with members of the administration before they are going up to testify in front of Congress."

Rove's involvement in the meeting was first described on Newsweek magazine's Web site....

[Rose Siding]

5. TPM has really owned this story

The WP must be talking to his sources. On Thursday-

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/013970.php

And here's some local TV video of McKay's allegations-

http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/013981.php

[leveymg]

6. Wales was strong gun control advocate, Bush DOJ didn't want to pursue murder

This from TPM

A prosecutor from Washington state weighs in on today's Comey testimony ...

I've read TPM for years, and appreciate your work. I email you because I read something today about the firing of John McKay that finally put me over the edge.
Apparently during Comey's testimony today he said that one of the reasons McKay got himself in hot water with the DOJ heavyweights was because he was pushing for additional resources to investigate the murder of Tom Wales, who was an Assistant US Attorney in Seattle. Tom Wales was shot and killed in 2001. What nobody has talked about, and what you may not be aware of, is the fact that Tom Wales was extremely active in attempting to get tighter gun control laws passed here in Washington.

Think about that for a second. A pro-gun control federal prosecutor was shot and killed. John McKay was agitating for more resources to bring his killer to justice. That pissed off DOJ, who apparently thought that McKay should spend his time going after bogus voter fraud prosecutions rather than solve the murder of a guy who was in favor of gun control. If you don't think the fact that Tom Wales' political views weren't taken into consideration by the higher ups at DOJ when they decided to punish McKay for fighting to find his killer, you haven't been paying attention to the way these guys have operated for the last 6 years. Every single thing they do is about politics, and the political views of those they help or hurt.

The bottom line of this whole McKay firing could be summed up in this way: try to catch killers, you get fired. File BS charges of voter fraud, you keep your job.

[rosesaylavee]

11. That sums it up with these criminals...

"...try to catch killers, you get fired. File BS charges of voter fraud, you keep your job."

[senseandsensibility]

18. Thanks for the links

They really provide great background for this story. I am also glad to see that the WP is at leas addressing this. It sounds like it could be big, in the sense that it shows the priorities of this administration.

[originalpckelly]

8. I think we need to tread cautiously, but I think this is different from Vincent Foster's death.

Here we have at least some evidence that suggest no action was taken to investigate the death vigorously enough, and this death was not ruled a suicide. Those two make this circumstance different, but I still caution us to make any allegation based upon evidence. The evidence definitely does point to some type of suspicious activity, but we can't be sure exactly what type at this time.

[diane in sf]

27. What on earth does Vince Foster's death have to do with this??????

[brentspeak]

29. ??

"The evidence does point to some type of suspicious activity..."

We know there was "suspicious activity" re. Wales' murder. It was ruled a homicide from the get-go, six years ago.

[Time for change]

10. Yep, it's immoral

And I have a very strong suspicion that investigation into this matter will turn up some very interesting things. I think that McKay is fortunate to be alive.

[Straight Shooter]

12. I saw a video clip of McKay. He referred to some people in the DoJ as "thugs."

This comment was made in reference to pressure applied on other matters. I thought it was a rather strong accusation at the time, but in light of these new revelations, it makes complete sense.

So the DoJ doesn't care about finding the killer of a federal prosecutor?????

[Jade Fox]

13. The DOJ made a mistake messing with McKay....

and they can't seem to stop making it. I've been proud of McKay's actions ever since he threw the GOP's attempt to change the outcome of the Washington State Gubernatorial election in 2004 out of court.

[Oilwellian]

14. Another dead federal prosecutor?

I forgot about Wales dying. That makes 3 federal prosecutors who have died in Bush's DoJ.

[xchrom]

15. lack of interest in the murder of a strong gun control prosecutor?

from a republick party administration? -- say it isn't so!

:eyes:

[rateyes]

16. Can't these people get their story straight?

Voter fraud? Information sharing? Conflicts over investigating the murder of a prosecutor? Sampson and Gonzales sure don't seem to be on the same page here.

How much more do we need to impeach these people?

[kclown]

17. This is where we are headed, people

Trashing for disloyalty, firing for disloyalty, next step is killing for disloyalty. Slippery slope.

[Gman]

20. This implies something much more sinister than the firing of a USA

this implies an attempt to cover up an assassination. There is much, much more than what appears on the surface and just below.

[flamingyouth]

21. Wow - this was in the news here in Seattle a couple of days ago

I posted it in LBN and got a few replies but I can't believe the WaPo picked it up. :wow:

[glitch]

28. There was a dogpile link from TominTib post that mentioned Wales specialized in complex fraud

edit: google had it: http://www.walesfoundation.org/work.htm
snip
In 1983, Tom went to work in Seattle for the Dept. of Justice as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, where he specialized in complex fraud cases. His record as a litigator was extraordinary; in over 18 years, he never lost a case he tried. He became Senior Litigation Counsel and was the first and longest-serving Professional Responsibility Officer at the Seattle U.S. Attorney's Office. As his colleague Bob Westinghouse put it, "His ethical meter seemed to be calibrated just a bit finer than anyone else's."

[Missy Vixen]

40. flamingyouth, the WP just threw the flaming bag of dog shit

into the backyard of the White House.

I'm so glad they picked it up. Let's see if there's any action on the investigation now that it's been found out that the Executive Branch thought the appropriate way to handle John McKay's pleas for help was to fire him.

I keep thinking that nothing else can shock me. I'm wrong about that every damn day now.

Julie

p.s. :hi:
I hope everything's going well.

[femrap]

23. The DoJ is simply rotten to the core...

we have become the USSR.

Impeachment is the least we can do.

[ljm2002]

24. "we have become the USSR"...

...so sadly true. Our press is even more effective at lying to the people than were PRAVDA and TASS, since at least their populations knew they were being lied to -- whereas our population by and large still believes that we in the US have a "free press" that is an "example to the world" of how to do that. Unfortunately for us, much of the world has long since surpassed us in freedom of information, and our press is a laughingstock.

Of course the refusal to investigate murders is not new. Remember the four American nuns raped and murdered in El Salvador, when Saint Reagan was in office? Our government lifted not a hand to find out who did it -- probably because it was almost certainly the right wing death squads that were being funded and actively aided by us at the time.

You are right, impeachment is the least we can do.

[peacetalksforall]

26. Common joke 1999-2000 NRA would have an office in the WH.

[peacetalksforall]

33. Can one of you WA people write a paragraph about the fraud

case that lacked evidence - that seemed to jump start the idea of disloyalty?

2001 - Wales murdered 2001?
2004 - Election fraud accusation was 2004?

March 5, 2007 - DOJ preparation meeting with WH attending - Rove, Fielding, Kelley.
March 6, 2007 - House hearing - McNulty and Moschelle testifying.

One more q. Was the Thursday hearing covered live?

Sounds like they were unhappy with him for three years for 'pushing too hard' on the murder case.
Then they were unhappy for the next three years because he did not prosecute their fraud allegation (due to lack of evidence)? That totals nine years of consolidated resentment. I think they showed restraint and patience - don't you (with utter sarcasm))?.

[PinkyisBlue]

34. Would Rupert Murdoch's buyout of Dow Jones have any effect on WP's reporting this type of info?

Do you think Murdoch wants to prevent info of this type from being published? Also, what effect would he have on internet content? I fear that he would limit both printed info. and internet content.

[DemReadingDU]

42. morning kick