From: gunrunner
Date: Wed, July 1st, 2009, 20:30 EST
Just watched Fox News. Un-F***ing-Believable! Larry Ford has no credibility. ATF caring about Dobyns or any of us is a bold faced lie. Truscott said the same thing. So did Domenech. Then Sullivan and Carter. Next up will be Hoover and Melson. They don’t care about Dobyns or me or any agent. They are fighting to keep the truth from us and lying to us in the process. None of them can take responsibility or admit guilt. They can’t even say we made a mistake or sorry. Do you hear me Newell, Gillette and Higman (where ever you ran off to). They are all cowards who think they can do no wrong. Whether Dobyns’ case makes it into court or not does not mean that we don’t know what you have done. You still are responsible. DOJ can’t save you from the truth! Stop hiding you cowards. I’ll give you the same ultimatum you gave Jay, resign. America has its eyes on you and we are angry. Dobyns is on the point but we are all next. Take a stand out there you silent agents or forever accept what happens to you and keep your mouths shut! Melson is asleep at the wheel. How do you let this continue? Keep your seat warm so the next guy who is an acting-acting-acting Director can fix it! Pathetic is a description too flattering for all of you.
From: gunrunner
Date: Wed, July 1st, 2009, 20:58 EST
Jay, my man, no one has ever called these guys out like you have. I guess they never really took the time to know what you’re about over the past 20 years. You’re dangerous and they’re pussies. Too bad for them. I always looked at you as one of the nicest guys I would ever meet but someone who didn’t give a f**k and would slit your throat if you ever f***ed with his family or friends. The comment Queen made in the post about having it worse than you after his case was an insult. Didn’t you have his six big time when he had his drama? If he did have it worse, which I doubt and cannot even imagine, then he should have stepped up and not left you to fight this fight on your own. It’s a f**k or be f**ed world in ATF. Make sure the liars are on the receiving end for all the rest of us.
Recently in Fighting Back Category
As an "ATF" family member and one of the many wives sons and daughters of Agents that have decided the internal workings of ATF have gone too far and cost too many so much, I have decided to no longer sit silent. The unethical abuses heaped upon my husband and so many other Agents like him for standing tall and upholding the oath they took, must end. ATF does not get to ignore the devastation they have heaped upon these brave souls and more importantly their FAMILIES. They also do not get to ignore that the families of those targeted are also NOT fair game for their cover-ups and reprisals. That ATF indirectly attacks the families of its own agents has been well-documented. Complaints are swelling even from within the ranks of headquarters. We will no longer allow the waste, fraud and abuse of those in power to destroy what field Agents have all stood for and demanded that their families support. For the last 3 years, my children, family and I have sat idly by at my husband's request, under the naive assumption that "the system works" and "justice always prevails". There are examples of ATF management campaigns to fabricate allegations, assassinate the character and destroy the livelihoods of, and punitively transfer any agents (and their families) who stand up to improper and unlawful conduct. Corrupt ATF lawyers use bogus documents and misinformation to defend their corrupt bosses. The Directors and Assistant Directors are always fully aware of, and in many cases, have personally orchestrated these despicable and flagrantly illegal acts.
In blatant and entirely unwarranted acts of pure retaliation against my Husband, he (and of course, our family) has been transferred FIVE times in the last 36 months. These and other acts, including outright character assassination, have been flimsily camouflaged as "disciplinary action", yet when deposed and under oath, not a single RAC, ASAC or SAC could identify a single "improper" act worthy of discipline! My husband's character has been savagely smeared nd he has been overtly threatened with far worse than being transferred. My children have had to leave schools and friends too many times. We live in constant fear about our future and well-being. The stress of watching my husband having to walk into a hostile work environment every day is indescribable. Knowing he does it not only for us but for all the agents and their family members who have suffered due to corruption within ATF is little comfort. Our faith in the federal government and ATF has all but disappeared. This has to stop! I speak with family members who have suffered far worse than we have. ATF exceutives such as Mr. Sullivan, Mr. Carter, Mr. Hoover, and now Mr. Melson, sit idly by, studiously ignoring irrefutable evidence of significant wrongdoing by senior ATF management, yet continue to cover for and unlawfully protect them. Shame on you, Mr. Carter and Mr. Hoover in particular for speaking of your "love" for this agency and its agents, while constantly looking the other way while good agents and their families are crushed by your minions.
When the Number 2 man in ATF publicly states that "speaking out (against ATF) is an act of career suicide", there can be no doubt that the situation is completely out of control. The recent public humiliation suffered by my friend, Gwen Dobyns (wife of veteran undercover Agent and New York Times Best Selling author, Jay Dobyns) perfectly demonstrated the extreme arrogance, corruption and untouchable mentality of ATF managers. When the Dobyns home was burned down by criminals with Gwen and the children sleeping inside, ATF did not send one agent to ensure the security of their own agent and his family, nor conduct even the most laughably token investigation. Instead, in a standard act of character assasination, they "unofficially" implied that Jay himself (who was 100 miles away on ATF business at the time) was a suspect! All because Jay, like my husband, refused to bow down to the criminal acts of corruption, misconduct and incompetence that ATF managemnent demands that its agents accept without question. It's nauseating and outrageous.
Agents who file complaints and expose corruption have their lives and careers destroyed over a trivial typo on a voucher, an innocent comment twisted out of context, or something equally ridiculous. And ATF management can't find something to use, they'll simply make it up. On the other hand, a SAC who was publicly exposed as having lied under oath to federal investigators, abused her position, and committed overts acts of criminal discrimination and retaliation, received a "hero's" retirement sendoff rather than demotion, disgrace and possible prison time. How does that work, Mr. Carter? How is it that one of your lead attorneys repeatedly falsified documents aimed at viciously attacking one of your own veteran undercover agents, but rather than being fired and prosecuted, was quietly transferred to another agency with ZERO adverse consequences???
I respectfully urge and implore everyone who reads this to immediately write your congressional representatives and demand accountability, before this agency is simply disbanded. Senators Feinstein, McCain, Leahy and others have been advised of these facts in writing and have declined to open this dirty Pandora's Box.
This was once a proud agency bound together by the common desire to make our country safe for all citizens. However, ATF now spends much of its time and taxpayer funds to conceal and perpetuate their abject lack of leadership and personal integrity. My family and many others have taken our own savings, children's college funds, car funds and vacation funds to fight for our children's security against the very people who are supposed to provide that security. I am not an ATF agent. I do not know the Bureau's intricacies. I do, however, know the toll it has taken on my family and the families of many agents across the country. What happened to common decency? Clearly, it is not a required let alone desirable attribute for management positions within the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Sincerely,
Family members in support of Cleanupatf
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. Section 552, is a government wide set of laws defining how, when and what types of information will be released to parties that submit formal FOIA requests to government agencies. Such requests are often made by outside organization or citizens, but can just as legitimately be submitted by government employees to their own agencies (e.g., ATF Agents can make FOIA requests to the ATF and/or the Department of Justice).
In December, 2007, the President of the United States signed into law the "OPEN Government Act of 2007". Among other things, the Act was intended to standardize FOIA response times and prevent agencies such as ATF from indefinitely dragging their feet to evade disclosure of embarrassing or inconvenient information. This was a bread and butter tactic used time and time again by ATF and its counsel to frustrate legitimate requests for information and avoid accountability at all levels.
However, with very few exceptions, the new Act unequivocally requires all federal agencies (including ATF) to provide all responsive documents within 20 days from the date the FOIA request was received. In the event that an agency (such as ATF) fails to comply with the 20-day time limit, there are a number of significant ramifications:
FOIA LINKS & RESOURCES:
- The Agency (such as ATF) cannot charge the normal search and duplications fees (they have to eat the cost);
- The requesting party (such as an ATF agent or employee) can immediately file a lawsuit in Federal District Court, and;
- The agency (such as ATF) can be ordered to pay the requesting party's Attorney fees, which must then be paid out of the agency's (such as ATF's) actual appropriated operating budget, rather than the previously available "Claims and Judgement Fund" (a sort of government slush fund used to pay off things such a legal fees and judgements, even when the ageny management acted iresponsibly or unlawfully).
FOIA LINKS & RESOURCES:
- FOIA Blog (Everything you ever wanted to know about FOIA and government disclosure).
- Sample ATF FOIA Request (PDF - 82Kb)
- D.O.J. "Reference Guide" (describes FOIA policies and procedures - May be somewhat out-of-date!).
Each ATF region has an EEOC Office with counselors. Many types of discriminatory practices are covered by EEOC laws including standard categories such as race, age, religion, ethnic background, disabilities and hostile work environment. Discrimination can occur just through disparity of treatment. If there are multiple compplaints by similarly situated employee, the group may file a class. These procedures are also captured in the MD110. If at any point you begin to suffer from psychological, emotional or physical problems resulting from the abuse you are incurring from ATF or the agencies action, IMMEDIATELY contact the EAP, a private phsician/psychologist or family doctor and document all issues. The amount and severity relates directly to the damages you can recover when you have prevailed in the process.
You must be aware that any failure to respect mandatory timelines within this process can be fatal to your complaint. For comprehensive, step-by-step guidance on pursuing an EEO complaint, see EEOC Management Directive MD110.
ATF management has often completely ignores statutory timelines, fails to comply with mandatory procedures, and in many cases, actively obstructs and subverts the process wherever possible. The ATF Counsel’s Office routinely acts like a private law firm representing the interests of managers that are alleged to have committed serious acts of discrimination, and consistently refuses to resolve such matters at the lowest possible level as prescribed by law.
At the lower levels, the process can seem somewhat disorganized and does not provide the protections intended by the anti-discrimination laws (as currently administered by ATF). Things do not operate in a vacuum within ATF, so always assume that nothing you say, do or file is “confidential”. Recent law changes suggest that ATF management must be made aware that a complaint has been filed in order to be held accountable for their infamous tendency to retaliate against employees who dare to file complaints. If you file an informal or a formal EEOC complaint, do not rely upon any representation made by an ATF counselor to the effect that you are “absolutely protected”, because you are not. Once you file a complaint, immediately notify your entire chain-of-command that you have done so (in-writing via email or fax or some other method that leaves a verifiable paper trail).
Be aware that EEOC counselors are mediators and basic fact finders, not investigators. They need only be apprised of the basic facts concerning your complaint and do not need, nor are they entitled to your actual evidence of discrimination.
If an investigation is initiated, and outside contractors are used, remember the following items:
If your complaint is not resolved and you intend to pursue it until you are made whole (via administrative hearing or U.S. District Court), make sure all attachments and exhibits or other supporting evidence are submitted to the investigators. If you have proof of perjury, false documentation or unethical practices during the process, you may want to introduce these later at trial. Allow and even assist management in locking themselves into asserting that your allegations are “not credible” or “untruthful”. The true facts will be exposed at hearing, under oath.
The EEO staff may draft your declaration for you. Ensure that all relevant facts are included in the statement and make any necessary amendments.
Although it is always wise to consult an attorney on such matters, the decision to retain one is solely yours. The administrative hearing process is fairly straightforward. Simply follow the procedures described in EEOC MD 110.
If you decide to pursue the process on your own in the early stages, make sure that the information requests you submit to ATF during the discovery process (as provided in MD 110) are very specific, focused and clearly relevant to your complaint. ATF Counsel will almost invariably attempt to withhold documents that you are absolutely entitled to by asserting that your requests are “too vague” or “not relevant”, etc. However, if they ignore legitimate discovery requests, they are obstructing justice and violating the law, and you can hold them accountable.
Use Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests simultaneously to obtain documents and evidence. The following resources can be assist you with that process:
- Department of Justice FOIA Reference Guide
- DOJ FOIA and Privacy Act Regulations, 28 C.F.R. Part 16 (2006)
- BATFE FOIA Requests Contacts and Guidance
- Online FOIA Request Generator
Internal Affairs has traditionally been tasked with investigating integrity-related allegations, significant acts of misconduct, and violations of policy or law. Over the tenure of our last three Directors, the lines have blurred as to what falls under Internal Affairs jurisdiction and how “thoroughly” matters are investigated.
It is an unfortunate fact that ATF management officials will not hesitate to activate an IA inquisition for the sole purpose of intimidating an employee who has “stepped-out-of-line” by lodging a complaint, no matter how legitimate. Management also employs IA as a weapon to discredit employees that have filed EEOC or OSC complaints, internal grievances, etc. Such investigations repeatedly ignore, gloss over or distort the true facts if they in any way implicate senior managers in wrongdoing or violations of policy.
It is critical that you know your rights to request clarification as to alleged integrity issues or "misconduct" you are being accused of. There is no appeal process to challenge an Internal Affairs Report of Investigation absent your own written version of what you said. Always take your detailed notes during any interviews with Internal Affairs, or better yet, audiotape the interviews. At the end of the interrogation, request to review their notes and correct any inaccuracies or discrepancies. Otherwise, it will be your (“discredited”) word against their (“gospel”) written report.
Remember, the IA Investigators may well have an agenda that has nothing to do finding out the truth or determining whether you actually did something “wrong”.
By order and design, the ELRB are the "experts" regarding employment matters such as discipline, promotions, transfers, etc. The governing orders make the ELRB available to all employees, from the line agent to SES managers.
If you are seeking guidance from ELRB regarding a grievance, hostile work environment, other adverse matter or unethical act by ATF management, the ELRB is already aware of your situation. All such actions imposed by ATF managers are fine-tuned by ELRB and Counsel’s office before you even know about them.
Wouldn’t it be great if field agents could have a resource such as ELRB and Counsel’s Office write their daily reports and assume all responsibility for accuracy, ethics and procedural correctness? That is basically what happens when a management official sends a proposed personnel action to the ELRB and Counsel’s Office for review and approval. The bottom line is that when you file a complaint with ELRB, you may be conferring with the same decision makers that drafted or approved your adverse action in the first place! How likely is it they they will point out errors or improper decisions made by the managers you are challenging? Not very.
Generally speaking, this procedures are used to address common day-to-day work issues that may arise, but for which your immediate supervisor can’t or won’t resolve them. The ATF order allows you to express your grievance informally (verbally), or formally (in writing). It requires you to file a grievance at the lowest level that can grant you relief, but at least one level higher than anyone involved in the grieved issue.
This method has not only been historically discouraged by ATF management, but has also proven to be almost totally ineffective. Most SAC’s do not honor the process and nearly all grievances are simply denied without any sort of transparent review. In most instances, the only person to review your complaint is your boss’s boss. This is particularly true when grieving reprimands or suspensions. To expect your second-line supervisor to reverse your first-line supervisors’ decision is just not realistic in the ATF environment. RACs and Groups Supervisors have been conditioned to avoid making decisions regarding even insignificant matters, much less personnel actions, without permission from above. The bottom line is that by the time you receive the decision, your boss has already cleared the action with his boss. If his boss wanted to mediate or mitigate that decision, he would have already done so.
This extremely unethical practice has been effectively employed to keep complaints localized, well below headquarters’ radar. Whenever possible, voice your concerns at the highest possible level within the chain of command. This ensures that if you must grieve, you can go at least one level higher.
Example: You have attempted to resolve a significant problem through your SAC using normal conversation, email and/or memo, but did not get the desired results. According to ATF regs, you are now authorized to file a grievance at the HQ level via your DAD, since your SAC is now involved.
If you are subsequently transferred, detailed, receive an abnormally low or unfair evaluation, or suffer ANY other form of reprisal or retaliation, you should:- Immediately contact the Office of Special Counsel (www.osc.gov), as these constitute prohibited practices under government regulations.
- Research all relevant orders, regulations, policies and practices.
- Professionally and lawfully challenge each and every act of reprisal, in-writing, leaving an undeniable paper trail. In most cases, ATF management and counsel will later allege you did “not challenge” the issue and therefore “it wasn’t significant enough for them to address”.
- Document, document, document (everything).
