Army Erred in Seeking Civilians' Names

 
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March 16, 2004, 12:53AM
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2450924
[More general versions of this story can be found on many sites.]

Agents' probe at law school criticized
Army's review sees procedural lapses
By JANET ELLIOTT
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle Austin Bureau
AUSTIN -- Two Army counterintelligence special agents exceeded their authority 
last month when they roamed the University of Texas law school seeking names of 
individuals who had attended an Islamic law conference. 

A review of the controversial incident by the U.S. Army Intelligence and 
Security Command (INSCOM) concluded that the agents and their commander failed 
to follow established military procedures by referring the incident to higher 
headquarters. 

Because the individuals being sought were civilians, any investigation probably 
should have been handled by the FBI, said Deborah Parker, chief of public 
affairs for the Virginia-based command. 

"There was a lapse in procedure, an error in judgment. There wasn't anything 
done maliciously or intent to harm anybody," said Parker. 

To prevent other lapses, Army counterintelligence personnel, who may be 
civilians or military, have received additional training. 

The agents caused a furor Feb. 9 when they appeared at the law school seeking a 
roster of attendees for a Feb. 4 public conference on Islamic law and sexism. 
They left without a roster but their reportedly aggressive questions of some 
students sparked the Army review. 

INSCOM said the investigation began after two Army lawyers from Fort Hood 
attended the Feb. 4 conference in preparation for deployment to Southwest Asia, 
where they will deal with legal issues between the American forces and the 
largely Muslim populace. 

While at the conference, the two lawyers said they were persistently questioned 
about their identity, occupation and status by a man who appeared to be 
attending the conference with two associates. The tone and repetition of the 
questions made the Army lawyers suspicious, and they reported the matter to 
intelligence officials at Fort Hood. 

The matter was reported to the Army intelligence regional detachment office, 
but then should have been forwarded to higher headquarters, said Parker. 

The FBI either would have had to waive jurisdiction or request assistance for 
Army intelligence officials to have had further involvement, said Parker. 

Among the students who were approached by the special agents was Jessica 
Biddle, a third-year law student from Houston. She was questioned by Special 
Agent Jason Treesh in the office of the Texas Journal of Women and the Law, 
which had donated money for the conference and reserved a courtroom at the law 
school for the session. 

Biddle said Treesh was intimidating and she couldn't fathom why he was so 
interested in an academic conference that she called "benign." 

On Monday, Biddle said it is "terrific news" that INSCOM reviewed the matter, 
determined that the Army acted inappropriately and provided extra training. 

"I think that this event and its aftermath sent a strong message to the 
military that while we, as citizens, take matters of national security very 
seriously, we will not respond to bullying and will question military 
activities when investigations begin to encroach on civil liberties," said 
Biddle. 

She added that had the situation been better explained, she would have been 
more willing to provide information. 

"By demanding the roster in a shroud of secrecy, the Army immediately pitted 
their goals against my own and made it difficult for me to trust their 
motives," Biddle said. 

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