THE WEN HO LEE CASE CRUMBLES NUMBER=6-11997 BYLINE=ANDREW GUTHRIE DATELINE=WASHINGTON EDITOR=ASSIGNMENTS TELEPHONE=619-3335 INTERNET=YES CONTENT= /// EDS: REISSUING 6-11996 TO SHOW LEE HAS BEEN RELEASED /// INTRO: The United States government has suffered an embarrassment in its investigation into the loss of top-secret nuclear weapons information at the Los Alamos, New Mexico, National Laboratory. The man accused of mishandling and losing classified information on both U-S and foreign nuclear weapons, Wen Ho Lee, has been charged with only one, relatively minor crime. He has pleaded guilty to a single count of mishandling classified information and released from jail after being held for more than nine months. Many U-S papers are furious at the outcome. Some feel Mr. Lee was singled out as a government scapegoat because of his Chinese ethnicity. They feel the Federal Bureau of Investigation mishandled the probe, and exaggerated Mr. Lee's potential offences. Others say the bungled investigation now leaves many unanswered questions about how much material is really missing, how important it is, and did the Chinese government really get any. They fear these questions will never be adequately answered. For a sample of editorial comment on the case, we turn to _____________ and today's U-S Opinion Roundup. TEXT: In a plea bargain, the Taiwan-born nuclear scientist is agreeing to plead guilty to a single relatively minor charge of transferring data from a secure to an unsecure computer within the facility. In return, the government drops an extensive case against him that strongly hinted at one point, that he was a Chinese spy. The New York Times now says there is a need for an investigation of the investigation. VOICE: The criminal investigation and prosecution of ... [Mr.] Lee, which largely collapsed last weekend ... must be reviewed by an independent examiner to determine if racial profiling or other unfair tactics were used by the government. ... The remaining count [of the original indictment] does not indicate any intent to harm the United States or assist a foreign nation, the central claim the government initially sought to prove. This would be a stunning turnabout for government officials who previously insisted that the downloaded data contained the "crown jewels" of America's nuclear arsenal that could change the global balance of power if transferred to a hostile nation. ... As the case came unglued [Ed's: essentially "fell apart"] under the prodding of Judge James ... Parker, evidence has mounted that Mr. Lee was singled out because of his Chinese ancestry. ... President Clinton should appoint a politically independent person of national standing to review the entire case. TEXT: In Georgia, The Savannah Morning News says disgustedly: VOICE: Much of the case against Mr. Lee rested on the testimony of one F-B-I counterintelligence agent, Robert Messemer, whose stories about the scientist's supposed shady activities turned out to be flawed or flat-out untrue. There was more than a whiff of smoke surrounding Mr. Lee - he had been under suspicion for over a decade. But the government could never produce the fire. TEXT: In Philadelphia, The Philadelphia Inquirer says the government owes Mr. Lee an apology and adds that Congress should investigate the whole episode. Equally disturbed is The Saint Louis [Missouri] Post- Dispatch: VOICE: The investigation of ...[Mr.] Lee began with reports that [he] ... was a spy for China ...[whom] prosecutors said ... had stolen the "crown jewels" of America's nuclear weapons secrets. ... Now ... It has turned out that there was no evidence ... Mr. Lee was a spy. ... It is hard to see the plea bargain as anything but a government surrender to the reality that its case has deteriorated. TEXT: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette grumbles that the case has left a lot of unanswered questions, while The Honolulu [Hawaii] Star-Bulletin scoffs that Blunders led to [the] release... And in San Francisco, The Examiner complains that: seldom has an agreement to settle criminal charges been more unsatisfying. TEXT: In Boston, The Christian Science Monitor calls what happened a - Rush to Judgment on [Mr.] Lee. VOICE: For nine-months, Wen Ho Lee was kept alone in a jail cell for 23-hours a day. His feet and hands were shackled. F-B-I agents closely watched once-a-week visits from his wife and children. Was this former government nuclear scientist a spy? Did he, as federal prosecutors claimed, steal the "crown jewels" of American atomic secrets to "secure an advantage to a foreign nation?" No, it turns out. And now, federal officials have plenty to answer for. ... Too many questions remain to let this case slide into history. The impact on Asian- Americans and government science is too great. Any bungling by the F-B-I, Justice Department, and Energy Department must be aired. TEXT: Another common theme it that there were serious security breaches at Los Alamos, and that because Mr. Lee's investigation was mishandled, the true extent of the security breaches involving others, may never be known. Under a headline reading: "Justice [Department] bungles again," The Augusta [Georgia] Chronicle complains: VOICE: The government's case was evidently pretty shaky. But there is little doubt Wen Ho Lee had moved classified material from a classified computer to an unclassified computer, and there is still a serious question as to whether tapes are still missing, or have been destroyed, as he claims. ... The fact is that [Mr.] Lee was taking home an awful lot of sensitive information, and had no credible rationale for doing so. It was a clear security lapse. TEXT: The San Francisco Chronicle calls the affair: "A Clumsy Spy Hunt..." and adds: VOICE: With an embarrassing fizzle, the federal government's case against nuclear weapons researcher Wen Ho Lee is about to end up as a walk-away plea bargain. The case, which drew ridicule from the start, had melted under legal and scientific scrutiny. Questions about [Mr.] Lee's conduct may remain for some. But for many more, there are bigger mysteries. Was this case based on hard e evidence or political pressure to find a fall guy [Editors: "victim"] for past security lapses? How safe are American weapons from spying? Was racial profiling used to isolate [Mr.] Lee as a suspect? TEXT: The Boston Globe says that Mr. Lee deserved to be fired for negligently downloading classified material to an unsecure computer, but adds: VOICE: ... it now seems plain that ... [Mr.] Lee was made to suffer inordinately for the government's incompetence and for a bureaucratic effort to cover up its own bungling. TEXT: We give today's last word to the Houston Chronicle which sums up its view, in the editorial headline: "Crown Jewels?: Wen Ho Lee case is a national embarrassment." On that disquieting note, we conclude this sampling of editorial comment on the case of the nuclear scientist Wen Ho Lee. NEB/ANG/RAE 13-Sep-2000 17:00 PM EDT


DATE=9/13/2000

TYPE=U-S OPINION ROUNDUP

TITLE=THE WEN HO LEE CASE CRUMBLES

NUMBER=6-11997

BYLINE=ANDREW GUTHRIE

DATELINE=WASHINGTON

EDITOR=ASSIGNMENTS

TELEPHONE=619-3335

INTERNET=YES

CONTENT=



/// EDS: REISSUING 6-11996 TO SHOW LEE HAS BEEN 

RELEASED ///



INTRO:  The United States government has suffered an 

embarrassment in its investigation into the loss of 

top-secret nuclear weapons information at the Los 

Alamos, New Mexico, National Laboratory.



The man accused of mishandling and losing classified 

information on both U-S and foreign nuclear weapons, 

Wen Ho Lee, has been charged with only one, relatively 

minor crime.  He has pleaded guilty to a single count 

of mishandling classified information and released 

from jail after being held for more than nine months. 



Many U-S papers are furious at the outcome.  Some feel 

Mr. Lee was singled out as a government scapegoat 

because of his Chinese ethnicity.  They feel the 

Federal Bureau of Investigation mishandled the probe, 

and exaggerated Mr. Lee's potential offences.



Others say the bungled investigation now leaves many 

unanswered questions about how much material is really 

missing, how important it is, and did the Chinese 

government really get any.  They fear these questions 

will never be adequately answered. 



For a sample of editorial comment on the case, we turn 

to _____________ and today's U-S Opinion Roundup. 



TEXT:  In a plea bargain, the Taiwan-born nuclear 

scientist is agreeing to plead guilty to a single 

relatively minor charge of transferring data from a 

secure to an unsecure computer within the facility.  

In return, the government drops an extensive case 

against him that strongly hinted at one point, that he 

was a Chinese spy.



The New York Times now says there is a need for an 

investigation of the investigation.



VOICE:  The criminal investigation and prosecution of 

... [Mr.] Lee, which largely collapsed last weekend 

... must be reviewed by an independent examiner to 

determine if racial profiling or other unfair tactics 

were used by the government.  ... The remaining count 

[of the original indictment] does not indicate any 

intent to harm the United States or assist a foreign 

nation, the central claim the government initially 

sought to prove. 



This would be a stunning turnabout for government 

officials who previously insisted that the downloaded 

data contained the "crown jewels" of America's nuclear 

arsenal that could change the global balance of power 

if transferred to a hostile nation.   ... As the case 

came unglued [Ed's: essentially "fell apart"] under 

the prodding of Judge James ... Parker, evidence has 

mounted that Mr. Lee was singled out because of his 

Chinese ancestry.  ...  President Clinton should 

appoint a politically independent person of national 

standing to review the entire case. 



TEXT:  In Georgia, The Savannah Morning News says 

disgustedly:



VOICE:        Much of the case against Mr. Lee rested 

      on the testimony of one F-B-I 

      counterintelligence agent, Robert Messemer, 

      whose stories about the scientist's supposed 

      shady activities turned out to be flawed or 

      flat-out untrue.  There was more than a whiff of 

      smoke surrounding Mr. Lee - he had been under 

      suspicion for over a decade.  But the government 

      could never produce the fire.



TEXT:  In Philadelphia, The Philadelphia Inquirer says 

the government owes Mr. Lee an apology and adds that 

Congress should investigate the whole episode.  

Equally disturbed is The Saint Louis [Missouri] Post-

Dispatch:



VOICE:        The investigation of ...[Mr.] Lee began 

      with reports that [he] ... was a spy for China 

      ...[whom] prosecutors said ... had stolen the 

      "crown jewels" of America's nuclear weapons 

      secrets.   ... Now ...  It has turned out that 

      there was no evidence ... Mr. Lee was a spy.  

      ... It is hard to see the plea bargain as 

      anything but a government surrender to the 

      reality that its case has deteriorated.



TEXT:  The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette grumbles that the 

case has left a lot of unanswered questions, while The 

Honolulu [Hawaii] Star-Bulletin scoffs that Blunders 

led to [the] release... And in San Francisco, The 

Examiner complains that: seldom has an agreement to 

settle criminal charges been more unsatisfying.



TEXT: In Boston, The Christian Science Monitor calls 

what happened a - Rush to Judgment on [Mr.] Lee.



VOICE:        For nine-months, Wen Ho Lee was kept 

      alone in a jail cell for 23-hours a day.  His 

      feet and hands were shackled.  F-B-I agents 

      closely watched once-a-week visits from his wife 

      and children.  Was this former government 

      nuclear scientist a spy?  Did he, as federal 

      prosecutors claimed, steal the "crown jewels" of 

      American atomic secrets to "secure an advantage 

      to a foreign nation?"  No, it turns out.  And 

      now, federal officials have plenty to answer 

      for.  ... Too many questions remain to let this 

      case slide into history.  The impact on Asian-

      Americans and government science is too great.  

      Any bungling by the F-B-I, Justice Department, 

      and Energy Department must be aired.



TEXT:  Another common theme it that there were serious 

security breaches at Los Alamos, and that because Mr. 

Lee's investigation was mishandled, the true extent of 

the security breaches involving others, may never be 

known.  



Under a headline reading: "Justice [Department] 

bungles again," The Augusta [Georgia] Chronicle 

complains:



VOICE:        The government's case was evidently 

      pretty shaky.  But there is little doubt Wen Ho 

      Lee had moved classified material from a 

      classified computer to an unclassified computer, 

      and there is still a serious question as to 

      whether tapes are still missing, or have been 

      destroyed, as he claims.  ... The fact is that 

      [Mr.] Lee was taking home an awful lot of 

      sensitive information, and had no credible 

      rationale for doing so.  It was a clear security 

      lapse.



TEXT:  The San Francisco Chronicle calls the affair: 

"A Clumsy Spy Hunt..." and adds:



VOICE:        With an embarrassing fizzle, the federal 

      government's case against nuclear weapons 

      researcher Wen Ho Lee is about to end up as a 

      walk-away plea bargain.  The case, which drew 

      ridicule from the start, had melted under legal 

      and scientific scrutiny.  Questions about [Mr.] 

      Lee's conduct may remain for some.  But for many 

      more, there are bigger mysteries.  Was this case 

      based on hard e evidence or political pressure 

      to find a fall guy [Editors: "victim"] for past 

      security lapses?  How safe are American weapons 

      from spying?  Was racial profiling used to 

      isolate [Mr.] Lee as a suspect?



TEXT: The Boston Globe says that Mr. Lee deserved to 

be fired for negligently downloading classified 

material to an unsecure computer, but adds:



VOICE:        ... it now seems plain that ... [Mr.] 

      Lee was made to suffer inordinately for the 

      government's incompetence and for a bureaucratic 

      effort to cover up its own bungling. 



TEXT:  We give today's last word to the Houston 

Chronicle which sums up its view, in the editorial 

headline: "Crown Jewels?: Wen Ho Lee case is a 

national embarrassment."



On that disquieting note, we conclude this sampling of 

editorial comment on the case of the nuclear scientist 

Wen Ho Lee.



NEB/ANG/RAE







13-Sep-2000 17:00 PM EDT (13-Sep-2000 2100 UTC)

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Source: Voice of America

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