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<font size=3><br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2>Original Content at
<a href="http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_michael__080203_j__edgar_hoover_info.htm" eudora="autourl">
http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_michael__080203_j__edgar_hoover_info.htm<br>
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<b>February 3, 2008<br><br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=4>J. Edgar Hoover informed by Omaha FBI
of cover-up of evidence in Black Panther case during COINTELPRO and took
no action<br><br>
</b></font><font face="Verdana" size=2><i>By Michael Richardson<br><br>
</i></font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>The Nebraska
Supreme Court is hearing the appeal of Ed Poindexter's 1971 conviction
for the bombing murder of Omaha police officer Larry Minard.
Poindexter was head of the Omaha chapter of the Black Panthers, called
the National Committee to Combat Fascism, when Minard was killed in an
ambush bombing while answering a call about a woman screaming.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>A fifteen year-old,
Duane Peak, confessed and was convicted of planting the bomb.
However, in exchange for testimony against Poindexter and his
co-defendant, Mondo we Langa (formerly David Rice), the young murderer
was given a deal and sentenced as a juvenile walking free in 1974.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>At the time of the
bombing, the Black Panthers were the targets of a secret, and illegal,
operation of the FBI ordered by Director J. Edgar Hoover to disrupt the
group. COINTELPRO agents in the field, eager to please Hoover,
engaged in a wide variety of dirty tricks, including illegal acts, and
dutifully notified Hoover.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>Poindexter and Langa
were already targets of COINTELPRO when Peak committed his crime and the
Omaha Police went to work to make a case against the two Panther leaders
working closely with federal agents. <br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>Peak's testimony
against Poindexter and Langa was critical to obtaining their conviction
and his credibility was crucial. However, the police had one big
problem, the voice on the emergency call that lured Minard to his death
did not sound like Peak. If Peak had an accomplice who made the
call then his testimony against Poindexter and Langa was suspect.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>In exhibits now before
the Nebraska Supreme Court, the COINTELPRO communiqués are under review
and tell a disturbing tale of withheld evidence and Hoover's knowledge of
the withheld information. On the day of the bombing, August 17,
1970, the Special Agent in Charge of the Omaha FBI office sent an Airtel
message to Hoover.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>"Enclosed for the
laboratory is one copy of a tape recording obtained from the Omaha Police
Department."<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>"The enclosed tape
was recorded from an existing tape (the original) recording used by the
Omaha Police Department in their normal emergency telephone calls for the
period of 8/17/70 between the hours of 12:00 Midnight and 9:00
a.m."<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>"[Name redacted]
inquired into the possibility of voice analysis of the individual making
the call by the FBI Laboratory. He was advised the matter would be
considered and that if such analysis were made and if subsequent voice
patterns were transmitted for comparison, such analysis would have to be
strictly informal, as the FBI could not provide any testimony in the
matter; also, only an oral report of the results of such examination
would be made to the Police Department."<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>"Any assistance
rendered along the lines mentioned above would greatly enhance the
prestige of the FBI among law enforcement representatives in this area,
and I thus strongly recommend that the request be favorably
considered."<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>"In view of the
forgoing, it is requested that the FBI Laboratory examine enclosed tape
recording and make the appropriate voice print to be retained for
comparison against other tape recordings of suspects to be submitted at a
later date."<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>Two months later on
October 13, 1970, after Peak's preliminary hearing and testimony that he
made the emergency call, the Omaha Special Agent in Charge again notified
Hoover of developments in the case and passed along the request to ignore
the tape.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>"Assistant COP
GLENN GATES, Omaha PD, advised that he feels that any use of tapes of
this call might be prejudicial to the police murder trial against two
accomplices of PEAK and, therefore, has advised that he wishes no use of
this tape until after the murder trials of Peak and the two accomplices
has been completed."<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>"UACB, no further
efforts are being made at this time to secure additional tape recordings
of the original telephone call."<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>The recording of the
emergency call was withheld from defense lawyers and jurors in the case
never got to hear the voice that set the lethal trap. The original
tape was destroyed in April 1978. Later, a copy made at the order
of George Winkler, head of police communications in Omaha,
surfaced. Poindexter's co-defendant, Mondo we Langa, raised the
matter on appeal.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>In 1983 the Nebraska
Supreme Court ruled that there had been no "expert in voice
analysis" to support the claim that Peak's voice was not on the
emergency call tape and denied Langa's appeal. In 2004, Poindexter
tried again and in 2006 a vocal expert, Tom Owens, subjected the tape to
a series of scientific tests concluding that to a high degree of
certainty it was not Peak's voice on the withheld tape.<br>
</font><font face="Verdana" size=2> <br><br>
</font><font face="Times New Roman, Times" size=3>Now, twenty-five years
after Langa's appeal about the tape, the Nebraska Supreme Court will
again review the matter, this time considering both expert testimony and
with knowledge about J. Edgar Hoover's role in the withholding of
exculpatory evidence. A date for a decision has not been
set.<br><br>
<i>Permission granted to reprint<br><br>
<br><br>
</i></font><font face="Verdana" size=2>Authors Bio: Michael Richardson is
a freelance writer based in Boston. Richardson writes about politics,
election law, human nutrition, ethics, and music. Richardson is also a
political consultant on ballot access. <br><br>
<br><br>
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