Sharyl Attkisson

Untouchable Subjects. Fearless, Nonpartisan Reporting.

US

Inmate questioned about jail injury of sex offender Epstein

An inmate has been questioned over the jail injury of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

That's according to WNBC.

Epstein was said to have been nearly unconscious when found in his New York City jail cell this week.

WNBC says sources indicate inmate Nicholas Tartaglione was questioned after the incident. He is reportedly a former police officer accused of four drug related murders.

Tartaglione denied any suggestions that he touched Epstein and claimed he saw nothing relevant, according to WNBC.

Authorities are said to be looking into whether Epstein may have attempted suicide or whether somebody else injured him. He reportedly had injuries to his neck.

Fight government overreach and double-standard justice by supporting the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund for Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI for the government computer intrusions. Click here.

Big names in DC and NY "bracing" for Jeffrey Epstein revelations

Jeffrey Epstein, accused sex trafficker of underage children

A Vanity Fair article BY GABRIEL SHERMAN takes a look at the potential impact of the Jeffrey Epstein sex trafficking case.

The following are brief excerpts from Sherman's article with a link to the full report below.

Vanity Fair: “IT’S GOING TO BE STAGGERING, THE AMOUNT OF NAMES”: AS THE JEFFREY EPSTEIN CASE GROWS MORE GROTESQUE, MANHATTAN AND DC BRACE FOR IMPACT

The questions about Epstein are metastasizing much faster than they can be answered: Who knew what about Epstein’s alleged abuse? How, and from whom, did Epstein get his supposed $500 million fortune? Why did Acosta grant Epstein an outrageously lenient non-prosecution agreement? (And what does it mean that Acosta was reportedly told Epstein “belonged to intelligence”?)

But among the most pressing queries is which other famous people might be exposed for committing sex crimes. “There were other business associates of Mr. Epstein’s who engaged in improper sexual misconduct at one or more of his homes. We do know that,” said Brad Edwards, a lawyer for Courtney Wild, one of the Epstein accusers who gave emotional testimony at Epstein’s bail hearing. “In due time the names are going to start coming out.” (Attorneys for Epstein did not respond to a request for comment.)

Likely within days, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will release almost 2,000 pages of documents that could reveal sexual abuse by “numerous prominent American politicians, powerful business executives, foreign presidents, a well-known prime minister, and other world leaders,” according to the three-judge panel's ruling...

...Another person involved with litigation against Epstein told me: “It’s going to be staggering, the amount of names. It’s going to be contagion numbers.”

...How Epstein obtained his fortune is a matter of feverish speculation. His claim to a billionaire-only client list now seems laughable to the bankers I spoke with.

...In the absence of much other information, the reigning theory on Wall Street currently is that Epstein’s activities with women and girls were central to the building of his fortune, and his relations with some of his investors essentially amounted to blackmail.

Read the rest of the article in Vanity Fair by clicking the link below:

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/07/jeffrey-epstein-case-grows-more-grotesque

Fight improper government surveillance. Support Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI over the government computer intrusions of Attkisson's work while she was a CBS News investigative correspondent. Visit the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund. Click here.

Fake family ties among incoming refugees

Photo of child in custody of U.S. Customs and Border Protection

Immigration officers report that 3,100 migrants over the past year have made fraudulent claims about their family ties in the U.S., according to NPR. Some migrants who claimed to be minors were actually over 18, and some who claimed to be parents of children were not actually related to them at all, officials report.

Border officials say this creates problems with families who make legitimate claims of asylum not being taken seriously, and illegal immigrant children not being taken care of properly.

In some cases, children are reportedly sent across the border multiple times with different groups of people to make them appear as if they are parts of different families. In general, because of protests over children being separated from family members when illegal immigrant adults cross the border, illegal immigrants who come with children are not detained. That provides incentive for illegal immigrants to hire or "rent" the use of children to claim as their own.

With more and more people coming in to America seeking asylum, border officials say it will become difficult to determine who really needs help, and who doesn't. They also say presenting fake documents at the border, such as birth certificates, is also an issue:

We found cases where adults have been coming in with kids who are not their kids, yet they're claiming that they're their children. We found birth certificates that have been forged.

—Ramiro Cordero, El Paso, Texas, Border Patrol Special Operations Supervisor (to NPR)

You can read the rest of NPR's article here: Migrant Families

Fight improper government surveillance. Support Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI over the government computer intrusions of Attkisson's work while she was a CBS News investigative correspondent. Visit the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund. Click here.

Most approve of raids on illegal immigrant criminals

The vast majority of respondents approve of President Trump's raids on illegal immigrants who have defied court ordered deportation.

That's according to the latest unscientific poll at SharylAttkisson.com.

The full results are below.

Meantime, vote now on our home page in the new poll. It asks whether you think Trump will win or lose in 2020!

On Trump's raids on illegal immigrants who have defied court orders to leave:

98% I approve

1% I disapprove

1% I'm mixed/unsure

Fight government overreach and double-standard justice by supporting the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund for Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI for the government computer intrusions. Click here.

True North: Persevering in the Pursuit of Justice

If you are able to get to Washington D.C. anytime from July 29 through Aug. 1 this year and you're interested in whistleblower issues, think about attending the Eighth Annual Whistleblower Summit and Film Festival.

This year's theme is: "True North: Preserving in the Pursuit of Justice."

The annual, independent whistleblower event attracts the bipartisan, the multi-partisan and the apolitical. It honors the spirit of the brave whistleblowers who often end up sacrificing their careers and personal life to tell uncomfortable truths.

Organizers Marcel Reid and Michael McCray are themselves whistleblowers.

Michael McCray (above) and Marcel Reid blew the whistle on ACORN

Watch the Full Measure story about Reid and McCray blowing the whistle on ACORN fraud.

Reid and McCray organize the summit each year to encourage whistleblowers and speak truth to power at a time when whistleblowers are often ignored, attacked or smeared for going public.

Attendance is free but you must register in advance at Eventbrite.

Find out more about the whistleblower summit by clicking the link below:

Whistleblowersummit.com 

What: "True North: Preserving in the Pursuit of Justice," the 8th Annual Whistleblower Summit.

Where: Washington D.C.

When: July 29-Aug. 1

Register to attend for free here.

Featured whistleblower books

More information from summit organizers below:

The Whistleblower Summit & Film Festival is the intersection between media, politics, culture and entertainment. Whistleblower stories (books and movies) are as American as apple pie. Come to the only Washington, DC film festival with event on Capitol Hill. Rub elbows with famous whistleblowers like Frank Serpico and Jeff Wigand or meet political leaders like Senator Charles Grassley, Representative Elijah Cummings and “Jonestown” survivor, Representative Jackie Speier. There is not free press without news sources. There can be no Congressional oversight without government informants. Whistleblowers are the “Fifth Estate” protecting freedom and liberty.

Over the last twelve years members from the Make it Safe Coalition (MISC) have arranged an assembly of whistleblowers in Washington, DC each year for an annual conference originally known as Washington Whistleblower’s Week. During that time members of the Make it Safe Coalition have passed thirteen laws, including No FEAR and the WPEA, conducted congressional lobby days, provided Continuing Legal Education training, written Op-Eds, published magazines and books, hosted radio shows, provided mentoring and lawyer referrals, penned sign-on letters, submitted amicus briefs, written columns and law review articles, made television appearances, produced plays / theatrical productions, showcased a film series, held protest rallies at the White House and on the National Mall. Whistleblowers have even “occupied” government agencies and hosted both national and regional conferences in: Washington (DC), New York (NY), Baltimore (MD), Atlanta (GA), Chicago (IL), Houston (TX), Los Angeles (CA) and Little Rock (AR). ACORN 8 and the host committee are proud to announce the theme for the Whistleblower Summit this year is True North—Persevering in the Pursuit of Justice

The Whistleblower Summit includes historic panel discussions with distinguished authors of whistleblower books followed by film screenings of “Pillar Award” nominated films and documentaries. Thus “Movie Night” with the whistleblowers was one of the highlights of our annual summit, because it gave whistleblowers, advocates and conference attendees an opportunity to interact with the general public in a relaxed atmosphere that promotes camaraderie and builds broad community support. We are a coalition of individual whistleblowers, grassroots activists, public interest advocates and policy makers. We provide a sense of community and mutual support for whistleblowers or civil and human rights activists. During the conference, we also present the Pillar Award for Human Rights. The Pillar is awarded to notable civil and human rights champions; previous recipients include Representative Elijah Cummings (D-MD), Senator Charles “Chuck” Grassley (R-IA) and Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO). The Pillar is awarded to politicians, community activists and journalists—including documentary filmmakers.

The Whistleblower Summit recognizes that cinema is a powerful medium for highlighting civil and human rights violations across the globe. It seeks to shine a light on stories of courage and perseverance in the face of injustice, and to encourage individuals to stand together to achieve human rights for all. Consequently, we are pleased to announce the opening of submissions for its annual film festival, which will take place in July 2019. We are looking for films about whistleblowers, the First Amendment or that touch on one or several human rights issues that are connected to our areas of work this includes freedom of expression, women’s rights, discrimination, communal violence, human rights defenders, among other issues. The themes mentioned are not exhaustive, films centered on other civil and human rights issues are equally welcome for submission.

Fight improper government surveillance. Support Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI over the government computer intrusions of Attkisson's work while she was a CBS News investigative correspondent. Visit the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund. Click here.

Unscientific poll: Are you looking forward to Campaign 2020?

Most people are not looking forward to Campaign 2020.

That's according to our latest unscientific poll at SharylAttkisson.com.

A full 54% of respondents said they were either unsure about Campaign 2020 or not looking forward to it.

The full results are below.

Be sure and answer our new poll on our home page: Should the census ask if you're a U.S. citizen?

Are you looking forward to campaign 2020?

45% Absolutely!

35% Definitely not!

19% I'm Mixed.

1% I Don't know/I Don't Care.

Fight improper government surveillance. Support Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI over the government computer intrusions of Attkisson's work while she was a CBS News investigative correspondent. Visit the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund. Click here.

The Miami Herald investigation into the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal

Jeffrey Epstein arrest mug shot

In November of last year, the Miami Herald published a three part investigation and timeline about the Jeffrey Epstein case entitled, "Perversion of Justice."

The following is a brief excerpt with a link to the full report. The story starts in October of 2007 with a meeting between Epstein attorney Jay Lefkowitz and Miami’s top federal prosecutor at the time: Alexander Acosta.

Perversion of Justice, by the Miami Herald

Facing a 53-page federal indictment, Epstein could have ended up in federal prison for the rest of his life.

But on the morning of the breakfast meeting, a deal was struck — an extraordinary plea agreement that would conceal the full extent of Epstein’s crimes and the number of people involved.

Not only would Epstein serve just 13 months in the county jail, but the deal — called a non-prosecution agreement — essentially shut down an ongoing FBI probe into whether there were more victims and other powerful people who took part in Epstein’s sex crimes, according to a Miami Herald examination of thousands of emails, court documents and FBI records.

The pact required Epstein to plead guilty to two prostitution charges in state court. Epstein and four of his accomplices named in the agreement received immunity from all federal criminal charges. But even more unusual, the deal included wording that granted immunity to “any potential co-conspirators’’ who were also involved in Epstein’s crimes. These accomplices or participants were not identified in the agreement, leaving it open to interpretation whether it possibly referred to other influential people who were having sex with underage girls at Epstein’s various homes or on his plane. 

As part of the arrangement, Acosta agreed, despite a federal law to the contrary, that the deal would be kept from the victims. As a result, the non-prosecution agreement was sealed until after it was approved by the judge, thereby averting any chance that the girls — or anyone else — might show up in court and try to derail it...

...The Herald also identified about 80 women who say they were molested or otherwise sexually abused by Epstein from 2001 to 2006. About 60 of them were located — now scattered around the country and abroad. Eight of them agreed to be interviewed, on or off the record. Four of them were willing to speak on video...

...Federal prosecutors identified 36 underage victims, but none of those victims appeared at his sentencing on June 30, 2008, in state court in Palm Beach County. Most of them heard about it on the news — and even then they didn’t understand what had happened to the federal probe that they’d been assured was ongoing...

...“It started out to give a man a back rub, but in many cases it turned into something far worse than that, elevated to a serious crime, in some cases sexual batteries,’’ he said.

Most of the girls said they arrived by car or taxi, and entered the side door, where they were led into a kitchen by a female staff assistant named Sarah Kellen, the report said. A chef might prepare them a meal or offer them cereal. The girls — most from local schools — would then ascend a staircase off the kitchen, up to a large master bedroom and bath. 

They were met by Epstein, clad in a towel. He would select a lotion from an array lined up on a table, then lie facedown on a massage table, instruct the girl to strip partially or fully, and direct them to massage his feet and backside. Then he would turn over and have them massage his chest, often instructing them to pinch his nipples, while he masturbated, according to the police report...

Read the rest of the Miami Herald investigation by clicking the link below:

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/article220097825.html

Fight government overreach and double-standard justice by supporting the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund for Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI for the government computer intrusions. Click here.

Smearing WikiLeaks

How three men affiliated with WikiLeaks were hit with false or unproven sexual assault accusations — amid a secret PR plan to discredit WikiLeaks. 

To some, Julian Assange and his "WikiLeaks" website went from being hero-- to zero-- when they began publishing internal emails that reflected poorly on then-candidate for President Hillary Clinton had her campaign team.

But even before that, WikiLeaks was seen as damaging to some powerful interests.

In 2010, some of those interests launched a secret public relations campaign to disparage and discredit WikiLeaks, Assange, and other WikiLeaks associates.

Three men affiliated with WikiLeaks were then hit by false or unproven sexual assault charges.

Read more about the strange smearing of Wikileaks below.

The following is an excerpt from my Full Measure investigation

There’s little doubt there are powerful efforts to smear WikiLeaks and its supporters. Government contractors circulated this dossier (below) in 2010, a wide-ranging strategy to combat “The WikiLeaks Threat,” to “sabotage or discredit” WikiLeaks supporters using “social media exploitation” and “disinformation.”

Trevor FitzGibbon: It shows the photos and the names of the individuals that were supportive of WikiLeaks or worked with WikiLeaks.

Sharyl Attkisson: And the PR documents specifically discussed going after these people?

Trevor FitzGibbon: Ways to discredit to target to smear them.

Several targets were FitzGibbons’ clients. Two were discredited by sex claims alleged in the media but never prosecuted just like FitzGibbon: WikiLeaks’ Assange and a key WikiLeaks associate Jacob Appelbaum.

With Assange, two women told a journalist that consensual sex with him when he was in Sweden for a speech, turned into rape. A rape investigation hung over his head for seven years—before it was dropped.

Anonymous accusers started a website to publicly accuse Appelbaum of groping and rape. He was forced out of his job, but also never charged.

FitzGibbon was cleared of the false rape allegation against him and sued the lawyer who'd accused him: Jesselyn Radack. Radack subsequently retracted all of her accusations against FitzGibbon.

In the end, a smear campaign can often take advantage of the uncertainty surrounding a case of 'he said she said.' And that’s the problem. FitzGibbon asked a lawyers’ disciplinary body to punish Radack for alleged false allegations. They declined, saying the “question was close” but “The truth about what occurred in private is sometimes hard to prove.” Even if someone isn't ultimately prosecuted, they may find they’re tainted just because this aura of inappropriateness or criminality lingers over them regardless of what the outcome is in the court of law.

Three men affiliated with WikiLeaks appear to have been on the receiving end of that lesson.

Watch the entire Full Measure investigation by clicking the link below:

http://fullmeasure.news/news/cover-story/shades-of-grey-07-24-2018

Fight government overreach and double-standard justice by supporting the Attkisson Fourth Amendment Litigation Fund for Attkisson v. DOJ and FBI for the government computer intrusions. Click here.