Posted on 08/02/2008 2:07:52 PM PDT by Shermy
(From newspaper local to Fort Detrick)
In 2003, the Defense Department gave Bruce Ivins its highest civilian honor for his work on an anthrax vaccine.
Friday, the government had little to say about him, following his apparent suicide and media reports that the FBI was preparing to charge him with the 2001 anthrax mailings.
Ivins was a Frederick resident who worked at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, was a member of St. John Evangelical Catholic Church and a volunteer with the American Red Cross.
He once said he taught himself to juggle to correct his nature as "a complete klutz."
The Justice Department had little comment on reports in the Los Angeles Times that the FBI was about to charge him for the 2001 anthrax mailings that left five people dead and more than a dozen injured.
It said only that progress had been made in the anthrax investigation, and that it anticipated releasing more details in the near future.
In an e-mailed statement, USAMRIID spokeswoman Caree Vander Linden wrote that the institute is mourning the loss of Ivins, who served there for more than 35 years as a civilian microbiologist. She had no further statement regarding the anthrax investigation other than it is ongoing.
Paul Kemp, a Rockville attorney who has been representing Ivins for more than a year, said in a written statement Friday that his client was innocent, and that he was disappointed not to have the opportunity to prove that in court.
"The relentless pressure of accusation and innuendo takes its toll in different ways on different people," the statement read. "In Dr. Ivins' case, it led to his untimely death."
Last month, the government exonerated Steven Hatfill, another Fort Detrick scientist who investigators had publicly named as a "person of interest" in 2002.
Hatfill filed a lawsuit claiming he had been falsely accused of and been made a scapegoat for the crimes, and the government paid him $5.82 million to settle the case.
"The FBI wants to speak to the victims' families first, and I want to respect that process," said Thomas Connolly, Hatfill's lawyer. "Today is not the appropriate time to comment. I want to give these families time to have comfort."
Ivins' family declined to comment when The News-Post reached them at home.
A dark end
The final weeks of Ivins' life were marked by allegations he made violent and homicidal threats, hospital evaluations, being removed from Fort Detrick by police officers and a court appearance, according to court documents and police.
Jean C. Duley filed for a peace order against him July 24 in Frederick County District Court, accusing him of stalking, threats and harassment. A temporary peace order was granted the same day.
A peace order may be filed by individuals who are being harassed or stalked and/or their property is being maliciously destroyed or trespassed on by a stranger, neighbor or acquaintance, according to the state Board of Victim Services. The order will be granted if the court finds clear and convincing evidence that the accused committed and is likely to commit acts against the individual in the future.
"Dr. David Irwin, his psychiatrist, called him homicidal, sociopathic with clear intentions," the document states. "Will testify with other details."
According to a recording at the Shady Grove Psychiatric Group, Irwin is out of the office until Monday. A message left was not returned.
The document goes on to state that Ivins had made "homicidal threats, actions, plans, threats and actions towards therapist" and has a history of threats dating back to his graduate days.
A spokeswoman for the University of Cincinnati, where Ivins received three degrees, had no information to that effect.
Duley, 45, also told the court she had been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury Friday, according to court documents.
"FBI involved, currently under investigation and will be charged with five capital murders," she stated in court documents.
"As of this point, we don't have a comment," said Mary McGuirk Drawbaugh, an attorney with Martz, Fisher, & Drawbaugh, LLC in Frederick who represents Duley.
Drawbaugh wouldn't say how the two knew each other.
At Duley's Williamsport home in Washington County, a man who identified himself only as Duley's husband called her a hero and said she would have no comment until the FBI completed its investigation.
Ivins made threats over a three-day period from July 9 to 11, the document states.
On July 10, officers were called to check the welfare of Ivins at USAMRIID at Fort Detrick, said Lt. Clark Pennington of the Frederick Police Department. An officer determined he needed to be evaluated, and he was taken to Frederick Memorial Hospital.
Police did not need to use excessive force to take Ivins off the Army post, he said.
"There is a very brief report stating that the escort of the officers was performed, but few details are included and the report itself has not yet been finalized," said Chuck Gordon, Public Affairs Officer for Fort Detrick in an e-mail.
Ivins was later transferred to Sheppard Pratt Health System, a psychiatric hospital in Baltimore, the document states. While at Sheppard Pratt, he was to have a commitment hearing on July 16, but he signed himself in voluntarily, which meant he could leave when he wished.
Calls left with Sheppard Pratt and FMH public information officers were not returned Friday.
Vander Linden said people have to go through a rigorous process that includes background checks and medical examinations before they are given access to USAMRIID's biocontainment suites, but she said she was not sure if that process includes psychological examinations.
The temporary peace order instructed Ivins not to abuse or contact Duley or go to her home or job.
He never made it to the final hearing, which was set for Thursday.
About 1:15 a.m. Sunday, Frederick County Emergency Communications received a medical emergency call from Ivins' 622 Military Road home, said Lt. Shawn Martyak of the Frederick Police Department. Officials found Ivins unresponsive on the floor in a room in his home.
At the time when officers were called, nothing indicated the medical emergency was a suicide, he said.
The department was notified Tuesday afternoon by Frederick Memorial Hospital officials that Ivins, 62, had died, Martyak said. Officials from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner told the department they were taking a look at the case.
The department is conducting a death investigation, which is the standard procedure regarding suicides.
A final report from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is not expected for several weeks, he said.
Besides being called on July 10 and July 27, the department was called to Ivins' home one other time this year, Pennington said. Officers were assisting fire and rescue officials on a call for an unconscious person, but he did not know if that individual was Ivins.
Another side
While Ivins may have been battling demons in his personal life, he showed a different side when he was in public.
He was a volunteer with the American Red Cross Frederick Chapter since 2001 and helped with disaster services and community disaster education, said Keith Roberson, a member of the executive board for the organization.
Ivins actively participated in chapter and disaster services meetings, he said.
"He was a very dedicated volunteer," Roberson said.
Ivins also was a parishioner at St. John the Evangelist Roman Catholic Church in Frederick where he was a musician for many years during church services.
Calls to the Rev. Richard Murphy were not returned, and a visit to his home for comment was unsuccessful.
William Meadors, who played in a band with Ivins, remembered his musical talents.
"He could play anything on the piano," Meadors said. "My impression of him -- he was very intelligent guy and seemed very personable."
Meadors, of Braddock Heights, worked at USAMRIID, but not directly with Ivins. He believes Ivins could have collapsed under the pressure of the FBI's investigation.
Meadors was shocked to hear a therapist noted Ivins' homicidal tendencies.
He said he doesn't believe Ivins was involved in the attack and is concerned the investigation will come to an end because of the suicide.
"It'll be interesting to see what comes of all this," he said. "Whether he's guilty or he isn't, it's a tragedy."
Frederick reacts
Neighbors Natalie Duggan and her mother, Bonnie Duggan, described Ivins as "the kind of person who would go out of his way to lend a hand."
They said they had no idea he was under FBI surveillance.
"I'd frequently see [the FBI's] cars ... they had blacked-out windows. It was kind of freaky," Natalie Duggan said. "We were kind of wondering what the deal is. We would see Bruce, but we never thought it was him."
The news of his suicide saddened them both. "It is just a very sad day," Bonnie Duggan said. "I never suspected him of any wrongdoing whatsoever, he always was a straight arrow."
A former employee at Fort Detrick whose son lives in Ivins' neighborhood, Bob Newton, came over to look at Ivins' house Friday afternoon.
Newton said he remembered how lax security had been when he was stationed at the Army post in the 1970s.
"I was located in building right next to the 8-ball where they did a lot of experiments on monkeys, chemicals, all that stuff," he said. "I hate to say it, but back then, stuff came in and out of this gate."
Even though security has gotten tighter, "it did not surprise me one bit to learn the source of the anthrax was Fort Detrick," he said.
Newton said that when he worked in the labs, procedures were in place to ensure some degree of safety through record-keeping. Given that, he believes if something was amiss, someone had to have noticed.
"The anthrax had to be locked up, it had to be," Newton said.
The most logical explanation Newton can think of for why someone might have done this illegal act was emotional.
"Something got to him," Newton said. "I don't think it was a conspiracy."
Russell Byrne worked with Ivins in USAMRIID's bacteriology division. Byrne, who retired from Fort Detrick about four years ago, said he believes Ivins was living under pressure, being plagued by the FBI.
Federal agents had raided Ivins' home twice and threatened his job, Byrne said. The cost of lawyers was also likely putting Ivins under financial strain.
Byrne remembers working with Ivins and described an example of his eccentric behavior -- when a co-worker retired or found a new job, Ivins was quick to put together a clever song or poem for that person.
"Everybody just loved Bruce," Byrne said.
Byrne said he doesn't believe Ivins was involved in the anthrax attacks. He said he wonders how it is that the culprits haven't been identified after seven years of investigation.
"I can't imagine what it would take to convince me (that Ivins was involved)," Byrne said. "It's unimaginable to me that he had anything to do with the attacks."
Byrne's wife, Ellen Byrne, remembered Ivins from company get-togethers. She recalled his sense of humor.
"He would sing songs, make up songs," she said. "He was a nice guy, just always very upbeat and funny."
Staff writers Pam Rigaux, Sarah Fortney and Karen Gardner contributed to this article.
Norman Covert, 65, a retired Fort Detrick spokesman, served with Ivins for 11 years on a committee that reviewed how lab animals were used in research. He said the FBI "had been leaning on him (Ivins) for some time. That would stress anybody out."
"I see no evidence to show that it's Bruce. It could be anyone else in that microbacteriology lab or anywhere else in the world" because the strain of anthax used in the attacks, though originating at Fort Detrick, had been available around the world since the late 1970s, Covert said.
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Los Angeles Times "broke" the Ivins story yesterday. Here is there follow-up from today where the FBI, quietly, suggests Ivins' motive was an anthrax vaccine he had a hand in.
Ping.
I swear Pat Robertson is losing his touch!
No liberal newspapers got the anthrax.
Only the New York Post, which is not liberal. Interestingly, the New York Times was not targeted, which I would think more likely applying the “lone right wing nut” theory.
Leni
After seeing what happened with Hatfill, I really hope the FBI has targeted the right man. The media is reporting this as if this guy is known to be guilty, with reports of him being a stalker as well, and the man has killed himself - his wife, children and friends must be going through hell. Hopefully the FBI has the right guy.
I hope so too, but I have the nasty suspicion he was being made a scapegoat.
Interesting that this man was the primary researcher whose “information” was the justification for the pushing of the Anthrax vaccine on our troops. This stinks to hell. This man was suspect long ago. Rumsfeld was to shut the vaccine program down and two days before doing so “someone” mails the spores. Nice!
The hand written notes of Duley, the so-called “court document”, allege he had homocidal tendencies against therapists, not the public.
He probably did have a mental breakdown. That would make him not the first but second “person of interest” in this case which FBI tactics caused to breakdown. The other was Ken Berry.
There’s lots of possible coincidences, including the pushing of the Patriot Act at the time.
“...people have to go through a rigorous process...includes background checks...medical examinations before they are given access to USAMRIID’s biocontainment suites, but...not sure if that process includes psychological examinations.”
I know of electrical utilities operating nuclear power facilities that maintain rigorous psychological testing of all personnel having access to nuclear facilities. We don’t want any psychoes getting access to nukie control rooms, now do we? But the Feds don’t test personnel with access to potential bioweapons?
Also, I find this story disgusting. The man is dead, never convicted or even charged with a felony, and this newspaper states some crap about his “homocidal tendencies” and how he was about to be charged with five “murders”.
Anyone under duress by authorities can feel paranoid to the extent of violent intent.
He’s very wrong.
Send him a wiki link. ;-)
The article in the Seattle Times, said that he had made very specific threats against his fellow employees and that the order that was taken out against him was a restraining order because of the threats.
Ivins had told a therapy group that he had purchased a bullet proof vest because he was facing murder charges and that he intended to take as many of his fellow employees out as he could, before he was arrested.
Now, Ivins is supposed to be the one.
You're not buying it either, I gather.
It would be nice to see some evidence on Ivins' involvement, rather than allegations. Or press reports -- since the media have been accessories with the FBI throughout this investigation.
Maryland’s chief medical examiner, Dr. David Fowler, confirmed Saturday that Ivins died Tuesday morning at Frederick, Md., Memorial Hospital; that the cause of death was found to be an overdose of acetaminophen, the active drug in Tylenol; and that it was ruled a suicide based on information from police and doctors.
http://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/WireStory?id=5502344&page=3
Lots? No, not at all. Its not close to reality to see how this man was tied into the vaccine program and into the release of these spores and suggest that it was something else. There are not "lots" of reasons. The whole program is another Clinton legacy saga and this mans so-called "research" was the definitive used to force it on the soldiers.
I see that.
It comes from Duley again. According to a court transcript.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/02/us/02scientist.html?em
“He is a revenge killer,” Ms. Duley told a Maryland District Court judge in Frederick as she sought a restraining order against Dr. Ivins. “When he feels that he has been slighted, and especially towards women, he plots and actually tries to carry out revenge killings.”
That’s very wild. She’s not a doctor. How does Duley know him, and how long? How can she say he’s been doing this since his “graduate days.”
No doubt Ivins cracked, but I think it was at the end of his life.
From ABC
“The Justice Department attributed the break in the case to “new and sophisticated scientific tools.” Investigators said the science focused, in part, on how the anthrax strains were handled and who had access to it at the time of the mailings.
Had the same process been used years ago, it would have cleared Hatfill, according to two people familiar with the FBI investigation who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is not officially closed.”
Dubious. The proof now is that the germs came from Fort Detrick, and the theory always was that Hatfill’s mere presence there gave him access. If by “handle” they mean the anthrax was actually very sophisticated, that will be another grave flip flop.
Can we trust anything the government says these days?
I don’t know if this guy is guilty or not.
He may be - it certainly sounds as if there is evidence to that effect.
But we still have a legal system that considers a person innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Our government at all levels has accused and crucified too many innocent people in the press over the last years.
They were fighting a lawsuit to pay damages to another person falsely accused of this very same crime at the same time they were working to pin the crime on this new suspect.
Commiting suicide is not a defacto admission of guilt - government pressure alone could drive some to take their own lives and accusations of suicide are not always correct.
This is the same government that erroneously told us for months that the recent Salmonella epidemic was being caused by domestically grown tomatoes.
Yet they had no evidence to point in that direction and had absolutely no proof at all.
I think they are mostly incompetent bureaucrats and political hacks with agendas and I cannot accept their statements in any matter without rock solid proof.
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