Defenbaugh had been criticized for handling of McVeigh evidence
Danny Defenbaugh, the special agent in charge of the Dallas FBI office who had been recommended for disciplinary action for withholding information in the trial of Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, plans to retire April 30.
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"I will be retiring from the FBI on 4-30-2002 after almost 32 years," Agent Defenbaugh wrote in an e-mail Tuesday night to several colleagues. "I have been so fortunate to live a dream beyond my dreams. I plan on staying in the area and begin my search for a new and challenging career."
He declined to comment further Wednesday.
It remained unclear Wednesday what prompted Agent Defenbaugh's retirement. The 50-year-old bureau veteran became eligible for retirement about 14 months ago but recently said that he hoped to continue running the division.
Agent Defenbaugh said that FBI Director Robert Mueller had summoned him to a meeting Monday in Washington, D.C., according to two local law-enforcement colleagues with knowledge of the comments.
Special Agent Lori Bailey, a Dallas FBI spokeswoman, said only that Agent Defenbaugh was taking advantage of his retirement eligibility.
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FBI officials in Washington, D.C., declined to discuss the matter or say whether disciplinary decisions have been made regarding any of those held responsible for the withheld McVeigh documents.
In a March 19 report, the Justice Department recommended that Agent Defenbaugh and three other agents be disciplined for the FBI's failure to turn over thousands of pages of documents to Mr. McVeigh's lawyers in a timely manner.
The discovery of the evidentiary materials, starting as early as January 2001, was not reported to top Justice Department officials until days before Mr. McVeigh's scheduled May 2001 execution, forcing a month's delay and embarrassing the bureau.
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U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley, a frequent FBI critic who has pushed for tough discipline in the McVeigh papers case, said Agent Defenbaugh has been allowed to "get out the exit door before the curtain falls."