I've been away a few days. This is from the 25th, but there is no mention of it being previously posted to DU in the JC blog so here it is.
From John Conyers' blog - www.johnconyers.com
Justice Department Hits New Low -- And Gets Caught Red Handed
As someone who has served in Congress for 20 terms, even I must confess that I am shocked by the brazen politicization of the Department. Recently, the Department's Bureau of Justice Statistics was preparing to issue a press release on their study of racial profiling in traffic stops. Apparently the conclusion, that racial profiling is an ongoing problem, somehow distrurbed the front office at Justice. The Department insisted that the factual conclusions regarding evidence of profiling be deleted. The highly respected (and GOP appointee) head of the statistics division, Lawrence Greenfeld, objected, and next thing we know, there was no press release at all and Mr. Greenfeld was threatened with termination, and eventually demoted. Its hard to imagine a more textbook case of politics trumping facts.
Fortunately, Eric Lichtblau of the New York Times wrote about this deed yesterday. After learning about it, I announced my intentions to ask for an independent review by GAO, as reported on by Dan Eggen of the Washington Post (and others). Much, much more will be coming on this.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/24/politics/24profiling.htmlAugust 24, 2005
Profiling Report Leads to a Demotion
By ERIC LICHTBLAU
WASHINGTON, Aug. 23 - The Bush administration is replacing the director of a small but critical branch of the Justice Department, months after he complained that senior political officials at the department were seeking to play down newly compiled data on the aggressive police treatment of black and Hispanic drivers. The demotion of the official, Lawrence A. Greenfeld, whom President Bush named in 2001 to lead the Bureau of Justice Statistics, caps more than three years of simmering tensions over charges of political interference at the agency. And it has stirred anger and tumult among many Justice Department statisticians, who say their independence in analyzing important law enforcement data has been compromised.
Officials at the White House and the Justice Department said no political pressure had been exerted over the statistics branch. But they declined to discuss the job status of Mr. Greenfeld, who told his staff several weeks ago that he had been asked to move on after 23 years of generally high marks as a statistician and supervisor at the agency. Mr. Greenfeld, who was initially threatened with dismissal and the possible loss of some pension benefits, is expected to leave the agency soon for a lesser position at another agency.
With some 50 employees, the Bureau of Justice Statistics is a low-profile agency within the sprawling Justice Department. But it produces dozens of reports a year on issues like crime patterns, drug use, police tactics and prison populations and is widely cited by law enforcement officials, policy makers, social scientists and the news media. Located in an office separate from the Justice Department, it strives to be largely independent to avoid any taint of political influence.
The flashpoint in the tensions between Mr. Greenfeld and his political supervisors came four months ago, when statisticians at the agency were preparing to announce the results of a major study on traffic stops and racial profiling, which found disparities in how racial groups were treated once they were stopped by the police. Political supervisors within the Office of Justice Programs ordered Mr. Greenfeld to delete certain references to the disparities from a news release that was drafted to announce the findings, according to more than a half-dozen Justice Department officials with knowledge of the situation. The officials, most of whom said they were supporters of Mr. Greenfeld, spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss personnel matters.
more.......
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/24/AR2005082401893_pf.htmlwashingtonpost.com
Official in Racial Profiling Study Demoted
Justice Department Denies Political Pressure; Lawmaker Demands Investigation
By Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 25, 2005; A07
The ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee called for a congressional investigation yesterday into allegations that a Justice Department official is being demoted after attempting to publicize findings that police treated Hispanic and black drivers more aggressively than whites during traffic stops. Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.) said he was preparing a request for an "independent review" by the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, which will be asked to examine the personnel issues and the formulation of the study itself.
"It is totally unacceptable for the Justice Department to politicize statistical releases and demote individuals merely because they were seeking to provide accurate summaries of statistical information regarding racial profiling," Conyers said. Conyers's demand came after a report in the New York Times focusing on Lawrence A. Greenfeld, who heads the Bureau of Justice Statistics, a small office staffed primarily with statisticians who conduct studies and issue reports on law enforcement issues.
Quoting unidentified officials and documents, the report said Greenfeld was ordered to delete references to racial disparities in a news release prepared to announce a study on the treatment of different ethnic groups during police traffic stops. The survey of 80,000 people, which was eventually issued in April without a news release, found that minority drivers were three times as likely to have their vehicles searched during traffic stops as white drivers.
Greenfeld fought the order and was eventually called to the White House and urged to resign six months before he was eligible for full pension benefits, but Greenfeld invoked personnel rules to force an agreement to place him in a different job, the Times said. Greenfeld did not return a telephone message left yesterday. Justice Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse declined to comment on the personnel status of Greenfeld, who is still acting as head of the statistics bureau.
more.....
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