[Peace-discuss] From SF Indymedia

[C. G. Estabrook]

[What one sheriff's office is here accidentally exposed as doing (rather
ineptly) we have to assume is repeated by sheriffs and police chiefs
across the country.  Same as it ever was.  --CGE]

---------- Forwarded message ----------

http://sf.indymedia.org/news/2003/10/1650550.php

	LOCAL PEACE GROUP INFILTRATED BY GOVERNMENT AGENT
	By Mike Rhodes
	October 4, 2003

Peace Fresno was infiltrated by an agent working for the Fresno Sheriff's
Department. Aaron Kilner, known by Peace Fresno activists as Aaron Stokes,
attended several Peace Fresno meetings. Peace Fresno activist Nicholas
DeGraff remembers him taking voluminous notes and several members say they
saw him at peace vigils held at Shaw and Blackstone. He was also on the
bus local anti-globalization activists took to attend the WTO
ministerial-level conference on Agricultural Science and Technology
demonstration in Sacramento in June 2003.

Aaron Kilner died in a motorcycle accident on August 30, 2003. In his
obituary in The Fresno Bee he was identified as a member of the Fresno
County Sheriff's department. The obituary went on to say that he was
"assigned to the anti-terrorist team."  Local activists believe that this
"anti-terrorist team" is, in fact, the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF)
that has recently been formed in this area.  When members of Peace Fresno
saw the picture and read of Kilner's association with law enforcement they
began piecing the story together.

The infiltration by law enforcement of progressive community groups in
Fresno and throughout the country has long been used to disrupt legitimate
political work. This disruption occurs by sowing seeds of mistrust among
members, agents often promote discord within the group, and sometimes
encourage illegal or violent actions. Agent provocateurs have been know to
instigate violence at demonstrations, giving the police an excuse to
attack protestors.

During the 1980's the Latin American Support Committee in Fresno, who
worked to end U.S. intervention in Central America, was repeatedly
harassed by government agents. Undercover agents attempted to disrupt
meetings by polarizing members about the use of violence and encouraging
the group to raise money for weapons which were needed by Central American
revolutionaries. Agents approached individual members and asked them to
engage in illegal and violent activities. The local police and the FBI
spent years investigating and harassing LASC without uncovering any
illegal activities.

A few years ago, the Fresno Police Department and the CSUF police
conspired to violate anti-sweatshop activists' rights by infiltrating
United Students Against Sweatshops. A police agent attended the group's
meetings and monitored email messages of anti-sweatshop activists. The
distorted information that this agent passed on to her superiors to
justify her job greatly exaggerated the extent of a planned demonstration
at a local mall. This mis-information resulted in the police's use of riot
clad officers, a police helicopter, and over one hundred officers to
arrest 19 peaceful protestors at the Fashion Fair mall. The presence of
the informant was discovered during the course of criminal proceedings of
the Gap 19. All charges against the anti-sweatshop activists were later
dismissed. For more information about this case see:
<http://www.fresnoalliance.com/home/GAP.htm>.

Ken Hudson, a long time activist with Peace Fresno, said that Kilner
played a very quiet role in the group. Other Peace Fresno activists also
remembered him as being quiet and added that he did not actively engage in
political, tactical, or other discussions while attending the meetings.

According the California Constitution, law enforcement does not have the
right to investigate and infiltrate groups unless they have a reasonable
suspicion of criminal activity. If local law enforcement and the JTTF was
using Kilner to investigate Peace Fresno, one has to ask - what else are
they up to? Do they have agents imbedded in other community groups? Are
they watching what people say at Churches and Mosques? Because of the
Patriot Act, does law enforcement now believe they have the right to
monitor what you do and say in your home? In your bedroom?

There have been several meetings between law enforcement and groups
concerned about civil liberties, in the wake of September 11, 2001. One
such meeting was held with Lt. Pat Farmer of the Fresno Police Department.
Lt. Farmer told this group of community activists that there is nothing to
prevent the police or JTTF members from investigating and interrogating
community members. He suggested that the person being investigated might
not even know he was talking to a police officer. "If the person doesn't
want to talk with us, they don't have to," Farmer said. At an earlier
meeting, immediately after 9-11, an FBI agent told a group, of mostly
immigrant rights activists, that anyone helping a group identified as a
"terrorist group" by the United States government would be investigated as
a potential terrorist. That was interpreted to mean that if you are
working, for example, to support the Zapatistas in Chiapas, you might be
investigated as a supporter of international terrorism. This FBI agent
said that every agent in this area was now focusing on stopping the
terrorist threat.

Another justification on the local war against terrorism comes from Fresno
Police chief Jerry Dyer. He told community members that Fresno is a hotbed
of terrorist activity and that is why the JTTF has been established in
this area. He told this group that Fresno could have "sleeper cells," that
they are connected with illegal methamphetamine production to fund
terrorist activities, and all of this is somehow related to radical Muslim
extremists. While this story may seem far fetched for those of us who live
in this area it was good enough to bring in millions of dollars in Federal
anti-terrorism funds.

The Fresno Bee printed a story about the infiltration of Peace Fresno by
law enforcement in their Friday, October 3 issue (see:
<http://www.fresnobee.com/local/story/7537174p-8449347c.html>). They
printed a statement from Sherriff Pierce that said:

*************************************

Detective Aaron Kilner was a member of the FCSD Anti-Terrorism unit. This
unit collects, evaluates, collates, analyzes, and disseminates information
on individuals, groups, and organizations suspected of criminal or
terrorist activities. This information meets the stringent federal and
state guidelines for intelligence gathering and civil rights protections
in order to prevent crime and protect the health and safety of residents
of Fresno County and the State of California.

For the purpose of detecting or preventing terrorist activities, the
Fresno County Sheriff's Department may visit any place and attend any
event that is open to the public, on the same terms and conditions as
members of the public generally. No information obtained from such visits
shall be retained unless it relates to potential criminal or terrorist
activities.

Peace Fresno was not and is not the subject of any investigation by the
FCSD. The FCSD does not have any reports, files, rosters, or notes on
Peace Fresno or it's [sic] meetings.

The FCSD is dedicated to protecting the citizens of Fresno County. The
department will continue to utilize legal methods for collecting,
evaluating, collating, analyzing, and disseminating criminal intelligence
of terrorist and organized crime organizations to accomplish its mission,
while respecting the constitutional rights of all persons.

Sincerely, RP, Sheriff

*******************************************************************

The revelation that the Sheriff's department placed an agent in Peace
Fresno begs [they mean "raises" --CGE] the question of what other groups
are being investigated, what has happened to our civil liberties since
9-11, and how will the community respond to this attack against our civil
liberties. Some activists and legal experts are claiming that state
attorney general Bill Lockyer's directive to California law enforcement,
telling them not to collect intelligence on religious or political groups
without evidence of criminal activity should be the law of the land. But,
does State law override the Patriot Act?

A united community defending their Constitutional Rights to civil
liberties will be the best defense against future attacks. The goal is to
not only stop these current intrusions against peaceful and nonviolent
groups engaged in civic participation but return the rights that were
taken away with the passage of the Patriot Act. To find out how Fresno
progressive groups respond to this incident you are invited to subscribe
to the Community Alliance magazine, P.O. Box 5077, Fresno Ca 93755 ($35 a
year) or visit them on their web site:
<http://www.fresnoalliance.com/home>.

For more information about Peace Fresno see their web site at:
<http://www.peacefresno.org>.

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