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Intelligence, Surveillance and Spies: One Family's Ordeal
The Intelligence Community, In Brief
Foreword: As conducted currently inside the U.S., surveillance is a two-tiered system. Tier 1 (author's designation) surveillance is legal and was the type conducted on convicted FBI spy Robert Hanssen during the couple of months preceding his arrest. Such surveillance, of course, uses search warrants, court orders, etc., and its results are used by prosecutors in the subsequent court case. Tier 2 (author's designation) surveillance, on the other hand, is normally used as a screening process and is usually conducted without use of search warrants, court orders, etc. Such surveillance is usually illegal. Among the many elements of the Tier 2 surveillance network are the FBI's Special Support (Surveillance) Group (SSG) and the FBI/Homeland Security's InfraGard group.
Another Tier 2 surveillance entity is the U.S.Army-directed Fusion Centers, which coordinate domestic intelligence operations against peace activists, anarchists, etc., inside the U.S.. Seventy-two Fusion Centers in the U.S. are used to coordinate these intelligence activities involving the various military services, the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, U.S. Coast Guard, and the various local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.
The following is a description of the Tier 2 surveillance operation. Although this description is not 100 per cent accurate because of the nature of secret organizations, it is based primarily on the experiences of the author's family, which has been subjected to Intelligence Community surveillance since 1975. Other details on this surveillance network have been ferreted out of recent books and articles on the Intelligence Community. In any event, the following description is a start, and it will be updated as more information becomes available to the author. A question and answer format is used to facilitate the reader's understanding of a rather complex subject.
Signed Originally: William Albert Hewgley
May 22, 2000
1. When was this network started?
The network was started in 1975 following the disbandments --caused by Congressional and public pressures-- of the CIA's Operation Chaos and the FBI's Operation Cointelpro anti-war, anti-Communist, surveillance programs. (As the reader may recall, 1975 was the year that Congress was investigating, among other groups, the CIA in connection with the Watergate Affair. So while Congress was investigating the CIA and others, the CIA, FBI and other Intelligence Community agencies were initiating a major, secret, broad-based, surveillance network inside the U.S..)
2. Why was this network formed?
--To combat terrorist activities in this country.
--To monitor the activities of foreign nationals suspected of spying on U.S. installations.
--To provide protection for citizens targeted by foreign intelligence services.
--To monitor citizens believed to be involved in illegal national security activities.
3. Where is this network located?
The network has roots in a wide range of towns and cities in all states of the United States.
4. Who are the participants in this network?
--Participants have been recruited primarily from the following categories:
----Retired and ex-Intelligence Community personnel.
----Retired and ex-military personnel.
----Citizens from all walks of life.
----Current Intelligence Community employees.
----Intelligence officers from nations friendly to the U.S..
----Elements of community emergency services (police, fire, ambulances, etc.).
----Employees of the U.S. Postal Service.
5. How does this network operate on a local level?
--Is inactive until a need arises to activate it.
--A team leader is selected based on consideration of such factors as the following:
----Importance of the task (How high in government does the case go?)
----Experience in similar cases.
----Availability.
----Leadership qualities.
6. How are the network participants paid?
--Cash for expenses incurred in the operation.
--Special benefits in such areas as job security, real estate purchases and sales, resort visits, guided tours, etc. ( This system of paying surveillants may be called "subtle bribery". The more valuable the surveillant is to the surveillance network, the bigger the package of benefits is provided to him/her.)
7. What are the network's characteristics?
--The network conducts surveillance operations with or without search warrants or other Court-approved orders.
--The network is not known to the American people.
--Records of network activities exist only in the field. Therefore, the network is not subject to subpoena requests or FOIA and Privacy Act requests.
--Participants may not know much about the cases they are involved in.
--Since the network is decentralized and involves a lot of retired and local people, operations can be started and stopped rapidly.
--Source of funds to operate this network is unknown.
--Network is believed to be without Congressional oversight.
8. Which Intelligence Community members exert the most influence on this network?
--FBI and CIA.
--Naval Intelligence.
--Army Intelligence.
9. Where has training for this network been observed?
--1975 to 1978--San Antonio, Texas, and vicinity.
--1977 to 1978--Camden, Tennessee.
--1978 to 1979--Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
10. Would you identify several of the many firms, institutions, etc., where members of the author's family encountered significant surveillance at times during the period 1975 to the present?
--Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas.
--Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, San Antonio, Texas.
--Department of Energy, Oak Ridge, Tennessee at K-25, Y-12 and X-10 atomic plants operated by Union Carbide Corp., Nuclear Div., and Lockheed Martin Energy Systems.(Of these 3 plants, surveillance was by far the heaviest in the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant.)
--University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee.
--Roane County High School, Kingston, Tennessee.
--Oak Ridge High School, Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
--John Marshall High School, San Antonio, Texas.
--Pat Neff Middle School, San Antonio, Texas.
11. What is the author's opinion of the Department of Energy(DOE) Security Clearance Program?
In the author's opinion, the DOE Security Clearance Program is broken. One example noted by the author is that DOE permits Intelligence Community assets (employees of DOE contractors) to conduct illegal surveillance within DOE plants, but never considers the fact that these employees(surveillants) are not authorized to break the law. When a third party reports to DOE that illegal surveillance is occurring inside their plants, DOE seeks ways to punish the messenger instead of investigating the alleged illegal acts. This practice makes mockery of the DOE Security Clearance Program.
12. To what extent are Intelligence Community assets incorporated as employees in corporations, utilities, nonprofits, etc.?
To a major extent. The author has encountered Intelligence Community assets in the following categories of U.S. businesses and government offices:
--DOE major contractors
--U.S. Departments, Bureaus and Other Entities
--A broad spectrum of aerospace companies
--Utilities which operate nuclear power plants
--NASA major contractors
--Nonprofit firms doing classified work for the government.
13. Which government officials were either involved in, or aware of, the establishment of this network?
It is suspected that the following officials were either involved in, or aware of, the establishment of this countrywide surveillance network:
--George H.W. Bush
--James Jesus Angleton (Deceased)
--Stansfield Turner
--Clarence Kelley (Deceased)
--Oliver Revell
14. Would you identify the Intelligence Community-sponsored Safe Neighborhoods you have lived in since the start of the surveillance operation?
-- Oak Hills Terrace subdivision, San Antonio, Texas (1975-1978)
-- Country Club Estates subdivision, Oak Ridge, Tennessee (1978-1979),
-- Riverbend Estates subdivision, Kingston, Tennessee (1979 to date).
15. Would you identify some of the many U.S. cities and towns where family members have encountered significant surveillance?
San Antonio, Texas; Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Washington, D.C.; San Francisco, California; Nashville, Tennessee; Kingston, Tennessee; Harriman, Tennessee; Rockwood, Tennessee; Knoxville, Tennessee; New Braunfel, Texas; Gatlinburg, Tennessee; Camden, Tennessee; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; and Charlottesville, Virginia.
Also, New York City, New York; Boston, Massachusetts; New Orleans, Louisiana; Houston, Texas; Atlanta, Georgia; San Jose, California; Miami Beach, Florida; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Indianapolis, Indiana; Paducah, Kentucky; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Williamsburg, Virginia; Detroit, Michigan; Hyattsville, Maryland; and Takoma Park, Maryland.
16. Is this network a political force in the U.S.?
Obviously, no formal study has ever been made on the political views, etc., of network members. However, personal observations by the author over many years suggest that network members are a significant political force in the U.S.. This predominantly Caucasian, conservative group of people would be expected to support politicians who share Intelligence Community views on national security and related issues.
17. What supporting evidence does the author have relating to the existence of this secret surveillance network?
In addition to the personal testimonies available from four family members, a comprehensive hard copy record, including photographs, has been compiled and will be made available to investigators. This personal file consists of about 38 cubic feet of records (equivalent to more than 6, 4-drawer filing cabinets), 30 cubic feet of which are chronological records covering the period 1975 to the present. The latter file consists of such records as personal notes relating to surveillance people encounters (names, places, circumstances of the encounters, etc.), correspondence, descriptions of psychological methods used by the surveillants against our family, and media articles on the Intelligence Community. The identities of more than 500 individuals who have participated in this case of illegal surveillance have been recorded.
18. Are participants in the Intelligence Community's Secret Surveillance Network at risk of later being prosecuted for aiding and abetting illegal government surveillance operations?
Although the author is not an attorney, in my opinion participants in what at times clearly are illegal surveillance operations not only are at risk for criminal prosecution, but also for civil lawsuits originated by the victims of these illegal operations.
19. Have you ever had a relationship with an agency member of the Intelligence Community?
Yes, in the 1970's while employed at Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas, the author assisted the CIA for about two years in sensitive matters involving foreign nations. The surveillance operation on our family started then, and has never stopped since that time, although the current level of surveillance activity is less than that experienced during the early years. The secret, broad-based, surveillance network described herein is the result of our family's experience with this illegal network over the past 35 years.
Note: The USA Patriot Act was signed by President George W. Bush on October 25, 2001, shortly after the 9/11 terror attack. This act provides for a greatly expanded role for the Intelligence Community in their conduct of surveillance throughout the U.S.. As implementation of this new law takes place, the size and intrusiveness of the above-described major, secret, broad-based surveillance network will no doubt substantially increase, resulting in an even greater threat to citizens who value their constitutionally-guaranteed rights of privacy.
Click here for a description of the Intelligence Community.
Bibliography:
1. Website author's comprehensive personal file.
2. https://www.angelfire.com/hi/IntellCommunity/index.html, The Intelligence Community, In Brief.
3. Executive Order 12333, United States Intelligence Activities, Signed by Ronald Reagan on December 4, 1981. A copy may be obtained at http://www.nara.gov/fedreg/codific/eos/e12333.html web site.
4. The USA Patriot Act; Signed by President George W. Bush on October 25, 2001.
5. Donner, Frank J.: The Age of Surveillance, Vintage Books, New York, 1981, 552pp.
6. Marchetti, Victor and John D. Marks: The CIA and the Cult of Intelligence, Dell Publishing Company, New York, 1974, 397pp.
7. https://www.angelfire.com/ut2/privacyrights/index.html, The Rights of Privacy, In Brief.
8. Avakov, Alexander V.: Plato's Dreams Realized: Surveillance and Citizen Rights From KGB to FBI, Algora Publishing Company, New York, 2006, 246pp.
This website is maintained by:
William Albert Hewgley
318 Shady Lane
Kingston, Tennessee 37763
Phone and Fax: 865-376-4169
Personal Data:
Click here for personal data on the author.
This is website: https://www.angelfire.com/rnb/surveillance/index.html
Latest Update: February 15, 2010
