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Event:
Law Enforcement Sensitive
MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD
FBI Washington Field Office Analyst) Interview


Type. o f event: Interview
\Pate: July 29, 2003
\ Special ACcess Issues: None
Prepared by: Lance Cole
Team'Number:
Loatio'n: FBI WaShington Field Office
Partieipants -Non-Commission: FBI Assistant General Counsel Robert S. Sinton
Participants.-Commissioiy Lance Cole and John Tamm
Personal Background:

is an FBI analyst in the Washington Field Office

",`NA/F0") currently assigned to the "DT-4" joint intelligence squad. She has been an FBI
employee since July 9, 1979. Prior to her FBI employment she had "some college" at the
University of I/Iaryland, but she does not have a college degree. She also had two part-time jobs
priOr to joiningThe F131 neither or which was law enforcement or intelligence-related. She
applied for a job With the\FBI because both her mother (long-term) and her father (for a short
while) had workect\for the FBI. She submitted a non-special agent employment application to
FBI headquarters, and was hired. After a three-day orientation, she was assigned to the WFO.
She initially performed "clerical type" jobs and then became the first Intelligence Research
Specialist ("IRS") in the WFO.
Pre-9/11 FBI EY'eperiencd lvvorked Soviet (later Russian) intelligence until 1994,
when she was asked by the terrorism squad supervisor to join that squad. She initially worked
Iran, PLO, and Hamas, until the squad spit in 1994 and she was assigned to the "IT-1" Iran and
Hezbollah \squad. She has since worked primarily Hezbollah an dl 'although she
assisted the) )for nine. months in 1998 or 1999. She also had one temporary assignment
in San Diego.
New JITF Squad: Whilf-lis assigned "on paper" to the DT-4 squad, she still sits
with the IT-1 squad, and she receives assignments from both the IT-1 and DT-4 supervisors. The
DT-4 supervisor is Gaye Harrington (sp?). As a result of a recent reorganization of the WFO
analysts, Harrington now supervises the DT-4 squad and also-assigns analysts r to other squads.
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..Eight agents and all 28 analysts are assigned to the DT-4 squad.I aidthe analysts "found
out at the last minute" about the reorganization and their assignmerit tothe DT-4 squad. She
believes that the "thinking behind the new structure is flexibility; but analysts aro pulled from
one thing to another." Specifically, during the Iraq war investigation there was a problem with
analysts' assignments, but the situation has since improved'. believes she spends about
25% of her time on DT-4 assignments. For example, she recently worked on a DT=.4 project in
which ten separate "ECs" on ten different mosques were prepared. I

work was combined

with the work of other DT-4 analysts on that project.
Training for Analyst Position:! as had in-service training on the Middle East,
and the WFO language specialists have given presentations on Middle Eastern culture.
has not had any specific training on Islam, but she has attended CIA training classes (at CIA
Headquarters) on the Middle East and the Near East. She has also taken two analytical courses
(2-3 week courses) from the DIA, in addition to her FBI in-service training at Quantico. She
also has taken an "Analysts Notebook" course at FBI headquarters./
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FBI Information Systems generally uses ACS as the starting point for her
research and analysis. She has found that "stop words" are a problem on ACS, but otherwise it is
a useful source of information. Roughly 60% oil 'projects require her to go beyond
public sources and ACS and seek information from other agencies. In the latter cases, she will
incorporate information from other agencies into an EC she prepares. For example, she
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incorporated information from other agencies into the EC she prepared for the large DT-4
The normal process of diSsemination for her work product is through an EC or
LHM ("Letterhead Memorandum"). An EC may be "case specific" or "general" and may go into
the case agent's file or be sent through ACS to FBI Headquarters. The squad supervisor makes
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work is sent to an outside agency, it is put in the form of an Top s90m information
cannot be put into ACS and must be transferredby-a"physical courier it6F,BI Headquarters.
"Integrated Intelligence Reports" (11Rs") are sent to Lisa Crowder /OM at FBI Headquarters for
dissemination to other agenCies.
(volunteered that she believes "sharing information is all well and good, but 'need
to know' still exists" and there is still a need to protettources.-;:She believeshhat access to IIRs
should be limited to those other agencies that actually need the information the IIRs contain.
The present procedure is for IIRs to be distributed to other:agencies by FBI Headquarters, but
"WFO wants to do its own IIRs and deterrnine who recei ves them."' (went do to explain
that FBI Headquarters has determined-how many IliR4/a field office will dof. The WFO has been
given a number that was set by/Sherry Fleming (sp7), the Section Chief for National Security at
FBI Headquarters beljeves that "clarific4tion" is needed on the new IIR policy. In
February 2003 she learnedthat there would be,,``IIR training," and in aboUt May 2003 the "real
push" on preparation "of IIRs started.' lias not yet completed an She is concerned that
"it could result in, a source's death" if an IIR got into the wrong hands.
I
Itinderst an d s the requireinents for production of IIRs imposed by FBI Headquarters
are based on the number of agents:in a field office and that Headquarters "uses a formula" to
determine the number of IIRs ti,:re office should produce. WhileFIsaid she was reluctant to
call this "a quota" she is concerned about the requirement [she glanced apprehensively at Sinton
when she made this statement]. She is concerned that "people will feel pressure and resent" the
new requirement. Thish the first time that the WFO analysts have had a quota imposed by FBI
Headquarters. is also concerned that the "quality may not be there" to justify production
of an IIR if a quota system is enforced. Gaye Harrington said [WFO SAC] Mike Rolince is
interested in IIRs and may start looking at IIR production numbers squad by squad.
believes that there is an EC [from Headquarters] setting out the IIR production requirement for

that IIR production will be an issue at "inspection time."

each office; she thinks the requirement for WFO is about 30 a month.nalso is concerned
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decisions concerning the distribution of reports, based upon the rules in the -M1
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went on to explain that she believes that "on the FCI side" each office has to do
onesIIR a month. She understands that there is a distinction between how IIRs are being handled
on theCT,side. and the FCI-side. She believes that on the CT side FBI Headquarters is preparing
and:disseminating the-IIRs, while on-the FCI side the IIRs are prepared at the field offices. She
says the,distinction,betweeri'C'T and FCI handling of IIRs is a Headquarters thing" and she
\doesn't kriow why, the two have different proceduresAn addition to IIR reporting, a "Significant
`Activity RePOrt" is prepared-each week for.-WFO managemend has heard that SAC Mike
''.. ROlince may Strtbreakiitg downsthat report squad by squad.
Analyst Opportunities for Career Advancement: When asked about opportunities for
career advancement'aS',an analyst Paid she understands-.that Reports Officer and
Intelligence Analyst positions are being created] aid she Will.not apply for those
positiOnS and will continue, as an "IOS'Intelligence Operations Specialist:-.he will not apply
for the new positions because.She is "more interested in tactical analysis that strategic analysis."
When asked about post-9j1 counterterrorism directives from FBI Headquarters
said she uriderstands that Headquarters directed that each field office have a separate intelligence
squad. The WFO then assigned all analysts to one squad. The 1W requirements have been put in
place since 9=111 also believes thei-e''has been more. training since 9-11. There have been
more presentations by the CIA and other agenCies, and the College of Analytical Studies has
been establiShed'at Quantico. New analysts are now required to complete basic courses, and
more advanced courses are offered to senior anaiystS:,. In calendar 2003Elhas taken a one-
day course on Iranian culture offered by the FBI,'
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taken the week-long 'Analysts Notebook training course. at FBI Headquarters. The Analyst
Notebook software was available before 9-11, but training. on'a new version of the software was
offered after 9-1 Analysts are now required to complete a Certain amount of training courses
each year, although' 'thinks that was also the case before 9 7 11.. also had Trilogy
training last year.
Post-9/11 Changes:1

said the primary post-9-11 changes she has observed are -the
assignment of all the WFO analysts to a single squad and the increased sharing of information.
She characterized the other changes as "more administrative type" changed1s still doing
"much the same day-to-day work" since 9-11, but she now "meet[s] with other analysts more."
Weekly meetings are now scheduled for the analysts, although they "really happen about every
two weeks" because people are busy and other things interfere. Both before and after 9-11

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"addition to the JTTF.representatives from other agencies, some agency personnel are assigned to
other squad's at the WFO.
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."people have been working long hours 14 or 15 hours a day." Immediately after the 9-11
attacks) 'worked on the Flight 77 TaSk Force. She then worked on the "Attorney General's
Directive interviewing people who fit a profile" [herel again looked at Sinton as if she
were,concerned about whether or not she should say this] to try to obtain information on
indiViduals who had contacts with the hijackerS or were otherwise of investigative interest.
Contact With JTTF: ' 'deals " sporadically" with the JTTF in the WFO. They are
"a source of information" fbr analysts./They are not a consumer of the analysts' reports. In
terms of obtaining information from' other agencies, the timeliness of the response depends on
the priority of the req,tiest. It may take as long as a month to obtain information "through the
normal process" for requests: Whenever possib1 will try to obtain information from the
agency representatives afthe WPC/

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