Last week Merrick Garland announced the arrest of 18-year-old Idaho resident Alexander Scott Mercurio. Mercurio is accused of being a loyal follower of ISIS and preparing to attack Idaho churches. I’m a resident of Idaho. It is my community that the feds supposedly protected with Mercurio’s arrest. But given recent events, I responded to his arrest with more curiosity than gratitude. Mercurio might be a terrorist, or he might be a useful idiot – used by the DOJ to juice up their “homegrown domestic threat” narrative. That my mind went to that question, is an indication of the DOJ’s lost trust.
Given that I live in the same state as Mercurio, I’m among the defendant’s supposed “peers.” I have not – and probably will not – follow his case closely. Under normal circumstances, I would be an ideal disinterested juror – though this article will certainly eliminate that possibility. If I were to find myself on the jury, I would have questions that the prosecution would need to answer. It should not escape prosecution lawyers that a single person like myself could prevent a guilty verdict if these questions are left unanswered.
How many federal agents and confidential human sources (CHSs) were used to take down this teenager? Did federal assets outnumber the number of people under investigation? Did federal assets encourage any criminal behavior – as was the case in the Whitmer kidnapping case?
Were CHSs paid by the FBI? Did they have a financial interest in an arrest?
Were Mercurio’s threats and plans made before or after contact with agents or CHSs? Were any federal assets involved in the planning of his attack – as was the case in the Whitmer kidnapping plot?
By what means did Mercurio pledge allegiance to ISIS? Did his pledge happen before or after contact with federal assets? Did federal assets encourage the pledge? Did anyone other than federal assets witness the pledge?
What affidavits were used to get warrants for the case? Who swore to their veracity? I’m just wondering, because I’ve heard about Kevin Clinesmith.
What forensic evidence of Mercurio’s guilt does the prosecution have? Is there something scientifically objective, or is the only evidence the testimony of people on the federal payroll?
Was anyone other than the FBI involved in the chain of custody for evidence? Can any other law enforcement entity attest to the validity of the evidence?
If video or audio recordings are entered into evidence, what editing was done? Was any exculpatory video excluded from evidence – as many believe was done in the January 6 trials?
Were state or local law enforcement involved in the investigation? Do they corroborate claims made by FBI agents? I’ve read whistleblower (i.e., Greg Dillon) claims that the FBI has a reputation for misquoting local law enforcement officers in sworn statements.
Were interviews done as part of the investigation recorded, or merely documented via FBI agent notes (i.e., FD-302 forms)? How soon after each interview were the FD-302s completed? Did anyone other than the interviewing agents request or make changes to the FD-302s – as was done in the Micheal Flynn case?
What involvement did FBI headquarters have in guiding or directing the investigation? Were agents prohibited from following any investigative leads – as was done in the Hunter Biden case?
It’s not that I’m reluctant to convict a possible terrorist. The image of airliners flying into buildings and people jumping to their death to avoid the flames, changed my worldview forever. I believe that an encore performance could happen at any time. I would mercilessly convict anyone threatening my country with such violence.
But I am also aware that
- The DOJ and FBI continued the investigation of a sitting President for 3 years – after they had learned that no crime had been committed.
- A crew of useful idiots were goaded (by FBI agents) into planning the kidnapping of a Democrat governor to affect the political mood of the country prior to the 2020 election.
- The FBI conducted unnecessary armed raids at the homes of Donald Trump, James O’Keefe, Mark Houck, and Roger Stone – with camera crews invited along for the fabulism.
- FBI Director Wray perjured himself before Congress concerning the Seth Rich laptop, and refuses to answer questions about how many federal assets were involved in the activities of January 6.
To be blunt, prosecutors in the Mercurio case, need more than the “fidelity, bravery, and integrity” of federal agents upon which to base their case.
Over half of American citizens believe that our premier law enforcement agency has morphed into a premier political enforcement agency. As a juror, to convict Alexander Scott Mercurio I would need more than a pinky swear by FBI agents or DOJ attorney’s that he’s guilty.
If the case comes down to the word of the defendant vs the word of federal agents, I would likely judge him a useful idiot, but not otherwise proven guilty. That’s an unfortunate state of affairs, because he might really be guilty. But when a man’s freedom is at stake, the fidelity of the evidence, and the integrity of the collectors of evidence, matters.
This is the new reality that the FBI has wrought by squandering its credibility. It’s a reality in which “beyond a reasonable doubt” includes beyond a reasonable suspicion of FBI malfeasance.
Christopher Wray and his merry band of political enforcers don’t seem to grasp that breaking one’s oath, is an act of lying to the public in the worst possible way. Far too many in the bureau have done just that, and the entire agency has placed itself under suspicion by not holding them accountable. Now their integrity must be tested rather than accepted in every trial at which they give evidence. Welcome to the reality that “special agents” aren’t so special anymore.
This article appeared previously on American Thinker.
Author Bio: John Green is a retired engineer and political refugee from Minnesota, now residing in Idaho. He spent his career designing complex defense systems, developing high performance organizations, and doing corporate strategic planning. He can be reached at greenjeg@gmail.com.
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I’ve long suspected that FBI policy is to NOT record interviews and interrogations specifically so they CAN make the 302’s say whatever they want.
NEVER forget this agency’s founder and cult-leader was a gay, cross-dressing blackmailer and thug who would happily slaughter an entire building of innocents to waste one of his designated “Public Enemies” under the same roof.
Hey, cross dressing is now a plus for law enforcement and school teaching.
Has the FBI caught even a single genuine domestic terrorist? I have been following them since 9-11, and I dont recall them capturing even one terrorist that was not at a minimum supplied arms and fake explosives by the FBI.
Most of their arrests have resembled the Idaho arrest. Though there have been plenty of actual terrorist attacks they have failed to prevent (Boston Marathon bombers, Pulse night club, etc.). Don’t forget that they were warned that suspicious characters were taking flight training, but failed to connect the dots prior to 9/11. It’s a resource problem. Simply not enough manpower to target terrorists and Republicans.
“It’s a resource problem. Simply not enough manpower to target terrorists and Republicans.”
Or a resource allocation problem. After all, a 70-year old grandma toddling through the Capitol BETWEEN the velvet guide ropes and taking selfies with the Capitol Police is a far more lucrative investigatory target.