If Not Ivins by Katherine Heerbrandt When Norm Covert, a conservative former Fort Detrick public affairs officer, and attorney Barry Kissin, liberal activist opposing Detrick’s biolab expansion, agree that Bruce Ivins was not the anthrax killer, either the world’s spinning off its axis, or the truth is staring us so hard in the face we’d…

A transcript of the FBI’s scientific (afternoon of Aug. 18, 2008) briefing for media can be found here.

FDA answered a Freedom of Information Act request for me today. I asked how many adverse event reports had been filed for anthrax vaccine (5,931 reports through July 22, 2008) and how many FDA had designated as SERIOUS (618 reports). Serious reports are those indicating an event requiring hospitalization, a life-threatening event, permanent disability, or…

Science 22 August 2008:Vol. 321. no. 5892, pp. 1026 – 1027 excerpted from the body of the article: (my apologies that a free link is not available) …The FBI disclosed earlier that only eight samples had all four mutations; on Monday, it said that all but one of these came from USAMRIID. And all eight…

Excerpt from original story in The Oregonian indicates extensive contacts and debriefs between Haigwood and the FBI over 6 years. Although agents were close-mouthed with almost everyone else during this investigation, they apparently opened their case files for Dr. Haigwood: “Haigwood, who researches HIV transmission and vaccines, said she contacted the FBI shortly after the…

The FBI and major media have placed a lot of emphasis on the techniques used to identify the specific batch of Ames anthrax used in the Daschle/Leahy letters. Careful consideration of these methods is certainly important, for their accuracy is critical to the FBI’s theory of the case. However, at the end of the day,…

In an editorial published online today, titled “Case Not Closed,” Nature noted that “Only full disclosure can lift suspicions that the FBI has again targeted an innocent man:” … neither the conclusions drawn from the scientific analysis, nor such crucial legal elements as the veracity of the provenance and handling of samples, have been tested…

Washington Post and New York Times editorials today find the FBI’s revelations unconvincing, and call for an independent, scientific review of the evidence.

Does this case hinge on the first samples Ivins gave to the FBI, of which one was sent to Dr. Paul Keim in Arizona? Why does that sample matter, if the flask the FBI later confiscated had the same strain and genetic variability? Furthermore, if Keim’s sample is critical to the case, one must ask,…

I did not attend either FBI briefing, and the comments below relate to multiple news reports of the briefing. 1. Either one flask or two contained the specific anthrax strain in the letters–it was reported both ways in different newspapers, and apparently there was disagreement at the meeting.2. Two labs had this strain, but the…

Speaking to motive for the Daschle and Leahy letters, there might be multiple motives. The letters likely influenced their decisions on upcoming legislation like the Patriotic Act, and both had considerable power to promote or suppress legislation. The letters were likely intended to frighten all Congressional Members, whose office buildings were affected, and who, like…

A local Maryland paper provides new information from a colleague who worked at USAMRIID with Ivins through 2007, and published USAMRIID’s official response to questions.

Eric Lichtblau (NY Times) and Robert Roos (Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy ) have written two comprehensive articles discussing the scientific and other evidence that has been presented. Lichtblau also discusses a closed-door FBI briefing that took place on August 14. They conclude the case is found seriously wanting.

David Willman tells us today that the FBI missed Ivins for so many years because it was obsessed with Hatfill. Is this the FBI’s apologia? The FBI is a federal law enforcement agency; it is not a person with feelings and quirks. I don’t think we can let the FBI off the hook because of…

Itching to grapple with the scientific analysis employed by the FBI? Martin Enserink and Yudhijit Bhattacharjee of Science have done the best reporting yet on the kinds of microbial forensic evidence we are likely to see. Meanwhile, Carrie Johnson reports on House and Senate Judiciary Committee oversight panels, which have proposed September hearings to investigate…

On August 7, 2008 Senator Grassley wrote to Attorney General Mukasey and FBI Director Mueller asking them to answer 18 excellent questions about their investigation.

Case Analysis in a Nutshell 1. Ivins cannot be placed at the Princeton mailbox at either of the two times he would have to have been there.2. There are additional hoax letters that have not been discussed by FBI in the information released Wednesday; may we assume Ivins could not be placed at those mailbox…

On June 29, 2007 a Government Accountability Office report was issued regarding the military Vaccine Healthcare Centers, which were formed in 2001 to take care of injuries from anthrax vaccine. They have treated 2,400 ill soldiers, the vast majority for illnesses developing in close proximity to anthrax vaccinations. Page 4 of the report says, “Officials…

Thanks to a comment, I just reread Don Foster’s The Message in the Anthrax, published in Vanity Fair and Reader’s Digest in 2003. This is a must-read if you want to understand the universe of evidence that has accrued in this case. Foster discusses the hoax letters; the Assaad story (by Laura Rozen); how the…

DNA is just another anthrax clue, not clincher: Its use in distinguishing bacteria is limited. Some scientists want to know what else implicated Bruce ivins. By Faye Flam, Philadelphia Inquirer Staff Writer DNA evidence alone wasn’t a smoking gun in the case against Bruce Ivins as the perpetrator of the 2001 anthrax attacks, say microbiologists…

See Brad Friedman’s piece at The Guardian, UK, and this Washington Post Editorial Holes in the Anthrax Case? The nation and the FBI would benefit from an independent review of the investigation. Saturday, August 9, 2008; A14 ON WEDNESDAY, the federal government made public much of its case against accused anthrax killer Bruce E. Ivins….

In his news conference on Wednesday, August 6, US Attorney Jeffrey Taylor mentioned (evidence point 4) that while Ivins had been under 24/7 surveillance, he discarded some materials on DNA coding. If the FBI was about to charge Ivins, you would expect he was still under 24/7 surveillance, right? Well, a tylenol overdose is entirely…

Allen McDuffee of Raw Story.com provides this tidbit, indicating Karl Rove knew the vaccine was problematic based on materials from Ross Perot.

Many have asked me if Ivins’ anthrax vaccinations or meds might have contributed to his mental state. Bruce admitted a family history of emotional problems, his brother Tom appears psychiatrically impaired, and I don’t mean to make light of this history. However, the answer to whether anthrax vaccine leads to mental disorders is a resounding…

CDC, which performed some vaccine tests, acknowledged in 1968 that, “As to the efficacy of the vaccine, we have no real method of determining the protection afforded.” FDA records show that in 1969 the ad hoc committee to license anthrax vaccine found a lack of “scientific evidence for efficacy of the vaccine.” The committee chairman,…

From Eric Lipton in the Aug 9 NY Times: “There was a real threat, the former colleagues acknowledged, that the anthrax vaccine Dr. Ivins had worked on during that period, known as Anthrax Vaccine Absorbed or AVA, might be pulled from the market Most troubling were problems at the Michigan manufacturing plant, which had been…

From the very enlightening NPR interview with Ivins’ attorney, Paul Kemp: “They have a Secret Service document examiner who examined the stamps on these pre-franked envelopes [envelopes with prepaid postage] that contained the anthrax in the anthrax attacks. And because of microscopic defects, you’re correct, he was able to tie those to lots or a…

Just for fun, let’s investigate some facets of the FBI’s case: 1. Leaks last weekend claimed that Ivins was about to be charged with committing the anthrax crime. Turns out, FBI had not yet brought its evidence against Ivins to a grand jury. And one of his attorneys denies that he was told he was…

CorrectionGuess El-Hibry knew what he was doing when he sold 230,100 shares of the anthrax vaccine manufacturer between July 17 and August 6, since the vaccine company Emergent Biosolutions reported poor net earnings despite sales being up 88% this quarter. On sales of 230,100 shares since mid July, he earned about $3 million dollars. Note…

The shiny new methods of “microbial forensics,” touted by the FBI for months as offering a new break in the case, have in fact revealed little or nothing. As the New York Times’ Scott Shane and Eric Lichtblau reveal, “officials admitted that more than 100 people had access to the supply of anthrax that matched…

If the FBI cannot place Ivins at the scene of the crime (the Princeton mailbox) on the required dates, then who cares what sorority houses might be near the mailbox? The sorority angle becomes irrelevant, since he did not mail the letters in Princeton. Remember, this is one of the most complex, expensive cases in…

U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Taylor said at a Justice Department news conference, “We regret that we will not have the opportunity to present evidence to the jury.” Everybody else regrets it too–since what came out today was another pastiche of innuendo and circumstantial evidence, with an awful lot of holes. Time for the FBI to present…

See what power reporting has? It can solidify a tower of Bullshit, or cause it to collapse. The bloggers deserve a lot of credit for transforming the Ivins reportage, via impressive investigations and and logical thinking. Their work may have turned this case from one of conviction by innuendo — into one that will receive…

The NY Times’ Scott Shane and Nicholas Wade are drilling down on the essentials, elaborating on who had access to the particular anthrax found in Ivins’ lab and, purportedly, the letters: But at least 10 scientists had regular access to the laboratory and its anthrax stock — and possibly quite a few more, counting visitors…

Bloggers Larisa Alexandrovna (Raw Story.com) and Glenn Greenwald (Salon.com) beat the major press on Jean Duley’s background. Seems she has an extensive police record including two arrests for DUI since 2006 and a remote drug paraphernalia charge. I suspected as much, having read that she was involved in treating addicts with Suboxone. Many substance abuse…

Scott Shane, who has always done terrific reporting on the anthrax letters story, first at the Baltimore Sun, later at the NY Times, has again hit a home run. His piece, Anthrax Evidence is Said to be Primarily Circumstantial, lays out the kind of case that may be made against Ivins. Unfortunately, the evidence reported…

This am’s Hartford Courant carries a sensible Op-Ed. It ends, Congress should press the Justice Department for a full and public accounting of this case. Forcing the FBI to lay out its evidence against Mr. Ivins is the only way the public can be sure the agency’s methods were reasonable. It’s only fair.

CNN notes, The DNA linked the anthrax used in the mailing to a flask used in Bruce Ivins’ lab at the U.S. Army Medical Institute of Infectious Diseases, said the source, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the case. Maybe so, though I am awfully tired of all these “unauthorized” sources who talk…

The media have reported that some biodefense scientists said Ivins couldn’t produce the powdered anthrax found in the letters, but at least one scientist said he could. One problem is that the public does not know how the letters’ anthrax was produced, nor whether it contained an additive that promoted dispersion. Anthrax is produced in…

From a story in the Frederick News-Post: Duley’s fiance of seven years, Mike McFadden, spoke to The Frederick News-Post on Saturday from their home in Williamsport and provided a statement on her behalf. “Jean is currently at an undisclosed location,” McFadden said. Duley had numerous meetings with the FBI in the past month, McFadden said,…

On the one hand, the Justice Department is considering closing the anthrax letters case this week. On the other hand, the FBI seized computers (and this time with no court order) from the Frederick Public Library this week. Looks like they were in a hurry. Last two times they examined computers they had a court…

Glenn Greenwald has written a nice piece today in Salon.com on journalists, anonymous sources and the anthrax letters case. He discusses Ivins at the beginning and end of his long article.

The AP has reported startling and frightening claims by Dr. Ivins’ therapist Jean Duley in several stories, including one just published by Dishneau and Jordan: Report: Therapist feared scientist poisoned people She claimed, “As far back as the year 2000, the respondent has actually attempted to murder several other people, either through poisoning. He is…

http://www.courant.com/news/local/hc-anthrax0802,0,2705314.story My comments to a reporter were misinterpreted and I want to clarify them. The story says, “Ivins was a civilian working in the Army’s main bioterrorism program. Nass said Ivins always complained about being treated poorly by some of the military personnel.” Bruce did not ever complain to me about being “treated poorly.” I…

A friend put this article into HTML and added some links to the references. I think it is valuable background for understanding the letters case.

Back in 2002, in preparation for an interview on the anthrax letters for “Unsolved Mysteries,” I reviewed the media coverage. As I read article after article, I found that the statements most germane to an understanding of the case were almost entirely unsourced. It was unnerving to conclude that I knew very little about the…

The anthrax letters did not test anyone’s vaccine. For people exposed to the anthrax letters, anthrax vaccine was given in three doses over 4 weeks. It takes about 4-6 weeks after vaccinations start before recipients develop levels of antibodies to anthrax that may be protective. The vaccine’s label even points out that anthrax vaccine is…

For 7 years the Justice Department couldn’t seem to get anything right about the anthrax letters. For years, it harrassed Steven Hatfill, a self-described bodyguard for South African white supremacist Eugene Terrblanche and an unlicensed physician, despite a shocking lack of evidence. He is now $5.8 million richer as a result. But the White House…