Bipartisan senators press FBI, inspector general for changes following Nassar case
The Hill - 11/22/21 11:03 AM EST
A bipartisan group of senators is calling on the FBI and the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to implement changes and provide information after the OIG found that the FBI’s Indianapolis office failed to respond to allegations of abuse against USA Gymnastics physician Larry Nassar with the “seriousness and urgency” needed.
The coalition, led by Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) penned a letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray on Friday requesting that the bureau provide information regarding changes it has made in the aftermath of the OIG’s report, which found that FBI officials did not quickly address allegations against Nassar, despite the possibility of the alleged abuse continuing amid the delays.
The OIG released its report on the Nassar case in July. It found the FBI and local authorities were delayed for more than a year in launching their investigation into Nassar due to a number of failures outlined in the report. The OIG said officials made “numerous and fundamental errors” and “violated multiple FBI policies.”
The senators on Friday specifically requested that Wray provide information regarding the organizational structure for responding to sexual abuse allegations, the communication between field offices or other government entities, training FBI employees undergo for working on crimes against children and policies and procedures for conducting telephone interviews with alleged child abuse victims.
Additionally, they requested details relating to changes that have been made to policies regarding the bureau’s response to child abuse allegations.
The group also penned a letter to Inspector General Michael Horowitz, requesting that he “take additional steps to ensure that the FBI’s approach to child sex abuse cases is thorough, competent, and compassionate, and that its policy and training improvements actually have their intended effect.”
They specifically asked the OIG to conduct additional audits of the FBI’s work when it comes to sex crimes against children, and take steps to audit and evaluate the FBI’s adherence to its new training and policy changes, in addition to the effectiveness of the new regulations in addressing the failures outlined in the Nassar report.
The senators also asked for a comprehensive audit of the bureau’s Crimes Against Children Program, particularly focusing on sex crimes and trafficking.
Sauce:
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/582620-bipartisan-senators-press-fbi-inspector-general-for-changes-following-nassar
Letter to FBI Director Wray:
https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2021-11-17%20SJC%20to%20FBI%20Director%20Wray%20Signatures%20v2%20(002).pdf
Letter to Inspector General Horowitz:
https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/2021-11-17%20SJC%20to%20DOJ%20OIG%20Horowitz%20re%20Nassar%20Hearing%20Follow%20Up%20Signatures%20(002).pdf
—
FBI about to feel some heat? Or simply a front to pretend like they are doing something?