Conyers Demands Rigorous Investigation of Imam Shooting

House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-Mich.) will appear at a Detroit press conference tomorrow on the controversial shooting of Detroit Imam Luqman Ameen Abdullah.  Conyers wrote to Attorney General Eric Holder about the matter on January 13, 2010, demanding that the Department’s investigation of the matter be "thorough, rigorous, and transparent." Conyers also called for a broader, independent review of the FBI’s use of undercover informants in mosques and houses of worship.

"In Detroit, and around the world, people are rightly concerned when a religious leader becomes involved with an FBI informant and ends up dead in the street," Conyers said. "And in this case, the more time goes by, the more questions we seem to have."

Chairman Conyers is calling for the following actions:

• The Dearborn police’s criminal investigation into the shooting of Imam Abdullah must be completed as soon as possible, and the results released to the public.
• The FBI’s internal review of the matter – including the undercover investigation, the October 28 raid, and the shooting of Imam Abdullah – should be handled by independent investigators at FBI headquarters and the Department of Justice, and the results should be released to the public.  There must be appropriate accountability for anyone found to have violated the law or Department of Justice rules.
• Relevant physical evidence – including forensic information regarding the shooting of the FBI dog and any audio or video surveillance of the raid – should be made available for independent examination. FOIA requests that have been filed on this matter should be given the highest priority.
• The Civil Rights Division must conduct a credible, independent review of the Department’s use of informants in mosques and houses of worship, and the attorney general should ensure that such investigations are never based on impermissible factors such as ethnic or religious profiling.

Conyers concluded, "People want to believe that the executive branch can conduct an impartial review in a case like this but, unfortunately, trust is in short supply right now.  The Department of Justice can do a lot of good if it handles this matter in a credible and transparent way.  If they fall short, then it will be left to Congress to ensure that justice is done."

Chairman Conyers' letter to the attorney general.