These priorities are being supported by a campaign within
the Bureau to re-engineer our operations. Like any organization,
the FBI needs to be managed in an efficient and effective
way. That means taking advantage of best practices developed
in both the public and private sectors. Ultimately, I want
the Bureau to excel in everything it does--whether it is
investigations, training or forensics. At the same time,
I want us to be a vital partner with you. As I have said
throughout the year, the FBI is only as good as its relationships
with law enforcement here in the United States and around
the world. That is why we are so committed to your success.
Now I know you want to hear, in particular, what progress
has been made in our joint efforts over the past year. One
year ago--in Toronto--I gave you some commitments.
We committed to
you that the FBI would be a better partner. And we committed
to you that we would do a better job sharing
information. In many ways, we have improved. I believe we
are "better." Not perfect, but better.
Our SACs in 56 field offices around the country, try to
keep you informed with timely and accurate information. We
strive to get alerts and advisories to you as quickly as
possible. I know some alerts are more helpful than others.
I know some advisories lack the specificity you need. But
we are learning to get the word out, to get it out quickly,
and to give you the accurate information you need.
For instance,
we are working to create a system using LEO, NLets, and
RISSNET that will get alerts to you before you
hear the story on CNN-not some of the time, but all of the
time. But, that's a tall order. It is something I am committed
to. Still, we need to do more. We need to build more and
better and bigger bridges.
One way to build
bridges is to hire architects and engineers. The FBI was
fortunate to convince one of the IACP's best-Lou
Quijas-to join the FBI. Lou is now constructing bridges with
you, with National Sheriffs, with Major City Chiefs and Major
County Sheriffs, and PERF, among others.
By the same token, Bill Eubanks, the former SAC in St. Louis,
is working full-time to address and fix information-sharing
problems. We also have state and local representatives serving
in the strategic command center at FBI Headquarters, as we
have had in other national programs for years.
That said, is our information sharing where it must be?
Not yet. We have more to do, and we know it. But we are seeing
an unprecedented level of cooperation throughout the law
enforcement community. We are proud of that. That brings
us to an important point. Some of the most significant changes
have less to do with what we are doing and more to do with
how we are doing it.
What am I referring to? As I have said repeatedly, you are
our full partners in the war on terror. Partners! The task--the
war on terrorism--is too big and too important for the FBI
to go it alone. The work of protecting our nation, our citizens,
and our interests, here and abroad, turns not on what any
one of us is doing. Rather, it turns most assuredly on what
all of us are doing, together.
In June, Bill
Berger testified before the Senate Committee on Governmental
Affairs. He noted that while local law enforcement
agencies are often the first responders to a terrorist attack,
their role is significantly broader. Bill stated that, and
I quote, "these agencies can and must play a vital role in
the investigation and prevention of future terrorist attacks." Bill
told the Senate that 16,000 state and local law enforcement
agencies employ more than 700,000 officers, and that these
officers are the eyes and ears of their communities. That
makes all of you a critical source of information and intelligence
in the was on terrorism. Bridges carry traffic in two directions,
not one, and we appreciate that fact now more than ever before.
This has been a tough year for all Americans. It has been
a difficult and emotional year for law enforcement, as well.
I think--check that--I know--we are stronger and better.
What I see today is a law enforcement community that is more
prepared, more capable, and more unified than ever before.
The most publicized victories have been in the war against
terrorism.
Six months ago, for example, an individual began terrorizing
middle America, planting 18 pipe bombs in rural mailboxes
across five different states. Law enforcement across this
region linked arms. With lighting speed, and through close
coordination, you quickly identified that individual. When
he was arrested, six more pipe bombs were found in the trunk
of his car. It was great work--and a classic case of effective
cooperation.
Throughout the United States, we are also working shoulder-to-shoulder
on 56 Joint Terrorism Task Forces--as well as on ten satellite
task forces and a new National JTTF in Washington.
One year ago, nearly half of these task forces didn't exist.
The ones that did exist were not nearly as large as they
are now. Today information flows more freely. Tips are routed
more quickly. Leads are covered more efficiently. Again,
it is not perfect. But it gets better every day.
The fact that many leads do not pan out, as we know all
too well, is a source of frustration. We work for days, or
weeks or months, and often have little to show for it. But
it is this type of work--joint, cooperative work--that is
at the heart of prevention, and it is making a difference.
It made a difference in Portland, Oregon, and Detroit, Michigan,
where last week we indicted six individuals on charges that
they supported a foreign terrorist organization.
It made a difference in Lackawanna, New York, where three
weeks ago, six other individuals were indicted on similar
charges. Indeed, in New York, 25 state, local, and federal
agencies worked closely together to button up this terrorist
cell.
It also made a difference in Salt Lake City during the Winter
Olympics. Those games, as you well know, were held just five
months after the terrorist attacks. We were very much a nation
in mourning and on edge. We all remember during the opening
ceremonies the honor guard carrying in the tattered American
flag recovered at Ground Zero. It was an emotional and dangerous
time.
Yet those games came off without a hitch. Together, local,
state and federal law enforcement created a seamless, inclusive
operation. We linked our systems. We shared real-time information.
In fact, we worked together so well that the operation is
now considered a model, and it is being replicated around
the country.
And if
that wasn't enough, one of our international colleagues from
Austria--a police officer by day and a world-class skier in
his spare time--won a gold medal.
This
cooperation is not limited to our shores. Around the world,
decent nations are standing together as never before. In North
and South America; in Western and Eastern Europe; in the Middle
East and Southeast Asia; throughout the world we are seeing
an unprecedented level of cooperation. We even now have an
FBI agent working out of a new office in Beijing, China. Are
there occasional differences between international partners?
Of course. But trust and teamwork are extraordinary, and are
making a critical difference in the global war on terror.
If you have been to a National Academy graduation recently,
you know what I mean. The events of September 11 have brought
our international family together in many ways. Here's one
striking example.
The 207th National Academy class arrived at Quantico less
than three weeks after September 11. It was the first class
to graduate after the attacks. That class visited Ground
Zero--in what has now become an Academy tradition--and held
a moving memorial service there.
When it came time to decide on their class legacy, they
reached into their own pockets and donated thousands of dollars--the
most in Academy history--to build a beautiful memorial to
the heroes of September 11. That eight-foot tall memorial
now graces a quiet courtyard on the Quantico grounds and
serves as a powerful reminder of how domestic and international
law enforcement has closed ranks.
We have also had wonderful cooperation in a vast array of
more traditional criminal cases. We have never worked more
closely, for example, to protect our children. There are
few things we do that are more rewarding than putting a child
back in the arms of a mother or father. Despite our best
efforts, not all abductions have happy endings. However,
thanks to new levels of coordination and information sharing,
we have seen some joyous reunions. In state after state--California,
Louisiana, Texas, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and many others--we
have worked together quickly and effectively over the past
year to reunite children and their families.
Cooperation is our future. It must be. September 11 is a
reminder to all of us--every day--that we must work as one
team. To paraphrase an American president, there are few
problems we can solve by ourselves, but there are no problems
that we can't solve together.
Let me close with
a story very much on my mind. On the night of September
12th of this year, an international operation
was conducted in Texas, adjacent to the Mexican border, to
investigate a series of thefts from freight trains. Many
agencies were involved, including the U.S. Border Patrol,
Customs, Union Pacific Railroad Police, two FBI field offices
and their SWAT teams, and Mexican customs officials. While
making arrests that night, two FBI agents--Sergio Barrio
and Samantha Mikeska-were brutally beaten with bats and clubs
by Mexican gang members. The agents' skulls were crushed.
One had to be put on life support; both lay near death for
several days. I thought we were going to lose them. Fortunately,
both are now recovering at home.
When it became clear that we desperately needed help that
night, an urgent call went out to the Sunland Park, Texas,
police department. Within minutes, they were on the scene
to help us. They pitched in, in countless ways, transporting
prisoners, and helping us to care for our colleagues. Their
professionalism, assistance, courtesy and kindness helped
us through a very difficult night. I will never forget that.
And I will never forget that we are in this together. Every
day, we are in this together.
I am proud to be a part of this family.
Thank you for your partnership. Thank you for your leadership.
Thank you, and God Bless.