Reno defends FBI's work in Nichols case

Terry Nichols

Six jurors reportedly favored a death sentence

January 8, 1998
Web posted at: 8:58 p.m. EST (0158 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Attorney General Janet Reno on Thursday strongly defended the government's investigation and prosecution of Oklahoma City bombing conspirator Terry Nichols, rejecting suggestions by the forewoman of his jury that the FBI "dropped the ball" in its probe of the blast.

"I think the FBI did an excellent job," Reno said, speaking at her weekly news conference. "In this instance, when you look at what the FBI has done, I'm just very, very proud of their work."
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On Wednesday, the jury that convicted Nichols of conspiracy and involuntary manslaughter was dismissed, after jurors were unable to unanimously agree on a death sentence. Their lack of a decision means U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch will sentence Nichols -- but under federal law, the judge does not have the option of condemning him to death.

In a news conference Wednesday, Niki Deutchman, the jury's forewoman, criticized the FBI's handling of the case, calling it "sloppy" and chastising the agency for being "arrogant." She also said the FBI should have pursued other possible suspects in the 1995 blast in Oklahoma City, which killed 168 people and wounded more than 500.

But Reno said she thought, "the investigation has been as complete as possible. I think we have identified the people [responsible]."

"One of the things that I have learned is that when you have a long and complicated case, there may be different feelings from jurors who may not be aware of all the circumstances that go into an investigation," the attorney general said.

Six jurors reportedly wanted death sentence

Chris Seib

More of the Nichols jurors have commented on the case, adding to Deutchman's depiction of a sharply divided jury.

According to one juror, six of the 12 jurors wanted the death penalty for Nichols. Four wanted a sentence of life without parole. Two wanted to leave the sentencing to Matsch.

"I wanted the death penalty," said juror Chris Seib. "I think we owed it to those victims. We owed it to their families."

"It was a very tough case. We worked very hard," juror Timothy Burge said. "We were fortunate to get the conspiracy verdict. I want my prayers and thoughts to go to the people in Oklahoma City."

Juror Chris Seib talks about the trial
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Juror Ted Baker, who supported the death penalty, said he wanted deliberations to continue beyond Wednesday morning, when Matsch cut them off and dismissed the jury. Baker said he believes the impasse might have been broken if jurors had taken another look at the evidence.

But juror Holly Hanlin agreed with Deutchman's criticism that the government failed to prove its case fully.

"We couldn't find enough evidence to convince at least all of us that he intended, that he was involved from the very beginning, that he built the bomb. We felt that evidence was shaky at best," she said.

Unrecorded FBI interviews raised as issue

One of Deutchman's particular criticisms of the FBI was that interviews with key witnesses, including a nine-hour interview with Nichols, were not taped. Instead, agents submitted their notes of the conversations to the jury.

Several witnesses during the trial disputed the FBI's recollections of their interviews.

Defense attorney Ron Woods, a former FBI agent, had told the jury that FBI agents are told not to record interviews because it boils down in court to the word of the agent against other witnesses.

The FBI responded that it doesn't record interviews because it makes witnesses reluctant to talk.

But Mimi Wesson, a University of Colorado law professor and former federal prosecutor, said many people find the FBI's refusal to record interviews troubling.

Wesson said it's not unusual for people to change their stories as their recollections evolve over time, but she said recording interviews would make it easier for jurors to determine why they changed.

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