Allan Lengel, editor of ticklethewire.com, is a veteran journalist who has covered law enforcement at major publications including the Washington Post and the Detroit News. He also served as an intern under the late investigative columnist Jack Anderson and was an adjunct journalism professor at the University of Maryland.
Justice Dept. May Not Have Served Up Justice After Mob Hit
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com I have mixed feelings about a ruling last week by the U.S. Court of Appeals in Boston. The court rescinded an $8.5 million judgment handed down two years ago against the government in the 1982 murders of two people by James “Whitey” Bulger, a notorious Boston mobster who was an FBI…
FBI Dir. Robert Mueller’s Presence in Arizona Sends a Strong Message
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com WASHINGTON — It’s a good thing that FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III hopped a plane to Arizona to deal with the aftermath of a mass shooting that killed a federal judge and seriously wounded a member of Congress. Sure, Mueller could have stayed back in Washington and gotten briefed regularly…
Some Criminal Politicians Are Disgraceful til the End
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com Some criminal politicians are disgraceful right up to the end. Take former Massachusetts State Senator Dianne Wilkerson who was sentenced Thursday in Boston federal court to 3 1/2 years in prison for taking $23,000 in bribes to help secure a liquor license for a nightclub and for legislation to grease the…
In 2011 it’s Time to Stop “Acting” and Confirm Leaders
By Allan Lengel ticklethewire.com WASHINGTON — Something seems terribly wrong when we see federal law enforcement agencies headed up for years by people who are “acting” heads. Michele Leonhart of the DEA was the acting head since 2007 — up until the end of December. Finally, just before the holidays, the Senate confirmed her appointment…
U.S. Attys Rip Off Taxpayers With Expensive Hotel Rooms
UPDATE: The LA Times reports that another former U.S. Attorney Thomas O’Brien of Los Angeles wrote a check Tuesday reimbursing the government for more than $900 in overages for hotels. Former U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan of Pittsburgh was also identified in the media as one of the five violators cited in the Inspector General…