by rain » Fri Nov 03, 2006 10:31 pm
just a bit on Beauprez -<br><br>FBI asked to look into Beauprez ad<br>By Chris Frates <br>Denver Post Staff Writer<br>Article Last Updated:10/19/2006 08:07:47 AM MDT<br><br><br>Gubernatorial hopefuls Bob Beauprez, left, and Bill Ritter, right, debate on KOA radio host Mike Rosen's show Wednesday morning. (Post / RJ Sangosti )The Colorado Bureau of Investigation asked the FBI on Wednesday to join its probe of an attack ad by Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob Beauprez, saying information about the ad's subject was accessed using a restricted federal database. <br><br>A statement from the CBI did not say who accessed the National Crime Information Center computer database or from where. It simply confirmed that someone had used that database to search the name of a man who later turned up in the Beauprez ad. <br><br>The Beauprez campaign has denied any wrongdoing. But the accuracy of the ad challenging the record of former Denver District Attorney Bill Ritter has been difficult for anyone to independently verify. Beauprez has refused to reveal his campaign's source for the information. <br><br>So, with absentee ballots already being delivered and early voting starting Monday in Colorado, voters are left with uneasy questions as they choose their next governor. <br><br>Did a person plea-bargained by Democrat Ritter go on to commit a sex crime against a child in California, as the ad claims? <br><br>Did Beauprez or someone connected to his campaign commit a crime in accessing the NCIC database to get dirt on his political opponent? <br><br>The CBI launched the investigation last week at the request of Ritter, who said he could neither verify nor dispute Beauprez's allegations through public court files. Gov. Bill Owens, a Beauprez supporter, then asked the agency to expedite its review. <br><br>The ad says Ritter plea-bargained a case against illegal immigrant and alleged heroin dealer Carlos Estrada Medina, who was given probation and later arrested on suspicion of sexual abuse on a child. <br><br>But Medina's name does not appear on court documents in Denver or California - where Beauprez's campaign said he was charged under aliases. <br><br>In its announcement Wednesday, the CBI said Medina used the alias Walter Noel Ramo, which is the name of a man charged in Denver in 2001 when Ritter was DA. <br><br>"The CBI has thoroughly reviewed and researched the law- enforcement databases and determined that the information regarding Carlos Estrada Medina (also known as Walter Noel Ramo) was obtained by accessing the federal crime-information system known as NCIC," CBI Director Robert Cantwell said in a statement. <br><br>Cantwell said the FBI has been called in to help complete what it characterized as a criminal probe. <br><br>According to the Denver court files, Ramo was given probation after plea-bargaining a charge of heroin possession into trespassing on agricultural land with the intent to commit a felony. <br><br>That plea, which Ritter's office used in 152 cases, was mainly designed, according to defense attorneys, to allow legal immigrants to avoid deportation. <br><br>Ritter insists the connection between Ramo and Medina could only be made using the NCIC. While that database largely consists of otherwise public documents, access is restricted by federal law. Law enforcement officers, federal workers and, in limited cases, members of Congress can request access to the database. <br><br>Members of Congress can access it only if the subject of a criminal record requests their help in researching their own record, according to the NCIC guide. <br><br>Among the nonpublic things one can learn from the NCIC: Whether secret arrest warrants exist for an individual, all aliases used by a person such as Ramo and all the charges that may connect to a single set of fingerprints. <br><br>But while use of the NCIC is audited by the FBI, and agencies or individuals can face civil or possibly criminal penalties for unauthorized use, many online companies promise NCIC access. <br><br>John Marshall, Beauprez's campaign manager, said: "The campaign received this information from what we believe to be a credible and a lawful source, and we verified it through what we believe is lawful means." <br><br>Ritter spokesman Evan Dreyer said the news "appears to confirm our suspicions that the federal database was illegally accessed."<br><br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://www.denverpost.com/ci_4511706">www.denverpost.com/ci_4511706</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--><br><br>and<br><br>FBI investigates Beauprez campaign <br>Written by Staff <br>Wednesday, 18 October 2006 <br>The investigation into Republican Bob Beauprez's campaign use of restricted federal criminal database data has broadened to include the FBI, according to the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. <br><br>A statement from CBI Direct Robert Cantwell says the FBI was brought into the investigation, which CBI says is being pursued expeditiously. Cantwell also says the agency will be mum and won't provide further updates as the investigation continues. <br>"The Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was directed by the Governor's<br>office to determine whether the Colorado Crime Information Center (CCIC) or<br>the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) was compromised in the<br>dissemination of confidential law enforcement records. The CBI has<br>thoroughly reviewed and researched the law enforcement databases and<br>determined that the information regarding Carlos Estrada Medina (also known<br>as: Walter Noel Ramo) was obtained by accessing the federal crime<br>information system known as NCIC. The CBI held a meeting this morning with<br>federal and state law enforcement officials. Because this is a federally<br>controlled and regulated system, CBI has requested the assistance of the FBI<br>to further pursue the investigation. The FBI and CBI will be working<br>jointly to complete the investigation.<br>"The state and federal agencies involved understand the time-sensitive<br>nature of this incident and are proceeding as expeditiously as possible to<br>resolve it. As in any criminal investigation, it may be necessary to<br>conduct searches, further interviews, and forensic analysis of evidence.<br>These procedures take time. It is most important that the investigation be<br>done thoroughly to reach a correct result with evidence that meets all legal<br>requirements. Therefore, it is not possible to know at this point how soon<br>the investigation may be completed.<br>"During the course of this continuing criminal investigation, it will not be<br>possible to provide updates as to the case status."<br> <br><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK START--><a href="http://northdenvernews.com/content/view/537/2/">northdenvernews.com/content/view/537/2/</a><!--EZCODE AUTOLINK END--><br><br> <p></p><i></i>