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REQUIEM

Below are the two final essays to be posted on Allegiance and Duty Betrayed. The first one is written by a friend -- screen name 'Euro-American Scum' -- who, over the past four years, has been the most faithful essayist here. He has written about everything from his pilgrimage to Normandy in 2004 to take part in the 60th–year commemoration of the invasion, to his memories of his tour in Vietnam. His dedication to America’s founding principles ... and those who have sacrificed to preserve them over the past 200+ years ... is unequaled. Thank you, E-A-S. It has been a privilege to include your writing here, and it is a privilege to call you my friend.

The second essay is my own farewell. And with it I thank all of the many regular visitors, and those who may have only dropped in occasionally, for coming here. I hope you learned something. I hope a seed or two was planted. But, even if not, I thank you for stopping by ... 25 March, 2010

10/14/2007

On Accountability

Accountability.jpg

A brief local illustration of the arrogance of government officials:

Here in rural, normally relatively crime-free Lancaster County, over the past four years we have experienced two major crimes that made national and world headlines:

- 1 -

Last October, Charles Roberts entered the West Nickel Mines Amish School in Bart Township, equipped with four weapons (a deer rifle, a shotgun, a hand gun, and a stun gun), five hundred rounds of ammunition, a knife, a filled toolbox, a truss board, and a tube of sexual lubricant.

He released the boys and the adults, then bound the arms and legs of ten young school girls (ranging in age from six to thirteen-years-old), lined them up at the chalkboard, and, when local authorities surrounded the school and demanded that he release his hostages and surrender, he then began to shoot the girls, execution style.

The end result was that five of the young girls either died at the school or later succumbed to their head injuries, and one remains on life support, and is now at home with her family, never expected to emerge from anything more than a vegetative state.

Nickel Mines.jpg

Charles Roberts, the killer, was reportedly scheduled to undergo an employment-related drug test the following day.

- 2 -

Most likely due to its rural location and yet its proximity to a Pennsylvania Turnpike exit, a small family-owned well-drilling company, located just a few miles from our home, served as the infamous location of the dumping of assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Luna’s body in December of 2003.

Jonathan Luna.jpg

At the time, Luna was purportedly investigating a case in which several high-profile state or national politicians were involved.

For those who may not remember, Luna was stabbed thirty-six times with his own penknife and was discovered ‘drowned’ in a little creek behind a local well-drilling company. He had left a Baltimore courthouse the night of December 4, 2003, and, according to court records, instead of going home managed to make his way to the Pennsylvania Turnpike, exiting at the exit nearby our house without his E-Z pass, but using, instead, a blood-stained toll ticket.

Presumably shortly thereafter, he continued to stab himself many more times with his own knife, drive his car into the foot-deep creek behind the local business:

Sensenig Well Drilling.jpg

... crawl under the front end of the car just beneath the engine, and drown. A bizarre way of ‘committing suicide’, to any rational mind.

Also contributing to the ‘bizarre suicide’ scenario is the fact that a pool of blood was found on the floor of the rear area of the car. Then again, Luna may well have been a contortionist of sorts, able to somehow reach a car’s steering wheel from the floor of the rear seat.

In the nearly four years since the ‘suicide,’ and despite a $100,000 federal reward for information about Luna’s death, no suspects or motives for a possible homicide have been uncovered.

Because requests by Luna’s family to conduct an inquest into his death were denied, early this year the Luna family’s attorney filed a petition for a writ of mandamus to force the Lancaster County coroner to conduct one.

(End of summary of the two cases)

In a highly unusual move by the Lancaster County Republican Committee, Lancaster County coroner, Dr. G. Gary Kirchner, has not been endorsed for re-election this year. The committee instead endorsed another candidate, who won the primary election, yet Kirchner has initiated a write-in campaign in order to retain his position.

Today’s Lancaster Sunday News contains a very brief article stating that, since he took office four years ago, Kirchner has repeatedly defied state law by keeping all autopsy records, including those of Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Luna and mass murderer Charles Roberts, private.

Pennsylvania law states that a coroner must file all of his official records on an annual basis, ‘for the inspection of all persons interested therein’. Yet Kirchner claims that autopsy reports are not public records, and that records obtained in the Joanthan Luna case, in particular, ‘would embarrass a lot of people’.

I, and many other Lancaster County residents, still harbor countless questions regarding the way five young Amish girls, and one assistant U.S. attorney, met their deaths. And at least one elected public official is not doing all that he is required to do to put those concerns to rest.

So much for public disclosure and ‘public servant’ accountability.

~ joanie

22 comments:

Anonymous said...

A disgusting abuse of power!

Anonymous said...

Here's more information on the Jonathan Luna case at this link.
http://www.yardbird.com/luna.htm

More information on public corruption
in the neighboring state of Maryland where Luna was an assistant U.S. Attorney can be found at www.marylandcorruption.com

Best regards,
Donald Stone

Anonymous said...

Readers should note -- Luna's family did not hire a lawyer requesting an inquest. This was done by a local gadfly falsely claiming to represent Luna's family. Read more at:

http://www.yardbird.com/luna.htm

Anonymous said...

This stinks to high heaven. The non release of the Luna information is obviously a coverup, but it's hard to imagine why this coroner won't release any of his records.

Thanks for the valuable info, Joanie.

Anonymous said...

This makes my blood boil. It's one (two) of those things that it would be totally possible to get to the bottom of, but it isn't happening, and not enough people are asking why.

Thank you for the reminder, C.W.

Anonymous said...

Last October, Charles Roberts entered the West Nickel Mines Amish School in Bart Township, equipped with four weapons (a deer rifle, a shotgun, a hand gun, and a stun gun), five hundred rounds of ammunition, a knife, a filled toolbox, a truss board, and a tube of sexual lubricant.

I didn't know about that last item. In a roundabout way, those little girls might have been lucky to be shot so quickly.

This is a depressing column Joanie, but I'm glad there are people like you who aren't forgetting about these things.

Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Joanie-

The State of Pennsylvania is run by the corrupt democrat political machine. Don't expect any help there.

Perhaps it's time for the locals to resurrect a certain time-honored ritual that involves a split rail, hot tar and chicken feathers.

joanie said...

Readers should note -- Luna's family did not hire a lawyer requesting an inquest. This was done by a local gadfly falsely claiming to represent Luna's family.

Earlier this year it was reported that Jim Clymer, a Lancaster attorney whom I have met and for whom I have great respect (coincidentally, he is national chairman of the Constitution Party, headquartered here in Lancaster County), filed the writ of mandamus. He and a private investigator (whose name I cannot recall) believe that the FBI was involved in a cover-up of the real causes of Luna’s death.

Since it was also reported that the Luna family had hired an attorney to do just that, I had assumed that Clymer was serving as their attorney, but apparently that may not be the case.

The things that most disturb me about this case are:

(1) that the FBI has ludicrously insisted on labeling the death a suicide

(2) that the murder of a federal prosecutor usually generates an intense, open-ended investigation that doesn't end until the perpetrators are caught, and this one has resulted in anything but

(3) that the FBI has not provided the senate judiciary committee with an Office of Professional Responsibility report, defining or debunking the bureau’s mishandling of the case

(4) that so many vague, non-authenticated character-demeaning reports on Luna’s private life have circulated, in a manner eerily similar to the character assissinations of people closely related to the Clintons who might have blown the whistle on their crimes

(5) that everything about the death smells of a hit – a hit perpetrated or contracted by someone who knew he could get away with it – and the FBI appears to be allowing, even causing, exactly that.

Whoever hired the attorney – whether it be the Luna family, or the ‘gadfly’ you mention, an inquest was in order, but a Lancaster County judge ruled against the inquest a couple of months ago. So the roadblocks continue.

Here in Lancaster County, Coroner Kirchner, who refuses to release records regarding the Luna case, purports to be standing guard against the release of ‘sensitive information’ (despite the fact that its release is demanded by state law), was brought up on charges earlier this year when his ‘favorite’ journalists (granted prosecutorial immunity) testified that he illegally provided them the password to the county's 911 computer system, for the sole purpose of allowing them to bypass the coroner’s office in their quest for information.

He’s a swell guy with two sets of rules and an ego the size of Montana.

Thanks for the additional links.

~ joanie

Anonymous said...

I haven't followed the investigation - or lack thereof - but it sounds like Luna may have been sniffing around some powerful people with connections.

It makes one wonder how many of these kinds of major crimes happen and are swept under the rug with the average American never learning about the original crime, the death of those who were trying to uncover it, and the subsequent coverup of the hit.

Good research, Joanie.

Anonymous said...

The price of the book is evidence of how badly they want this story buried:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/1882611187/ref=dp_olp_2/102-1770579-4264139?ie=UTF8&qid=1192405450&sr=8-1

Anonymous said...

Joanie, your gift (genuis?) is that you're not just interested in a narrow range of subjects and that makes your comments unbelievably well rounded. As a result, this blog is well rounded also and the people who stop by here get a wide ranging education and compilation of opinions.

Thank you for starting this blog and for all the time and energy you put into keeping it running. I don't comment often but I read your blog regularly.

Anonymous said...

Keep kickin' up dust, Joanie. We can't let these crimes be buried.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for this.

Anonymous said...

I sent this column to friend of mine who follows the FBI and the Luna case closely.

He wrote back to me:

_________________________________

Thanks !!!!

I sent this to Bill Kiesling, who wrote the book, "The Midnite Ride of Jonathan Luna.

I'll let you know what Keislings comments are.

Anonymous said...

Great column, CW. One that raises many more questions than "they" are willing to answer.

Anonymous said...

Reading about those poor little Amish girls makes me outraged all over again!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

It is obvious the FBI wanted Luna dead.

It is obvious the powers that be did not want the autopsy report details on the Amish girls' killer to see the light of day.

Anonymous said...

When the news media drop a story it tends to fade away. Please keep us all posted on anything new you find out about either of these stories, and thank you.

Anonymous said...

So much for public disclosure and ‘public servant’ accountability.

There's very little of the former (unless it suits the media's purposes), and none of the latter, anymore.

Thanks for the excellent essay, CW.

Anonymous said...

Nice work.

Anonymous said...

No area of our government is exempt from corruption. Law enforcement has lost sight of its mission when it buckles under pressure from the politically powerful, and it happens every day.

Anonymous said...

Nothing surprises me any longer. Our government is corrupt in all areas and on all levels.