July 20, 1995 - Part 4
July 20, 1995 - Part 4
(13:10:49) Let me ask the three of you, and you can speak, Major Hines, or Sergeant Braun or Mr. Rolla. There are people, when we say Park Police, who think your job is cleaning up candy wrappers and making sure somebody doesn't start a bonfire. When we talk about your work as Park Police-and I think those of us who have seen the three of you in action here today have the sense of a very pro- fessional, competent police department-but when you talk about the Park Police, what kind of a group are you talking about? Mr. HINES. Senator, when you talk about the Park Police, you're talking to a very dedicated group of men and women for upholding the law and enforcing laws of any police department. We are probably most like any large city police department in the Federal Gov-, ernment as far as general, all-purpose, all full- service police work" We are very proud of our job, and when we came under attack last year, we were very sensitive to it. Some of the times when we didn't respond, this was about the time when the Independent Counsel came into being, and we felt 205 that it was just good sense not to respond because we felt there was going to be further investigations, Senator SIMON. But you are a professional police department in the same sense that any city police department or FBI or any other group is; is that correct? Mr. HINES. Yes, Senator, we are. Senator SIMON. Sergeant Braun or Mr. Rolla, do you want to add anything? Ms. BRAUN. I guess evidence that we were called upon by Eric Holder to assist Metropolitan Police last summer in the Fifth District with the crime problem and did so 'very successfully shows that we are a professional police department. Senator SIMON. I see my time is about up, and I thank the three of you for the job you're doing and for your testimony. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The CHAIRMAN. Senator Sarbanes. Senator SARBANES. Mr. Chairman, I think we're winding up. I have just a couple of questions. I'm going to yield a little time to Mr. Ben-Veniste. Senator Dodd apparently has a question or two, and I assume we'll conclude with this panel, I want to put a question to Sergeant Braun and Mr. Rolla. When you were at the house and people were on the phone, were you aware that a very concerted effort was being made to notify family and friends, both here in Washington and in Arkansas, about what had happened so people did not learn about it on the television or over the radio? Ms. BRAUN. I am today. I was not at the time, Senator SARBANES. You did not know, for instance, that a very intense effort was being made to find someone who could go to the home of Vince Foster's mother, who was quite elderly and had been ill? Ms. BRAUN. That I was made aware of on the way out the door. Senator SARBANES. Pardon? Ms. BRAUN. That's what Mr. Watkins made us aware of on the way out the door. Senator SARBANES. That they were trying to get someone there? So, even when she received a call to tell her someone would be with her because they were very much concerned about the state of her health Ms. BRAUN. Right, Senator SARBANES. But you found that out as you were leaving? Ms. BRAUN. That's correct. Senator SARBANES. Mr. Rolla? Mr. ROLLA. Yeah, I'm aware-as we were leaving we talked to Mr. Watkins, and he stated they were trying to get somebody with his mother. He asked us not to do a press release, which we called our field commander and told him not to do, but before we got back to our office, the White House had done a press release. Senator SARBANES. Now, there also was an effort made to find the Foster sons. Were they at the house? Ms. BRAUN. No, they were not. Mr. ROLLA. They were in Georgetown somewhere. Senator SARBANES. They were somewhere in Georgetown. I take it that extended efforts were being made to try to locate them, Ob- 206 viously this story, once it reached the media, would be a lead story on the television and on the radio; correct? Ms. BRAUN. Yes. Mr. ROLLA. Yes. Senator SARBANES. That's very clear. These intense efforts were: being made to locate the family and, as I understand it, friends I and so forth, colleagues, in order to let them know what had happened. You understood at least part of that by the time you left the Foster home; is that correct? Ms, BRAUN. Yes.