CASEY SPARED TOP OFFICIALS DISCIPLINE FOR CONTRA MANUAL

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000605560005-8
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 2, 2012
• Sequence Number: 5
• Publication Date: February 9, 1987
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

'STAT
y Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/02 :CIA-RDP90-009658000605560005-8
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9 February 1987
STAT
STA
STAT
ASEY SPARED TOP OFFICIALS DISCIPLINE FOR CONTRA MAAIUAL I
BY-N~EIL~ KULAND-~
ASHINGTON J
CIA Director William Casey chose not to punish two
_
senior agency officials who authorized a 1984 manual urging Contra rebels to
assassinate Nicaraguan community leaders, says Rep. Norman Mineta, D-Ca1if.<
Since then, one of the pair has been linked"~o f~U.S. arms deals with
Iran.<
Disclosure of the CIA's publication of the Contra manual caused a stir
during the 1984 presidential race, leading President Reagan to promise action
would be taken against all agency officials involved in its preparation.<
Casey, who resigned last week while struggling to recover from
brain-cancer surgery Dec. 18, disciplined five mid-level CIA officials for
their roles in preparing the. manual imposing sanctions ranging from written
reprimands to suspension without pay.<
But he chose to take no action against two senior officials, Duane
Clarridge and Ray though he had evidence they were responsible fo`r "'""~
~~ p' nning and approving the manual, Mineta said. The congressman served on the
House Intelligence Committee when the matter arose in late 1984.<
Casey told the intelligence panel in a closed session that he felt
Clarridge and Doty should not be punished for what he considered a minor
infraction after many years of service to the agency, Mineta said in a recent
interview.<
~~There's no reason to discipline them for one little slip-up, " he
quoted the former spy chief as saying.<
Details of Mineta's account were supported by an administration
official and a second congressional source, who requested anonymity in
interviews.<
Clarridge, in testimony to the intelligence panel two years ago, said
he had acknowledged to the CIA inspector general's office he was ~~fully
responsible " for the manual as chief of covert operations for Central America,
Mineta said.<
But Casey asked the inspector general, who was probing which CIA
employees were responsible for preparing the manual, not to name Clarridge in
his classified November 1984 report, Mineta said.<
Casey made sure Clarridge was protected and that his name was not in
the report," Mineta said. ~~Casey was his aagel._ they were very, very
close. "<
He said Casey also decided to disregard the recommendation of the
inspector general that Doty, paramilitary chief for Latin America, be
disciplined.<
Clarridge's role in a 1985 arms shipment to Iran now is being
investigated by congressional committees looking into the Iran arms-Contra aid
scandal.<
Clarridge, who was transferred to Europe after the manual controversy
to take over covert operations there, helped Lt. Col. Oliver North of the
National Security Council ship U.S. weapons to Iran in November 1985, according
to the recently released Senate Intelligence Committee report on the scandal.<
T_he 90-page manual, ~~Psvcholoaical Operations in Guerrilla War, " was
in Spanish and advised rebels to kidnap and ~~neutralize selected
(Nicaraguan) government officials" a phrase understood by Contras to mean
assassination.< -
The manual also coached rebels to blackmail Nicaraguan citizens into
joining the Contras, to hire criminals to carry out ~~selective jobs, " and to
arrange the deaths of rebel supporters so they would become ~~martyrs." <
Casey, recovering at Georgetown University Medical Center in
Washington, defended the manual in a 1984 letter to members of Congress. He
said its purpose was to make the rebels ~~persuasive in face-to-face
communication" and that its stress was ~~on education, avoiding combat when
necessary. "<
Neither Clarridge nor Doty could be reached for comment. CIA
STAT pokeswoman Sharon Foster said the agency does not comment on internal affairs
r questions a manual. <
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/05/02 :CIA-RDP90-009658000605560005-8