Editorial: Let’s not revert to pre-9/11

Friday, May 2, 2003 | 9:10 a.m.

The national soul-searching after Sept. 11 led government officials to conclude that communication among federal, state and local law enforcement authorities was abysmal. Improved sharing of information became one of the stated reasons for creating the Department of Homeland Security in January 2002. Apparently, 15 months hasn't been time enough for major improvement.

Clark County Sheriff Bill Young last month expressed concern that federal authorities in Detroit did not inform Southern Nevada police about the full extent of a possible terrorist attack on Las Vegas. Last summer members of an alleged terrorist sleeper cell were arrested in Detroit and a videotape showing scenes of Las Vegas was confiscated. The videotape was widely reported but Young says he didn't learn until a few weeks ago, after a trial of the alleged cell members began in Detroit, that a government witness would testify that the cell members planned to target sites here.

On Wednesday the leader of the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force in Detroit testified at the trial that he could not understand why Young did not know of the witness's information. Agent Paul George testified that he traveled to Las Vegas four weeks before the trial to brief law enforcement officers and casino operators. Yet the local U.S. attorney's office, Young, and a spokesperson for the MGM MIRAGE all have said they never received a briefing, and Young has said that local FBI officials told him they never received a briefing, either.

This dilemma of contradictions is reminiscent of pre-Sept. 11. Is someone lying? Or is it just a big communications snafu, the likes of which can lead to disaster? The public has a right to know.