October 29, 1996
VIA UPS OVERNIGHT
James P. Hoffa
October 29, 1996
Page 1
James P. Hoffa
2593 Hounds Chase
Troy, MI 48098
Ron Carey, General President
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
25 Louisiana Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20001
Ron Carey Campaign
c/o Nathaniel Charny
Cohen, Weiss & Simon
330 W. 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
Bradley T. Raymond
Finkel, Whitefield, Selik, Raymond,
Ferrara & Feldman, P.C.
32300 Northwestern Highway, Suite 200
Farmington Hills, MI 48334
James P. Hoffa
October 29, 1996
Page 1
Re: Election Office Case No. P-1076-JHS-NYC/CHI
Gentlemen:
On October 2, 1996, the Election Officer received a letter from Bradley Raymond, on behalf of James P. Hoffa and his campaign, concerning two recent incidents. One of the incidents was described as a “man hole cover” being thrown through the plate-glass window of the Hoffa campaign office in Chicago, Illinois. The other incident involved the cutting off of phone services at the Hoffa New York campaign office which, Mr. Raymond stated, occurred through deliberate sabotage.
An initial investigation into the matter revealed that a sewer cover had been thrown through the Chicago Hoffa campaign office, the cover being affixed with a “Ron Carey slate” bumper sticker. The Election Officer informed Mr. Raymond of the initial investigation and asked whether he wished the matter to be lodged as a protest. Based upon his request that the matter be treated as a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIV, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 1995-1996 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”), and was served on the Ron Carey campaign.
James P. Hoffa
October 29, 1996
Page 1
The Carey campaign conducted an investigation into the matter and denied any involvement or knowledge regarding the perpetrators of this incident.
The protest was investigated by Chicago Regional Coordinator Julie Hamos and New York City Protest Coordinator Barbara Deinhardt.
1. New York Campaign Office Phone Line
During the weekend of September 28-29, 1996, a staffer at the New York Hoffa campaign office discovered that the phone lines were all dead. On Monday, September 30, he called NYNEX about the problem and asked that the matter be referred to NYNEX security.
The investigator spoke to NYNEX personnel, including the foreman who was in charge of the repairs at the campaign office. The interruption in service was based on damaged wires inside a cable that runs 6 to 10 feet from the telephone pole to the building about 15 feet off the ground. The damaged area was about 4 feet from the building. The foreman stated that he had no way of telling what had hit the cable and that, to his knowledge, no one at NYNEX
had come to any conclusion about the cause of the damage. He stated that a number of things could have caused such damage, e.g., someone hanging from it or throwing something at it, something being blown against it, an extended ladder (e.g., Cablevision) being carried underneath it as happened on another occasion somewhere else. He also stated that often in the cases of malicious damage, the cable would be cut or mangled rather than just bent as in this case.
The protester was requested to submit any further evidence of such sabotage or its perpetrator. No further evidence was able to be provided by the campaign.
2. Chicago Campaign Office Incident
The investigation revealed that, between the hours of 9:30 p.m. on September 26 and 9:30 a.m. on September 27, 1996, a sewer cover was thrown through the glass entrance door at the Hoffa/Hogan office, located at 6811 Roosevelt Road, Chicago, Illinois. Pictures submitted by the protester revealed that the sewer cover had affixed to it a “Ron Carey Slate ‘96” bumper sticker. A police report was filed regarding the incident. No further information was contained in the police report regarding the actual perpetrator, and the protester has not indicated that the police investigation has identified any suspects.
The Carey campaign conducted an investigation into the matter when notified of this protest. The investigation included interviews with several campaign supporters in the Chicago area. Certain of these individuals had heard about the incident from others or the local newspaper. Some had made inquiries to see if they could determine the perpetrator. None had any information as to how this incident occurred or who was involved.
James P. Hoffa
October 29, 1996
Page 1
Based upon the investigation, the Election Officer does not find that the phone service interruption in New York was deliberate sabotage. There is no doubt, however, that a violent incident occurred with respect to the campaign office in Chicago. The investigation has not revealed the perpetrator of this incident. The Carey campaign has conducted a thorough investigation in Chicago. The Election Officer is satisfied that, as part of this investigation, the Carey campaign has also conveyed to its key supporters in the Chicago area the serious nature of this type of conduct and the strong action by the Election Officer that would occur if the perpetrator is identified.
There is nothing in the Election Officer’s investigation to reveal a link between the Carey campaign and the incident at the Chicago campaign office.
The protest asserts that “during the past week, most recently this week, we have observed a pattern of violence and intimidation directed against our client’s campaign.” The two incidents that are discussed above in New York and Chicago are then referenced. While the Election Officer has not found any “pattern of violence and intimidation,” as asserted by the protester, she certainly shares the concern that such incidents have no place in this election campaign and are to be strongly condemned.
We are heading into the final weeks of a very active campaign on behalf of all of the participants. The Election Office requests that both campaigns renew their efforts to communicate to their supporters the importance of keeping this a campaign of words free from all acts of intimidation and violence. As both candidates have expressed, such actions only serve to discredit the campaign to whom the actions are attributed.
Accordingly, the protest is DENIED.
Any interested party not satisfied with this determination may request a hearing before the Election Appeals Master within one day of receipt of this letter. The parties are reminded that, absent extraordinary circumstances, no party may rely upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Officer in any such appeal. Requests for a hearing shall be made in writing and shall be served on:
Kenneth Conboy, Esq.
Latham & Watkins
885 Third Avenue, Suite 1000
New York, NY 10022
Fax (212) 751-4864
James P. Hoffa
October 29, 1996
Page 1
Copies of the request for hearing must be served on the parties listed above as well as upon the Election Officer, 400 N. Capitol Street, Suite 855, Washington, DC 20001, Facsimile
(202) 624-3525. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for a hearing.
Sincerely,
Barbara Zack Quindel
Election Officer
cc: Kenneth Conboy, Election Appeals Master
Stand Up for Teamsters Slate