“a story about the two most powerful institutions in the United States . . . ganging up on an innocent man. It’s Kafka.”

Another chilling story of false accusation: that of Steven Hatfill, a suspect in the anthrax attacks. In "The Wrong Man" (The Atlantic), David Freed details the FBI's "detective myopia." Unable to find hard evidence or a better suspect, they leaned hard on Hatfill, hoping he'd screw up or confess. They nearly ruined his life without strengthening their case. And, when stronger evidence pointed toward Bruce Edward Ivins as the actual perpetrator, the resolution of the case hardly became cause for celebration.

How does onetime patriot Hatfill feel now?

“People think they’re free in this country,” Hatfill says. “Don’t kid yourself. This is a police state. The government can pretty much do whatever it wants.

It seems that the media often plays two roles: first, the 24-hour news cycle feeds the frenzy, broadcasting the search of the suspect's home, sharing their name and picture, and speculating on how long it will take before he is brought to justice; second, years later, writing a thoughtful, long-form magazine article detailing the mistakes made along the way.

Wouldn't it be nice if everyone took a deep breath and used a gimlet eye in the first place?

Posted: Saturday, August 28, 2010 - 09:01 am