9/11 Review Commission

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) 9/11 Review Commission was formed by Congress in January 2014 to conduct a comprehensive review of the recommendations related to the FBI that were proposed by the original 9/11 Commission. The commission, which was publicly announced by Republican Congressman Frank Wolf of Virginia, consisted of three congressionally appointed members supported by an executive director and staff.

Federal Bureau of Investigation
Cover page of 9/11 Review Commission Report
FBI Director James Comey receives briefing from 9/11 Review Commission members (March 2015)

On March 26, 2014, the commission's members testified regarding their initial progress before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies.[1]

Following 14 months of research, interviews, briefings and field visits the commission issued an unclassified public version of its final report titled The FBI: Protecting the Homeland in the 21st Century on March 25, 2015.[2][3] Its overarching conclusion was that while the FBI had established comprehensive structures to support its intelligence mission, there remained a significant gap between the articulated principles of its intelligence programs and their effectiveness in practice.[4][5][6]

Commissioners

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  • Bruce Hoffman - Professor, Georgetown University Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service
  • Edwin Meese - Former United States Attorney General
  • Tim Roemer - Former Congressman from Indiana and Former United States Ambassador to India

Staff Members

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  • John Gannon - Executive Director[7]
  • Kim Cragin
  • William Giannetti
  • Barbara A. Grewe
  • Christine Healey
  • Seth G. Jones
  • Johanna Keena
  • Joseph Moreno[8]
  • Jamie Pirko
  • Elisabeth Poteat
  • William Richardson
  • Amy Buenning Sturm
  • Caryn Wagner

Case Studies

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As part of its review, the Commission selected five case studies to examine the FBI's response to high-profile terrorist plots and attacks since 2008.

  1. Najibullah Zezi, an Afghan-American arrested in September 2009 for working with al Qaeda to plan suicide bombings on the New York City Subway system
  2. David Headley, an American terrorist of Pakistani origin who conspired in plotting the 2008 Mumbai attacks
  3. Nidal Hasan, a former American Army Major convicted of killing 13 people and injuring more than 30 others in the Fort Hood mass shooting in November 2009
  4. Faisal Shahzad, a Pakistani-American citizen who was arrested for the attempted Times Square car bombing in May 2010
  5. Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev who, together, killed 3 people and injured nearly 300 others by bombing the Boston Marathon in April 2013

Individuals interviewed by the Commission

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Current and former government officials who were interviewed by the commission included:

Further reading

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References

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  1. ^ "FBI Reforms Since the Terrorist Attacks of September 11, 2001 | C-SPAN.org". www.c-span.org. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  2. ^ "The FBI Releases Final Report of the 9/11 Review Commission". Federal Bureau of Investigation. March 25, 2015. Archived from the original on March 27, 2015.
  3. ^ "Panel Conducts Review of FBI Since 9/11 Commission Report". www.dni.gov. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
  4. ^ Schmidt, Michael S. (March 25, 2015). "Report Credits F.B.I. With Progress Since 9/11, but Says More Is Needed". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  5. ^ Goldman, Adam (March 25, 2015). "FBI adapts to face terrorism threats but still faces challenges, report finds". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
  6. ^ "FBI 9/11 Commission Releases Report". Lawfare. March 25, 2015. Retrieved June 22, 2020.
  7. ^ "FBI 9/11 Review Commission Releases New Report | Voices of September 11". voicesofsept11.org. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  8. ^ "People on the Move: Joseph Moreno". www.bizjournals.com. June 19, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2020.