Janet Uhlar's Blog - Posts Tagged "true-crime"
Whitey Bulger is Dead
Whitey Bulger is dead. Few will mourn his passing. Why would they? The narrative presented has been that of a psychopathic killer. A man void of emotion. A monster.
I was a juror in his trial. I lived outside Massachusetts when Bulger was most active. I had no interest in organized crime or anything to do with it. I knew nothing. Going into the trial, I expected to be horrified by Bulger's criminality. When his attorney declared in his opening statement that his client was guilty of many of the charges, I was taken aback. If Bulger was willing to acknowledge his guilt, why were we there?
The narrative about Whitey Bulger began in the Boston Globe more than twenty-years ago with the disgraced former FBI agent John Morris running to journalists and claiming that Bulger was an FBI informant. This should have been questioned by Globe reporters O’Neill, Lehr and Cullen since such an admission by an FBI agent was highly unethical, and the printing of this information could most certainly lead to Bulger's murder. Why was Morris doing this? If memory serves me correctly, a judge later found that Morris employed the willing Boston Globe reporters to help him destroy Bulger.
And here, all the lore of Whitey Bulger began. Adding to Morris' narrative were the stories given to the Boston US Attorney's Office by Martorano, Flemmi, and Weeks. (These three never imagined Bulger would be captured.) In return for "substantial information" the Boston DOJ rewarded these criminals with escape from the electric chair or lengthy prison sentences. Two were given monetary rewards. None were given these outrageous deals upon the first meeting with the Boston Assistant US Attorney (AUSA). According to their testimony in the Bulger trial, their first attempts to save themselves weren't substantial enough. More information was demanded by the AUSA before they were paid with their lives, freedom, and money. Were their stories truthful? Might they lie to satisfy the AUSA? Almost half the jury in Bulger's trial thought so.
Two of these criminals wrote books with the assistance of Boston Herald reporter Howie Carr – who, according to the testimony of Martorano, actually partnered with him, sharing half of the profits. Weeks partnered with one-time journalist Phyllis Karas for his book.
Boston Globe journalists Gerard O'Neill, Dick Lehr, Kevin Cullen, and Shelly Murphy followed with their own books about Whitey. Book after book came out -- all purported to be truth. One story added to the next and the Bulger lore -- the Bulger cult was created. Yet, James Bulger had no part in it.
Seemingly credible journalists wrote about him. Not one of them corresponded with him. Not one of them spoke to him. Not one of them verified the facts or went to the source.
Upon his arrest, Jim Bulger offered to plead guilty to all charges, and accept an expedited death sentence if the court would show leniency to Catherine Greig. It was stated in the trial that because Ms. Greig had no priors, the probation department suggested a two-year sentence (lenient). The Boston AUSA refused Bulger’s guilty plea and managed to get an eight-year sentence for Ms. Greig – the first being in solitary confinement. Since her original sentencing, the AUSA has managed to have almost four more years added to her sentence. Ms. Greig will serve as much time in prison as Martorano did for twenty confessed cold-blooded murders (two of them were teenagers in the wrong place at the wrong time.)
Pat Nee, another gangster who helped spin the Bulger tale with his own book, was identified in five murders in Jim Bulger’s trial. He’s never been indicted.
It seems the DOJ was determined to lock Bulger up and throw away the key. It almost worked. Most jurors go home and attempt to forget. I went home and attempted to find out why the Boston DOJ would not accept Bulger’s guilty plea? Why were they determined to conduct this orchestrated trial? What was it that the jury was not allowed to know? Why were the scales of Justice altered? How could the combined crimes of Martorano, Flemmi, Weeks, Morris, and Nee (more than 100 souls murdered) weigh less than the crimes of Bulger?
I contacted Bulger (and others associated with the trial). I’ve corresponded with him for five years – the last letter was received only a week ago. His health was deteriorating and he was looking forward to the transfer to a medical facility.
I sat with Jim face-to-face for fifteen hours in prison. He confessed crimes and denied crimes. We talked about the beatings by the Boston police when he was a kid. We talked in detail about the CIA’s LSD experimentation (MKUltra) when he was a young man in the Atlanta Penitentiary. I shared with him the 1977 US Senate Hearing on the MKUltra Project and the documented testimony of the CIA stating that they were attempting to modify behavior, even to the extent of bringing about homicidal tendencies. We talked. We wrote. We laughed and we cried.
I do mourn Jim’s passing. He was not a psychopath. He felt much emotion. He was certainly not a monster.
I was a juror in his trial. I lived outside Massachusetts when Bulger was most active. I had no interest in organized crime or anything to do with it. I knew nothing. Going into the trial, I expected to be horrified by Bulger's criminality. When his attorney declared in his opening statement that his client was guilty of many of the charges, I was taken aback. If Bulger was willing to acknowledge his guilt, why were we there?
The narrative about Whitey Bulger began in the Boston Globe more than twenty-years ago with the disgraced former FBI agent John Morris running to journalists and claiming that Bulger was an FBI informant. This should have been questioned by Globe reporters O’Neill, Lehr and Cullen since such an admission by an FBI agent was highly unethical, and the printing of this information could most certainly lead to Bulger's murder. Why was Morris doing this? If memory serves me correctly, a judge later found that Morris employed the willing Boston Globe reporters to help him destroy Bulger.
And here, all the lore of Whitey Bulger began. Adding to Morris' narrative were the stories given to the Boston US Attorney's Office by Martorano, Flemmi, and Weeks. (These three never imagined Bulger would be captured.) In return for "substantial information" the Boston DOJ rewarded these criminals with escape from the electric chair or lengthy prison sentences. Two were given monetary rewards. None were given these outrageous deals upon the first meeting with the Boston Assistant US Attorney (AUSA). According to their testimony in the Bulger trial, their first attempts to save themselves weren't substantial enough. More information was demanded by the AUSA before they were paid with their lives, freedom, and money. Were their stories truthful? Might they lie to satisfy the AUSA? Almost half the jury in Bulger's trial thought so.
Two of these criminals wrote books with the assistance of Boston Herald reporter Howie Carr – who, according to the testimony of Martorano, actually partnered with him, sharing half of the profits. Weeks partnered with one-time journalist Phyllis Karas for his book.
Boston Globe journalists Gerard O'Neill, Dick Lehr, Kevin Cullen, and Shelly Murphy followed with their own books about Whitey. Book after book came out -- all purported to be truth. One story added to the next and the Bulger lore -- the Bulger cult was created. Yet, James Bulger had no part in it.
Seemingly credible journalists wrote about him. Not one of them corresponded with him. Not one of them spoke to him. Not one of them verified the facts or went to the source.
Upon his arrest, Jim Bulger offered to plead guilty to all charges, and accept an expedited death sentence if the court would show leniency to Catherine Greig. It was stated in the trial that because Ms. Greig had no priors, the probation department suggested a two-year sentence (lenient). The Boston AUSA refused Bulger’s guilty plea and managed to get an eight-year sentence for Ms. Greig – the first being in solitary confinement. Since her original sentencing, the AUSA has managed to have almost four more years added to her sentence. Ms. Greig will serve as much time in prison as Martorano did for twenty confessed cold-blooded murders (two of them were teenagers in the wrong place at the wrong time.)
Pat Nee, another gangster who helped spin the Bulger tale with his own book, was identified in five murders in Jim Bulger’s trial. He’s never been indicted.
It seems the DOJ was determined to lock Bulger up and throw away the key. It almost worked. Most jurors go home and attempt to forget. I went home and attempted to find out why the Boston DOJ would not accept Bulger’s guilty plea? Why were they determined to conduct this orchestrated trial? What was it that the jury was not allowed to know? Why were the scales of Justice altered? How could the combined crimes of Martorano, Flemmi, Weeks, Morris, and Nee (more than 100 souls murdered) weigh less than the crimes of Bulger?
I contacted Bulger (and others associated with the trial). I’ve corresponded with him for five years – the last letter was received only a week ago. His health was deteriorating and he was looking forward to the transfer to a medical facility.
I sat with Jim face-to-face for fifteen hours in prison. He confessed crimes and denied crimes. We talked about the beatings by the Boston police when he was a kid. We talked in detail about the CIA’s LSD experimentation (MKUltra) when he was a young man in the Atlanta Penitentiary. I shared with him the 1977 US Senate Hearing on the MKUltra Project and the documented testimony of the CIA stating that they were attempting to modify behavior, even to the extent of bringing about homicidal tendencies. We talked. We wrote. We laughed and we cried.
I do mourn Jim’s passing. He was not a psychopath. He felt much emotion. He was certainly not a monster.
Who Ordered the Murder of Whitey Bulger?
Bulger was set up. He was supposed to be transferred to a prison medical facility. I was aware of his deteriorating medical condition through regular correspondence with him, face to face communication, and observation. He was 89. He had a hip injury and could not walk, confined to a wheelchair for 4 years. He had 6 heart attacks while in prison.
In the midst of his transfer, "authorities" determined that his medical condition had suddenly improved. (He was still wheelchair bound. He still had a bad heart. He was still 89!)
Instead of going to the medical facility, he was sent to a prison in West Virginia, notorious for violent murders. Bulger, a high-profile prisoner, was thrown into the general population with no protection. He was dead within 12 hours. Brutally beaten.
Bulger offered to plead guilty and accept an expedited death sentence -- the Boston US Attorney's Office denied the request, insisting on a lengthy, expensive, and orchestrated trial. Why?
Bulger's story, as told by Bulger, contradicts much of what the public has been fed. It contradicts and implicates individuals and government agencies -- most especially the CIA.
Bulger was telling his story from prison.
He needed to be silenced.
The question is: Who gave the order to have him transferred to his death in West Virginia?
Dead men don't talk...or do they?
In the midst of his transfer, "authorities" determined that his medical condition had suddenly improved. (He was still wheelchair bound. He still had a bad heart. He was still 89!)
Instead of going to the medical facility, he was sent to a prison in West Virginia, notorious for violent murders. Bulger, a high-profile prisoner, was thrown into the general population with no protection. He was dead within 12 hours. Brutally beaten.
Bulger offered to plead guilty and accept an expedited death sentence -- the Boston US Attorney's Office denied the request, insisting on a lengthy, expensive, and orchestrated trial. Why?
Bulger's story, as told by Bulger, contradicts much of what the public has been fed. It contradicts and implicates individuals and government agencies -- most especially the CIA.
Bulger was telling his story from prison.
He needed to be silenced.
The question is: Who gave the order to have him transferred to his death in West Virginia?
Dead men don't talk...or do they?
