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Investigator seeks filmmaker's knowledge of WacoBy Jennifer Autrey John Danforth, the former senator investigating the possibility of a government cover-up in the deaths of Branch Davidians near Waco in 1993, is seeking information from a journalist whose film has raised questions about the events at Mount Carmel. But the journalist, Dan Gifford, executive producer of the Emmy-winning documentary `Waco: The Rules of Engagement,' said he doesn't trust the special counsel's investigation and thinks it is too narrow. "For all I know, this process might have been set up to see who has been talking and smite them," he said. Gifford received a letter dated Sept. 20 saying Danforth wanted Gifford's views on the investigation, including the use of tear gas canisters and the use of the U.S. armed forces. Attorney General Janet Reno appointed Danforth to investigate the 1993 events after recent news reports focused on pyrotechnic tear gas canisters used on the last day of the standoff. The government has said that the military canisters were fired hours before the fire began and that they were far from where the fire originated. Two congressional investigations are also expected. However, the senator leading an inquiry into the Justice Department's handling of high-profile cases said yesterday that he will focus more on the investigation into Chinese espionage than on Waco. "There's nothing we can do about Waco except correct procedures for the future," Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., told The Associated Press. "Espionage, I think, is the No. 1 priority. ... That's an issue of America at risk." On Feb. 28, 1993, four agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and six members of the Branch Davidian sect died in a shootout at Mount Carmel. A 51-day standoff ensued, and on April 19, 1993, fire roared through the Davidians' compound after the FBI introduced tear gas into it. The bodies of about 80 sect members, including women and children, were found in the remains of the fire. The body of cult leader David Koresh was also found. A congressional hearing in 1995 determined that the Branch Davidians caused the fire, but some people remain suspicious about the government's role. Those concerns were captured in Gifford's 1997 film, which was nominated for an Oscar in 1998 for best documentary and won an Emmy in 1999 for investigative journalism. Mike McNulty, a researcher for `Waco: The Rules of Engagement,' said that he has not received a letter from Danforth's investigators but that he has talked to them by phone. But Gifford is reluctant. As a former journalist for ABC News, CNN and `The MacNeil- Lehrer Report,' Gifford said, he must protect confidential sources. "Everything I think is important is already in the film," Gifford said. Gifford said he believes that Danforth's investigation focuses too narrowly on the events of April 19, 1993, which Gifford said will leave unquestioned the government's decisions leading up to the fire. Department of Justice spokesman Myron Marlin referred all questions about limiting the investigation to April 19, 1993, to what Reno and Danforth said in a Sept. 9 news conference. At that time, Danforth said he would be looking at whether the government was involved in bad acts, not bad judgment. "So what we are not going to be looking at is whether it was advisable in the first place for ATF to be concerned about the Branch Davidians, whether it was a good idea or not to stage the raid in February of 1993, or in April of 1993, for that matter, or the psychological efforts that took place between," Danforth said.
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