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Vince Foster | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | January 15, 1945 Hope, Arkansas, United States |
| Died | July 20, 1993 Fairfax County, Virginia, United States |
| Cause of death | Gunshot |
| Nationality | Statesian |
Vincent Walker Foster (January 15, 1945 – July 20, 1993) was the highest-ranking U.S. federal official to die in office since JFK. He served as Bill and Hillary Clinton's personal lawyer and White House Counsel.[1]
Death
Foster left his office in the White House at 1 p.m. on July 20, 1993. Between 2 and 4 p.m., he died from a gunshot wound in Fort Marcy Park, a Civil War-era structure in Virginia. Witnesses saw unidentified men guarding a brown Honda, which had been replaced by Foster's gray car by 6 p.m., when paramedics found his body. Todd Hall, one of the first paramedics to see the body, saw a man fleeing the scene in a red vest, which is not what the park's volunteers normally wore.[1]
Foster's body was lying down neatly in a coffin-like position. His glasses were more than 10 feet away while the barrel of the gun was in his mouth, and the gun was wiped clean of fingerprints. No bullet was found, and his body had no bullet wound, although he did have a gash on his neck. He also had no gunpowder on his tongue and no soil or grass on his shoes even though his location could only be reached by a dirt path. His clothes had 35 carpet fibers on them, including ones from his home, the White House, and a car trunk.[1]
Investigation
Bill Clinton removed FBI director William S. Sessions from office on July 19. During the investigation, Sessions's opponent Floyd Clarke was in charge of the FBI. The U.S. Park Police initially led the investigation but worked with the FBI. Sergeant Bob Edwards took photos of the crime scene, which were confiscated and never seen again. Police technician Pete Simonello also took photos with a polaroid, which the FBI declared "underexposed."[1]
After his death, the furniture and carpets in Foster's office were replaced. His briefcase was emptied and inventoried on July 23. On July 26, Stephen Neuwirth claimed to find a suicide note in this same briefcase. The note was torn into 28 pieces and had no fingerprints on it. The note claimed that the Clintons were innocent. In 1996, Reginald Alton, an Oxford handwriting expert, confirmed that the note was forged.[1]
George Bush's Solicitor General Kenneth Starr headed another investigation. His lead investigator, Miguel Rodríguez, wrote a 30-page memo arguing that Foster's death was not a suicide. In January 1995, he was forced out of the investigation and resigned.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Jeremy Kuzmarov (2022-01-05). "With the Clinton Brand Now Discredited, Its High Time to Reopen the Investigation into the Death of Vince Foster" CovertAction Magazine. Archived from the original on 2024-06-19.