James W. McCord, Jr.

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"Jim McCord" redirects here. For the American politician, see Jim Nance McCord.

James Walter McCord, Jr. (born July 26, 1924 in Waurika, Oklahoma)[1][2] was the electronics expert involved in two break-ins of the Watergate complex. McCord was also a former CIA agent.[3] He and four other accomplices, Frank Sturgis, Virgilio Gonzalez, Eugenio Martinez and Bernard Barker, were arrested during the second break-in, which ignited the Watergate scandal. He attended Baylor University and was a graduate of George Washington University. He was interviewed and then hired by Jack Caulfield in January 1972 "for strict, solely defensive security work at the Republican National Committee and the Committee to Re-Elect the President (CREEP)". One of the first men convicted in the Watergate criminal trial, McCord led the June 17, 1972 early-morning burglary of the Democratic National Committee's headquarters at the Watergate office building in Washington, D.C.. He was convicted on eight counts of conspiracy, burglary and wiretapping.[1] He later wrote a letter to U.S. District Judge John Sirica stating that his plea and testimony, some of which he claimed was perjured, were compelled by pressure from White House counsel John Dean and former Attorney General John N. Mitchell. His letter set off the Watergate scandal in earnest by implicating many higher-ups in the Richard Nixon administration for covering up the conspiracy that led to the burglary.[4]

Prior to his conviction, McCord served as a drive-through operator and also a security director for the Committee to Re-elect the President (CREEP), and had worked for the FBI and CIA, where he was in charge of physical security at Langley headquarters, as well as serving as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserves. His security consulting firm, McCord Associates, provided security services to CREEP.[citation needed] After serving his prison sentence McCord became a University of Michigan athletics booster and funneled money from his illegal gambling operation to players, which got UM in trouble.

[edit] Letter to Judge John Sirica

The following is the full text of the letter that McCord wrote to Judge Sirica during the Watergate trial:

James W. McCord, Jr.
7 Winder Court
Rockville , Maryland 20850

TO: JUDGE SIRICA March 19, 1973

Certain questions have been posed to me from your honor through the probation officer, dealing with details of the case, motivations, intent and mitigating circumstances.

In endeavoring to respond to these questions, I am whipsawed in a variety of legalities. First, I may be called before a Senate Committee investigating this matter. Secondly, I may be involved in a civil suit, and thirdly there may be a new trial at some future date. Fourthly, the probation officer may be called before the Senate Committee to present testimony regarding what may otherwise be a privileged communication between defendant and Judge, as I understand it; if I answered certain questions to the probation officer, it is possible such answers could become a matter of record in the Senate and there-fore available for use in the other proceedings just described. My answers would, it would seem to me, to violate my fifth amendment rights, and possibly my 6 th amendment right to counsel and possibly other rights.

On the other hand, to fail to answer your questions may appear to be non-cooperation, and I can therefore expect a much more severe sentence.

There are further considerations which are not to be lightly taken. Several members of my family have expressed fear for my life if I disclose knowledge of the facts in this matter, either publicly or to any government representative. Whereas I do not share their concerns to the same degree, nevertheless, I do believe that retaliatory measures will be taken against me, my family, and my friends should I disclose such facts. Such retaliation could destroy careers, income, and reputations of persons who are innocent of any guilt whatever.

Be that as it may, in the interests of justice, and in the interests of restoring faith in the criminal justice system, which faith has been severely damaged in this case, I will state the following to you at this time which I hope may be of help to you in meting out justice in this case:

1. There was political pressure applied to the defendants to plead guilty and remain silent.

2. Perjury occurred during the trial in matters highly material to the very structure, orientation, and impact of the government's case, and to the motivation and intent of the defendants.

3. Others involved in the Watergate operation were not identified during the trial, when they could have been by those testifying.

4. The Watergate operation was not a CIA operation. The Cubans may have been misled by others into believing that it was a CIA operation. I know for a fact that it was not.

5. Some statements were unfortunately made by a witness which left the Court with the impression that he was stating untruths, or withholding facts of his knowledge, when in fact only honest errors of memory were involved.

6. My motivations were different than those of the others involved, but were not limited to, or simply those offered in my defense during the trial. This is no fault of my attorneys, but of the circumstances under which we had to prepare my defense.

Following sentence, I would appreciate the opportunity to talk with you privately in chambers. Since I cannot feel confident in talking with an FBI agent, in testifying before a Grand Jury whose U.S. Attorneys work for the Department of Justice, or in talking with other government representatives, such a discussion with you would be of assistance to me.

I have not discussed the above with my attorneys as a matter of protection for them.

I give this statement freely and voluntarily, fully realizing that I may be prosecuted for giving a false statement to a Judicial Official, if the statements herein are knowingly untrue. The statements are true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.

[signed] James W. McCord, Jr. [5]

[edit] Further Reading

McCord wrote a book about his connection with the Watergate burglary:

For further reading from the newspaper media's perspective, see All the President's Men by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Dickinson, William B.; Mercer Cross, Barry Polsky (1973). Watergate: chronology of a crisis 1. Washington D. C.: Congressional Quarterly Inc., 40. ISBN 0871870592. OCLC 20974031. 
    This book is volume 1 of a two volume set. Both volumes share the same ISBN and Library of Congress call number, E859 .C62 1973
  2. ^ Dash, Samuel (1976). Chief counsel: inside the Ervin Committee--the untold story of Watergate. New York: Random House, 59. ISBN 0-394-40853-5. 
  3. ^ (1973) The Watergate hearings: break-in and cover-up; proceedings. New York: Viking Press, 147. ISBN 0670751529. 
  4. ^ "When Judge Sirica finished reading the letter, the courtroom exploded with excitement and reporters ran to the rear entrance to phone their newspapers. The bailiff kept banging for silence. It was a stunning development, exactly what I had been waiting for. Perjury at the trial. The involvement of others. It looked as if Watergate was about to break wide open."
    Dash, Samuel (1976). Chief counsel: inside the Ervin Committee--the untold story of Watergate. New York: Random House, 30. ISBN 0-394-40853-5. 
  5. ^ James McCord's Letter to Judge Sirica [March 19, 1973]. Retrieved on 2007-07-21.
    Sirica, John J. (1979). To set the record straight: the break-in, the tapes, the conspirators, the pardon. New York: Norton, 95-97. ISBN 0-393-01234-4.