FBI Laboratory Director Dr. Christian Hassell Responds to Edward Jay Epstein in the Wall Street Journal

"The FBI is confident in the scientific findings that were reached in this investigation."--Dr. Christian Hassell, FBI Laboratory Director (NYT, 1-31-10)

Today, the Wall Street Journal published a letter from FBI Laboratory Director Dr. Christian Hassell titled "Anthrax Case: FBI Used Good Science." [Hat Tip To Ed Lake at Anthrax Investigation]

UPDATE: Dr. Hassell's letter to the WSJ appeared as an FBI press release (2-3-10) on the official FBI site.

Dr. Hassell was responding to an uninformed 1-25-10 op-ed written by Edward Jay Epstein:

Regarding Edward Jay Epstein's "The Anthrax Attacks Remain Unsolved" (op-ed, Jan. 25): From the outset, the FBI's scientific work in the anthrax case has had a foundation in validation and verification of its approach and conclusions. This process began within weeks of the initial events of 2001 and has included: consultation with numerous subject matter experts in technical panels; collaboration with partner laboratories in government, academia and the private sector throughout the course of the investigation; ongoing efforts to publish our work and that of our partner labs in peer-reviewed technical journals; analytical data and reports provided to the National Academy of Sciences, so it can evaluate the scientific analysis applied to the evidence in the anthrax investigation.

The FBI is confident in the scientific findings that were reached in this investigation. We utilized established biological and chemical analysis techniques and applied them in an innovative manner to reach these findings.

D. Christian Hassell, Ph.D.
Quantico, Va.

Dr. Hassell has already explained some of the science used to solve the Amerithrax case and has observed that the media continue to misinterprete the scientific evidence.

Hopefully, the FBI will soon be able to formally close the Amerithrax Investigation and release more information to the public.