Doc 0000045517

' .. 1 : . ; ..... .' I ::_ ·---·-- ... -.-·-.·----..--- .. ·.-···-- I " Ct::NTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY WASHINGTON, O.C. 20505 2 November l 977 John Gavin, Esq. Office of Legal Counsel Department of Justice Washington, D.C. 20530 Dear Jchn: Further in line with our telephone conversation of 31 October, I am furnishing you, for whatever action you deem appropriate, the following -information concerning another incident which further demonstrates the difficulties which might arise in_ _~ opn~tion_¥-•ith an_y CIA program to investi gate, identify, locate and assist alleged victims of this Agency's support of MKULTRA-type research activities in the 1950s and 1960s. On 26 Octobe an employee of the contacted the Office of _fue Inspector General here at the Ag the following information. His wife, whose married--from i«rs5untill9-6~0~t~o-· ed by CIA a at time. mmer she accompanied her husband to the farm of her husband'.s · dinner, drinks and wine. She believes her husband worked for Dr. GQttJicb \Vho was Chief of the Technical Services ..~...· ··. • . • . .-; "!"Sr.~ ,• Staff Chemical Division and heavily involved in MKULTRA activities. Her next recollection is ~receiving electric shock treatments at George Washington -University Hospital for some time, followed by a convalescent period of ~~ ··~~. ... several weeks at home. She then recalls being referred by her husband's .,:.. supervisor to a friend of the s sor1s at the 11B ton Ps chiatric Hos tal. 11 She and her husband . . . . went t I o os . . 1 ~ -.:; is supervisor visited her there and she recalls a strange walk out of . She also remembers taking variou~ tests at the uffered a "relapse" and required psychiatric care two years apparently has since 11come out of it. 11 The recent Senate · -earsian d attendant publicity concC'rning Project MKULTRA prompted 1to review the Senate transcripts which he found contained infor- - -~-~ ~- ·-·rn wn supporthe of his ·wife's recollectionh-id not ask for . any specific action or relief.--He has been adv~d no objection regarding our opinion that this matter should not be investigated dir«:>ctly by CIA at this time but should be referred to Justice for consideration. :.·I ..... 5 Cr· ,_ ' ·~ -- .. ....;._. ..... . · . . / .. .,.. ! ~· .. . . • ---- .... ~ ... ·'-. -·-- "'\ -·-- .t This page presents a graphic background with text. On the left, a stylized image of a vault door is depicted in shades of gray, silver, and electric blue. The text, in white and yellow, explains that the document was obtained from "The Black Vault," an online database of declassified government documents, specifically mentioning the MKULTRA/Mind Control Collection. It states that the collection houses over 20,000 declassified pages from the CIA and provides a URL for online access. There are no photographs of people, locations, or equipment, nor any handwritten annotations, signatures, stamps, forms, diagrams, tables, redacted content, or visual evidence of experimental procedures. not be investigated dir«:>ctly by CIA at this time but should be referred to Justice for consideration. :.·I ..... 5 Cr· ,_ ' ·~ -- .. ....;._. ..... . · . . / .. .,.. ! ~· .. . . • ---- .... ~ ... ·'-. -·-- "'\ -·-- .t ________' \- t .. I -'·fl --..,. -- • --i ~-• --------~ We hav"e been able to confirm from eyed by the A~ency assJgnt~d from .. der Dr . anua1·y vorce February 1960 although they had while residing in Cambridge, Massachusetts. lives in Arlington, Virginia. Thus far, although a furt rev 1 records -is underway, no evide~ce has b~e]"l_ _ !Ol.ll"!d_tha!_!he then was ever hospitalized for any_ reason or that she ~va.s ev~_t_he subject of research per ~;r (' . formed by the Agency,_ its components or employees. ,.._~·:,.·:~ ---. For your information, in six subprojects of Project ~ _____ ~-_ ~ _ _ appear to have in-volved tes"tin-g of LSD and other substances on human / 1 subjects. ~ --· --.. . This matter obvj_ously dE'~serves fur_thednve.!?.tigation to cl<1rify. by _fonfirmi.ng her su ying her fears, the basis for whatever emotional distr may continue to suffer.. Of course it may not bt:' possible at o gathe1· sufficient t:vidt•nct:: to accompiish e-ither result. In any event, h6wev£~r, it does not appear or CIA to con- duct thi::; inv<:>stigation, even insofar as questioning vho has already contacted an Agency official on 31 October !Q_inform CIA Qf tJ1~ fact that his v.1ife had related these allegations to him. SinCl' it might appea1· to somp that · CIA has an interest in not confirming that individuals WC'l"e in fact 11victimized" by MKULTRA-type activities, the Agency could be accused at some point, in this or any other investigation of the samE' general nature, of having influenced the recollections or statements of those involved or of having not conducted the in"\'estigation in a proper manner. Shou'ld these matters proceed to litigation, this perceived conflict of interest on the part of CIA or its employees could becnme particularly damaging. - The Agency continues to be anxious to do everything possible to assist those who may have been adversely affected by MKULTRA-typc activities. How~vcr, the complications surrounding any action contemplah~d by CIA itself continue to plague us, as the above_::described case again illustrates. " !Je shall be happy to assist you further, _in any way you may The document is a typewritten letter on official CIA letterhead. There are several black ink redactions obscuring names and specific details throughout the text, particularly on lines mentioning individuals or their employers. In the bottom right corner, there is a seal for the "American Revolution Bicentennial 1776-1976". Below the main body of text, handwritten numerical annotations are visible, along with a small, possibly stamped, box. No photographs, diagrams, or evidence of experimental procedures are present. to do everything possible to assist those who may have been adversely affected by MKULTRA-typc activities. How~vcr, the complications surrounding any action contemplah~d by CIA itself continue to plague us, as the above_::described case again illustrates. " !Je shall be happy to assist you further, _in any way you may deem necessary, in achieving a satisfactory rcsolutio1~ of these difficult p~·obll'ms. . .. ~ Y,t'l"Y truly yout·s, . . . . .. . . . Approved for Retejgg '" . ' ' ~ ~ ' ~ ~. --~· " \ . , . . . -. ~ . :>ate OCT 1 ~ " '. "'l'~ · ~ . ' ¥ .. Assistant Gc·ncral Counst:•l This CIA document page contains extensive black redactions, obscuring numerous words and phrases throughout the text, particularly concerning names, dates, and specific program details. There are no photographs, diagrams, or forms with filled-in fields visible. The only official stamp present is "Approved for Release OCT 1991" with "Date" handwritten next to it. A handwritten signature or annotation is also redacted. The overall visual impression is of a heavily censored document, indicating sensitive information that remains classified or restricted.