Firing Squad Photo Sends Chilling Message to ATF Employees

The Washington Times reported this morning that an online training manual for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives contains a photo of a firing squad, leading to the suggestion federal agents could face a firing squad for leaking government secrets. Stephen Kohn, executive director of the National Whistleblower Center, denounced the photo, which was given to The Washington Times by a concerned federal law enforcement official.   

Mr. Kohn said the DOJ has forgotten about the protections of the First Amendment, which covers leaks to the media, and that the photo could scare its employees into self-censorship. Mr. Kohn explained that the photo “would have a chilling affect on legitimate speech. And some of the rhetoric used against whistleblowers could be construed as inciting to violence because they’ve turned up the rhetoric.”

Read the full article here.   

This is the image obtained by The Washington Times that shows the photo as part of the AFT training manual.