State contracts with Seisint, co founded by ex-smuggler [13 states try new anti-terrorism product]

AP ^ | Aug. 2, 2003 | Associated Press

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State contracts with Seisint, company founded by ex-smuggler

August 2, 2003

Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Florida Department of Law Enforcement has hired a former drug smuggler to help create a 13-state anti-terrorism network being launched with $4 million in Justice Department funding.

Millionaire Hank Asher of Boca Raton... was never charged with drug smuggling. He served as an informant and witness after being implicated in a Bahamian drug ring in the 1980s.

But the interim head of FDLE call Friday for a more thorough review of Asher's background, saying previous checks were inadequate.

A $1.6 million contract with FDLE calls on Asher's company, Seisint Inc., to participate in Matrix, a pilot program with Justice funding which is designed to allow agencies in 13 states to exchange sensitive information on terrorism and other crime suspects.

Matrix, short for Multistate Anti-Terrorism Information Exchange, is a pilot project intended to improve the exchange of information among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.

The participating states are: Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Ohio, and Utah.

Asher has not charged FDLE for many of his services, McLaughlin said. Seisint technology has been demonstrated for Vice President Dick Cheney and Gov. Jeb Bush.

...Martha Barnett, former president of the American Bar Association and a member of Seisint's board of directors, said she had heard of past allegations about Asher but called him "a creative genius" in information technology. ...

The FBI issued a commendation to Seisint last year for "exceptional services in the public interest." The Secret Service awarded a certificate of appreciation to the company for its contributions to law enforcement. Supercomputers power its Seisint's Accurint database service, which it says offers "deeper and more comprehensive" searches than its competitors.

Asher has donated more than $735,000 to political parties and candidates in the past five years, including $505,000 to Democrats.

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Asher has donated more than $735,000 to political parties and candidates in the past five years, including $505,000 to Democrats.

There is a lot to contemplate in this article, but here is what struck me: this guy donates more than half a million to the Dems -- but, the GOP is willing to give him a chance to demonstrate the usefulness of his new anti-terrorism product.

If the new product works, and 13 states are willing to try it, my attitude is to wait and see what happens. I don't understand the purpose of immediately condeming the guy in the press.