n mid-1967 Clay Shaw's legal team felt he was up against a "stacked deck." In August 1967, they learned that one of their investigators was leaking information back to Garrison. And facing them was a juggernaut: Garrison had private money for his investigation, full control of the New Orleans legal system, and the resources of local and state police on call, all with little oversight. On top of this, Shaw's spiraling costs for private investigators were eating into his nest egg, and his friends and family were scared. Who else might Garrison charge with conspiracy?
His lawyers went to Washington. Nothing much happened. They then decided to send a lengthy civil rights complaint to John Doar, assistant attorney general in the DOJ's Civil Rights Division.
Here is their complaint:
They didn't hear back and sent the following letter:
The Department of Justice never took action on Shaw's civil rights complaint, and Shaw's attorneys then turned to the courts. They were bitterly disappointed that nobody came to help them. You can read more about this in my book On The Trail of Delusion in the Conclusion.