Janet Reno discusses truth, 'slippery slopes' during Statler lecture

By Linda Grace-Kobas

Former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno described the "failings of truth-seeking" in American society and its justice system in a public lecture Feb. 6 in a packed Statler Auditorium. A 1960 graduate of Cornell, Reno is on campus for a two-week stay, through Feb. 14, as a Frank H.T. Rhodes Class of '56 University Professor. Her lecture topic was "Truth and How We Seek It."

Janet Reno '60 prepares to take questions during her Statler Auditorium lecture, Feb 6. Robert Barker/University Photography

"I have seen evil, I have seen madness," Reno said. "I have made hard decisions, and I've been roundly criticized if I did or if I didn't." But, she added, "I still have an ultimate faith in people."

Knowing the truth "is like finding a piece of gold," and "Cornell is a gold mine for knowledge," she said. Throughout her lecture, she exhorted students in the audience to use the many resources at Cornell in their own searches for knowledge and truth.

Reno served as attorney general in Florida's Dade County before President Bill Clinton tapped her to be a member of his administration. As the state's chief prosecutor, Reno said she saw many failings in the search for truth within the justice system -- people being convicted of crimes they did not commit, innocent people sentenced to death, misidentification by witnesses, poor representation of defendants by attorneys, false confessions and poor forensic work.

"We must bring disciplines together in great universities like this," she said, citing the scientific advance of DNA analysis as a tool in the search for truth.

She advocated the development of curricula in problem-solving for kindergarten through 12th grade and freshmen courses in truth-seeking at universities. She said crime can be prevented by developing programs of affordable health care for all Americans, accessible treatment for the mentally ill and drug courts that deal with the health issues of addiction, as well as the crimes. Scientists must learn to speak effectively to the public, without jargon, so that solutions can be developed in partnerships across disciplines, society and government, she said.

The former U.S. attorney general speaks with students, including Sharada Devarasetty '03, center, after her Feb. 6 lecture. Robert Barker/University Photography

"The time has come for the nation to talk together in reasoned ways," Reno said. "We have spent too much time of late dealing with sharp 30-second sound bites on television, reacting with emotion, rather than reason."

Reno described her appearance on television's "Saturday Night Live" after she left office as "fascinating," and she added, "we need to laugh at ourselves once in a while. America needs to laugh together."

She addressed serious issues during the question-and-answer period. The former chief law enforcement officer for the nation warned that the United States is "creating a step on a slippery slope" when the current U.S. attorney general implies that it is unpatriotic to criticize the president or the Patriot Act. "I find it troubling that a man can be arrested in Chicago -- an American citizen -- and taken to a military brig in South Carolina and held without charges filed against him," she said. "This nation is great because it is free. Its people are great because they can speak out."

Asked by a student whether the United States can justify having a death penalty, she answered, "I am personally opposed to the death penalty." Punishment can be "inconsistent" and "arbitrary," she added. "The only reason I can argue for the death penalty is vengeance. I do not think vengeance is a luxury the government can engage in."

Janet Reno speaks Feb. 4 at forum in Kaufmann Auditorium of Goldwin Smith Hall on the "Ethics of the Modern Campaign." The event was hosted by Cornell's program on Ethics and Public Life and the university's chapter of Democracy Matters. Frank DiMeo/University Photography

Another "slippery slope," she said, is the war on terrorism and possible military action in Iraq. "We seem to be in a war with no exit strategy."

Asked about corporate crime, Reno said, "It is imperative that in these white-collar crimes that people know what it's like to go to prison and to go to prison for time commensurate with what others have been going to prison for." She said it is important that "ill-gotten gains be recovered." But, she added, "part of it is America again. We got spoiled during the economic boom ... we've got to learn that money is not everything."

Would she have done anything differently as attorney general, a student asked?

"Knowing now what I didn't know then -- I don't know what the right answer was, and I don't know what I would have done -- I would not have done what I did in Waco, knowing what happened. What the right answer was went to its grave with David Koresh," she responded.

Another student asked Reno if she has seen the film "Bowling for Columbine," and what's responsible for the violence perpetrated by two young men involved in that school shooting. Reno said she had sat in on a discussion with Cornell Professor James Garbarino, whose most recent book is about the Columbine tragedy, and replied that she has to read his book before she can respond. She reiterated one of her main themes, that prevention of crime starts with spending resources on infants and children.