Remember when the Saints had that terrible offseason full of controversy, scandals, suspensions, contract negotiations, and a bunch of negative press?
Yeah, unfortunately it's not over with yet. When reports surfaced that Mickey Loomis had wiretapped the Superdome, Tom Benson finally had enough of the ambiguous accusations surrounding his team and its staff. As a reaction to all of the articles concerning the corruption of the franchise, Benson hired a man from New Jersey to investigate the allegations.
The mans name is Louis Freeh and he's not your typical gumshoe. He's well versed in solving crimes and getting to the bottom of the barrel for some real answers. So if you want to know more about the man from New Jersey, continue reading after the jump.
These days when you hear references to New Jersey, you may think of imbecilic youngsters who like to fist pump and Jersey turnpike late into the night. Maybe you envision a haven for people obsessed with the going to the gym, tanning, and doing laundry. You may imagine a place where Snooki and Mike "The Situation" are acceptable names, and where everyone works in a t-shirt shop along the boardwalk. I wonder if Mr. Cariello would hire those Jersey kids? Maybe adding a splash of crazy to the store would increase traffic and sales? I'm just saying, its something to consider.
Well, Mr. Freeh is the exact opposite of the previous description. He's not just a former FBI agent, from 1993-2001 he was the Director, the head honcho, the big cheese, the boss, the inspector general. He's been involved in some of the highest profile cases that took place during his time with the bureau. If you really want to know how deep this man's rabbit hole runs, check out his wikipedia page. Here's just the tip of Freeh's iceberg:
Freeh was born January 6, 1950, in Jersey City, New Jersey, the son of Bernice (née Chinchiolo) and William Freeh, Sr. Freeh graduated from St. Joseph's High School in West New York in 1967. Louis Freeh was then educated by the Christian Brothers and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Rutgers University in 1971. He received a J.D. degree from Rutgers School of Law-Newark in 1974 and an LL.M. degree in criminal law from New York University School of Law in 1984. Freeh was an FBI Special Agent from 1975 to 1981 in the New York City field office and at F.B.I. Headquarters in Washington, D.C. In 1981, he joined the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York as an assistant U.S. attorney. Subsequently, he held positions there as Chief of the Organized Crime Unit, Deputy U.S. Attorney, and Associate U.S. Attorney. He was also a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserve. In 1991, President George H. W. Bush appointed Freeh a judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, a position he held until he was appointed FBI director by President Bill Clinton in 1993. As a youth, Freeh became an Eagle Scout in 1963 and in 1995 was awarded the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award by the Boy Scouts of America.
I think this man is quite qualified to investigate all of the allegations facing the Saints this offseason. The best part is: he's not motivated by money or reputation.
After his service as FBI Director, Freeh was literally willing to work for free which is cool because he's already got a great campaign slogan right there. According to his wikipedia page when he retired from the FBI, "Freeh approached acting New Jersey Governor Donald DiFrancesco, and offered to serve, without salary, as the state's anti-terrorism "czar." Thanks to the politics of politics he was denied the job. That's actually a funny story that shows how dirty politicians can be, you should read it.
In all seriousness, I referred to Wikipedia just for some background and couldn't stop reading. The man is driven! All I can say is this guy could be a candidate for the "Over-Achiever of the Millenium Award." His investigative background is just as impressive as Brees' career as a Saint. From what I've learned about Mr. Freeh, there are two main qualities he possesses that impress me.
The first quality is his propensity for being thorough. He'll definitely find out the real story behind all the media hoopla. When he wants the truth he finds it without having to "transcribe" evidence or get the media involved.
Unfortunately the most recent example of his work involves Penn State. Yup, if you hadn't heard already this is the same guy who investigated the Sandusky allegations. Have you heard or read what he's uncovered? It's a pretty damning report for both Joe Paterno and Penn State. If you want to read it here's a link to the official site of the report. Not a fun read, just warning you upfront!
The second quality he possesses is that he is fearless with his findings. Can you imagine how many people would like to threaten Freeh's life for what he reported about just Joe Paterno? I won't go so far as to say he ruined Paterno's career or legacy because he simply reported what he found, but you can believe someone out there believes he did. The truth is, what happened at Penn State was terrible and disturbing to say the least, but the damage was done way before Freeh became involved. In my opinion, his next assignment with the Saints is more trivial than disturbing.
What the Saints franchise endured this offseason pales in comparison to the Sandusky Scandal; but nonetheless, the truth must be sought after like a pearl from the abyss. He'll find out if our players were really trying to injure opponents for money. He'll find out if Goodell's pile of evidence is just that or a pile of garbage. He'll find out if Loomis really had the Superdome wiretapped. He'll get to the bottom of all of this like a woman looking for keys in her purse. By the time he's finished he'll have the truth, and hopefully so will we as fans.
Personally I think this was a rather cunning move by Benson. By the time Freeh is finished, Mr. Benson will know if his team's GM is clean or dirty, if his players are hired thugs or professional athletes, and what color underwear everyone on the staff wears. Now what Freeh does with that information is entirely up to the man that hired him, Tom Benson. Let's just hope Benson learned that sharing is caring and relays the report to the public.