History is Fickle

So, let’s put this in simple terms: How many notable FBI cases can you think of? I can probably come up with two dozen, on short notice; maybe twice that with some effort; less than a hundred, even if you could vague ideas like “that one guy who…” or “the thing where…”. I’m sure that, over the years, there have been a lot more than most people realize - many of them basically ephemeral, here-today, gone-tomorrow bits of excitement. (’fess up, how many of you counted the manhunt for Andrew Cunanan in your total, or even remember who he was?)

Well, I was a bit surprised to recently learn that, by one yardstick, the Bureau itself might reckon the total number of notable cases north of 12,000.

Starting sometime in the late 1930s - I think - and continuing off and on through at least the early 1980s, Field Offices of the FBI produced what were at various times referred to as “Interesting Case Memos” or “Interesting Case Write-Ups” upon the conclusion of a case in which they were involved. The purpose of these documents varied, over time - in some decades, they were meant for the media, and may not have contained 100% unvarnished truth, as the criteria was cases that showed the Bureau in a good light. At other times, the criteria was more technical, for largely internal use - descriptions of cases where new investigative techniques were used successfully, for instance. At still other times, the purpose was to lay down a concise history of a notable case, for posterity.

The reports were, as far as I can tell, not filed separately, but included in the “case file” of the incident or individual(s) in question. There was a master index of some sort, to these files; the roughly 12,500 3×5 cards are now located in five boxes at the National Archives (as “Record Group 65, 230/32/35/07″, per the Archives, should you want to look at them).

I haven’t seen any of the cards, so I can’t really tell you how they’re indexed. Yes, I assume it’s alphabetical, but I’m not sure if it’s just by name, or if there are cross-references to other things - offenses, locations, and so on. Still, even supposing that every case was indexed four times, that’s over three thousand “notable” cases from the Bureau’s decades of history. Most, I’m sure, were a “big deal” when they happened, at least locally, but it’s kind of fascinating - and more than a little depressing - to see a glimpse of how quickly history, and infamy, fade.

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