San Francisco Chronicle, February 28, 1997



FBI's Story Shot Full Of Holes in 'Waco'



By Mick LaSalle

Chronicle Staff Critic



"Waco: The Rules of Engagement" is a grim, disturbing documentary, but a

necessary and important one. It makes a strong case that the

government's involvement in the Waco incident was a Bill of Rights

nightmare.



The documentary, which opens today at the Roxie, tells the story of the

51-day standoff between the FBI and David Koresh's Branch Davidian sect

in 1993 -- but the version it tells is not the one most Americans heard

on the 6 o'clock news.



The tone is calm. The strategy is methodical. But the film's gravity

only underscores the startling nature of its allegations. Over the

course of 165 minutes, this painstaking documentary guides its audience

to an understanding of the tragedy that's far different from the

impression left by the congressional investigative committee.



According to the film, the Branch Davidians did not commit suicide by

setting themselves on fire; rather, the FBI accidentally started the

fire by penetrating the compound with CS mist, a highly combustible form

of teargas.



Even more chilling, the film contradicts the FBI's assertion that it did

not fire a single shot on the compound. It shows heat-sensitive infrared

tapes that suggest, at least to two independent analysts, that the

Branch Davidians were shot at with automatic weapons as they were trying

to escape the burning building.



The documentary brings together TV news footage and uses liberal

excerpts from the congressional hearings on Waco, parts of which were

aired on CNN.



More revealing are audio excerpts of the FBI's negotiations with the

Branch Davidians; home video footage of the FBI agents clowning around

on tanks; home videos of the Branch Davidians, recorded within the

compound during the standoff; and the heat-sensitive tapes, originally

recorded by government surveillance planes.



According to the film's executive producer, Dan Gifford, the filmmakers

were given these tapes by the defense attorneys for the surviving Branch

Davidians. Gifford and co-executive producer Amy Sommer Gifford have

worked in television news, while director William Gazecki has had a long

feature film career as a sound mixer ("The Rose," "Who Framed Roger

Rabbit").



"Waco" takes the viewer through the tragedy from start to finish. The

film makes the case that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms

agents' initial assault on the compound was made with an eye toward

publicity. The Branch Davidians were apparently tipped off to the

assault when TV news vans arrived a full 30 minutes ahead of the ATF.



The standoff began four years ago today -- Feb. 28, 1993 -- when the ATF

raid turned into a shootout. Each side claimed that the other started

firing first. The film leaves that question open, except to note that a

metal door, through which the first shots may have been fired -- and

which would show the direction of the bullets -- has disappeared.



The film criticizes the FBI's handling of the negotiations and offers

evidence that suggests that a break in the standoff had already occurred

when Attorney General Janet Reno gave the go-ahead to launch the April

19 assault on the compound. "Waco" shows federal tanks knocking down

entire sections of the compound and presents autopsy photos of mangled

corpses.



Most damaging of all to the government's suicide theory are the

heat-sensitive tapes. In two places a tank is shown depositing the

combustible gas -- and in less than a minute, that section bursts into

flames.



"Waco: The Rules of Engagement" leaves it to the audience whether to

believe Democratic Representative Charles Schumer of Brooklyn, for

example, who postulates that the 27 Branch Davidians who died from

gunshot wounds either killed themselves or were shot by one another.



It also doesn't say whether one should be more moved by the government's

charges of alleged child abuse, or by an autopsy photo showing the

charred, distorted body of an 8-year-girl.



Viewers may not come away from "Waco" thinking that they've heard the

last word. But they will come away with questions, and they might just

come away demanding answers.