FBI: No investigation involving journalist Michael Hastings

By Adam Silverman | Burlington Free Press

BURLINGTON, Vt. – The FBI is denying reports that journalist and Vermonter Michael Hastings, who was killed in a single-vehicle car wreck Tuesday in Los Angeles, was the subject of a bureau inquiry.

"At no time was journalist Michael Hastings ever under investigation by the FBI," L.A. Field Office spokeswoman Laura Eimiller told the Burlington Free Press on Thursday.

In other developments Thursday in the death of Hastings, 33, a prominent war correspondent and a 1998 graduate of Rice Memorial High School in South Burlington, Vt.:

The L.A. Police Department said detectives have concluded no foul play was involved in the crash.

The Los Angeles County Department of Coroner said it has positively identified Hastings as the victim, using his fingerprints.

Hastings' family, in an obituary appearing Friday in the Burlington Free Press, said a celebration of his life is set for Sunday in Milton "where his family will greet friends," and a prayer service and reception will follow.

The crash occurred at about 4:25 a.m. Tuesday near the intersection of North Highland and Melrose avenues, police have said. Hastings' car crossed the median, slammed into a tree and burst into flames. Reports indicated the vehicle was speeding before the wreck. Hastings was pronounced dead at the scene.

The LAPD's comment about foul play followed a surge of conspiracy theories online that wondered whether the government might have targeted Hastings for his reporting on security, war and terrorism issues, including the National Security Agency's widespread phone and Internet snooping programs.

Spokesman Richard French said detectives did not share with his office the reasons behind their conclusion that the crash was an accident.

The Department of Coroner said an autopsy on Hastings has been performed, but the cause of death was listed as deferred pending further investigation, including toxicology and pathology reports.

"The question is 'Why? Why did he crash?'" said Ed Winter, assistant chief of investigation. "Was it something mechanical that the traffic division of the LAPD is going to be able to find? Did he have a medical condition that caused him to pass out? Did the accelerator stick? Was he under medication? Was there some other factor?"

The inquiry could take up to six weeks, Winter said. The LAPD, too, said its investigation was ongoing.

Hastings was widely known for his profile in Rolling Stone magazine of Gen. Stanley McChrystal, commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, as he and his staff disparaged President Barack Obama and administration officials. The piece, "The Runaway General," led to McChrystal's forced resignation.

Hastings also wrote books, and he reported for the website BuzzFeed, which announced in October that Hastings would start working from its new L.A. bureau to cover national security and politics, and to contribute to entertainment coverage.

He was born in Malone, N.Y., to Brent and Molly Hastings, who now live in Milton, Vt., according to his obituary in the Free Press. A profile of Hastings in the summer issue of Vermont Life magazine says Hastings considered Vermont his home state and a sanctuary for him and his wife, Elise Jordan, who live in New York City.

The question about whether the FBI was looking into Hastings arose Wednesday after the website WikiLeaks posted a tweet that read: "Michael Hastings contacted WikiLeaks lawyer Jennifer Robinson just a few hours before he died, saying that the FBI was investigating him."

The site Thursday followed up with a second tweet: "It is not acceptable that the FBI was investigating yet another national security journalist, this time Michael Hastings."

But Eimiller, the FBI spokeswoman in L.A., categorically denied the reports.

When asked whether she was speaking just for her office or for the bureau period, she replied: "Period."