Background of the Archive

Few people expect to spend years reconstructing the documentary record of multiple investigations and administrative proceedings. Yet that is precisely what happened.

The effort began as an attempt to understand a series of investigations, administrative proceedings, institutional actions, and related financial matters spanning several years. While some of these matters were known at the time, others became apparent only through subsequent public records requests.

Reconstructing the factual basis of these investigations, proceedings, and related matters required years of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, administrative appeals, public records litigation, court filings, and institutional correspondence. Those efforts also made it possible to better understand the institutional procedures and documentary record associated with them.

What began as an effort to better understand a series of investigations and administrative proceedings ultimately uncovered a complex documentary record encompassing allegations commonly referred to as "Russia-Gate," FBI and HHS-OIG investigations, University of Michigan investigations and administrative proceedings, Ann Arbor Police Department investigations, federal and state court proceedings, Freedom of Information Act litigation, and related financial proceedings and transactions.

Among the materials documented in the archive are Dr. Paul Cronin's allegations concerning Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, which he communicated during the summer of 2016—contemporaneously with the opening of the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane investigation and before the public release of the Steele dossier.

As additional records were obtained, they were organized into the archive presented here. The archive documents not only the investigations and proceedings themselves, but also the institutional procedures, administrative processes, and documentary record through which those matters can be understood.

The archive emphasizes publication of primary-source materials. Wherever practicable, original documents—including FOIA requests and responses, court filings, agency correspondence, investigative records, administrative records, financial records, and related materials—are presented alongside explanatory text so readers may examine the underlying record directly.

Navigating the Archive

Readers who are new to the archive are encouraged to begin with the following pages:

Russia-Gate and the Chicken Coop — A memoir describing the summer of 2016, when ordinary evenings in Ann Arbor evolved into extraordinary conversations that ultimately gave rise to years of public records requests, litigation, and investigative reporting.
Case Index — The principal guide to the archive, providing organized access to the major investigations, administrative proceedings, document collections, and supporting records.
Case Model — A simplified overview showing how the principal matters documented in the archive relate to one another, including the major investigations and institutional actions.

From those pages, readers can navigate to individual document collections, primary-source materials, and related reporting throughout the archive.

About the Author

Dr. Bradley Foerster, M.D., Ph.D., is a board-certified neuroradiologist, physician-scientist, and former tenured faculty member at the University of Michigan. His academic work focused on the application of advanced imaging methods to better understand neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS.

Dr. Foerster's scientific training informs the approach taken throughout this archive: careful documentation, chronological organization, reliance on primary-source materials, and an ongoing effort to distinguish the documentary record from interpretation.

The Archive

The archive emphasizes original source materials, including:

Freedom of Information Act requests and agency responses
Federal and state court filings
Institutional correspondence
Administrative records
Public records
Financial records and related documentary materials

Rather than relying primarily upon narrative summaries, the archive seeks to preserve and present the underlying record whenever practicable, allowing readers to examine the evidence directly.

Materials are organized through a curated Case Index, while additional records are available throughout the archive in chronological order, including supporting documentation, contemporaneous reporting, and supplemental materials.

Archive Evolution

Earlier posts were written contemporaneously as events unfolded and may reflect the author's understanding at the time. As additional records were obtained through Freedom of Information Act requests, litigation, and institutional responses, the archive increasingly shifted toward publication of primary documents, official records, and chronological presentation with limited commentary.

Where appropriate, earlier reporting is supplemented or clarified as additional documentary evidence becomes available.

Years of Freedom of Information Act requests, litigation, and documentary research have answered many questions while raising others. Although the documentary record has expanded substantially, important questions remain concerning the factual basis, institutional procedures, administrative decision-making, and documentary record associated with certain investigations, proceedings, and related financial transactions. As additional materials become available, the archive continues to evolve in an effort to reconstruct and preserve that record.