[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 2 (Wednesday, January 28, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E51-E52]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              PRIVATE RELIEF LEGISLATION FOR BORIS KORCZAK

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. JAMES A. TRAFICANT

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 28, 1998

  Mr. TRAFICANT. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing private 
legislation to recognize and compensate Mr. Boris Korczak for the 
intelligence gathering services he so courageously rendered on behalf 
of the United States during the height of the Cold War. I introduce 
this legislation only after working, unsuccessfully over the past two 
years, to get the Central Intelligence Agency to provide just 
compensation to Mr. Korczak. Mr. Korczak, currently residing in Fairfax 
Virginia, has exhausted all of the legal remedies available to him.
  Mr. Korczak is a native of Poland who escaped communist persecution 
in that country in 1964, resettling in Denmark. In 1973, while living 
in Copenhagen, Denmark, he was recruited by the Central Intelligence 
Agency to provide intelligence information to the CIA on Soviet 
intelligence operatives. Mr. Korczak owned and operated a electronics 
store, and in that capacity, he had come into contact with Soviet 
intelligence operatives interested in purchasing electronic equipment 
from the West.
  From 1973 to 1980, Mr. Korczak provided a wealth of intelligence 
information to the CIA. During that time the CIA paid Mr. Korczak for 
the expenses he incurred. For more than seven years Mr. Korczak put his 
life on the line to gather intelligence for the U.S. The CIA has 
admitted to me and other Members of Congress that Mr. Korczak was in 
fact a CIA asset during the time in question, and that for seven years 
the CIA paid Mr. Korczak for expenses. Mr. Korczak claims that his CIA 
handlers promised him that, once his service to the CIA was completed, 
the CIA would resettle Mr. Korczak and his family in the United States, 
provide Mr. Korczak with an annual annuity, cover all of his health and 
education costs. These promises were detailed in a contract that Mr. 
Korczak signed in the presence of his CIA case officer. As noted 
earlier, the CIA admits to paying Mr. Korczak's expenses for seven 
years, but denies that it had any other arrangements or contract with 
Mr. Korczak.
  In late 1979, Mr. Korczak's cover as a CIA asset was blown. After 
several life threatening incidents involving Soviet intelligence, Mr. 
Korczak fled to the U.S. in early 1980. Initially, Mr. Korczak received 
assistance from his former CIA case officer. However, after several 
months, the CIA made it clear to Mr. Korczak that it was not going to 
provide any additional compensation to him.
  Mr. Korczak resettled his family in the U.S. and did his best to 
start a new life. He did make several attempts to contact the CIA and 
get the compensation that was promised to him by his case officers. All 
of these attempts were unsuccessful.
  In 1981, while shopping at a supermarket in Vienna, Virginia, Mr. 
Korczak seriously injured when a small pellet was fired into his back. 
Mr. Korczak became seriously ill and was hospitalized. After several 
months Mr. Korczak's condition improved. Mr. Korczak never ascertained 
who shot him with the pellet.
  Upon learning in 1996 of the federal government's intention to 
provide compensation to the survivors and family members of South 
Vietnamese commandos captured during the Vietnam War, Mr. Korczak 
retained counsel and attempted, once again, to get the compensation 
promised to him by the CIA. Later that year, after being rebuffed by 
the CIA, Mr. Korczak filed suit against the CIA.
  Mr. Korczak's suit against the CIA was dismissed by the federal court 
after the federal government invoked the ``Totten Doctrine.'' This 
doctrine is based on the 1876 Supreme Court cast of Totten v. United 
States. The case involved the estate of an individual who performed 
secret services for President Lincoln during the Civil War. The court 
dismissed the plaintiff's postwar suit for breach of contract, stating, 
in part:

       The service stipulated by the contract was a secret 
     service; the information sought was to be obtained 
     clandestinely, and was to be communicated privately; the 
     employment and the service were to be equally concealed. Both 
     employer and agent must have understood that the lips of the 
     other were to be forever sealed respecting the relation of 
     either to the matter . . . It may be stated as a general 
     principle, that public policy forbids the maintenance of any 
     suit in a court of justice, the trial of which would 
     inevitably lead to the disclosure of matters which the law 
     itself regards as confidential, and respecting which it will 
     not allow the confidence to be violated.

  Essentially, the Totten Doctrine bars any individual who provided 
intelligence services to the United States from filing a breach of 
contract suit--no matter how legitimate the claim. Mr. Korczak fell 
victim to the Totten Doctrine when he filed his suit in 1996. A federal 
claims court, in response to the federal government's motion to dismiss 
Mr. Korczak's claim, granted the government's motion, citing Totten v. 
the United States. Subsequent to that ruling, a federal appeals court 
again dismissed Mr. Korczak's suit, also citing the Totten Doctrine. It 
is interesting to note that in dismissing his suit, the federal courts 
never once ruled or commented on the legitimacy of Mr. Korczak's claim. 
They simply agreed with the federal government's claim that the Totten 
Doctrine should be invoked.
  I believe that Mr. Korczak should have his day in court. Because of 
the Totten Doctrine, that will not happen. I have introduced 
legislation, H.R. 691, to establish a sensible process under which 
cases like Mr. Korczak can be objectively adjudicated based on merit 
without compromising national security. However, the fate of that 
legislation is uncertain. Mr. Korczak has exhausted all of his legal 
remedies. His only recourse is passage of a private relief bill.
  The CIA has admitted to me and other Members that he provided 
intelligence gathering services to the U.S. for more than seven years. 
Obviously, the CIA valued his services or they would not have covered 
his expenses. In his own small way, Mr. Korczak contributed to the 
United States historic victory in the Cold War. Whether or not Mr. 
Korczak had an officially sanctioned agreement with the CIA to provide 
him with additional compensation (above and beyond his expenses) is 
immaterial at this point. The fact is, Mr. Korczak served this nation 
bravely for seven years. He did so at great personal risk to himself 
and his family. He deserves the official thanks of this country and 
some modest compensation.

  The legislation I am introducing today officially recognizes Mr. 
Korczak for his service to the U.S. and provides for a one-time payment 
of $225,000 to Mr. Korczak. This bill is long overdue and richly 
deserved. Given Mr. Korczak's unique legal situation, and the nature of 
the service he provided to this country, it is imperative that Congress 
act on this measure.
  I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation. It would 
send a powerful message to the world that the United States does not 
forget those who risk their life in the name of freedom and 
democracy.***HR***H.R.--
  Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. FINDINGS.

  Congress finds the following:
  (1) Boris Korczak is a resident alien of the United States currently 
residing at 10392 Willa Mae Court, Fairfax, Virginia.
  (2) From 1973 to 1980, while living in Copenhagen, Denmark, Boris 
Korczak collected intelligence information for the United States 
Government.
  (3) Boris Korczak volunteered his services to the United States, and 
during the time that he gathered intelligence for the Central 
Intelligence Agency he was compensated only for his expenses.
  (4) Boris Korczak provided valuable intelligence information and 
services to the United States.
  (5) Boris Korczak provided such services at great personal risk to 
himself and his family.

[[Page E52]]

  (6) Boris Korczak should be compensated for his service to the United 
States and for the enormous personal risk he and his family incurred 
over an extended period of time.

     SEC. 2. PAYMENT.

  The Director of the Central Intelligence Agency shall pay out of 
funds available to the Director the sum of $225,000 to Mr. Boris 
Korczak of 10392 Willa Mae Court, Fairfax, Virginia.

     SEC. 3. LIMITATION.

  No amount exceeding 10 percent of the payment made under section 2 
may be paid to or received by any attorney or agent for services 
rendered in connection with the payment. Any person who violates this 
section shall be guilty of an infraction and shall be subject to a fine 
in the amount provided under title 18, United States Code.

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