Anthony J. Russo Jr.

Anthony J. Russo Jr. (14 October 1936 – 6 August 2008) was an American researcher who assisted Daniel Ellsberg, his friend and former colleague at the RAND Corporation, in copying the Pentagon Papers. Russo was also the first person to document the systematic torture of Vietcong prisoners in Vietnam.

Early life and education Russo was born in Suffolk, Virginia. He graduated from Virginia Tech with a degree in aeronautical engineering in 1960, then worked on a NASA space capsule program. He continued his education at Princeton University, earning master's degrees in aeronautical engineering and in public affairs.

Rand Corporation and Vietnam He began working at the RAND Corporation as a researcher in late 1964 and was determined to go to South Vietnam to resolve his personal curiosity about the role of the Vietcong (VC) and the US opposition to them. In February 1965, he arrived in Saigon and began working on Rand's Viet Cong Motivation and Morale Project.

Russo and Ellsberg disagreed over their defense strategy, with Russo, who had become increasingly radicalised, wanting to turn the trial into a forum against the war and American imperialism, while Ellsberg, having achieved his aim of getting the papers into the public, wanted to mount a conventional defense to avoid prison. Ellsberg and his wife hired lawyers and controlled the defense, leaving Russo feeling "abandoned" and "betrayed".

On 11 May 1973, federal court judge William M. Byrne Jr. dismissed the case before it reached a jury, after the office of Ellsberg's psychiatrist had been burglarized and the FBI had lost records of what may have been illegally taped telephone conversations. Byrne was also offered the position of FBI director by John Ehrlichman during the trial.

The stress of the trial and Russo's belief that Ellsberg stole the limelight, while he was seen as "just a Xeroxer", ended their friendship.

Death Russo died of natural causes at his home in Suffolk, Virginia on 6 August 2008.