Why Gibson Guitar Was Raided By The Justice Department 
 
 i itoggle caption Jim Weber/The Commercial Appeal/ZUMAPRESS.com Jim Weber/The Commercial Appeal/ZUMAPRESS.com 
 
 UPDATE: September 6, 2011 1:45 p.m.: Andrea Johnson, director of forest programs for the Environmental Investigation Agency, wrote to NPR to express concern over two points in this story. First, the word "verify" more accurately reflects the requirements placed on end users of endangered wood. The Lacey Act, Johnson wrote, "does not require any 'certification' at all per se. In the forestry world, 'certify' implies independent third-party certification, or government stamps, neither of which the US government recognizes as 'proof' of legality." 
 
 Johnson also says she mis-spoke when she said that Gibson "was on the ground in Madagascar getting a tour to understand whether they could possibly source illegally from that country." 
 
 "I used 'illegally' when I meant 'legally' in talking about the trip to Madagascar," she writes. "I didn't realize I'd done this until I was listening to the piece. I really wanted to be clear: the objective of that trip's organizers was to look into whether there were opportunities for 'good wood' sourcing, and in the end after seeing the risks, only Gibson continued to purchase." 
 
 Last week federal marshals raided the Gibson Guitar Corporation in Tennessee. It wasn't the first time. The government appears to be preparing to charge the famous builder of instruments with trafficking in illegally obtained wood. It's a rare collision of music and environmental regulation. 
 
 In the hottest part of an August Tennessee day last Thursday, Gibson Guitar CEO Henry Juszkiewicz stood out in the full sun for 30 minutes and vented to the press about the events of the day before. 
 
 "We had a raid," he said, "with federal marshals that were armed, that came in, evacuated our factory, shut down production, sent our employees home and confiscated wood." 
 
 The raids at two Nashville facilities and one in Memphis recalled a similar raid in Nashville in November 2009, when agents seized a shipment of ebony from Madagascar. They were enforcing the Lacey Act, a century-old endangered species law that was amended in 2008 to include plants as well as animals. But Juszkiewicz says the government won't tell him exactly how — or if — his company has violated that law. 
 
 "We're in this really incredible situation. We have been implicated in wrongdoing and we haven't been charged with anything," he says. "Our business has been injured to millions of dollars. And we don't even have a court we can go to and say, 'Look, here's our position.'" 
 
 The U.S. Justice Department won't comment about the case it's preparing, but a court motion filed in June asserts Gibson's Madagascar ebony was contraband. It quotes emails that seem to show Gibson taking steps to maintain a supply chain that's been connected to illegal timber harvests. 
 
 Andrea Johnson, director of forest programs for the Environmental Investigation Agency in Washington, says the Lacey Act requires end users of endangered wood to certify the legality of their supply chain all the way to the trees. EIA's independent investigations have concluded that Gibson knowingly imported tainted wood. 
 
 "Gibson clearly understood the risks involved," says Johnson. "Was on the ground in Madagascar getting a tour to understand whether they could possibly source illegally from that country. And made a decision in the end that they were going to source despite knowing that there was a ban on exports of ebony and rosewood." 
 
 Gibson vigorously denies these allegations, maintaining that all of its purchases from Madagascar have complied with U.S. and Malagasy law. A company attorney says Gibson has presented documents to support that claim and that the recent raid seized legally obtained wood from India. He adds that the company stopped importing wood from Madagascar in 2009. 
 
 Chris Martin, Chairman and CEO of the C.F. Martin Guitar Co. in Nazareth, Pa., says that when he first heard guitars built from Madagascar rosewood, he dreamed it might be the long-sought substitute for Brazilian rosewood, whose trade was banned in the 1990s due to over-harvest. Then the situation in Madagascar changed. 
 
 "There was a coup," Martin says. "What we heard was the international community has come to the conclusion that the coup created an illegitimate government. That's when we said, 'Okay, we can not buy any more of this wood.'" 
 
 And while some say the Lacey Act is burdensome, Martin supports it: "I think it's a wonderful thing. I think illegal logging is appalling. It should stop. And if this is what it takes unfortunately to stop unscrupulous operators, I'm all for it. It's tedious, but we're getting through it." 
 
 Others in the guitar world aren't so upbeat. Attorney Ronald Bienstock says the Gibson raids have aroused the guitar builders he represents because the Lacey Act is retroactive. He says they're worried they might be forced to prove the provenance of wood they acquired decades ago. 
 
 "There hasn't been that moment where people have quote tested the case. 'What is compliance? What is actual compliance? How have I complied?' We're lacking that." 
 
 He's even warned clients to be wary of traveling abroad with old guitars, because the law says owners can be asked to account for every wooden part of their guitars when re-entering the U.S. The law also covers the trade in vintage instruments. 
 
 Nashville's George Gruhn is one of the world's top dealers of old guitars, banjos and other rare stringed instruments. "It's a nightmare," he says. "I can't help it if they used Brazilian rosewood on almost every guitar made prior to 1970. I'm not contributing to cutting down Brazilian rosewood today." 
 
 Gruhn acknowledges that the government has tried to create exemptions to cover vintage instruments. But he says they are rife with delays and to play it safe he's nearly eliminated the 40% of his business that used to deal with overseas buyers. "This is a new normal," says the EIA's Andrea Johnson. "And it takes getting used to." 
 
 Johnson defends the Lacey Act and the government's efforts to enforce it. "Nobody here wants this law to founder on unintended consequences," she says. "Because ultimately everybody understands that the intent here is to reduce illegal logging and send a signal to the markets that you've got to be asking questions and sourcing wood in a responsible way." 
 
 What constitutes that responsible way may only become clear when the government finally charges Gibson and the company gets the day in court it says it wants so badly. ||||| For immediate release: 
 
 The Most Important Beatle Guitar Ever To Hit the Auction Block Goes Up For Sale 
 
 Lost for Over 50 Years — John Lennon's Gibson J-160E Will Be Offered Exclusively by Julien's Auctions 
 
 Icons & Idols Rock N Roll -- November 7, 2015 
 
 Beverly Hills, California -- (June 2, 2015) -- Julien's Auctions, the world's premier entertainment and music memorabilia auction house, announced the upcoming sale of the most historically important guitar associated with The Beatles ever to be offered -- John Lennon's original 1962 J-160E Gibson Acoustic guitar. The guitar has been lost for over 50 years and represents a rare and significant guitar to John Lennon's history. 
 
 It's September of 1962 and The Beatles' John Lennon and George Harrison each purchase jumbo J-160E Gibson acoustic guitars from Rushworth's Music House in Liverpool for £161. Never would one imagine that the guitars would become so significantly important to the history of the Beatles nor engage such an undeniably intriguing story of its future whereabouts. When purchased by two of the members of the Fab Four, the guitars were the only ones of their type in the country which were said to have been flown to England by jet from America after being specially ordered. The two guitars were identical apart from the serial numbers. In December 1963, during The Beatles' Finsbury Park Christmas Show, John's guitar went missing and he later replaced it with a 1964 model. This guitar was lost for over 50 years and will now be offered at Julien's Auctions Icons & Idols Rock n' Roll Auction event on Saturday, November 7, 2015. 
 
 The Beatles traveled from Liverpool to London’s EMI Studios on September 11, 1962, the day after receiving the guitars. The first song recorded that day was “P.S. I Love You,” followed by “Love Me Do.” It was Lennon who used this guitar on many of the recordings they did in 1962 and 1963 that required an acoustic guitar. 
 
 John so loved this particular guitar that he would take it home and write songs on it with Paul McCartney. Beatles hits like “She Loves You,” “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” “Please, Please, Me,” “All My Loving,” “From Me to You,” “This Boy” and more were written with this guitar. 
 
 Historians and Beatles fans can also find this particular guitar on the UK singles “Please Please Me/Ask Me Why” and “From Me to You/Thank You Girl.” 
 
 No other guitar ever offered at auction can compare to the history this guitar has with The Beatles' John Lennon. It also appeared on Please Please Me (album UK), Introducing The Beatles (album US VJ), The Early Beatles (album US Capitol), With The Beatles (album UK), Meet The Beatles (album US Capitol), The Beatles One (Album), The Beatles Anthology 1, Live At the BBC (The Beatles Album) and much more. In addition the guitar was used on the UK EPs such as The Beatles (No. 1), The Beatles' Hits, Twist and Shout and more. It can be seen in the November 22, 1963 videos of I Want to Hold Your Hand and This Boy. 
 
 Andy Babiuk, author of the critically acclaimed book Beatles Gear — All The Fab Four’s Instruments From Stage To Studio, recently discovered the guitar when John McCaw’s close friend and guitar instructor Marc Intravaia contacted Babiuk at his guitar shop, Andy Babiuk’s Fab Gear in Rochester, New York. “I get calls and email all the time with people telling me that they think they have an instrument owned by The Beatles and 99% of the time it’s nothing, but there was something about McCaw’s story that was intriguing,” said Babiuk, the world authority on equipment used by The Beatles. 
 
 “In April 2014 I was leaving my guitar group’s weekly jam and noticed a magazine from May 2012 in the studio’s bookcase which featured a cover story titled the “George Harrison Collection.” There was a photo and bio of the J-160E which bore many similarities to mine. I saw identical marks in the same location on each guitar. Reading on, the story noted that the two Beatles swapped guitars in 1963 for reasons unknown.” This is when my heart skipped a beat and the journey began. We searched for the person who could help us confirm the identity of my guitar. This led us straight to Andy Babiuk, the world’s leading expert on all Beatles gear,” said John McCaw. 
 
 After Babiuk examined the guitar, he was able to match the wood grain in the spruce top to photos of Lennon playing the guitar with The Beatles in the early 60’s. “Wood grain is like a fingerprint, no two are the same, and without a doubt it is a match,” said Babiuk. Lost for over 50 years, John Lennon’s beloved Gibson J-160E was finally found. “It is one of the most important of all Lennon’s Beatles guitars, as he used this J-160E to write some of The Beatles’ biggest hits, and played the guitar on countless live performances and on many Beatle recordings,” said Babiuk. “It is without a doubt one of the most historically important guitars to ever come up for auction.” 
 
 The guitar has never been modified in any way. It has never been refinished and has had no hardware or electronic changes. In viewing 1963 videos of “I Want to Hold Your Hand” and “This Boy,” marks on the guitar further confirm its identity. 
 
 The John Lennon Gibson J-160E holds the distinction of also being the guitar that will be featured on the cover of the new Beatles Gear — The Ultimate Edition book with a street date of October 27, 2015. A percentage of proceeds from the sale of the guitar will go to Spirit Foundations, Inc., a non-profit organization founded by John and Yoko. 
 
 John Lennon has been said to be the most iconic Beatle of the group. He was the band's most committed rock & roller, its social conscience and its slyest wit. He wrote or co-wrote many of the classic Beatles songs and performed them with such a distinct voice that he became one of the greatest singers rock n' roll ever produced. He died on December 8, 1980 at the age of 40. To this day Lennon's image is used by rock fans as a symbol of peace. 
 
 In an exclusive special engagement, the Lennon J-160E will go on display prior to the auction at The LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, Texas, from June 13-29 for the opening of The GRAMMY Museum® and Fab Four Exhibits Ladies & Gentlemen...The Beatles Exhibition! It will then be displayed at the GRAMMY Museum® in Los Angeles from July 2-September 7, 2015 and at Julien's Auctions Beverly Hills from November 2-6, 2015. 
 
 All photos featuring The Beatles in this news release are for illustration of the story purposes only. Any use of these require a separate license from source from media outlet. Photo of guitar and catalog cover photo credit is Julien's Auctions. 
 
 Auction estimate: $600,000-$800,000. 
 
 EXCLUSIVE PRESS PREVIEW 
 
 Monday, November 2, 2015 
 
 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. PST 
 
 Julien’s Auctions Beverly Hills Gallery PUBLIC EXHIBITION 
 
 Monday, November 2, 2015 – Friday, November 6, 2015 
 
 Julien's Auctions Beverly Hills Gallery 
 
 9665 Wilshire Boulevard 
 
 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. PST daily LIVE AND ONLINE AUCTION 
 
 Saturday, November 7, 2015 
 
 Session I: 10:00 a.m. PST 
 
 Session II: 2:00 p.m. PST EXHIBITION AND AUCTION LOCATION 
 
 Julien’s Auctions Beverly Hills 
 
 9665 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 150 
 
 Beverly Hills, California 90210 For inquiries, please email info@juliensauctions.com or call 310-836-1818. 
 
 Registering to Bid 
 
 Registration is required to bid in this live auction and can be done in person at the exhibition and auction, or online before the sale at the JuliensAuctions.com Registration page to bid by phone, proxy or in person, or online at JuliensLive.com to bid live online, or by calling (310) 836-1818. 
 
 Placing Bids 
 
 There are four ways to bid in this sale: 
 
 Bid through Julien's Auctions Online Live in Real Time at JuliensLive.com. Place bids in the room by attending the auction. Bid over the telephone through an auction house representative, who sits in the room and conveys the bid to the auctioneer. Enter Absentee bids. Absentee bid forms are printed in the back of each catalog, and are also available by calling Julien's Auctions at (310) 836-1818 or online at our Register to Bid page. 
 
 ABOUT THE GRAMMY Museum® 
 
 Paying tribute to music’s rich cultural history, this one-of-a-kind 21st century museum explores and celebrates the enduring legacies of all forms of music, the creative process, the art and technology of the recording process and the history of the premier recognition of excellence in recorded music — the GRAMMY® Award. The GRAMMY Museum features 30,000 square feet of interactive and multimedia exhibits located within L.A. LIVE, the downtown Los Angeles sports, entertainment and residential district. Through thought-provoking and dynamic public and educational programs and exhibits, guests experience music from a never-before-seen insider perspective that only the GRAMMY Museum can deliver. For more information call 213-765-6800 or visit www.grammymuseum.org. For breaking news and exclusive content follow @TheGRAMMYMuseum on Twitter and Instagram or like “The GRAMMY Museum” on Facebook. 
 
 ABOUT JULIEN'S AUCTIONS 
 
 With expertise specializing in entertainment memorabilia, Julien's Auctions has quickly established itself as the premier auction house in high profile celebrity sports and entertainment auctions. Julien's Auctions presents exciting, professionally managed and extremely successful auctions with full color high quality auction catalogs unlike any other auction company. Previous auctions include the collections of Cher, Michael Jackson, U2, Barbra Streisand, the estate of Marilyn Monroe, Bob Hope, Les Paul and many more. Official website is www.juliensauctions.com. 
 
 Media Contact: 
 
 info@juliensauctions.com 
 
 For hi res images at 300 dpi (and above), please email requests to: info@juliensauctions.com. 
 
 ###
– Allegations of illegal wood imports prompted the Justice Department to raid Gibson Guitar facilities in Tennessee last week. NPR aired the complicated story involving the 100-year old Lacey Act, which prohibits imports of endangered species, including plants, into the US. No formal charges have been pressed, but it appears the issue lies with Gibson possibly importing banned Madagascar ebony. Gibson insists the wood confiscated by marshals was legally acquired rosewood from India. Adding some gusto to the story, right-leaning sites assert that Gibson rival CF Martin uses the same wood in some of its guitars, but the company was never investigated. The Landmark Report thinks that's fishy, given that Martin's CEO is a Democratic donor and Gibson's CEO is a GOP backer. Raising the octave even higher, it is possible Michelle Obama ran afoul of the Lacey Act when she presented France's Carla Bruni with a Gibson guitar that may have contained banned wood. However the story plays out, many are frustrated with the retroactive aspect of the law. "It's a nightmare," says a dealer. "I can't help it if they used Brazilian rosewood on almost every guitar made prior to 1970."