[Dialogue] {Spam?} Re: Justice Dept. Opts Out of Whistle-Blower Suits

[Len Hockley]

Hi,
I found  "Confessions of an Economic Hit Man"  to be a shocking and very 
important  "read".  Actually we listened to it on tape going to Seattle and 
back.  I recommend it as a "must read".
Len


At 02:18 PM 6/20/2007 -0700, Sunny Walker wrote:

>A book about how business is done , called (I think) Confessions of an 
>Economic Hit Man by an insider is very revealing and goes back LONG before 
>Iraq. The author graduated from college in the 60s and went into 
>(originally unknowingly) his line of work shortly thereafter.
>
>
>
>Sunny Walker
>
>Senior Facilitator
>
>Council of Energy Resource Tribes
>
>303-282-7576; cell: 303-587-3017
>
>FAX: 303-282-7574
>
>695 S. Colorado Blvd.
>
>Denver, CO 80246
>
>
>
>CERT MISSION
>
>To support member Tribes as they develop their
>
>management capabilities and use their energy resources
>
>as the foundation for building stable,
>
>balanced self-governed economies, according to each Tribe's vision and 
>priorities.
>
>
>
>
>
>----------
>From: dialogue-bounces at wedgeblade.net 
>[mailto:dialogue-bounces at wedgeblade.net] On Behalf Of Harry Wainwright
>Sent: Wednesday, June 20, 2007 1:02 PM
>To: 'Colleague Dialogue'
>Subject: [Dialogue] Justice Dept. Opts Out of Whistle-Blower Suits
>
>
>
>image001449.gif
>
>Published on Wednesday, June 20, 2007 by 
><http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/06/20/justice_dept_opts_out_of_whistle_blower_suits/>the 
>Boston Globe
>
>Justice Dept. Opts Out of Whistle-Blower Suits
>
>by Farah Stockman
>
>WASHINGTON The Justice Department has opted out of at least 10 
>whistle-blower lawsuits alleging fraud and corruption in government 
>reconstruction and security contracts in Iraq, and has spent years 
>investigating additional fraud cases but has yet to try to recover any money.
>
>A congressional subcommittee heard testimony on the matter yesterday, as 
>lawmakers sought to determine why the federal government has not done more 
>to recover tens of millions of dollars that allegedly have been misused or 
>misspent in Iraq.
>
>I would expect, given the talent that the Justice Department has available 
>to it, . . . that they could have done more, Representative William D. 
>Delahunt, Democrat of Quincy, said at the hearing. I have the uneasy 
>feeling like we re missing something here, a potential substantial recovery.
>
>The government s reluctance to join in any of the civil suits has sparked 
>allegations of political interference.
>
>One witness, Alan Grayson , a lawyer who represents several 
>whistle-blowers, told the House subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and 
>Homeland Security that the Justice Department has been stonewalling and 
>dragging its feet in investigating the whistle-blowers claims of fraud.
>
>In our fifth year in the war in Iraq, the Bush administration has not 
>litigated a single case against any war profiteer under the False Claims 
>Act, Grayson said.
>
>Tens of millions of dollars and perhaps far more allegedly have gone into 
>the pockets of contractors who over billed for services, paid bribes, and 
>received kickbacks. Under the federal False Claims Act of 1863, employees 
>who say they witnessed such corruption can sue their employers for 
>defrauding the US government and reap a percentage of any money that s 
>recovered.
>
>The federal government normally investigates such cases to determine 
>whether to participate in the suit and bring its investigative and legal 
>resources to bear against the accused company. But if the government 
>declines, whistle-blowers often face an uphill battle in court and often 
>decide to drop the matter which has happened in at least three of the Iraq 
>whistle - blower cases.
>
>The [presiding] judge asks himself, If the Justice Department doesn t care 
>about this case, why should I? Grayson said.
>
>The government has relied on private contractors in Iraq, issuing 
>contracts for everything from meals for troops to armed security for 
>visiting government officials. Since the 2003 invasion, contractors have 
>come under increasing scrutiny due to allegations of millions, if not 
>billions, of taxpayer dollars that are unaccounted for.
>
>Historically, the False Claims Act has served as an important tool in 
>recovering money defrauded from the federal government. Last year, it was 
>used to return more than $3 billion in domestic cases, but has recovered 
>only about $6.1 million from Iraq since the war began.
>
>Those recoveries, however, were the result of settlements between the 
>Justice Department and two contractors not civil lawsuits or prosecutions. 
>EGL Inc., based in Houston, agreed to pay a $4.3 million settlement after 
>being accused of padding invoices on military cargo shipments, while Force 
>Protection Industry, based in South Carolina, paid $1.8 million after 
>allegedly withholding payments meant to speed the delivery of armored 
>vehicles in Iraq.
>
>At yesterday s hearing, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Barry Sabin of 
>the Justice Department s criminal division, said the department has done 
>its best to investigate the cases, but has not been able to collect enough 
>evidence in Iraq to prove the whistle - blowers claims. The difficulty of 
>locating witnesses in an active combat zone cannot be overstated, he told 
>the committee.
>
>Sabin said that the Justice Department is using other means to root out 
>corruption in Iraq, and pointed to the criminal prosecutions of 25 
>individuals accused of fraud who were also ordered to pay hundreds of 
>thousands of dollars in restitution.
>
>Yet others wonder why the government has not been more aggressive in 
>filing civil suits against allegedly corrupt companies.
>
>Basically, they have done nothing , and it is hard to explain what is 
>going on there, other than direct orders from the very top of government, 
>said Patrick Burns , director of communications for Taxpayers Against 
>Fraud, a center that advises whistle-blowers on filing suits to recover 
>government funds. It can no longer be explained by incompetence alone.
>
>If companies are merely asked to pay settlements when they are caught 
>stealing or over billing, Burns said, that isn t much of an incentive not 
>to steal. At this point, there is nothing more profitable than fraud.
>
>Besides the two cases that were settled for $6.1 million, the Justice 
>Department has declined to join in 10 other cases. One was against Custer 
>Battles , a politically connected military contractor in Iraq that was 
>accused of supplying the military with trucks that didn t work and 
>overcharging the US government by as much as $50 million. When the 
>government chose not to participate, the whistle - blower went on with the 
>suit anyway , and a federal jury ordered Custer Battles to pay $10 million 
>in damages.
>
>That judgment, however, was overturned. The case is currently on appeal.
>
>A second, new whistle - blower lawsuit alleges that the company was 
>renamed and sold to former acting Navy secretary Hansford T. Johnson and 
>former acting Navy undersecretary Douglas Combs . It is unclear if it is 
>still doing business.
>
>In April, the Justice Department opted out of a lawsuit against 
>heavyweight military contractor Kellogg Brown & Root and three of its 
>subcontractors. The lawsuit, launched by a former supervisor in Iraq, 
>alleged that the company billed the government for almost 10,000 meals per 
>day that were never served, adding up to more than $10 million in excess 
>charges.
>
>The whistle-blower in that case, Barrington T. Godfrey , alleges that he 
>was forced out of his job after he tried to stop the over billing.
>
>His case, filed in 2005, had been kept secret for two years while the 
>government investigated it. Under the False Claims Act, cases remain 
>secret until the Justice Department decides whether or not to join them.
>
>Farah Stockman can be reached at 
><mailto:fstockman at globe.com>fstockman at globe.com.
>
>© Copyright 2007 The Boston Globe
>
>Article printed from www.CommonDreams.org
>
>URL to article: http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/06/20/1997/
>
>
>
>
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