Posted on Jul 12, 2018
What is the best approach to Congress on arbitrarily closed IG complaints and investigations that have not been done in service?
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The law is clear that IG complaints must be investigated and complainants informed of findings within 180 days from submission of the complaints. The law is also clear that complaints must not be arbitrarily closed without investigating the allegations in those complaints. The law further stipulates that the MHE/EMHE must not be used against uniformed service members in reprisal. Moreover, the law makes it unambiguous that those who blow the whistle must be protected against adverse personnel actions and discharge is considered an adverse action.
Scenario: An officer submits an IG complaint against one or more of his superiors in his or her chain of command. The case is arbitrarily closed by a Command IG of the Command in which both the Complainant and the implicated were serving at the time the IG complaint was submitted. This presented a Conflict of Interest under DoDD 7050.6. The case file was then, compromised by the Command IG and shared with those implicated in the Complaint. The implicated seniors then reprised against the Complainant and made fake accusations against him before using the EMHE to gag the Complainant and force that Complainant into submission. The Complainant was denied his/her rights and due process.
There are no reports of investigation, except for a Preliminary Inquiry Report that was carelessly prepared by the same Command IG who arbitrarily closed the case and compromised the case file.
The evidence in the case, which was released to the Complainant after a decade, contradicts the entire Preliminary Report. However; the service IG claims that it has answered all the Complainant's questions and concerns, which is false.
The Complainant's question is where are the reports of investigation as stipulated under law and why was the Complainant discharged without the right to due process. The service IG, initially, claimed that the Commander was ignorant of the law, but then, changed its stand claiming that the entire failure was just an administrative error.
Apart from going to court, what other options does the Complainant have to get fair justice?
Scenario: An officer submits an IG complaint against one or more of his superiors in his or her chain of command. The case is arbitrarily closed by a Command IG of the Command in which both the Complainant and the implicated were serving at the time the IG complaint was submitted. This presented a Conflict of Interest under DoDD 7050.6. The case file was then, compromised by the Command IG and shared with those implicated in the Complaint. The implicated seniors then reprised against the Complainant and made fake accusations against him before using the EMHE to gag the Complainant and force that Complainant into submission. The Complainant was denied his/her rights and due process.
There are no reports of investigation, except for a Preliminary Inquiry Report that was carelessly prepared by the same Command IG who arbitrarily closed the case and compromised the case file.
The evidence in the case, which was released to the Complainant after a decade, contradicts the entire Preliminary Report. However; the service IG claims that it has answered all the Complainant's questions and concerns, which is false.
The Complainant's question is where are the reports of investigation as stipulated under law and why was the Complainant discharged without the right to due process. The service IG, initially, claimed that the Commander was ignorant of the law, but then, changed its stand claiming that the entire failure was just an administrative error.
Apart from going to court, what other options does the Complainant have to get fair justice?
Posted in these groups: 
Military Community Awareness (MCA)
Legal Services
Inspector General
Investigation
Discharge
Military Community Awareness (MCA) Legal Services Inspector General Investigation Discharge
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 4
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You have the option of requesting a Congressional Inquiry with your Congressman or Senator.
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CPT Gurinder (Gene) Rana
I like this option; however, how would I phrase such a request MAJ (Join to see) ? Kindly advise.
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MAJ (Join to see)
I couldn't tell you exactly what to write, but I recommend looking at this resource to help, and other resources by doing an internet seach on congressional inquiries for army/military/dept of defense.
https://girightshotline.org/en/military-knowledge-base/topic/grievances-congressional-assistance
https://girightshotline.org/en/military-knowledge-base/topic/grievances-congressional-assistance
Congressional Assistance · GI Rights Hotline: Military Discharges and Military Counseling
The fact sheets and military regulations for each branch (in the Discharges/AWOL/UA Table below) and accompanying commentary may provide the information you are seeking about many…
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Sir, I agree that from the scenario you outlined, justice doesn't seem to have been served. Given the time gap and the possibility of corruption, it seems like this could blow up in the officer's face. If the officer in question is no longer in the service, the potential blowback will be relatively negligible. If the officer is still in and those being reported (IG and those implicated by the initial complaint) are still in the service, the potential of reprisals are still present. Needless to say, if Congress gets involved, everyone involved will know about it. I'm not saying that they shouldn't take anything higher, it's just possible that life could be difficult for the officer in question. Ultimately, it's the person's decision to take the risk for what they believe is right. Now if you're not one of the interested parties, but know that the injustice actually happened, wouldn't you be morally obligated to report it. As I'm not aware of the truth of these allegations, I couldn't take a course of action. You seem to know something about it, whether or not you believe the allegations to be true. This leaves the ball in your court.
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Depending on what the actual complaint was about, they are more likely going to concern themselves with whether the correct process was followed and not whether someone did or did not receive justice. If this is a hill worth dying on, court may be your best bet.
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