Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defense.gov//News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=57633
Evaluations Matter, Fort Hood Panel Says
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 20, 2010 – Leaders must take action when servicemembers display indicators of committing violence against their comrades, the co-chairs of a review panel appointed to assess the causes of the Fort Hood shootings said here today.
On Nov. 19, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates appointed former Army Secretary Togo West and retired Navy Adm. Vernon Clark, a former chief of naval operations, to head a review panel to determine, among other things, why an allegedly troubled Army medical officer apparently slipped through the military’s evaluation process.
“Evaluations make a difference,” West told members of the House Armed Services Committee. “And, we can’t do the job of leading or protecting against threats if honest evaluations are not done by those who have the duty, the information and the authority to do so.”
The panel provided its report to Gates on Jan. 15.
Much of the report addresses “violence by a servicemember against his or her colleagues,” West said.
Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan is charged with killing 13 people, 12 military and one civilian, and wounding 43 others during a Nov. 5, 2009, shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas.
The alleged assailant was shot and disabled by a Fort Hood civilian police officer, who also was wounded in an exchange of gunfire. Hasan, who is hospitalized and under detention, has been charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 specifications of attempted premeditated murder under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The UCMJ is the U.S. military’s legal system for servicemembers.
It is imperative, West told committee members, that military leaders be alert to indicators that servicemembers under their charge might commit acts of violence against their comrades.
It’s also necessary to document and catalogue such indicators of violence, West said, in order “to make them available for the persons who need to know what are the indicators and where have the indicators been noted, and then to prepare ourselves to act when that evidence is before us; to make it available to our commanders so that they can act, and to be clear about their authority.”
Hasan, a Muslim, allegedly became radicalized and complained to colleagues about his role as a U.S. military officer when he was posted at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here before being assigned to Fort Hood in July 2009.
Gates directed the panel to review military personnel policies, procedures for force protection, and emergency response measures, West said, as well as policies that apply to those who provide medical care to servicemembers.
The panel also was tasked to “take a look at how the Army applied its policies and procedures to the alleged perpetrator,” he said.
The military, West told committee members, also needs “to pay attention” to potential dangers as the war against global extremism continues.
“The fact is that we need to understand the forces that cause an individual to radicalize, commit violent acts and thereby to make us vulnerable from within,” West said.
A key focus of the review was “on violence that comes from any kind of behavior,” Clark told the committee. “But, what we found, especially, was that policies on the internal threat are inadequate.”
Prohibited behaviors and actions “need to be addressed,” Clark said. And, he said, barriers to information sharing among the chain-of-command need to be removed.
Regulatory guidance on improper servicemember behavior already exists, Clark acknowledged. But, he added, such guidance “is incomplete for the day in which we live.”
West and Clark both praised the rapid response provided by Fort Hood’s security personnel.
“We were impressed by what we saw at Fort Hood,” Clark said, noting the actions of first responders that stopped the alleged shooter “prevented greater loss.”
“With that response, lives were saved,” West agreed. “And yet, 13 people died; scores more were wounded.”
The military, the former Army secretary said, must do a better job of being ready for the unexpected.
“We can prepare better,” West said. “We must plan with greater attention. And we must make the effort to look around the corners of our future and anticipate the next potential event in order to deflect it.”
Related Sites:
Protecting the Force: Lessons from Fort Hood
Related Articles:
Prompt Fort Hood Response Saved Lives, Clark Says
Report Finds Shortfalls in Countering Internal Threats
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.defense.gov//News/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=57684
Army Secretary Directs Fort Hood Accountability Review
By Gerry J. Gilmore
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2010 – The Army will conduct a review to determine if leaders were negligent in their supervision of accused Fort Hood shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, Defense Department officials announced yesterday.
Army Secretary John McHugh has directed Army Gen. Carter F. Ham, commander of U.S. Army Europe, “to conduct an accountability review to identify whether any personnel were responsible for failures or deficiencies in applying Army programs, policies, and procedures to the alleged assailant,” according to a Defense Department news release.
McHugh also has tasked Ham to provide personal observations he may have developed as a senior Army leader and as a member of the independent panel that investigated the shooting that he believes may be of help to the Army in charting a way ahead.
The independent panel — co-chaired by former Army Secretary Togo D. West Jr. and retired Navy Adm. Vernon E. Clark, a former chief of naval operations — provided its report to Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates on Jan. 15.
Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, is charged with killing 13 people, 12 military and one civilian, and wounding 43 others during a Nov. 5 shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas. The alleged assailant was shot and disabled by a Fort Hood civilian police officer, who also was wounded in an exchange of gunfire.
Still hospitalized and under detention, Hasan has been charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 specifications of attempted premeditated murder under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The UCMJ is the U.S. military’s legal system for servicemembers.
Hasan, a Muslim, allegedly became radicalized and complained to colleagues about his role as a U.S. military officer when he was posted at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here before being assigned to Fort Hood in July 2009.
This week, West and Clark discussed the findings of their report with legislators on Capitol Hill. Gates directed the panel to review military personnel policies, procedures for force protection, and emergency response measures, West said during Jan. 20 testimony before the House Armed Services Committee, as well as policies that apply to those who provide medical care to servicemembers.
The panel also was tasked to “take a look at how the Army applied its policies and procedures to the alleged perpetrator,” West told House legislators.
The military, West told committee members, needs “to pay attention” to potential dangers as the war against global extremism continues.
“The fact is that we need to understand the forces that cause an individual to radicalize, commit violent acts and thereby to make us vulnerable from within,” West said.
It also is imperative, West said, that military leaders produce honest appraisals of their subordinates.
“Evaluations make a difference,” West told House committee members. “And we can’t do the job of leading or protecting against threats if honest evaluations are not done by those who have the duty, the information and the authority to do so.”
The Army is an organization based “on disciplined and established standards,” McHugh said in his statement.
“Leaders at every level are responsible for ensuring that our policies and regulations are followed and that appropriate action is taken if they are not,” McHugh added.
The Fort Hood incident, he said, is an opportunity for the Army “to reinforce the basics of leader involvement with soldiers.”
Biographies:
John M. McHugh
Army Gen. Carter F. Ham
Related Sites:
Defense Department News Release
Special Report: Tragedy at Fort Hood
Related Articles:
Evaluations Matter, Fort Hood Panel Says
Fort Hood Shooting Task Force Reports for Duty