By The Associated Press
Thursday, July 29th, 2010
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., says that as many as 6,600 graves at Arlington National Cemetery could be misidentified because managers there didn't do their job properly.
McCaskill says she believes that between 4,900 and 6,600 graves may be unmarked or mislabeled on cemetery maps.
The estimate far exceeds one given by Army investigators last month that some 211 remains could be affected by the graves scandal.
Showing posts with label misidentified graves. Show all posts
Showing posts with label misidentified graves. Show all posts
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Number of Mislabeled Graves at Arlington Nat'l. Cemetery Could Be in the Thousands
The plot disgrace thickens
By ALAN SCHER ZAGIER
Posted: July 27, 2010
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The Missouri senator helping to investigate the shameful grave mix-up at Arlington National Cemetery said yesterday that the number of mislabeled plots there could be in the thousands.
An internal Army probe had found at least 211 discrepancies between burial maps and grave sites at Arlington, indicating people had been laid to rest in the wrong plots.
The review suggested that lax management of the cemetery and a reliance on paper records to manage the burial sites were to blame for the snafu.
At a news conference yesterday, Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill, who is on the subcommittee probing the issue, said the number of burial-site errors could be much higher because the Army report was limited to a small section of the cemetery.
McCaskill called the growing scandal a matter of "heartbreaking incompetence" and said the military has spent more than $5.5 million over seven years in its unsuccessful attempts to computerize the burial records.
"At the very essence here, you have waste," she said. "There may be fraud -- we don't know at this point."
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' subcommittee on contracting oversight, chaired by McCaskill, will hold a hearing in Washington on Thursday on its cemetery investigation.
The list of invited witnesses includes former cemetery Superintendent John Metzler and Deputy Superintendent Thurman Higginbotham.
Both retired earlier this month after they were forced to resign from their posts, and McCaskill said she is not certain if either will show up to the hearing. She declined to say whether the subcommittee would subpoena either man.
"We are doing everything we can to get both to the hearing," she said. "Their attendance is not a certainty."
Robert Mance, Higginbotham's Washington lawyer, did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment. And an Arlington cemetery spokeswoman declined a request for comment, noting that Army leaders "will provide insight" Thursday.
By ALAN SCHER ZAGIER
Posted: July 27, 2010
COLUMBIA, Mo. -- The Missouri senator helping to investigate the shameful grave mix-up at Arlington National Cemetery said yesterday that the number of mislabeled plots there could be in the thousands.
An internal Army probe had found at least 211 discrepancies between burial maps and grave sites at Arlington, indicating people had been laid to rest in the wrong plots.
The review suggested that lax management of the cemetery and a reliance on paper records to manage the burial sites were to blame for the snafu.
At a news conference yesterday, Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill, who is on the subcommittee probing the issue, said the number of burial-site errors could be much higher because the Army report was limited to a small section of the cemetery.
McCaskill called the growing scandal a matter of "heartbreaking incompetence" and said the military has spent more than $5.5 million over seven years in its unsuccessful attempts to computerize the burial records.
"At the very essence here, you have waste," she said. "There may be fraud -- we don't know at this point."
The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs' subcommittee on contracting oversight, chaired by McCaskill, will hold a hearing in Washington on Thursday on its cemetery investigation.
The list of invited witnesses includes former cemetery Superintendent John Metzler and Deputy Superintendent Thurman Higginbotham.
Both retired earlier this month after they were forced to resign from their posts, and McCaskill said she is not certain if either will show up to the hearing. She declined to say whether the subcommittee would subpoena either man.
"We are doing everything we can to get both to the hearing," she said. "Their attendance is not a certainty."
Robert Mance, Higginbotham's Washington lawyer, did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment. And an Arlington cemetery spokeswoman declined a request for comment, noting that Army leaders "will provide insight" Thursday.
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