CREW AND VOTEVETS.ORG DEMAND INVESTIGATION INTO $74 MILLION DoD CONTRACT TO COMPANY PRODUCING SUBSTANDARD HELMETS

28 Feb 2008 // Tape Recordings and Transcripts of Secret Whistle Blower Conversations About Production of Substandard Helmet Material Now Posted

Washington, DC - Today, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), joined VoteVets.org and two whistle blowers to discuss the need for an investigation by the Armed Services Committees – led by Sens. Carl Levin (D-MI) and John McCain (R-AZ) and Reps. Ike Skelton (D-MO) and Duncan Hunter (R-CA) – into a $74 million Department of Defense contract awarded to a North Dakota manufacturing company, Sioux Manufacturing Company, which has been outfitting our nation's troops with substandard Kevlar helmets.

Tape recordings of employees discussing the production of the substandard Kevlar for helmets are posted below.

On February 6th, The New York Times reported that Sioux Manufacturing, which makes the Kevlar for helmets, has agreed to pay $2 million to settle a lawsuit alleging that the company had shortchanged the armor in up to 2.2 million helmets for the military, including helmets used by American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Department of Defense, aware of both the problem with Sioux's helmets and the company's efforts to cover it up, awarded another contract to Sioux a mere 12 days before the lawsuit was settled. That same day, CREW sent a letter to the House and Senate Armed Services Committees requesting an investigation into a Department of Defense $74 million contract awarded to Sioux Manufacturing.

Three weeks later, CREW has yet to hear from the Armed Services Committee. Senators Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and John Kerry (D-MA) have written letters to the Department of Defense calling for an investigation, but Congress itself has taken no action. Unfortunately, calls on the Department of Defense to investigate itself are unlikely to produce real results and this is why it is critical for Congress to exercise its oversight authority and get to the bottom of this.

Melanie Sloan, executive director of CREW, said today, “How was Sioux Manufacturing allowed to make insufficient Kevlar in the first place and then once that was exposed how could the company be awarded a new contract? Are there soldiers who would have escaped injury or death if their helmets had met government standards rather than the inferior ones produced by Sioux? Frankly, the chairs and ranking members of Armed Services, Senators Carl Levin and John McCain and Representatives Ike Skleton and Duncan Hunter cannot be permitted to take a pass on this.”

“Today, CREW, joined by Vote Vets and the Sioux Manufacturing whistleblowers, again calls on Congress to take swift action. No matter what anyone’s position is on the Iraq war, everyone agrees that we must do our best to protect our troops and outfitting them with substandard helmets betrays that responsibility.”

Additionally, over 16,000 Americans have signed a VoteVets.org petition asking for an investigation into the contract. VoteVets.org is the largest political group of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans, representing 14,000 veterans and military families, and over 60,000 civilian supporters.

Jon Soltz, VoteVets.org Founder and Co-Chair, said today, “There is zero room for error when it comes to the protection we give to the troops. They and their families deserve full confidence that the government will only enter into contracts with companies that produce flawless work, and certainly are not the target of a whistleblower lawsuit. I don’t care what Sioux Manufacturing says – what is undeniable is that they were being sued at the time the government handed them two new contracts for Kevlar helmets and MRAPs, and that is absolutely, utterly unacceptable.”

Please contact CREW for contact information for the Sioux Manufacturing whistleblowers.

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Audio Recordings:

Download Description of Recordings (pdf)

Highlights:

Internal Company Inspection Discussion #1 (mp3) I Transcript (pdf)

Internal Company Inspection Discussion #2 (mp3) I Transcript (pdf)

Full Recordings:

Edna McCaslin (mp3) I Transcript (pdf)

Rhea Crane - 4/27/06 (mp3) I Transcript (pdf)

Rhea Crane - 4/28/06 (mp3) I (no transcript available)

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The image below shows a helmet and the amount of kevlar that was left out due to Sioux Manufacturing's substandard production. (click image for larger view)

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Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) is a non-profit legal watchdog group dedicated to holding public officials accountable for their actions.

For more information, please visit www.citizensforethics.org or contact Naomi Seligman Steiner at 202.408.5565/nseligman@citizensforethics.org.

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