The Land of Ozz

“Top teacher arrested for criminal sexual conduct”

Top teacher means that this same teacher was selected as “Teacher of the Year” for 2007 by her peers at Westview Middle School in Goose Creek, SC. The teacher’s name is Kanesa Hopkins. Ms. Hopkins is charged with sexual misconduct that allegedly occurred back in 2003 and 2004 with a girl from her Sunday school class.

The headline article on the front page of The Goose Creek Gazette adds support for local residents to consider alternatives to public school. This article hits the front page of the local paper on the same day that I write the following comment on a recent blog post on reasons to homeschool.

“…even those claiming to be Christian, may not be as aligned with your family values as you might think. Teachers are not given a morality and character test before being allowed to enter the classroom. And in most cases you do not get to choose your child’s teacher. So for 6-7 hours per day for 180 days out of a year, you get that one teacher’s moral and ethical values transferred into your child’s heart and soul no matter how much you agree or disagree with that teacher.”

When writing this comment I was focusing on my upcoming article on “worldview”. I had not even considered extreme issues like the ones being dealt with in this case against teacher Kanesa Hopkins.

Westview Middle School is were my children would have to attend based on our address.

Chris Sligh and his band Half Past Forever will perform at Seacoast Church in Mount Pleasant, SC on Friday May 4, 2007. You can purchase tickets by visiting the Seacoast web site and scrolling to the bottom of the page. Look for the Half Past Forever button like the one shown in this post.

Related post: Chris Sligh - Rock On

Are you a low country super geek? Then Google has a job for you.

Can you make computers do amazing things? Are you excited about designing and developing new applications that really make a difference? Google is looking for engineers with the programming skills to change the world. Join Google engineering and help us build products that are used by millions everyday.

Google has posted 4 openings for the up coming Goose Creek, SC data center under the above general category description. The job listings include:

• A Data Facilities manager
• A Data Center Facilities Technician
• A Hardware Operations Manager
• A Hardware Operations Team Manager

Read my related posts on the new Google Data Center:

Computerworld on Goose Creek
Google Creek, SC
Is Google Going South?

A Blue Angels F/A-18 jet crashed this afternoon in Beaufort, SC.  The Blue Angels have been participating in a two day air show at Beaufort Marine Corps Air Station this weekend in conjunction with Low Country Blues Festival.

I am grieved to see a fellow aviator die.  Initial reports say that no one else was hurt.  This is a miracle given the fact that this jet went down in a residential neighborhood in Beaufort, SC.

It’s not like me to miss an air show in the local area.  My participation in the Charleston GFI Alumni Picnic had me busy today.  I took my son Riley to see the Blue Angels last spring at Charleston Air Force Base, but this is one show that I am thankful I did not take my son too see.  I would not want to explain to my Little Flying Ace what happened to this pilot and his plane.  Riley has enjoyed flying since his first flight at 11 months of age.  I got to experience one of my favorite moments as a dad that day.  I got to pilot the plane as my son took his first airplane ride.

It sounds like President Bush is getting heat to fire a top general in addition to the calls to fire US Attorney General Gonzales. I did not know citizens actually wrote and sent letters like the one shown above on Congress.org, but this guy is letting it all hang out. A concerned veteran want President Bush to fire General North. I do believe there is some fishy stuff going on with this case in Afghanistan, but I do not know all the facts and will hold my personal opinion to myself regarding General North.

I previously wrote about my friend Stacey Brown’s husband being charged due to a run in with a Blackwater employee named Jimmy Bergeron. The investigating officer found and reported to General North on suspicions of evidence tampering and witness bribing. There has been little more said publicly since the Brown was cleared of the charges.

I have also run across more information on the alleged victim in this case thanks to IragSlogger. Jim Bergeron is the President and founder of a Canadian company E.P.D. Tactics Inc according to his web site. The web site reports that he is a former Marine with a BS in Criminology who has worked for as many as 12 U.S. Government agencies.

My related posts:

Charleston AFB Officer Cleared of Charges
Air Force vs Blackwater - Round II
Air Force vs Blackwater

A story has been posted on Computerworld.com written by Patrick Thibodeau titled Google building data centers at fast-food franchise speed. The story provides some great details on Google’s data center strategy. A recent announcement by Governor Mark Sanford and Google confirmed rumors about Google’s move into Goose Creek, SC are in fact true. At least one local Charleston newspaper blog got a little pessimistic when a Google data center site was announced in North Carolina before the Goose Creek site was confirmed.

The Computerworld article concludes with some comments taken from a telephone interview on Monday evening with yours truly. Mr. Thibodeau even gave The Land of Ozz and little link love in his story.

The Air Force has dismissed charges filed against two of its own lieutenant colonels that could have ended their careers and landed them in jail.

Charges against Lt. Col. Gary W. Brown and Lt. Col. Christopher R. Hall were dropped “after careful consideration of all the evidence in the case, to include the Article 32 report,” according to a statement. The officers, who faced lengthy jail terms and abrupt ends to their military careers, were accused of assaulting Blackwater USA contractor Jimmy Bergeron on Sept. 19 during an altercation outside the Afghan Defense Ministry in Kabul. Source: Air Force Times

This was taken from an article in the Air Force Times reported earlier this week stating that Lt. Gen. Gary North did dismiss the official charges against the two officers, but the article failed to mention that Lt. Col. Brown, a C-17 pilot stationed at Charleston Air Force Base was issued a letter of reprimand (LOR). A letter of reprimand on a lieutenant colonel’s record can be loosely compared to a bankruptcy on the average American’s credit record. Brown’s hope for advancement in the ranks of the U.S. Air Force are basically over as a result of the LOR. Lt. Col. Brown’s wife Stacey said in an email to friends and family “that at any point North can change his mind and proceed with another article 32 or court martial.” This administrative action by the general was not taken lightly by Brown’s Attorney.

“Brown’s attorney, Charles Gittins, expressed shock at the reprimand. In a letter to North Wednesday, he said, I can only assume that you failed to read the detailed, fact-filled, and thorough report prepared by Lt. Col. Leslea Pickle as her report is directly contrary to your conclusions. Frankly, if anyone is a discredit to the Armed Forces, I am constrained to conclude it is you.” Source: Examiner.com

The Examiner story goes on to point out a statement made by the investigating officer Lt. Col. Leslea Pickle that sheds light on the seriousness of the events that took place on September 19, 2006 in Afghanistan. Pickle says that Lt. Col. Brown, “demonstrated a calm, collected demeanor during the whole incident. Another person might have been ‘trigger-happy’ and shot Mr. Bergeron.” The alleged victim in this case, Mr. Jimmy Bergeron was serving a civilian “in Afghanistan under a Blackwater drug-interdiction training contract with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration” according to Hamptonroads.com. The Hammptonroads.com article includes a picture of Bergeron and along the two lieutenant colonels involved in this case.

Mr. Bergeron was not present at the article 32 hearing for the two lieutenant colonels despite the fact that he was the star witness and alleged victim in this case. Other suspicious activity noted throughout this case was highlighted in the Investigating Officer’s Report: Lt. Col. Gary Brown (***WARNING: THIS PDF REPORT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE***). This report was provided to General North led to the dismissal of the charges and contains several allegations of evidence manipulation and witness tampering. Blackwater USA and Brown’s attorney are exchanging blows over over who might be behind this alleged frame job that was exposed during this case.

Lt. Col. Christopher Hall received a letter of counseling as a result of this case. This is a milder administrative action than what Brown got. Hall was the second Air Force officer involved in this case. There are no reports of administrative action or charges being filed against the Blackwater USA employee Jimmy Bergeron.

Local Charleston, SC USAF officer on the front page of the Air Force Times

Lt. Col. Gary Brown was involved in an incident back in September 2006 where he and a fellow USAF officer pulled weapons on a Blackwater employee Jimmy Bergeron. Today Lt. Col. Brown is waiting to hear if his case will go to a court-martial after an Article 32 hearing has come to a close. The Article 32 hearing seems to have produced more questions than answers regarding this case. The investigating officer reporting on Lt. Col. Brown says:

“I recommend that all the charges and specifications against Lt Col Brown be dismissed. After reviewing all the evidence in this case, I find that Lt Col Brown followed the rules of engagement (ROE) when he confronted Mr. Bergeron on 19 Sep 06. After being rammed by the vehicle that Mr. Bergeron was driving and then having Mr. Bergeron approach his vehicle at the Delta gate, Lt Col Brown stated that he feared for his life and he believed, at the time, that Mr. Bergeron was a threat.“

The recommendation for dismissal of charges is no surprise. The alarming information coming out of the Article 32 hearing is related to allegations of evidence tapering, witness bribing and falsifying evidence just to name a few. A video tape offered by the prosecution as actual footage of the events of 19 September 2006 is suspected to be a re-enactment. One primary example of inconsistency in the video is that the first element of the first charge against Lt. Col. Brown states that he did “throw Jimmy Bergeron’s keys away from his vehicle.” Lt. Col. Brown does not dispute this allegation. The evidence shown in the video contradicts this charge is reported to have shown Bergeron departing the scene in his vehicle without ever searching for his keys. Brown’s defense attorney pointed out at least four other discrepancies in the video tape. The investigating officer agreed with the defense concerning the video by saying:

“There is no chain of custody for the videotape. I concur that the videotape provided, that is purported to be from 19 Sep 2006, does not match the sequence of events as they have been described by the witnesses. Therefore, I did not consider it for purposes of this report.”

Bergeron is reported as the victim of the actions by the two Air Force lieutenant colonels but was not presented for in-person testimony and defense cross examination during the Article 32 proceedings. At least one witness who did take the stand during the Article 32 hearing requested an attorney in response to questions concerning document tampering.

The official results of the Article 32 have not been released for Lt. Col. Brown and Lt. Col Hall. They are still waiting on Lt. Gen. Gary North to decide if they will face a court-martial.

Quotes found in this post have been taken from the 25 page report titled Investigating Officer’s Report: Lt. Col. Gary Brown (***WARNING: THIS PDF REPORT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGAGE***). The link to this detailed report was found in an Air Force Times article titled Report: Evidence falsified in Kabul case.

The Air Force Times article brings attention to some very important questions that Lt. Col. Brown’s wife Stacey is asking. She and her husband have spent an estimated $24,000 for a civilian attorney to represent him in this case. Very few military members can scrap together this level of cash for legal defense. A couple the questions that Stacey asks on her web site titled BLACKWATER WRONGLY JEOPARDIZES MILITARY OFFICERS’ CAREERS help shed some light on the fact that her heart is not only concerned with keeping her husband out of jail.

“What if this would have been an E-4 in this situation? Would he/she been able to fork over the $12,000 - $25,000 that it took to hire a civilian attorney to represent our accused?”

Read Air Force Officers vs Blackwater - Round I for more information on this story.

Local Charleston Air Force officer charged in Afghanistan.

Two U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonels are facing an Article 32 investigation this week after being charged with assault and conduct unbecoming an officer. The Air Force Reserve officers involved are Lt. Col. Christopher R. Hall and Lt. Col. Gary W. Brown. The charges were filed as a result of reports related to a roadside run in with a Blackwater employee in Afghanistan back in the fall of 2006. The facts of the case are disputed and the two officers are facing charges that could result in a court-martial. A court-martial could lead to their discharge from the Air Force and possibly confinement. The news of this story out of Afghanistan has been overshadowed this week by the suicide bombing during Vice President Cheney’s visit to Afghanistan. Ironically this week’s suicide bombing is a perfect example of what can put military members and contractors into the frame of mind that can lead to a roadside stand off like this one. The charges filed against Hall and Brown are based on reports that say the incident began when the SUV driven by Lt. Col. Brown rammed an SUV driven by a Blackwater employee near the gate of the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Lt. Col. Hall’s wife Mary Kathryn Hall and Lt. Col.Brown’s wife Stacey Brown have been very outspoken about this case. There has been little media attention given so far, but the wives are working to get the word out about their husband’s case. Mary Katheryn Hall was quoted by the Air Force Time this week as she told her husband’s point side of the story:

A dark blue SUV with darkened windows attempted to rapidly pass them on the right and squeeze in between the Air Force SUV and a taxi. But there wasn’t enough room, and the dark SUV’s left rear quarter panel struck the Air Force vehicle, both wives said.

The blue SUV then dropped to the rear, sped up and rammed the Air Force vehicle, the wives said.

The officers, concerned the dark SUV was a vehicle bomb or other attack, took evasive action, stomping on the accelerator and weaving through traffic to get away. They were concerned that firing on the other vehicle which was authorized under the rules of engagement for such an attack could trigger any explosive that may have been onboard, Hall said. Source: Air Force Times

In another news reported:

Brown’s civilian attorney, Charles Gittins of Virginia, said that the accusations are backward and that the Blackwater worker rammed the officers’ truck, then got out of his SUV and began acting strangely. In a war zone, the two officers had no choice but to pull their weapons, Gittins said. Source: The News & Observer

The Air Force Times coverage of this story yesterday went on to describe a similar incident that led to the deaths of two American soldiers just weeks before this incident with Brown and Hall.

On Sept. 8, two soldiers from the Army Reserve’s 405th Civil Affairs Battalion, Sgt. 1st Class Merideth L. Howard and Staff Sgt. Robert J. Paul, were killed by a vehicle-borne IED along the same stretch of road.

On a personal note, Lt. Col. Brown is a U.S. Air Force Reserve officer from right here in Summerville, SC. He took a military leave from his job as an airline pilot a few years ago to serve his country as a C-17 pilot. He was deployed to Afghanistan in June of last year. Gary’s wife Stacey is a friend our family and my former co-worker. Gary and Stacey have been very supportive of our family since our son Caden was born even while they faced complications associated with Stacey’s pregnancy that led to the birth of twins.

I sent the following email to Lt. Col. Brown after I learned of his deployment to Afghanistan.

Gary,

You are a man of steel. I had a chance to take a civil service job recently where I would have had to spend a good amount of time in Afghanistan and Iraq. I tried to imagine what it might be like. I am sure that a man’s imagination can come close to realizing the sacrifice that you are making for your family and our country. Thank God we have you and the hundreds of thousands of others who are willing to make the sacrifice to defend our country. Stay strong and know that you and your family are in our prayers. Please do not hesitate to call on us if we can assist you and your family in any way.

Lt. Col. Brown’s wife Stacey sent me an email this week saying, “I think right now what we need most is to pray for a positive outcome…” She has stood up a web site called www.wrongedbyblackwater.com to report on this story as it develops.

Please keep these men and their families in your prayers.