ALLOW THE MILITARY TO TAKE SOME ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION IF ITS OWN.
THE MILITARY CAN TAKE SUBSTANTIAL ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION INCLUDING
FIRING A DEFENDANT WHO IS A U.S. CIVILIAN EMPLOYEE OR SUSPENDING OR
DEBARRING A GOVERNMENT CONTRACTOR.
QUESTION:
IN CASES WHERE THE U.S. ATTORNEY DECLINES PROSECUTION, WHAT
SHOULD YOU DO?
ANSWER:
GET IT IN WRITING FROM THE U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE. CID REGULATION 195-
1 STATES AT PARAGRAPH 6-54, THAT THIS DECLINATION SHOULD STATE: "THE
FACTS EVIDENCE A DEGREE OF CRIMINAL MISCONDUCT ON THE PART OF
___________. HOWEVER, THE CASE DOES NOT MEET THE UNITED STATES
ATTORNEY'S STANDARDS REQUIRED FOR FEDERAL PROSECUTION. THIS
DECLINATION SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED BY YOUR AGENCY OR COMMAND
IN SUCH A WAY AS TO PRECLUDE CONSIDERATION OF OTHER AVAILABLE
CRIMINAL, CIVIL, CONTRACTUAL. AND ADMINISTRATIVE REMEDIES...
QUESTION:
WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU DO NOT DO THIS?
ANSWER:
THE DEFENDANT MAY TRY TO ARGUE THAT THE DECLINATION MEANS THAT
THE U.S. ATTORNEY, WORKING WITH THE FBI, THOROUGHLY INVESTIGATED
THE CASE AND CONCLUDED THAT IT WAS WITHOUT ANY MERIT. IN THE FACE
OF A SILENT RECORD, THIS ARGUMENT MAY MEET A RECEPTIVE LISTENER. IF
THE DEFENDANT CAN CONVINCE THE JUDGE THAT DOJ HAS FOUND HIM NOT
GUILTY AND HAS THROWN OUT THE CASE, THE GOVERNMENT'S CASE WILL
CERTAINLY NOT BE OFF TO A VERY GOOD START. IT IS IMPORTANT,
THEREFORE, TO DOCUMENT WHY THE U.S. ATTORNEY IS NOT TAKING THE
CASE ANY FARTHER AND WHAT THE FAILURE OF THE U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
TO PROSECUTE REALLY MEANS. THIS WILL PREVENT A TOTALLY FALSE
IMPRESSION FROM BEING GIVEN BY THE DEFENSE.
Earlier, we looked at the Procurement Fraud Division. Remember, within that division
is the Remedies Branch. There are various remedies that can be taken, apart from criminal
prosecution.
These include contract remedies (termination, withholding payments, etc.) and
administrative remedies (suspension, debarment). Coordination with the Procurement Fraud Advisor
will ensure that all available remedies are considered.
7. Coordinate with PFA. Understand that you have to sell the case to PFA. You may have
lived with the case for quite some time and may be very familiar with all of its intricacies. The PFA
prosecutor, however, may know nothing of it until you walk into his office. The procurement fraud
advisor will not know the background of what led to the investigation or what your efforts have been
able to unearth. You, therefore, need to package the case to him also. You need to put the
investigative effort into a format that makes sense. Remember that YOU are the expert investigator. A
sloppy product will most probably result in equally inferior results.
QUESTION:
SHOULD YOU COORDINATE THE CASE WITH PFA AT A VERY EARLY STAGE?
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