I am before you as an American citizen, as an experienced military NCO with combined active and reserve time of 14 plus years, as an elected representative of Security Police and lastly and most importantly as a Special Response Team Member for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory authorized under the Atomic Energy Act. I have been working on issues of safety and security since March of 2000.
In February 2000, my fellow SRT team member Matt Zipoli and I attempted to raise serious and systemic concerns about security at the Lab. Finding no response with management, we approached the Department's Office of Inspector General, who initiated an investigation. That investigation, release in October of last year, vindicated all of our concerns. Officer Zipoli and I were fired one week before the report was released.
I have been fired because of my determination and my aggressive stance for what is right for the Officers I represent and the security of the nation's assets. My resolve cannot be fully articulated, but it is unyielding. My presence here today is a testament to that. My trustworthiness has been questioned. An economic burden has been placed on my family and our psychological being is being tested, all in attempts to halt the finding of the truth.
I represent approximately 150 Security Police Officers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. In my capacity I must look after the safety of the work environment, however as a Security Police Officer my main mission is the protection of special nuclear material and associated classified information, and if necessary, recapture and recovery of those items if the situation warrants.
Along with me are past and present Special Response Team Members; of which on more than one occasion, I have assigned to safety and security committees to deal with issues at Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. I have witnessed grievous mishandling of security procedures at Livermore from ignored bomb threats to our plutonium facility, allowing of foreign nationals to bypass security procedures placing classified information in jeopardy, not adhering to fresh pursuit guidelines, thus decimating our capabilities to effectively recover possible stolen nuclear material, not providing the proper radiological training or monitoring for the Security Police Officers, not providing the required training as outlined by the Department of Energy for an effective protection strategy, not providing the basic OSHA safeguards on at least three issues, one example being the simple issuance of respirators, and lastly the underlying feeling that Officers are not given the tactical training necessary to complete their mission. Some of these issues are isolated to Livermore, but others are a systemic concern for all Security Police Officers.
We, those defined under the Atomic Energy Act, are the only occupations in the United States which are directly tasked with safeguarding this nation's Special Nuclear Material. This makes our job unique which requires unique and effective resolutions to pressing problems. An Officer I used to work with, by the name of Donald Webb, had hurt his knee during a rigorous training session, he no longer has a job because he cannot maintain the high standards of the occupation. Security Police have one of the highest standards of any Law Enforcement occupation in the country, as we should, yet no thought has been given to look out for those very same officers whose job it is to safeguard our nation's greatest resource. There is no safety package for the Donald Webbs of the world. How much can you ask of someone if they know, from the start, that no one will be there for them in the end. If I’m hurt defending this country not only will I not be taken care of for my efforts, but I stand to lose my job for actually doing my job.
This leads me into my final points. The make up of authority and jurisdiction becomes very muddled with Security Police Officers. This is unsatisfactory, confusion is the downfall of any operation and confusion is slowly taking a death grip on our security forces within the Department of Energy. I do not know if federalization is the answer, but the Security Police need recognized authority, possibly in the form of being deputized in the state in which they reside. This would provide for additional oversight regarding the safety, training and implementation of security for Officers who protect the nation's secrets. And finally some of the issues I have outlined will be discussed further by my colleagues. Bottom line, we have utmost respect for the Department of Energy and more respect for the mission we were hired to do, but inconsistent oversight of the laboratories, such as the University of California will continue to place the Security Police at a disadvantage. And as we have seen from the recent events of our country, disadvantages cost lives. I respectfully thank you for the opportunity and I am at your disposal.
Thank You.
Charles Quinones is an Army military veteran, with four years of active duty beginning in 1988. He holds numerous commendations and awards including three Army achievement medals, four Army commendation medals, and a National Defense Ribbon. He was hired by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in 1998 to work on the Special Response Team, and was elected union president of the Security Police Officers Association in 2000. He was terminated on September 28, 2001 after raising serious security deficiencies at the Laboratory to the Office of Inspector General.