[Peace-discuss] Los Alamos

[Dlind49 at aol.com]

and do need to wonder how Iraq, North Korea, and others  got nuclear weapons 
technology when this place is obviously broke? 

January 2, 2003
Director of Los Alamos Laboratory Quits
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

 
Filed at 3:29 p.m. ET

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) -- The director of the Los Alamos National Laboratory 
was replaced Thursday amid government investigations into charges of 
widespread theft and fraud at the birthplace of the atomic bomb.

John Browne, a physicist and lab veteran who became director in 1997, will 
step down Monday.

University of California spokesman Rick Malaspina did not give a specific 
reason for the resignation but said it was a ``mutual decision'' by Browne 
and the university, which runs the lab for the government.

Browne submitted his resignation last month after a meeting with Energy 
Secretary Spencer Abraham.

``It is crucial that we restore public confidence in the management of the 
laboratory,'' Abraham said Thursday.

The FBI, Energy Department and at least two congressional committees are 
looking into alleged credit card abuses at the lab over the past several 
years and the disappearance of high-tech hardware and other equipment.

Two lab-hired investigators were fired in November and they went public, 
alleging a cover-up of the wrongdoing. The lab gave no reason for the 
dismissals and has not replaced the two men.

``They continue to cover up and to conceal the situation at the lab, and 
finally they've had to pay for what they've done,'' said Steven Doran, one of 
the fired investigators.

The lab has also been tarnished by security scandals, including missing 
computer disks and the controversy involving former scientist Wen Ho Lee, who 
was jailed for nine months after being accused of stealing nuclear secrets. 
He denied any wrongdoing and ended up pleading guilty to a single felony 
count after the government's case crumbled.

The university, which has managed the lab since its inception in 1943, 
appointed retired Navy Vice Admiral George Nanos as interim director. Also 
stepping down is Joseph Salgado, a principal deputy director at the lab.

``These changes reflect the university's deep concern about the allegations 
that have been made about Los Alamos business practices and our absolute and 
steadfast commitment to addressing them in a timely manner,'' university 
President Richard Atkinson said.

Many of the security problems surfaced during Bill Richardson's tenure as 
energy secretary under President Clinton. Richardson, now New Mexico's 
governor, did not immediately return a call for comment.

The resignation comes less than two months after Los Alamos released the 
results of an audit into its credit card program over nearly four years. The 
audit questioned $4.9 million in transactions, though watchdog groups said 
the figure should be higher.

Doran and Glenn Walp were hired last year by the lab to investigate its 
handling of government property and money. Walp said some $2.7 million worth 
of equipment was unaccounted for, including 263 computers listed as missing 
since 1999. Many of them are presumed stolen.

After the two men were fired, the lab said only that they were probationary 
employees.

In a Dec. 24 letter to Atkinson, Abraham said the investigators' dismissal 
and their allegations of a cover-up were an immediate concern. ``The 
inescapable conclusion is that the actions relating to Mr. Walp and Mr. Doran 
reflect a systemic management failure,'' he said.

Abraham also said was important any investigation be independent of the 
university, which is under contract to run the lab until 2006.

``Taken together, these problems have called into question the University of 
California's ability to run the Los Alamos National Laboratory,'' Abraham 
wrote. The problems ``must be remedied to ensure we return Los Alamos to its 
pre-eminent position in science and national security.''

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On the Net:

Los Alamos: http://www.lanl.gov