3. A key AFOSI witness interviewed and used by the AFOSI was the foundation to the official report's synopsis was reinterviewed and information she provided in the official report has been found to be grossly inaccurate.

4. The AFOSI's crime scene synopsis pertaining to Allen's room indicates that Allen's bed was made and his laundry was folded neatly on his bed. The photos provided to us by the AFOSI show Allen's bed in total disarray with laundry strew all over. Allen's dresser drawers were partially open with clothes sticking out. Interviews conducted by our private investigator indicate Allen was an extremely neat and tidy individual.

5. The AFOSI state they found a note from Allen, but the pen used to write the note was never recovered. Additionally there were similar writings found in his room, yet not listed.

6. Photos provided by the AFOSI show views of Allen's hands in plastic bags. Apparently this was done to safeguard any residue or foreign matter under Allen's fingernails. If this is the case why were fingernail scrapings never taken and analyzed by the AFOSI?

7. The report does not indicate that any fingerprints of the death scene were taken.

8. The report does not indicate that saliva tests were taken of the cigarette butts that was found in Allen's ashtray.

9. A car service receipt was recovered from the glove compartment of our son's car by us the day the vehicle was returned to us a month after Allen's death. Why was this receipt not recovered earlier by the AFOSI investigators? Apparently the AFOSI did not even canvas our son's vehicle for any evidence that would have aided them in a homicide investigation.

10. The AFOSI's official report states that Allen's door was locked from the inside with the secondary chain in place. A closer examination of the chain lock indicates that is has been improperly installed and can be easily compromised. Photos of the death room show the door opened!

11. The official AFOSI report dealing with Allen's psychological make-up makes mention of a car accident that Allen's brother was involved in reportedly causing Allen great distress. Allen's brother was never in a car accident. This story has been made up!

We decided to have Allen's body exhumed from the grave and have a second autopsy conducted. On March 30, 1994 we undertook this mission. We were appalled by the results. Air Force authorities had removed from Allen's body all of his organs including his brain, throat, tongue, breastplate, ribs, air passages, 7" of anterior spin, and all other internal organs. Why do this to a man who had died from asphyxia? Why remove seven inches of our son's anterior spine and replace the shell of our son with cotton and a plastic mixture? Why deceive us into believing the Air Force had returned to us our son whole? Is this Air Force regulation and if so, why were we not told? Apparently it is a convenient way for the Air Force to quell any doubts in anyone's mind about their procedures governing homicide investigations. What this tells us is that the Air Force is always right and even if we had requested a second autopsy July 3, 4, 5 or 6, 1992, it could not have been accomplished because tissue for body samples to be tested had been destroyed along with any physical evidence that the AFOSI had recovered at the scene of our son's death.

Our son was very proud to be in the Air Force and proved himself by the exemplary job he did in his field at the clinic. He received many commendations for his short time at Keesler. He was also in the Honor Guard and was making plans to be in the National Honor Guard. He was nominated Airman of the Quarter in April 1992. We feel the way his investigation and body was handled is a disgrace to our Country. We are not only hurt but I am sure Allen would be appalled to know this is the treatment he has received.

The Inspector General's Re-investigation:

1. The I.G. investigators say they have the receipt from the Holiday Inn in New Orleans showing where Roxana signed for a room. They say she signed the receipt and put a one in a box that showed she had a companion, anyone knows the hotels are only interested in the number of occupants and a two should have been in the box if her husband had been with her. As far as we can tell, she also signed her maiden name. This part of the report is redacted.

2. The I.G. investigators have done nothing but make excuses for the AFOSI's shoddy investigation. They tried to explain away why the pen that was used to write the alleged suicide note was never recovered. They say it was a simple mistake by the AFOSI.

3. The hand-writing analysis was changed to slightly probable to strongly probable that Allen had written the note. (nonsense, it doesn't take and expert to see

the writing is nothing like Allen's). We can and did produce letters that Allen had written, both written and printed.

4. We attached a sheet from the I.G. report showing they acknowledged the wrongdoings of the AFOSI. They stated the discrepancies would only have mattered if Allen's death was a homicide. If the AFOSI did none of these things that would have proven a homicide, how can they say this is not a homicide?

5. They took Ben. G. Farmers word that Allen said his brother was in a car wreck, his brother was in critical condition. This is a LIE. His brother was never in a car wreck.

6. Gary Tate also said in his statement to the AFOSI that Allen said his brother was in a car wreck and was critical. Gary Tate came home with Allen's body and spent 3 days and nights with Allen's brother and never asked him at all about his wreck or injuries. Gary told us he would contact us on Aug. 15, 1992, the day he would depart the military, because he had information to divulge to us about Allen's death. After Gary Tate left our house he refused to call us and also had his phone number unlisted.

7. The I.G. investigators did not interview Allen's friend from home that Allen talked to for 45 minutes the night of his death. This friend told the AFOSI and us that Allen said to him that night, that he was afraid of the husband, that he was a big man.

8. The I.G. report states that Sgt. Monarch was counseling Allen, this is untrue. He was studying with Allen because they were to take the O.T. test for certification and Allen had failed it the first time and thought he would be able to do better on the test if he studied with Sgt. Monarch.

9. We had Allen's body exhumed for the 2nd time during the I.G. investigation on February 21, 1995, we asked that our son's body be x-rayed. The x-rays showed he had a broken wrist that had hemorrhaged. We hired a very well known pathologist from New York for the second exhumation. Also present was our private investigator, Chris Rush from New York, and a retired Army investigator and former Chief of Homicide of the Kansas City, Mo. Metropolitan area for 20 years. They were all witnesses to this broken bone and the hemorrhaging.

We were encouraged by the I.G. Dept. to bring the specimen to Washington, D.C., to the Department of Defense Pathology Dept. for them to analyze. Upon our better judgment, from what we had already encountered from the Dept. of Defense, we did what they asked. I have included their letter that we received. They are saying our son's wrist was broken at least 10 days prior to his death.

Allen was very conscientious about his health. There was no way he would or could have gone around for 2 weeks with an unattended broken wrist. He was an occupational therapist and did his job every day, he also washed and waxed his car the weekend before his death. The night of his death he was cleaning his room and had done his laundry.

We had our M.E., Dr. Rho, meet us in Washington, D.C. He was allowed to meet with the four pathologist that was assigned to do the pathology procedures on the specimen. Dr. Rho had the x-ray blown up that verified that Allen's wrist was broken. After we all had a short meeting, Dr. Rho and the other pathologists went into the Lab. Dr. Rho said they did not talk directly to him, but whispered to themselves that the break was fresh, deep and did in fact hemorrhage.

During the meeting it was explained to us they would use a band saw to saw the bone, which in fact they did. Dr. Rho said the band saw dripped oil into the specimen and the Armed Services pathologist started wiping and washing the oil off and Dr. Rho told him to stop doing that because he would wash the blood away.

Dr. Rho is a world known pathologist, I have his curriculum vitae that I am willing to share with anyone that wishes to see it. He has told me over and over that Allen's wrist break is a defensive wound.

Since we have gotten the final I.G. report, we have talked with Allen's Captain, who is now a Major, Major Reith and also Sgt. Monarch and they both agree Allen did not have a broken wrist. We have also contacted a co-worker that said he played football with Allen everyday at noon, this game is a hand and wrist action_game. Who does the I.G. Dept. and the Pathologist Dept. think they are fooling? They have done a major cover up in Allen's death. Why? Could the answer be, they want to save embarrassment to the AFOSI because of their shoddy investigation? Why not, the Armed Services have to be accountable to NO ONE!

The preamble to our Constitution states "Justice for All". Where is Allen's justice? Just because he is dead, doesn't he count anymore? He was a dedicated person serving his country, your country. He at least deserved a good investigation into his death.

All of us families from "Until We Have Answers" feel our Government has turned it's back on us and our children. Please, won't you open your hearts and help us to right the terrible wrongs that have been done?

[Additional information is retained in committee files.]

PREPARED STatement by DODGE D. THOMPSON, FATHER of AT3 David ALAN THOMPSON, USN

Dear Sir. I am presenting evidence or information which I feel is relevant for your consideration in reviewing the circumstances surrounding the death of my son, AT3 David Alan Thompson U.S.N., [Information redacted and retained in committee files.]

A copy of the results of latent fingerprint processing, the conclusion reached by Mr. Roger Smith as follows: The gun appeared to have been wiped clean except for one comparable fingerprint, which was not David's.

This fingerprint is on file at Mr. Smith's office, and is available to any investigative agency. I would certainly like to know who's fingerprint is on the gun. I would also like to know: Why was the gun wiped off?

Who wiped it off?

Did someone shoot David and wipe the gun off?

Did the police wipe the gun off?

Did the NCIS wipe the gun off?

Is this, in fact, the gun that killed my son?

I don't know, and neither do the investigators.
Where is the empty cartridge?

Was it fingerprinted?

The District Attorney has told me that the findings of the Coroner, particularly the one centimeter circular wound with stellate extensions with soot staining in it's depths are classical indicators of a contact wound found in suicides. The fact is, this same wound is also classical in homicides, particularly the ones meant to look like suicides. The District Attorney has also said that the presence of this configurative wound is consistent with the histories given by the witnesses. That doesn't come as a big surprise to me either. If you read the JAG report and the NCIS report you will see that the Navy was interested in avoiding legal responsibility and little else. The Navy reports are without "investigation", simply a clone of the police report

I talked with the coroner, Bill Willard. I asked him if he could tell by his examination if David had shot himself. He said "no, he relied on the statements of the witnesses to reach his conclusion".

There was no autopsy, no fingerprints, no gunshot residue test. The area was not sealed off until an investigation could be conducted.

The fact is, the reports would read the same if homicide, accidental or suicide. The police report says that the police officer (Smith) was dispatched at 2039 hrs. “about a suicidal subject with a gun”. While enroute he was told the subject had shot himself. The witness (Berryhill) said he didn't call until after he heard the gunshot and entered the room. One of the witnesses (Berryhill) said he heard the gunshot, then he said he didn't hear it and then he said he didn't know if he heard it or not. . . I don't know either!

The witness (Christy Heugly) said "David decided to go to bed at 2040". That means that when the 911 call was being made, and the police were being dispatched, David was still in the living room. Anyone who reads the police report will have to conclude that what was said is impossible. This investigation was botched from beginning to end. The crime scene was not secured, and possible evidence was taken outside and thrown in a trash can.

Why didn't the police take statements from neighbors? Why isn't there a record of the "911 call"?—a tape or transcript? If the police had checked they would have found that there was another handgun in the house-a 357 Magnum handgun belonging to Berryhill.

James Taylor said he picked the gun up by the trigger guard so he wouldn't mess up the fingerprints. How could he have done this if David had the gun in his hand? Why was he concerned about fingerprints?

We also expressed our concern that many of these same witnesses were named or connected to another "suicide" involving another sailor (Adam Knapp, the husband of April Piper Knapp) that occurred at LeMoore Arms Apts., 6 months prior to David's death. There are many common threads involved in the two incidents. I asked the police investigator (Russ Curry) where April Piper Knapp was when David was shot and his reply was, "if we could have placed her within a mile of that house, we would have had her."

I realize that we are looking for "material deficiency in an investigation", but more than that, the whole attitude of the investigators in this case is a mystery to me. This is "Crystal ball investigation". There never was an attempt to find out what happened beyond taking the word of witnesses that could very well be guilty of a crime. The Navy concluded suicide before they even arrived at the scene, which was 2 days later. Certainly before there was an investigation.

This case cannot be properly settled until my son has been represented by someone who doesn't investigate by assumption.

If I have been able to discover all of these inconsistencies and mistakes in this "investigation" with very limited resources, what have the Hanford Police Department, The Naval Criminal Investigative Service and the Judge Advocate General been doing?

It is time for the investigators to forget about "suicide" for 5 minutes and find out what happened to our son, and what happened to his personal property.

This is by no means all that I have to say that pertains to this "investigation".

PREPARED STATEMENT BY LOIS VANDERBUR, MOTHER OF 2ND LT. KIRK C.
VANDERBUR, USMCR

Re: 2nd Lt. Kirk C. Vanderbur, USMCR, [information_redacted and retain in committee files] Found February 17, 1992, at Flatwoods Rifle Range, Hubert, N.C., Onslow County Cause of Death: #6 birdshot/Spas 12 shotgun at close range in the abdomen. 223/Ruger Mini 14 at close range between the eyes.

March 20, 1995

February 14, 1992, 2 days before Kirk died, I talked to Kirk on the telephone at his sister's home. Kirk called because his grandma was ill. He was tired and frustrated by Major Watts lack of understanding when he described the poor leadership of his current commanding officer. He asked me to forward the bill for his niece's Christmas present and to send him chocolate chip cookies and rice crispy bars because his weight was okay. I told him that I would bring his sister and niece with me when I flew to Jacksonville, N.C., in May 1992 to drive his car back to Iowa. (He loved children and hadn't seen his niece.)

My husband and I expected to talk to Kirk on Sunday because we talked every Sunday. When he didn't call, I called his home but got no answer.

Monday was President's Day. At about 10 PM several marines and a naval officer came to our home with the news that Kirk was dead. They came back the next day and helped us with paperwork and planning Kirk's funeral. They could not have been more helpful. We talked to Major Watts at Camp Lejeune who encouraged us to stay in Iowa for Kirk's funeral. We did not know that Major Watts was conducting the JAGMAN investigation but he assured us that he would investigate Kirk's death. He gave us false information about Flatwoods. We gave him information on Kirk's finances which he ignored. We set up that Kirk's brother, Lars, and I would visit Camp Lejeune in March during spring break. The two marines that accompanied Kirk's body were very helpful and have continued contact with us.

Kirk's property arrived the week before we left for N.C. and I made a list of missing property. When Lars and I arrived in N.C. we found that the information on Flatwoods was in error and we were given important information by the owners. Major Watts refused to talk to us and said I couldn't talk to Capt. Bumgarner who wrote Kirk's property inventory, which is missing. (Some of Kirk's missing property later was found at his apartment.) We sat in a room with two NIS agents who were silent when asked questions. Several marines told us that Kirk had been murdered and they would look for answers. When we returned to Iowa a NIS agent interviewed the family. He was very thorough and pointed out that the disks for Kirk's word processor were missing.

2nd Lt. Kirk C. Vanderbur, USMCR, loved life and put others before himself. He spent the first year of his life fighting to stay alive and knew the void left by his sister Kit's death the year before he was born. He chose to delay commissioning so it could be done in Iowa with his family attending. (His grandmother was 90.) He knew it could hinder advancement to delay it. All interviewed stated that Kirk showed no depression, didn't talk of suicide and exhibited a will to live.

The JAGMAN report arrived on December 31, 1992. It had been mailed on December 28, Kirk's 25th birthday. Major Watts' JAGMAN report is a piece of fiction and the errors are inexcusable for a trained military man. The report uses incorrect and twisted information to draw a conclusion of suicide. I am enclosing the letter written in February 1993 asking for correction of the JAGMAN report. Two casualty reports were issued. We received the first one that listed cause and circumstances

as gunshot wounds. Navy Mutual Aid Association informed us of the second report that listed cause and circumstances as apparently self inflicted gunshot wounds to the head and stomach and omitted our names. Why did Camp Lejeune omit sending us a copy? NMA told us they couldn't pay on Kirk's policy because it was a suicide and mailed us a copy of the casualty report. Kirk was a business major and would have known this. Why was a letter I wrote asking for information not answered and a letter requested from Dr. Douglas Ramon Landry, Lt., USNR, added in response. Dr. Landry isn't asked where he was when Kirk died.

The NIŠ report includes Laura Bock and the family interviews. It has copies of pages from the missing inventory; The report includes the psychological autopsy conducted by Michael G. Gelles, Psy. D., Special Assistant for Behavioral Sciences, NIS, on December 14, 1992, which shows a lack of correct information which caused erroneous conclusions. He mentioned contacting Dr. Landry for further details. Did he follow up on this?

1. When was Kirk killed? Since he didn't have his Maglite with him and he was found next to a sack of shell casings it would appear to be before sunset.

2. Where was his Rodeo parked? In the morning it was at the end of a white stone road in plain sight. A security light would have made it visible at night. In the morning the car door was closed when first spotted but when Mrs. Wager went to investigate it was open with the keys in the ignition. Who opened it? Why is the sketch incorrect in distance and location of the building to the range and fails to note the security light and telephone. If the door was open the alarm should have been audible.

3. Was Kirk wearing glasses or contacts or ear plugs? He had a -5 correction for nearsightedness. Why didn't they send home his glasses or contact lense supplies? The sheriff's people would have known he needed glasses if they looked at his Iowa driver's license which also stated that he wanted to be an organ donor. 4. Why didn't they take fingerprints?

5. Did they test his hands for residue?

6. Why didn't they notice he had been shot twice?

7. Why are there two shell casings under the Mini 14?

8. The sheriff's department said he put the butt of the Spas 12 in an indentation in the ground, leaned over and pulled the trigger. His arms weren't long enough and the angle was wrong.

9. The sheriff's department said that because his finger was on the trigger it proved that he shot himself. Again, why two shell casings under the weapon.

10. Why didn't they question Major Mike Stroff, USMC, who lived there with his family, and saw the car first. He sat on the front porch of the gun shop and watched the investigation and noted which cars were there.

11. Did they check to see if the engine was warm on the Rodeo? They noted that it was low on gas and Kirk filled it on 2/14/92.

12. Did they check with Kirk's neighbors to see if there had been any activity on Sunday night? The housemate was away on a ski trip.

13. There was an error on the autopsy as to which finger was on the trigger. I knew that it was wrong after talking to the owners and pointed it out to the authorities and it was corrected.

14. There isn't a ballistics report in either report and I was told that the weapons were sent to the FBI in Raleigh.

15. Why wasn't it caught that the weather report was for the wrong 24 hour period?

16. Why did Major Watts use the December 1991 leave earnings statement instead of the January 1992 which was available?

17. Why aren't the photos available of the range and the autopsy? Also autopsy x-rays?

18. The people that were questioned appeared to be asked the same questions. They didn't ask the questions they needed for answers.

19. Why did Major Watts make it look like Kirk had financial problems when he knew that Kirk did not. The HIS report shows that Kirk had a top credit rating. 20. Why did Major Watts make it look like Kirk's physical appearance was a negative? He had to go back to 1988 to find a weight problem. Kirk was working with Capt. Doug Gethers to lose weight.

21. Why create a romance problem when there wasn't one? Kirk and Laura broke up several years not several months before his death. He was helping her because she had lost her job. Kirk had many female friends.

22. Why say that Kirk couldn't live without the Marines? Kirk joined the marines as a reservist in January 1986 to help pay his way through college along with his National Merit Scholarship. He was a sergeant before commissioning. He changed