The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB or the Board) held that the Department of the Army retaliated against the appellant, a federal employee, for making protected disclosures regarding the Department of Defense’s disposal of her husband’s remains. This marks the first precedential decision on the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) issued by the Board since it regained a quorum and, notably, the Board held in favor of the employee.
The appellant was employed at the Agency’s Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey as a Management Support Assistant with the Office of the Project Manager (PM MAS). Appellant’s husband, a U.S. Army sergeant and technician, was killed in action in Iraq on July 17, 2006. His remains were flown to Dover Air Force Base, where they were handled by the Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations (Dover MAO) personnel. On April 21, 2011, after appellant inquired about the disposition of her husband’s remains, Dover MAO informed her that his remains had been cremated, incinerated, and sent to a landfill in Virginia.
After learning of this, the appellant notified the media as well as Rep. Rush Holt Jr. (D-NJ). The Washington Post published an article identifying appellant by name in December 2011. Rep. Holt delivered a speech a week later in which he explained that he would not vote for the National Defense Authorization Act of 2012 because of the incident. He also identified appellant by name.
Meanwhile, in March 2012, appellant transferred from PM...
What This Story Is About Tennessee election officials are debunking a social-media claim that a poll worker’s administrative marking automatically invalidates a ballot. Why It Matters The statemen...