Tag: Youth

Article URL: http://archives.starbulletin.com/2008/07/29/news/story02.html

No answers yet for mom

An Army drill sergeant allegedly hits a Waianae recruit in the head

STORY SUMMARY

A Fort Sill basic-training drill sergeant in Oklahoma has been suspended from his duties while the Army investigates allegations that he injured a 19-year-old Hawaii Army National Guard soldier by striking him with a bed.

Pvt. Ja Van Yiu Lin last week called his mother Lisa Moniz in Waianae, saying he had trouble hearing out of his left ear and seeing out of his left eye. After several days of failing to get answers on her son’s condition from Fort Sill and Hawaii Army National Guard recruiters, Moniz turned to U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka.

Yiu Lin graduated from Waianae High School in May and left for basic and advance artillery training at Fort Sill, about 85 miles southwest of Oklahoma City, on July 10.

FULL STORY

By Gregg K. Kakesako
gkakesako@starbulletin.com

The Army is investigating a complaint that a drill sergeant in Oklahoma threw a bed at a 19-year-old Hawaii Army National Guard soldier, hitting him in the head and impairing his vision and hearing.

Lisa Moniz told the Star-Bulletin that her son — Hawaii Army National Guard Pvt. Ja Van Yiu Lin — was injured July 19 by his drill sergeant.

Yesterday, Moniz said she hasn’t heard from him for nearly a week and no one from the Army has given her any details as to the extent of his injuries.

Moniz said her son told her in a phone call July 19 that he was standing at attention when his drill sergeant, who was “yelling at the recruits,” picked up a bunk bed and threw it, hitting Yiu Lin in the head.

“My son doesn’t remember anything after until he was in the hospital,” Moniz said.

U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, whom Moniz called for help last week, and the Hawaii Army National Guard confirmed that Yiu Lin has returned to his basic-training unit at Fort Sill and that the incident is being investigated.

Jon Long, a Fort Sill spokesman, said yesterday that a report of the incident is being reviewed by the brigade commander.

In an e-mail, Long said that while the investigation is being conducted, the “drill sergeant has been temporarily prohibited from taking part” in training soldiers.

He said Yiu Lin was returned to duty last Tuesday after two follow-up visits to Bleak Troop Medical Clinic “to perform training with the exception of running or marching” for one day. He said Yiu Lin had been treated July 19 and 20 at the emergency room at Reynolds Community Hospital and released.

Long did not release any other details.

Yiu Lin graduated from Waianae High School in May and left July 10 for basic and advance artillery training at Fort Sill, located near Lawton about 85 miles southwest of Oklahoma City. He was assigned to Battery B, 1st Battalion, 355th Regiment.

During the July 19 phone call, Moniz said, her son complained that the vision in his left eye was impaired and hearing in his left ear was limited.

“The pain in his head was unbearable, but the doctor told him that his CT scan was normal and to go back to training,” Moniz said.

Because Army and Hawaii Army National Guard officials did not notify her about her son’s accident, Moniz said she tried unsuccessfully on July 20 to call them. Finally, a Red Cross representative said Army officials at Fort Sill would call her.

Moniz said her son called her again while at the hospital on July 20 using a cell phone belonging to another recruit.

Moniz said her son had to return to the hospital on July 20 because of “intense pain” and bleeding from his nose. This time, he was told that he might have a concussion and was given a painkiller and released.

In that call, Moniz said, her son pleaded for help “because the pain was unbearable.” He said he was told by the drill sergeant that he was at fault and then the connection was lost, she said.

On July 21, Moniz said, Sgt. Brooks Akana of the Hawaii Army National Guard told her that “there was an investigation going on and that on completion of the investigation, he would let me know.”

On that same day, Moniz said, because she still didn’t know the extent of her son’s injuries, she also tried to contact him at Fort Sill. “I was assured by a sergeant who said, ‘Your son is fine. He’s out on duty.'”

Moniz wasn’t satisfied with that answer and called Akaka’s Honolulu office on July 21 and asked the senator to look into the matter.

Later that day, Yiu Lin called his mother saying he was in sick bay and that he couldn’t see out of his left eye, his hearing was muffled in his left ear and there was still intense pain. A Fort Sill spokesman said that from July 21 to 22, Yiu Lin was placed “on quarters (bed rest in his barracks).”

On the afternoon of last Tuesday, Moniz said an Army lieutenant colonel called her from Fort Sill and said, “I assure you … that your soldier is fine.”

Yiu Lin was in the room, Moniz said, and was allowed to talk to her. However, because there were other people in the room, Yiu Lin felt that he couldn’t talk, she said.

“OK, just say yes or no,” Moniz told her son. “Are you OK?” she asked her son. His reply was no.

“Healthwise, are you feeling better?” His reply again was no.

“Do you want me to continue to ask for help?”

Yiu Lin’s response was: “Please, Mom.”

At that point, the soldier was told to say his goodbyes.

On Wednesday, Yiu Lin’s wife, Angela, was told by Hawaii Army National Guard recruiters that an investigation was under way and that they wanted Moniz to stop calling Fort Sill.
CORRECTION

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

An Army drill sergeant allegedly hit a National Guard recruit from Waianae in the head with a bed at Army basic training at Fort Sill, Okla. Originally, the sub-headline on this article incorrectly said the drill sergeant was with the Guard. Also, a photo caption incorrectly said the training was conducted by the Army National Guard.

OUR OPINION

Deceptive recruiting methods damage the
military

THE ISSUE

A Navy recruiter has been accused of making false promises to enlist

Misleading young men and women in order to sign them up for military service makes no sense for anyone involved, including the tricky recruiter.

When enlistees discover they have been deceived, they aren’t likely to view their stints favorably, the military gains service members who are disgruntled and the recruiters — though possibly reaching their enlistment quotas — get bad reputations that can prevent them from doing their jobs effectively. In addition, the military and
recruiters in general are tainted by the bad practices of a few.

Parents and young people as well as older people considering enrolling in the armed forces should make sure they know in detail what’s ahead before they agree to enlist. While a career in the military can provide an education, a range of opportunities and other benefits, potential recruits need to enter the services with eyes wide open.

Two recent Kapolei High School graduates and their families have found that a recruiter’s promises of college benefits weren’t exactly as billed. They were told that the Navy would pay for them to go to college for four years before having to serve four years, but it turned out the sequence was reversed; they were to serve on full-time active duty before earning any college benefits.

The mother of one of the graduates told the Star-Bulletin’s Susan Essoyan she was skeptical of the promises and went with her son to assure herself everything was in order and to verify the terms of enlistment. But they turned out to be otherwise.

The recruiter, Petty Officer 1st Class Jimmy Pecadeso, apparently had been the source of previous problems.

The school’s principal said he had banned Pecadeso from recruiting on campus for being “overly aggressive” and “doing things that appear not to be ethical.” The recruiter’s supervisor was advised of problems several times, the principal said.

Recruiters can meet with students at the school only if parents have given permission and if a counselor is present. However, the resourceful recruiter managed to track down one of the teenagers off campus.

Granted, the teenagers should have known what they were doing, but it appears they were rushed into a decision without the benefit of talking with their families.

A 2006 government study showed that while hard-sell tactics by recruiters were rare, claims of recruiter misconduct were increasing and, because the military did not track all allegations, the problems likely were underestimated.  The study also showed that the majority of recruiters, who are involuntarily assigned the duty, are dissatisfied with the task, which has become increasingly difficult because of the war in Iraq.

Source: http://starbulletin.com/2008/06/17/editorial/editorial01.html

June 17, 2008

Teens say recruiter duped them

Grads claim they were told they could go to college before serving

Advertiser Staff and News Services

The Navy said it is investigating a Honolulu-based recruiter after two Kapolei High School graduates said they were scammed into joining the service.

Cory Miyasato and Joseph Mauga Jr. said Navy recruiter Petty Officer 1st Class Jimmy Pecadeso promised them they would be able to get a free, four-year college education before going off to sea.

Instead, the two 18-year-olds said they found out they would be going off to boot camp and then active duty.

Their families made a complaint to the Navy.

Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class David McKee, a spokesman for Navy Recruiting Station Los Angeles, which includes Hawai’i, said, “We’ve done the preliminary inquiry, and we’ve initiated a formal investigation.”

McKee said Miyasato and Mauga are no longer obligated to fulfill a Navy contract and enter boot camp.

“They’ve asked to be removed from the delayed entry program, and we’ve honored that request,” McKee said.

McKee said he would have to check whether Pecadeso was temporarily relieved of duties, or if he continues to work as a recruiter.

A person who answered the phone at the Kapolei Navy recruiting station said Pecadeso wouldn’t be able to comment, and referred any questions to McKee.

The Navy said it has recruiting offices in Kapolei, ‘Aiea, Honolulu and Kane’ohe.

McKee said Miyasato and Mauga were to go into the Navy under the “delayed entry” program, but that the delay in reporting for boot camp ranges from about a month to, rarely, as long as a year.

McKee said he believes the general integrity of Navy recruiters to be high.

The Los Angeles recruiting office encompasses 54 recruiting stations in California, Hawai’i, Guam, South Korea and Japan, McKee said.

For June, the total goal for the stations is 210 recruits, 30 of whom are expected to come from Hawai’i, Guam, South Korea and Japan, McKee said.

Source: Honoluluadvertiser.com

Navy recruiter’s false promises allegedly snare Kapolei students

Petty Officer 1st Class Jimmy Pecadeso’s tactics have drawn previous complaints

By Susan Essoyan
sessoyan@starbulletin.com

Enlist in the Navy now, the recruiter told Cory Miyasato and Joseph Mauga Jr., and get a free, four-year college education before going off to sea.

JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARBULLETIN.COM
Joseph Mauga Jr., right, and his friend, Cory Miyasato, were allegedly railroaded into enlisting in the U.S. Navy just before graduating from Kapolei High School. The recruiter is accused of promising they could get a free education from the Navy before seeing active duty.

The two Kapolei High School seniors thought they could believe the talkative Navy recruiter in the spotless white uniform. Mauga wanted to become a naval officer after college. His father is a 20-year Navy veteran and 11 of his uncles have served in the military.

Miyasato, an honor student, also was intrigued. “The full-ride scholarship really interested me,” he said. “I am a very trusting person. I thought the U.S. government would be truthful to me.”

With the military under pressure to keep producing fresh troops for an increasingly unpopular war in Iraq, a few recruiters stretch the truth – or worse – to meet their quotas. Mauga and Miyasato, both 18, say they found that out the hard way.

It wasn’t until after the pair enlisted in the Navy’s Delayed Entry Program on May 29 that they discovered they would be going off to boot camp and then full-time active duty, scrubbing and painting ships, before earning any college benefits. And it wasn’t until their irate parents raised a ruckus that they learned that the recruiter who lured them into enlisting had already run into trouble for his heavy-handed tactics with students.

Kapolei High School Principal Alvin Nagasako told the Star-Bulletin that Petty Officer 1st Class Jimmy Pecadeso had been banned from recruiting on campus for being “overly aggressive” and “doing things that appear not to be ethical. It was told to his supervisor by our counselor not once but multiple times,” Nagasako said.

Recruiters are allowed to meet with students at the school only with parental permission and if a counselor is present. In this case, the recruiter tracked down Miyasato off campus after getting his cell-phone number from another student. The seniors were about to graduate from Kapolei High and had already enrolled at local colleges.

Cory’s mother, Jayne Arasaki, was skeptical, so she went along on one visit to the recruiting station and heard the same promise from Pecadeso. “He did lie to me,” she said. “He said the Navy would pay for four years of college and then Cory would be obligated to serve four years.”

Pecadeso did not return a call from the Star-Bulletin, and his supervisor, Petty Officer 1st Class Latasha Kahana, said they were not authorized to speak to the press. But the spokesman for the Navy Recruiting Station Los Angeles, which includes Hawaii, said the case would be investigated.

“Nobody should be railroaded into buying a car, a house, or joining the military under false pretenses by being misled,” said Petty Officer 1st Class David McKee, public affairs officer for the district.

“When it comes out that a recruiter has misled an applicant, it reflects poorly on all recruiters and the Navy and the military,” he said. “The military does take this seriously. The family can be assured that the recruiter is going to be investigated.”

Concern over recruiter tactics prompted a study by the General Accounting Office in 2006 that found claims of recruiter misconduct were on an upswing, although they remained rare. It noted that the military services do not track all allegations and the data likely underestimates the problem.

There were 2,456 claims of recruiter “irregularities” among 22,000 recruiters and nearly 318,000 new enlistees in 2006, according to more recent data from the U.S. State Department. Most involved “concealment, falsification or undue influence.” About one in five claims was substantiated.

“I feel my son was railroaded into enlisting for active duty with the Navy,” Arasaki said. “The whole process took less than a week. Cory was enticed with money, prestige as an officer, college and other military benefits.”

At 5 p.m. the day after she met Pecadeso, the recruiter picked up both boys and whisked them off to spend the night at an airport hotel, courtesy of the Navy, saying they needed to get an early start on medical testing and security clearance at the Military Entrance Processing Station at Pearl Harbor. He promised to have them back by noon.

It was nearly 24 hours before the brought them back, late for graduation practice at 4 p.m. Their worried mothers had been trying to reach them by phone, but their cell phones were confiscated on base as a security measure.

“They were just going to see what they had to offer,” Gloria Mauga said. “I did not know my child was going to come back enlisted. They couldn’t even call to ask us advice. It’s like they kidnapped our sons.”

Their contracts noted that they were eligible for the Navy College Fund, and the boys say they thought they were signing up to go to school full time.

At first, the Maugas thought Joseph might have signed up for ROTC, but when they reviewed the contract, they realized he would be entering as an enlisted man at the lowest level. It was 10 p.m., but they immediately jumped up to call Pecadeso on his cell phone to cancel it.

“He said, ‘Just don’t have him show up (for his ship date) at the end of December, we’ll consider it canceled,'” Joseph Mauga Sr. recalled.

Instead, the families are working to get immediate discharges and written assurances that the boys’ careers will not be affected. McKee, the Navy spokesman, said the two young men can opt out with no penalty.

“At any point in the Delayed Entry Program, if a person decides that they do not want to join the military, they’re not obligated,” he said. “We discourage people from just walking away from the process. But before you go to basic training, you are under no obligation to continue.”

McKee apologized for any miscommunication, and noted that recruiters may feel time pressure as their monthly deadlines approach. Hawaii recruiters are expected to produce 30 new enlistees for the Navy this month.

“Not everyone who becomes a recruiter is a talented communicator,” McKee added. “Some are used to working in an engine room. … Please don’t write the military off completely.”

Pecadeso, who has been a recruiter since 2005, joined the military in 1998 and is trained in surface warfare as a gas system turbine technician-electrician.

He told Mauga and Miyasato they could earn higher pay if they recruited a few friends before going off to basic training. Navy regulations do permit bumping a recruit up to the E-3 level from E-1, a $240 difference per month, if they recruit two or more others.

But at this point, neither boy is interested in trying to sign up anyone else.

“Right now, all I want to do is get out of the military and continue my schooling by going to Leeward Community College,” Miyasato said.

BY THE NUMBERS
Recruiting for the U.S. Military, 2006
Number of recruiters: 22,000
Number of recruits: 318,000
Claims of misconduct: 2,456
Claims substantiated: 518

Source: “Military Recruiting and Recruiter Irregularities,” U.S. Department of State

REPORTING MISCONDUCT
To report Navy recruiter misconduct in Hawaii, contact the recruiter’s supervisor or district headquarters:

Navy Recruiting District Los Angeles
5051 Rodeo Road
Los Angeles, CA 90016
Tel. (800) 252-1588

For the Army, Air Force or Marines, contact the recruiting district headquarters for that branch of service.

Source: http://archives.starbulletin.com/2008/06/15/news/story03.html#full