Subject: Harassed by the Biloxi VA Medical Center’s security police.

Dear Congressman Bonner

My name is Jerry R. Woodward. My address is 2215 Spring Grove East, Mobile, Al, 36695. Phone number is 251-776-3681.
Congressman Bonner, first, I do not like to have to contact you or your office again, but I am a veteran and a former employee of the VA Medical Center in Biloxi. I was fired from the VA and I have already filed a Whistle Blowers Protection claim with the Office of Special Counsel and we are in the process of doing a settlement after the Office of Special Counsel looked at my case and saw that I was being retaliated against after disclosures I made. I was labeled / targeted as a (Whistle Blower) by the managers I had worked for and reported to the OSC in my disclosures.
On 14 Dec 2009, I called the Union President at the VA Hospital in Biloxi, MS. I asked John Mechanic if he would mail me a copy of a CD I had given him with information about my case. I explained to him my copy was lost. Mr. Mechanic said it would be better if I came by and picked up the CD and make myself another copy. I already had another appointment in Biloxi with (Kaye Persons) my lawyer the next day to look at a settlement agreement the VA is offering me to drop charges I filed with the Office of Special Counsel for retribution after I gave them disclosures and reported retaliation to them as well.
On 15 Dec, 2009 I went to the Biloxi VA Medical Center to meet with John Mechanic, my union President.
When our business together was over, I was walking to my car and noticed a VA police drive by. He turned around as I was putting my things in my car and pulled into a space about two cars from me.
I pulled out of my space and proceeded to leave the property. He pulled up a little and I stopped and waved the right away to him. He did not move so I proceeded to drive away and he pulled out and followed me, right on my tail. I noticed my radar detector started going off. It is legal in Mississippi to own and operate a detector.
I drove very slowly through the parking lot and he followed very close all the way to the exit gate when he then turned on his lights for me to stop. I stopped and he walked up to my car and I asked what I had done. He said I did not have my head lights on. I told him it is day time as it was already 9 am. He explained it is a state law in Mississippi to have on your lights when you have on your windshield wipers. I noticed it was not raining but there was a small mist in the air so I had my wipers on as slow as possible. I said I did not know about the Mississippi law as I live in Alabama not Mississippi.
He asked for my driver’s license and vehicle registration and insurance and I gave them to him. He ran my information and came back to my car and said” Mr. Woodward, you are no longer an employee here so what is your business here today. I explained to him that I had an appointment with John in the Union office. I also told him I was a Veteran as well and sometimes come here for medical appointments if I have to.
He said Mr. Woodward; you are allowed to come here for appointments only and can not be here for any other reason. I told him I live 120 miles round trip and do not come here unless I have official business or an appointment here. He said Mr. Woodward, you are trespassing. I asked how am I am trespassing when I just told you I was here for an appointment with the Union President. He said you are trespassing and to let this be a warning.
I told him I do have a case pending with the VA and that one of his guys is upset with me. I told him Mark Jenkins was his name. He said he did not work for Mark Jenkins. I ask why are you telling me I am trespassing and how is it you know who I am and why are you doing this. I asked how he already knew so much about me. He said he is just an informed policeman and that I was trespassing and I needed to take that as a warning.
I said I am going to have to contact my Congressman again and he said go ahead. I then left the property as I was on my way to my lawyers office to see the new settlement agreement the VA is offering me if I will drop charges I filed with the OSC.
I called John Mechanic at the Union and told him what happened. He said it sounds like they are harassing you and have identified your car. I ask why they would need to do that. He said he did not know other than they are just harassing you.
I also contacted the VA police to get his name. Fred Moser is the officer that said I was trespassing even after I explained to him I was there for an appointment with the Union President. I am sure he was told by someone to tell me this as it seemed he was trying to get me worked up so he could arrest me or site me for something.
I have also contacted the Patient Advocates office there to find out if I need to inform the VA Police when I come there for medical appointments. She said no, my name was not on their list but there is a list of people that do have to check in with the police. I asked her to please find out why the police there are harassing me. She said she would look into it for me.
I just want it to go on record that now I am being harassed for no reason when I go to the Biloxi VA Medical center. John, my union president said they should give me a reason as to why I was told I was trespassing when I had already explained I was there for a meeting with him.
I was told a few weeks ago that one of he Investigators (Mark Jenkins) was asking people I know at the VA medical center if they had seen me at the VA, however he did not say why. Mr. Jenkins seems to have a grudge against me because he was the Investigator that was investigating my manager and co-workers and he did not want to tell the Administration he was doing an investigation. When I went to the HR Director to ask if I should do anything else, the HR Director went to the Director of the hospital, which ended Mr. Jenkins investigation and I think Mr. Jenkins caught some heat from the Director / Administration for not letting them know what he was doing. Mr. Jenkins had also brought in a VAOIG investigator and told me it was because the VAOIG investigator did not work for or have to answer to the Director of the Hospital. I thought that was strange that he would not want to tell the Director of the hospital about the investigation.
Mr. Jenkins had also told his neighbor that he thought two of the guys were going to get fired. This person works at the VA Hospital and came to me and told me what Mark Jenkins had told her. She is a department head and did not have a need to know what was going on with the situation. After she told me what Mr. Jenkins had said, I notice Mr. Jenkins a few days latter out side and I approached him. I wanted to see if Mr. Jenkins would tell me what he hade told this other person. I mentioned that is seems these guys were going to keep their jobs even after all of the disclosures I had given the VA. We talked and I also told him the guys were still not checking out the medical equipment.
A few days latter Jay Tripp (Chief of Engineering) called me and told me to meet him at the VA police office that afternoon. When I arrived at the police office Mr. Jenkins, Jay Tripp, David Boggs, the VAOIG officer and Mark Jenkins boss were all there.
I Mr. Jenkins said he called the meeting because of the conversation we had about the guys keeping their jobs and still not checking the equipment. During this meeting I noticed Mr. Jenkins was upset about me going to the HR Director and ending his investigation. After Jay Tripp and Dave Boggs left the room at the end of the first part of this meeting, The VAOIG Investigator, Mark Jenkins and I stayed for another meeting. I was told by the VAOIG investigator that he had told the Director of the hospital that he had a leak in his hospital and he chewed out the Director. He then was told by the Director that I had gone to the HR Director and I was the so called leak. I explained to them I had asked the HR acting Director to give me time to go to Jay Tripp before he said anything. They were also mad about that because they did not want anyone to know about their investigation. I did not bring up the fact that the reason I had made my comments to Mark Jenkins was only to try to see if he would tell me the same thing he had told his neighbor and a department head and a friend of mine.
Congressman Bonner, Mr. Jenkins has my phone number and email address as we have spoken and sent emails to each other many times, so I do not understand why he can not contact me directly if he needs to talk to me.
Will you please find out why this police officer harassed me telling me I was trespassing even after he had just asked why I was there and I had just told him I was there for official business with the Union President?
I have no problem stopping by the VA police office every time I go there for any appointments I may have there.
Why after I severed 23 ½ years in the United States Army I am trespassing on a government owned facility that specifically takes care of Veterans like myself. I did tell the patient advocate if the Mobile Clinic were to send me to the Biloxi Hospital for something that can not be done at the Mobile Clinic and the VA Police harass me again I will just leave without going to my appointment. I will not be harassed because this guy (Mark Jenkins) has a grudge against me for ending his investigation he did not want anyone to know he was doing. That was not my ideal to not tell the Administration, it was the VA police that did not want to tell the Director.
Furthermore, I do understand I need to be there for official business or appointments and not just visiting friends as that say can not be done, and I did tell this officer I was there to talk with the Union President. The officer watched me walk out of the Union building, asked me what my business was there and I told him, and he still told me I was trespassing an to let this be a warning after I explained to him why I was there.
I would also like to have a meeting with you when you are back in Mobile, Alabama. This stuff has got to end.

Thank you for your assistance again.

Jerry Woodward.

Keep up the good work. I’ll picket with you.
My dad and mom are WW2 vets. Dad was battle wounded made paraplegic and a member of Disabled American Vets, American Legion Granda Hills post, Purple Heart member. Mom is in the Auxs and retired RN from Sepulveda VA hospital.