Re: NAF Bits 'n' Pieces

Date: March 22, 2004

"BITS 'N' PIECES
THE NEWSLETTER OF THE
NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF FAMILIES
FOR THE RETURN OF AMERICA'S MISSING SERVICEMEN
+ WORLD WAR II + KOREA + COLD WAR + VIETNAM + GULF WAR +

March 13, 2004

Speicher Gonna Get Screwed -- In the back hall of the Pentagon, they are already whispering the words "status change." Speicher is currently listed as Missing Captured (MIA-C). The only status change left would be back to Killed in Action/Body Not Recovered (KIA/BNR.)

On March 3rd, Bill Gertz of the Washington Times wrote: " Adm. Jacoby said the search for Capt. Speicher remains "an active case." The Navy's top admiral said yesterday there is no evidence to change Capt. Speicher's status from "missing-captured." "We have not found out new specific intelligence revelations that have changed our fundamental conclusion," said Adm. Vern Clark, chief of naval operations."

"Cindy Laquidara, a Florida lawyer who represents Capt. Speicher's family, said yesterday she has heard about talk in the Pentagon of changing Capt. Speicher's status back to "killed in action."

According to an Associate Press article: "Iraq has maintained all along that Speicher was killed in the crash. The Navy, which has changed its position on Speicher's status over the years, lists him as "missing-captured."

"We have not found out new specific intelligence revelations that have changed our fundamental conclusion," Adm. Vern Clark, the chief of naval operation, told a group of reporters at a breakfast interview."

"In October 2002 the Navy changed Speicher's status from missing in action to "missing-captured," although it has never said what evidence it has that he was in captivity. He initially was listed as killed in action, with no body recovered. But in January 2001, the Navy changed his status to MIA, citing an absence of evidence that he had died."

"Your first question: `Have you seen any evidence that would lead us to a clear conclusion on what happened to Scott Speicher?', and on that I can say, no, I have not seen that intelligence that gives me a clear answer," the Navy chief said. Asked directly whether any evidence had emerged to reinforce the theory that Speicher had been taken captive by the Iraqis after he was shot down on Jan. 17, Clark initially declined to answer but later said the answer was no."

The article also addressed the creditibility of witnesses who put Speicher in captivity stating: "In fact, other officials have said in recent months that some information from informants, claiming before the U.S. invasion last March that Speicher had been seen in a prison in Baghdad, has since been discredited."

However, a Reuters article by Charles Aldinger stated: "A senior Navy official, who asked not to be identified, conceded that some witnesses who earlier provided evidence of Speicher's capture had been discredited. But he said there were a number of witnesses in the case."


A Word About Evidence and A Status Change - Should the Pentagon decide to make a status change in the Speicher case, evidence of capture or survival will not get in their way. Anyone who believes that is unacquainted with the workings of the Pentagon when it come to POW/MIAs or should we say MIA-C's.

To illustrate.... a pilot is shot down. He is photographed with his captors.... His captors record his voice and play it on enemy radio.... His captors allow him to be interviewed by a Soviet journalist.... That article is published in the Soviet newspaper Pravda..... There are multiple live sighting reports from 1965 into the 1990's..... and No evidence as to death..... Yet, the Pentagon declared this POW dead.

So, if the Pentagon decides to, once again, declare Scott Speicher dead, they won't let the March 2001 Intelligence Summary or a flight suit get in their way. What's the old saying.... those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.


Pentagon Plans To Drop Reward for Speicher - Aides in Senator Bill Nelson's office confirm that the Pentagon plans to drop the reward, authorized by Congress, for the return of Capt. Scott Speicher. In a letter to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, dated March 1 2004, Senator Nelson writes: "During a recent briefing I was told your office has decided not to continue offering a $1 million reward for information leading to the resolution of Capt. M. Scott Speicher's fate. I believe such an action would be a mistake."

The letter continues: "At the very least, it would send a clear signal that finding out what happened to Scott Speicher no longer is a top priority. And it would deepen the suffering of Scott's family, whose representative wrote me just last week expressing concern that efforts to locate Scott are waning."

Senator Pat Roberts, Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, joined Senator Nelson in call for the continuation of the reward. An Associate Press report, dated March 9th, states: "Offering a reward "is the least we can do," Roberts wrote Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in a letter released Tuesday. "Given the past handling of Capt. Speicher's case to date, the refusal to offer this reward would add insult to injury," Roberts wrote."

"Lawmakers asked the Pentagon to offer a $1 million reward as part of last year's defense spending authorization. They urged the reward be offered in a non-binding "sense of Congress" provision in the bill. During a hearing earlier Tuesday, Roberts pressed Vice Adm. Lowell E. Jacoby, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, on the matter."

"In response, Jacoby did not mention a reward. He said the effort to learn of Speicher's fate "is both aggressive and ongoing." The Navy's top admiral said last week that no evidence has emerged since the fall of Baghdad that Speicher was held in captivity. U.S. officials have questioned Iraqis and searched throughout Iraq since the demise of Saddam Hussein's regime in April 2003."

The March 9th AP article carried an expanded quote form Admiral Vern Clark stating: "We do not have new intelligence that adds clarity and definition to what happened to him" after he was shot down, Adm. Vern Clark, chief of naval operations, told reporters during a breakfast interview. "If you think about what I just told you, that tells you something about the discovery or lack of discovery."


Old Evidence New or New Evidence Old - Everyone is aware of the initials MSS found etched on the wall of a prison cell in Baghdad. Do they belong to Michael Scott Speicher as many believe? Or, do they belong to Mohammed as many would like us to believe?

Now, comes a report of a second set of initials found carved in a "beam." According to the same Washington Times article by Bill Gertz quoted above "Investigators are trying to determine whether the initials "MSS" found carved on a wooden beam at an Iraqi prison were made by Capt. Speicher, who might have been held captive there after his F-18 jet was shot down in 1991."

"Vice Adm. Lowell Jacoby, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, stated in Senate testimony that evidence related to the case was turned over to the laboratory in Quantico, Va., as part of "a relatively small number of active leads still being pursued" by investigators in Iraq."

"There's still some forensic work being done by FBI laboratories on the beam with the initials on it and some other materials that have been brought back, and we don't have a final report out from them," Adm. Jacoby said."

"A defense official said yesterday the investigation is ongoing. The FBI is using its high-technology resources at the laboratory to analyze the letters to find out what kind of carving tool might have been used."

On March 5th in their "Inside the Ring" column Gertz and Rowan Scarborough wrote: "The search for downed Navy pilot Capt. Michael Scott Speicher was in the news again this week. Vice Adm. Lowell Jacoby, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), told a Senate committee that the initials "MSS" carved in a prison wall in Iraq are now being examined by the FBI for clues to the pilot's whereabouts."

"People interested in a fuller story of the search for Capt. Speicher can view a secret DIA report in the new book "Rumsfeld's War" by column co-author Rowan Scarborough. The DIA report reveals that the Iraqi defector who claimed the naval officer is alive is most likely a liar. All his assertions have been disproved by witnesses he said would support his story."

After reading the March 5th column, were understandably confused. Was it the wall the FBI was now examining or was it a beam? So we contact Mr. Gertz and asked for a clarification. This was his response: "I wrote the story referencing a beam. My colleague wrote the wall in the column. The latest info is that it was a wooden beam."

The existence of a wooden beam with the initials MSS carved on it, in addition to the wall with MSS etched into it means one of two things. Either Speicher was doing what he was trained to do, leaving evidence of his existence wherever he went. Or, Mohammad was very busy.

Questions regarding this beam remain. Was the beam found in the same prison as the wall initials or a different location? When was the beam found? When was it brought to the United States? Do any of the sighting reports on Speicher match the location of the beam? And lastly, Why was there not prior reporting on the finding of this beam?


The Eagle Cried - That's the title of a new documentary, currently in production, by Bill Dumas. Bill is the nephew of Bob Dumas, who has spent the last 50 year trying to bring his Korea War POW brother Roger home. The documentary chronicles Bob's search for his brother and the government's cover-up of abandoned POWs.

We've seen the uncut version of the "The Eagle Cried" and, honestly, we are at a loss for words when it comes to describing this fine work. While primarily focused on the Dumas case, the production deals with the broader aspect of the POW/MIA issue as it relates to Korea and Vietnam. The film contains interviews with many well known figures in the issue, some of whom haven't spoken publically in years.

This is the Video/DVD to own. You can preview a 6 minute clip at http://www.EagleCried.com. To order your copy send a check payable to Hygienic Art, Inc in the amount of $35.00. On the check be sure to reference "The Eagle Cried." The check should be mailed to: Bill Dumas Productions, 91 Arlington Dr. #7 Pasadena, CA 91105. Remember to specify format, either video of DVD.

We are ordering our copy and suggest you do the same.


We Still Can't Avoid The Subject - We are continually asked What do you think of John Kerry? Or, has John Kerry helped the POW/MIA issue? To answer the question of John Kerry and the POW/MIA issue, we direct you to a new organization, POW/MIA Families Against John Kerry, headed by Ann Holland, wife of POW/MIA T/Sgt. Melvin Holland USAF. You can reach Ann at againstkerry@aol.com or visit their website at http://www.powmiafamiliesagainstjohnkerry.com


Mystery Solved - Originally the govenment said Sgt. Frank Parrish, died in Vietnam in 1968. His remains were identified in 1973 and returned to his family. The government was wrong. In the late 1980's, Vietnam returned remains said to be Sgt. Parrish. That identification was confirmed. Remains originally identified as Parrish were exhumed and remains of Frank Parrish were finally returned to his family.

What happened to the remains originally identified as Frank Parrish? That question was finally answered.

In an article titled "He's 'AWOL' No Longer" Ken Thorbourne of the Jersey Journal writes: "It's been nearly four decades since Army Spc. 4th Class Carl Wadleigh of Jersey City went missing during the war in Vietnam Unlike other soldiers in his company, judged to have fought bravely and died for their country, the former student of Jefferson Elementary School in North Bergen - his twin sister, Margaret, likens him to Matt Dillon, the handsome sheriff on TV's "Gunsmoke" - was branded a deserter. "

"After 36 years of living with this cloud hanging over their brother's reputation and military career and their family's name, Wadleigh's six surviving siblings were told last month that the Army had it wrong all along. Military brass now believe that in 1968 Wadleigh, then 21, died fighting on behalf of his country in Vietnam's Ben Tre province. DNA tests have definitively proved, Army officials now say, that Wadleigh's remains had been confused with those of another soldier, Master Sgt. Frank Parrish, and were buried in Texas in 1973. "

"In a stark reversal, the Army now says Wadleigh is entitled to a full military funeral, and family members are planning for a burial in May at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Just beginning to digest the Army's revised determination on their brother's disappearance, Wadleigh's siblings say they feel a sense of closure and vindication, but also anger and bewilderment that the government could get things so wrong for so long."

"I was shocked. I was glad it ended," said older brother Clifford Wadleigh Jr. of Jersey City, an ex-Navy medic who enlisted shortly before Carl was drafted in 1964. "It just felt like part of you was missing." Carl's parents - Clifford Sr. and Mary - died in the 1980s without that closure. All they knew of their son's last days was what they had heard from FBI agents who visited them inquiring about their youngest son's whereabouts. They said that Carl had gone AWOL - Absent Without Leave."

"We all thought he was AWOL," said Michelle Wadleigh, another of Carl's sisters, a religious science teacher who lives in Florham Park. "That was the hard part. There was an absolute stigma."

"The Army's reappraisal of Carl Wadleigh's status as a soldier began in 1989 when the Vietnamese government shipped boxes containing the remains of 21 U.S. soldiers to the United States, according to Lt. Col. Jerry O'Hara, a spokesman for the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command in Hawaii."

"With the emergence of mitochondrial DNA as an unassailable tool for identifying remains, military forensic experts were able to definitively identify one set of these remains as Master Sgt. Frank Parrish. [Note: This is in error mt-DNA was NOT used in the identification of Frank Parrish. The use of mt-DNA testing did not start until sometime in 1992. See POW Newwork bio below.] The discovery was shocking because military officials were convinced they had already recovered and buried Parrish's remains."

"Parrish, who worked as an adviser to a South Vietnamese strike force, was believed to have been the soldier found in 1972 alongside the body of Master Sgt. Earl Briggs, according to an account compiled in 1990 by the Homecoming II Project, an advocacy group for families of missing soldiers. Both men were killed in an ambush on Jan. 16, 1968."

"Military officials had based their identification of the remains on a comparison done with Parrish's picture and a toothless and jawbone-less skull. There also was circumstantial evidence, said 1st Lt. Ken Hall, who works with O'Hara. Parrish was a medic, and a set of forceps had been found near the remains, he said."

"Parrish's brother Johnnie had long rejected the forensic evidence the government had used to identify his brother, the Homecoming II report stated. "The Pentagon informed Johnnie Parrish that he could accept it or reject it, but the identification was final," the account states, noting that Parrish's parents accepted the determination and eventually a reluctant Johnnie Parrish did, too."

"As it turns out, Johnnie Parrish was right; the government was wrong."

"The definitive identification of Parrish in 1989 set in motion a series of events, beginning with the exhumation of the remains in the Texas grave. Then came the time-consuming process of figuring out who that man was.

"We went back to Ben Tre," the province where the remains initially believed to be Parrish had been found, O'Hara said. "We also deduced who the person could be by process of elimination. Who was in the area? . It takes an awfully long time."

"It was November 2001 before military officials contacted two of Carl Wadleigh's six siblings in New Jersey, asking for blood samples that could be used to compare DNA patterns with the remains unearthed in Texas."

"Just last month, Army officials contacted family members and confirmed that the remains that had been buried in Texas were those of their brother Carl. In a Feb. 18 meeting with family members in the Branchville home of eldest sibling Maryjane, Army officials said they still believe Carl went AWOL, but not for as long as originally thought. Rather, they think he went AWOL for 13 days, having run off with a Vietnamese girlfriend."

"Sent to a hospital near Saigon to undergo a procedure in 1968, Carl never showed up, Army officials said, according to Carl's siblings. Army officials failed to return dozens of calls seeking verification of this account, which four siblings said they took away from the meeting. Family members acknowledge that Carl had sent pictures home of a French Vietnamese woman he claimed to have married. Once, they said, he asked family members to raise $1,000 so he could send her to the United States."

"Army officials told the family they now believe Carl returned to active duty sometime after his unexcused absence. He died fighting for his country, they said, and is entitled to a full military funeral, according to family members. "He died a hero," Michelle Wadleigh said...."

"....The last family member to see Carl alive was first cousin Kenneth Wadleigh, a lifelong Jersey City resident who served with Carl in the Army's Ninth Infantry Division. Kenneth, now a supermarket manager in Fort Lee who remembers Carl as outgoing and interested in wrestling, said he never believed Carl went AWOL."

"One reason for Kenneth's staunch belief is that he visited Carl in 1967 at a hospital near Saigon where Carl underwent treatment for a hernia he developed from carrying heavy artillery. It is not clear whether this is the same hospital visit Army officials were referring to when they said Carl never showed up for an appointment in 1968. Kenneth is sure of the year, because it was the same year he finished his tour of duty and it was shortly after the visit that he heard family members mention that his cousin had gone AWOL. "

"I would never believe it," Kenneth said. "I sat and talked to him for three hours, and that was the furthest thing from his mind. He wanted to do his job and go home."

"Kenneth's theory on what happened to his cousin: "After he was discharged (from the hospital), I think he hitched a ride on a truck and (I believe) the truck was ambushed. . He was found right outside of base camp."

"Carl's service was also remembered positively by his fellow soldiers, according to Michelle Wadleigh, who attended a reunion of her brother's platoon five years ago. "My brother had quite a reputation for being an incredible soldier," she said. "He carried heavy artillery rifles. . I know he didn't like it. I remember the letters, but I know he did what he had to do." In the years since the Army classified Wadleigh as AWOL, the family's trials were more than emotional, they said. Clifford Jr., who works as a security officer at City Hall, lost several jobs because of suspicions raised by federal agents visiting his workplace, mistaking him for his younger brother, he said."

"And while Margaret is grateful for the sense of closure the identification of her brother's remains has brought, she isn't prepared to forgive the military its errors. "I'm totally disappointed in the government," Margaret said. "Not knowing if he was dead or alive and finding him in someone else's grave. . It does give it some closure, but I am totally disappointed by the whole thing."

"Clifford Jr., who spent his Navy years stateside, said he's come to peace with the Army's performance concerning his brother. "They put us through a lot of hell saying this and that," he said. "But after 30 years they found my brother. They did their job."


More on the Parrish Mis-Identification - comes for the POW Network bio on Sgt. Frank Parrish - "Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 April 1990 with the assistance of one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK 2004.

"On January 16, 1968, SFC Earl Biggs and SFC Frank Parrish were serving as advisors to a Vietnamese strike force. That morning, they departed with a camp strike force company from Phuoc Tay on a search operation extending east of the camp. At 1215 hours, about 16 miles northwest of My Tho, Vietnam, the strike

force was ambushed by Vietnamese communists. Later that afternoon, two companies were inserted into the same area to look for survivors."

"Search efforts were continued until January 18 without the recovery of Biggs or Parrish. CIDG and LLDB survivors reported that the Viet Cong captured and summarily executed both Biggs and Parrish. Both men were classified Missing in Action. The Defense Intelligence Agency further expanded the classification to include an enemy knowledge ranking of 1. Category 1 indicates "confirmed knowledge" and includes all personnel who were identified by the enemy by name, identified by reliable information received from escapees or releasees, reported by highly reliable intelligence sources, or identified through analysis of all-source intelligence."

"On January 17, 1972, remains were reported in the vicinity of the action which were determined to be those of SFC Parrish. These remains were recovered and identified in June, 1973 and returned to Parrish's family for burial. Parrish's brother, Johnnie, thought the forensic evidence was inadequate."

"Government forensics experts had based their identification of Sgt. Parrish on three pieces of evidence: (1) the remains had been found near where St. Parrish had been ambushed; (2) photographs of Parrish supposedly corresponded with x-rays of the skull, even though the skull had neither jawbone nor teeth; and (3) medical equipment like that which Sgt. Parrish carried was found near the ambush site."

"The Pentagon informed Johnnie Parrish that he could accept it or reject it, but the identification was final. It was "concrete proof." Parrish's parents accepted the identification, and eventually, Johnnie Parrish did also, however

reluctantly...."

"On Friday, December 29, 1989, members of Frank Parrish's family met with government officials (a military man named Cole and a civilian named Manning) who explained that an error had been made in 1973. Newly recovered remains returned by the Vietnamese to U.S. control had been positively identified as those of Frank Parrish. At the same time, the remains of Parrish's partner, SFC Earl R. Biggs, had been recovered and identified."

"The family was shown new forensic data, including dental records. This time, Johnnie Parrish felt assured that the identification had been accurately made...."

"Of the greatest concern, however, is the fact that, for 17 years, the U.S. Government had considered Frank Parrish "accounted for." Therefore, even if a first-hand live sighting report had been received that Parrish was alive, it would have been discredited on the basis that he was dead. The government had "concrete proof."

Visit the POW Newwork at http://pownetwork.org for the most complete and up to date biographies on our POW/MIAs.


If Your Not Listening... You Should Be - Listen on line to POW/MIA Radio at http://www.americanewsnet.com Hear interviews with experts on POW/MIA and Veterans Issues.


"Leave No Man Behind", by Bill Bell and Jay Veith will be shipping by the end of March. If you haven't ordered

your copy, you can order by calling 888-670-2665 with your credit card number or mail a check or money order for $27.30/copy (this includes shipping and handling) to Goblin Fern Press, 3809 Mineral Point Rd., Madison WI 53705."


The National Alliance Of Families Fifteenth Annual Forum is scheduled for June 24th - 26th, 2004. Our forum is conducted to coincide with the Governments annual Vietnam POW/MIA Family Briefings. We urge all family members to attend this years government briefings. A separate briefing for Korean/Cold War families will be held April 30 - May 1. The government will provide free airfare to two family members to attend the government briefings. There is no charge or registration fee to attend the government briefings and you do not have to belong to an organization to attend these briefings.

This year the Alliance meeting will be held at the Sheraton Crystal City (same as last year) located at 1800 Jefferson Davis Highway, in Arlington Va. Rate for single or double occupancy is $99.00 per night plus tax.

>The hotel is located across the street from both the Crystal City Underground Food Court and the Metro Stop. The Sheraton is within walking distance of the hotel hosting the government briefings. The Alliance is working on transportation between hotels for those who prefer to ride. To make your reservations, call 703-486-1111 and remember to say you want the special National Alliance of Families rate.

The Alliance is an all volunteer organization. Our meetings are open to all, without charge. At this time of year, we actively seek contributions to finance our forum. If you wish to contribute, donations may be mailed to:

National Alliance Of Families
P.O. Box 40327
Bellevue, Wa. 98015

Contact us here!
DOLORES ALFOND - National Chairperson
(dolores@nationalalliance.org)
425-881-1499

LYNN O'SHEA - Director of Research
(lynn@nationalalliance.org)
718-846-4350"