Specifically I had 18 USC Sec. 1905 in mind.
Well, in my never ending quest for Truth, Justice, and The American Way I just sent the below letter to "The Special Counsel" (read between the quotes with the Church Lady Voice from SNL).
You might want to use the "WOOSAAAA" meditation technique from the movie Bad Boys to keep from having an embolism as you read this.
Enjoy!
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To: Ms. Carolyn Lerner U.S. Office of Special Counsel 1730 M Street, N.W., Suite 218 Washington, D.C. 20036-4505 Tel: (800) 872-9855 (202) 254-3670 FAX: (202) 254-3711 |
From: Jonathan Alexander Walkenstein Chief Executive Officer CANVS Corporation 1172 South Dixie Highway Suite 364 Coral Gables, FL 33146-2918 Phone (305) 582-3301 E-Mail jon@canvs.com |
Dear Carolyn:
I am writing you this letter to inform you of an abject failure of the Freedom of Information Act Request process. I have chosen to write you as my attempts to rectify this situation with U.S. Army, U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM), and other DoD components (including Inspector General Offices) have been thwarted or ignored.
It should be noted that CANVS Corporation currently has two actions against the Federal Government, CANVS Corporation V. THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Case 1:10-cv-00540-ECH (a patent infringement case) was filed on August 11, 2010 in The Court of Federal Claims, and CANVS Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals Case Numbers 57784 and 57987 (breach of data rights cases) filed on 19SEP11.
There are two events I would like you to help me with: 1) My 20JAN12 FOIA Request to the Army, and 2) My 31AUG11 FOIA Request to The Army Research Laboratory (FP-11-039359/FA-11-0018) - PowerPoint Presentation on Modular Multi-Spectral Goggle in Night Vision Applications and related forms request.
1) My initial FOIA request to the Army reference this matter was submitted on 20JAN12 (the request in its entirety is at the end of this section of the letter) and was emailed by me (from my jon@canvs.com account) to:
DAFOIA@conus.army.milAt the suggestion of:
Kathleen Vaughn-Burford
Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1
Management Support Office
300 Army Pentagon, Room# 1D374
Washington, DC 20310-0300
Phone: 703-695-7783/DSN 225-7783
On 19APR12 I resubmitted my 20JAN12 Army FOIA (from my jon@canvs.com account)request to:
usarmy.belvoir.hqda-oaa-aha.mbx.rmda-foia@mail.milIn light of the Army's inability to comply with the law coupled with their unwillingness to positively communicate with me (along with the fact that over 100 days have passed since I submitted my initial request) I believe that it is appropriate for me to ask for your help in ascertaining the status of my request and when I can expect an answer.
My 20JAN12 FOIA request in its entirety is on the following page.
20JAN12Dear Department of the Army Freedom of Information Act Request Processor:
My name is Jonathan A Walkenstein, President of CANVS Corporation. I quote CFR 32 Sub Part 249.5 Subsection e
"(e) Clearance for public release. A review is required by DoD Directive 5230.9 5 for all public releases by DoD personnel"
At 16:32 on WE 08JUN05 I was at the Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD) booth at the 2005 International SOF Week and APBI Conference at the Tampa Convention Center, the conference ran form JUNE 6 - 10, 2005.
CANVS Corporation Color Night Vision Technology was displayed by NVESD at their booth (including a CNVS-4949 Color Night Vision Goggle as well as technical data in the form of a poster with color images of and through CANVS Color Night Vision devices).
As the technical data displayed on the poster was released in a public forum (into the public domain) there should be (according to CFR 32 Sub Part 249.5 Subsection e) a copy of the request for release of the presentation as well as a copy of the material that was presented (I believe this approval for release is called the "Form F1").
This email constitutes a formal Freedom Of Information Act request by me, Jonathan A Walkenstein, to The U.S. Army Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (specifically to the office A. Fenner Milton, PhD, Director, Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate) for any forms associated with request to release the information referenced in the above mentioned Poster presentation, any approvals or denials reference same, and a copy of the materials presented.
As the materials in question were also identified by the U.S. Department of State as International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) Restricted at the time of the presentation, there should be corresponding paperwork showing U.S. Department of State approval for the release of the materials in question as there were foreign nationals present at the event in question.
As this request is directly related to the current CANVS Corporation Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals Case Number 57784, I am asking for an expedited response to this request.
Thank you for your consideration in this matter. If there are any questions or comments please address them to me:
Jonathan Alexander Walkenstein
President, CANVS Corporation
1172 South Dixie Highway Suite 364
Coral Gables, FL 33146-2918
Cell Phone = (305) 582-3301
E-Mail = jon@canvs.com
2) My 31AUG11 FOIA Request to The Army Research Laboratory (FP-11- 039359/FA-11-0018) - PowerPoint Presentation on Modular Multi-Spectral Goggle in Night Vision Applications and related forms request.
This incident is less about the FOIAR process and more about the culture of impunity and disregard for the law that exists within pockets of The US Special Forces Command [SOCOM] and The U.S. Army (Specifically The Army Research Laboratory [ARL], and The Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate [NVESD]).
In order for you to more fully appreciate the request the following is a compressed narrative of the events leading up to my 31AUG11 FOIA request.
My company, CANVS Corporation, completed a critically acclaimed SBIR Phase-II contract (Title: Multi-Spectral Low-Light Imaging) for SOCOM (http://www.ussocomsbir.com/success/#6). The deliverables under this contract were Color Night Vision Goggles, Color Night Vision Video Systems (Link to CANVS Color Night Vision Video Sequence: http://www.canvs.com/CANVS-cigar.wmv), and associated technical data packages. It should be noted that the hardware deliverables were received by NVESD who then passed them on to SOCOM (NVESD also received the CANVS generated data packages associated with the program). The CANVS/SOCOM Contract contained clauses associated with limited data rights. What this means is that data delivered to SOCOM by CANVS under the contract can not, by law, be released without express written consent of CANVS.
I was present on two occasions when this trust (and the law) was violated. Once at the 2005 Special Operation Forces Advance Planning Brief for Industry (SOF ABPI) conference (at the NVESD booth), and once at the 2006 IDGA Night Vision Conference (at a presentation given by ARL). My 20JAN12 FOIA request to the Army was for materials related to the 2005 SOF ABPI incident, and my 31AUG11 FOIA request was for materials related to the 2006 IDGA Night Vision Systems Conference incident. The requested information is directly related to CANVS' appeal currently before the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA Case Nos. 57784, 57987).
The Primary Point of Contact between CANVS and SOCOM during the SBIR Phase-II contract was an individual by the name of Kurt A. Badertscher. At the time of the contract Badertscher's title at SOCOM Headquarters Tampa Florida was “Project Selection Manager Advanced Technology Program”. At the 2006 IDGA Night Vision Systems Conference a presentation titled “Modular Multi-Spectral Goggle in Night Vision Applications” was authored by Kurt A. Badertscher, Research Engineer, Army Research Laboratory.
Please not the similarity between the title of the talk and the title of the CANVS SBIR Phase-II Contract:
• ARL Talk Title: Modular Multi-Spectral Goggle in Night Vision Applications
• CANVS SOCOM SBIR Phase-II Title: Multi-Spectral Low-Light Imaging
Based on my history with Badertscher I thought it was reasonable to submit FOIA requests to both SOCOM and ARL to obtain a copy of the PowerPoint presentation that was given at the conference (note that I was at the conference, saw the talk in its entirety, and the talk in question was the only one not included on the CD given to conference attendees).
My initial FOIA request to SOCOM asked for a copy of the 2006 IDGA PowerPoint presentation. SOCOM replied saying that they did not have the talk but I could appeal the decision. I appealed the decision and asked for the Form F1 in addition to the talk. The Form F1 is permission to release the material into the public domain. SOCOM replied back saying that they did not have the Form F1 or the talk.
I also made a FOIA request to ARL asking for a copy of the 2006 IDGA PowerPoint presentation. ARL replied saying that they did not have the talk but I could appeal the decision. I appealed the decision and asked for the Form F1 in addition to the talk. ARL's response was astounding. They claimed to not have the ARL 2006 IDGA PowerPoint presentation BUT they produced the Form F1 associated with the talk.
After reading the Form F1 sent to me from ARL, I further asked for and was provided with the instructions associated with filling out the Form F1. It is clear that there are major inconsistencies between the proper procedure for filling out a Form F1 according to the instructions and the completed Form F1 provided by ARL.
• The top of the Form F1 clearly states: “Note: Submit all manuscripts in electronic format or camera ready copy.” The Form F1 is not complete without a copy of the talk.
• Block 10 (security classification) is empty.
• Blocks 32 B and 32 C are not completed (The Division Chief and Public Affair Office Representative Approval Signatures are missing).
In light of the fact that the Division Chief and Public Affair Office Representative Approval Signatures are missing, and a copy of the talk was not attached to the form the Form F1 provided by ARL, the Form F1 provided to CANVS is not a confirmation of authorization to release the material into the public domain by ARL.
Please note that even if proper permission was granted by ARL for the release of the presentation, the separate issue of breech of data rights still stands by virtue of the fact that no written permission from CANVS for release of data protected under the limited data rights in the CANVS/SOCOM SBIR Phase-II contract was obtained(this aspect of the breech is being addressed by the CANVS ASBCA actions).
I would like your opinion on the following points:
• Do you believe that the supplied ARL Form F1 (see attached) constitutes permission by ARL to release the talk?
• What laws, rules, regulations or policies have been broken if there was no permission from ARL for the release of the presentation?
• Is it the responsibility of the Department of Justice or the Department of Defense (or both) to address this issue?
Thank you for consideration in this matter,
Sincerely,
Jonathan Alexander Walkenstein
President, CANVS Corporation
1172 South Dixie Highway Suite 364
Coral Gables, FL 33146-2918
Cell Phone = (305) 582-3301
E-Mail = jon@canvs.com
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