WASHINGTON - The National Park Service says it is satisfied with the results of a yearlong investigation by the inspector general that found no criminal violations by John Latschar, the superintendent of one of the agency’s most popular facilities, Gettysburg National Military Park.
It will not say, however, how it handled a violation of department policy that was documented in the course of the investigation - Latschar’s use of his office computer over a two-year period to search for and view more than 3,400 sexually explicit images.
An internal Aug. 7 memo from an investigator to Daniel Wenk, the acting director of the National Park Service, details the discovery of the images on the computer hard drive seized by investigators. But the office of Mary Kendall, acting inspector general for the Department of the Interior, omitted details of the computer inquiry or any mention of the violation from a 24-page report that was released Sept. 17.
“Latschar’s inappropriate use of his government computer violates DOI policy,’’ states the memo obtained by the
Wenk, through a spokesman, called the matter a “personnel issue’’ and would not comment on whether disciplinary action was taken.
Latschar also declined interview requests. He remains in his $145,000-a-year job.
The memo said that Latschar signed a sworn statement acknowledging “that he had viewed inappropriate pictures on his government computer during work hours’’ and that “he was aware of his wrongdoing while he was doing it.’’
The inappropriate use of office computers to view pornography has surfaced at other government agencies, including earlier this year at the National Science Foundation, where an inspector general’s report led to the suspension of six employees. In one case, a “senior official’’ spent up to 20 percent of his working hours over a two-year period viewing the images, the report said.
