As recently as 2015, Lockheed Martin LOCKHEED MARTIN, with $36.2 billion in contracts, was the single largest Pentagon contractor, more than double Boeing’s $16.6 billion.
There is little reason to believe that those numbers have changed significantly in the last two years.
With three large cost-plus contracts for testing and maintenance support services, Lockheed Martin has a commanding presence at NASA’s primary rocket propulsion facility at the STENNIS Space Center just over the Louisiana state line in Mississippi.
But as history has shown (remember the $600 toilet seats and the $100 screwdrivers?), the potential for ABUSE with such large contracts that seem to carry little apparent oversight, is overwhelming.
Now two Louisiana residents, one former Lockheed employee and the other a former contract employee for Lockheed, are bringing suit in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans under the federal FALSE CLAIMS ACT.
The two, Mark Javery of St. Tammany Parish and Brian DeJan of New Orleans, claim that they were first given no duties and then fired from their jobs after reporting cost overruns and safety and performance issues.
They are represented by Baton Rouge attorney J. Arthur Smith, III.
DeJan was a project engineer for a Lockheed subcontractor, Camgian Microsystems, Inc. He was supervised by Javery, who was an infrastructure operations manager for Lockheed. As part of their respective jobs, they were to monitor preventive maintenance metrics and to report the results of their findings to NASA employee Reginald “Chip” Ellis, Deputy Program Inspector for the Rocket Propulsion Test Program.
In April 2014, DeJan and Javery began investigating “unexplained cost overruns and performance issues with the maintenance of test facilities.”
Their lawsuit says that during their investigation, they received “credible information that maintenance and charges related to NASA’s agreement with Space Exploitation Technology were being charged “inappropriately” to the Test Operations Contract for which Lockheed was the prime contractor.
They reported their findings on April 22, 2014, to Ellis and to their immediate supervisor, Terrance Burrell.
On April 28, Lockheed Martin suspended Javery during “pendency of an informal investigation and disciplinary process,” and on April 29, Lockheed requested that Camgian remove DeJan from the Test Operations Contract “until further notice,” which Camgian did.
On May 20, Lockheed terminated Javery’s employment and requested that Camgian “remove DeJan from the Lockheed Martin contract.” Camgian terminated DeJan on May 21.
The two claim that their actions were protected under the False Claims Act, enacted in 1863 over concerns that suppliers contracted to supply the Union Army with goods were defrauding the Army.
Javery and DeJan are seeking reinstatement, double their back pay, compensation for any special damages and attorney and legal fees.
Lockheed, like most defense contractors, has a history of overcharges and the occasional penalty. In 2011, it settled a whistleblower LAWSUIT for $2 million in another False Claims Act at the Stennis Space Center.
“Companies that do business with the federal government and get paid by the taxpayers must act fairly and comply with the law,” said Tony West, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “Whistleblowers have helped us to enforce the law by bringing to light schemes that misuse taxpayer dollars and abuse the public trust by undermining the integrity of the procurement process.”
West, of course, was describing life in a perfect world. In the real world, things are quite different and the “schemes that misuse taxpayer dollars and abuse the public trust” are rarely reported and even more infrequently punished.
The occasional fine is a mere fraction of illicit profits gained through overbilling and outright fraud.
That’s because no one seems to be watching and because members of Congress passionately protect the contractors domiciled in their districts.
And that’s why contractors continue to belly up to the public trough.
Louisiana Voice 
SUGGESTED EDIT:
There’s no such thing as the “Eastern District of Federal District Court.” I think that you probably meant:
“…are bringing suit in federal court the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans”
You are correct. The sentence was poorly worded but thanks to your eagle eye, it has now been corrected. Thanks.
Ahhh, the military/industrialists, stealing us blind, prostituting our politicians.
With respect, our politicians have no need for military/industrialist pimps. Most are expert prostitutes in their own right. Just look around.
LOL! True dat!! 😉
We have an Attorney General that by statue represents State level agencies but there comes a time when individuals working for the State level agencies also Local Agencies represented by District Attorneys that need to be prosecuted and no longer protected with taxpayer dollars.
It seems that the Attorney General and District Attorneys are more concerned about who would be paying the penalties/restitution.
My interpretation of being conservative is clean up the fraud waste and abuse and not protect (with high price attorneys) the individuals that commit these crimes.
Any time you have cost plus contracts the opportunity for abuse of funds is huge. Like this article states, unless someone monitors the costs efficiently, the government just pays and pays. We, of course being the government!
Our government has been so corrupt for so long that trying to weed out the bad is like having to uproot the entire garden and start over. There are too many bad weeds among the crops.
Isn’t it amazing – at every level, the powerful are more interested in punishing those who ferret out wrongdoers, rather than the wrongdoers themselves. Those who steal are protected, while those who blow the whistle on the thieves often pay a high price.
We are deluding ourselves if we hold our country up as an example of morality, when in truth we are just as corrupt as the nations we deride. We just don’t call it baksheesh.
There is no morality in a nation controlled by the matzo mafia, only the illusion and propaganda. Christians are not running the U.S. Jews are running the U.S. with Christians put up front while the Jewish puppeteers pull their strings to dance.
Surely you are aware that Jesus was Jewish.
Happy birthday, America – this is what we have become.
TO DMDEEDEE:
You are, of course, free to believe what you wish. That is what this country is supposed to be about. But you are not free to use this forum to spew your racist venom. Comments that express hatred for any group or which take a bigoted view such as yours are not welcome.
Try sharing your philosophy with the Tweeter in Chief. You’re sure to find a sympathetic audience there.
I am sorry that you find truth and facts offensive.
Yes, truth and facts can be offensive. It’s true that we have racism and I find that offensive. The facts are that we have people who proclaim to support Israel, but who also can find in their hearts to hate Jews. I find that offensive as well.
Thank you Tom for showing truth to the ignorance of DMDeedee. I’ll bet she would shudder to know our Congress also contains Muslims and Buddhists. Perhaps the greatest thing and attraction of our great country is the freedom to practice any religion you please without fear of oppression. I pray our country remains this way under our current leadership.
I just started reading about this most recent Lockheed Martin (NASA) lawsuit. Couple of questions – why was the Federal Whistleblower part of this case dismissed? It appears that Lockheed Martin (NASA) employees and contractors weren’t protected under the federal law. Is that correct? This lawsuit seems to be part of a larger discrimination/retaliation case brought by Mr. Dejan and Javery. How can a large employer like Lockheed Martin (NASA) be allowed to treat employees so poorly when they are just doing their job?
Good question all. I wish I could provide you with answers because they deserve answers.
Does anyone have an update on this case? Thanks tomaswell – it just doesn’t add up and NASA/Lockheed Martin seems to be getting off pretty easy and ruining careers in the process.
[…] Lockheed Martin, which already settled one whistleblower suit at. – Jul 4, 2017. With three large cost-plus contracts for testing and maintenance support services, Lockheed Martin has a commanding presence at NASA's. […]