By Ken Booth
Guest Commentator
Employees at the Monroe Veterans’ Home were rushed into recalling a mysterious incident five years ago this month at the Home which has until now remained undisclosed. Two employees were called upon to sign affidavits about the unusual episode that occurred on August 10, 2012. Their affidavits were signed only this Tuesday (Aug. 1).
This, following my public records request issued on August 1 to the Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs in Baton Rouge for a work order to a West Monroe security firm to remove and replace the hard drive from the Monroe Veterans Home’s security set-up.
Documents from the security firm show the work was requested by Ken Houston, the former Home administrator who abruptly ‘retired’ last week.
The signed employee affidavits stated it was Houston who on that day asked them to “open the door to the telephone room” presumably to allow the security technician access to the hard-drive in question, before shooing the maintenance worker away, telling him he didn’t need help and “I’ll take it from here.”
An invoice detailing the security company’s work issued to the NELA Home indicates it charged a total of $281 for the job, which included $218 for a new hard-drive.
What happened to the hard-drive which was replaced is not known. In fact, none of this was known until last Tuesday when our records request startled employees at the Veterans Home, some of whom had no knowledge themselves this had ever happened.
Why Houston may have wanted that hard-drive removed and replaced is not known. Why this was done outside the knowledge of other Home officials is also unknown.
However, this is not the first time matters which might be considered curious in nature at the Home have been hidden away out of public view.
You may recall that it was in August of just last year that agents from the office of Louisiana Inspector General and auditors from the Office of Legislative Auditor were digging into allegations of alleged mistreatment of Home residents which also, ironically, dated back to 2012.
Those allegations were documented and filed with the Secretary of the Dept. in Baton Rouge but somehow escaped being publicly disclosed until July of last year when an anonymous letter, slipped under the door of Congressman Abraham, triggered action by LDVA Secretary Joey Strickland to investigate why all of those allegations had never seen the light of day.
At the time, James Ken Houston was administrator at the Monroe Veterans Home. Tommy Shoemaker was the assistant administrator.
Amid the renewed probe, Shoemaker was arrested and charged with felony theft of $9000 from a 69-year-old resident of the Home, Roland J. Matheny. Matheny is now deceased. His family is said to be seeking restitution.
Now we know that computer system hard drive was removed and for some reason replaced about a week before Shoemaker and Vets Home accountant Misti Dawn Westbrook both signed a check in the amount of $9000 from the fiduciary account of Mr. Matheny ostensibly to pre-pay for his burial. Those expenses were never paid. The money was deposited into Matheny’s private account at Progressive Bank but on August 6, four days before the hard-drive was replaced, about $2000 was paid to an Orchard Bank credit card account in the name of Thomas W. Shoemaker.
In addition, bank records show a number of ATM cash withdrawals from Matheny’s account totaling about $3200 as well as another $1200 in retail purchases made on Matheny’s ATM card.
We could find no written authorization by Matheny for Shoemaker to make these withdrawals from his Progressive Bank account.
Ken Houston, then administrator, imposed a one pay period reduction in Shoemaker’s salary from $2,076 to $1,453 bi-weekly.
Fast-forward to last week when James Ken Houston abruptly “retired” from his job at the NELA Veterans Home. Ironically, his swift departure announcement came within 24 hours to the very day five years ago Shoemaker and Westbrook signed that $9000 check.
—Ken Booth, now residing in Arizona, is retired from KNOE-TV in Monroe, where he worked for many years as a highly-respected investigative reporter.
My Dad was at the Veterans home in Reserve for less than a month. They are all shiny on the outside but not the case on the inside. They should pay as much attention to the Veterans as they do their cell phones.
It seems that the culture of these War Veterans Home Administrators have taken on the Corrupt Culture of many of the Louisiana Politicians. It will take the combined efforts of everyone who has a Loved One in any of these facilities to file complaints with the Facility Ombudsman and follow up with a COMPLAINT to their member of Congress, NOT that his will stop the corruption, as most Congressmen will only send these complaints back to the people the Complaint is about, to answer your complaint. However, it should bring attention to all the citizens of Louisiana, that these Facilities DO NOT provide the care our veterans have earned and deserve. One other way to expose this CORRUPTION is by writing a letter to the EDITORS of your local News Papers, describing the horrible conditions our veterans are forced to live under and the Extreme Harsh Treatment the employees impose on these Veterans.
I worked there from 08 to 11 and reported to the Lane Carson with the Department of Veterans affairs several unprofessional issues with Mr. Houston and rather than being addressed it was reported back to mr. Houston which created a hostile work environment. I also reported suspected theft of residents to Mr Houston, and lost my job over it. Trumped up allegations and threats of reporting bogus crap to state boards, so I resigned. That was in 2010/early 2011. I wrote to the La. dept Veterans affairs the La attorney generals office and the Federal VA. Nothing done until a letter was place under a congressman’s door. I guess that is what I should have done. The NELA Veterans Home was the most corrupt place I have ever worked.