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‘Names, Ranks and Serial Plunder: The National Guard and Katrina’

Jan 13, 2008  •  Post A Comment

After Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans on Aug. 29, 2005, looters swarmed the streets and the National Guard dispatched troops to patrol the city. According to KNOE-TV News Director Taylor Henry, the Guard “brought food and supplies to evacuees who were stranded in the Superdome, conducted search-and-rescue operations and helped restore order.”
Some National Guardsmen also backed a dump truck up to an auto parts store and filled it with stolen merchandise, looted the pharmacies and jewelry stores they had been sent to protect and helped themselves to weapons from a gun dealership.
After Mr. Henry’s four-month investigation, KNOE, located in Monroe, La., aired “Names, Ranks and Serial Plunder: The National Guard and Katrina” over four nights as the lead on its nightly news. The series, televised to coincide with the one-year anniversary of Katrina, is the winner of an Alfred I duPont Award.
When a local man, Mike Battaglia, whose son had been stationed in New Orleans during the Katrina aftermath, approached Mr. Henry about National Guardsmen involved in looting, the newsman said he was skeptical. But Mr. Battaglia set up a meeting for Mr. Henry with a second guardsman, who confirmed the Battaglia story but who “had grave reservations about going public.”
Three weeks later, Mr. Battaglia called Mr. Henry again; the other guardsman was ready to talk.
Mr. Henry went to New Orleans and “retraced the guardsman’s steps”; the guardsman showed him where alleged looting had taken place. Now all he had, Mr. Henry said, was “an informal allegation on tape.” But two other guardsmen were willing to be interviewed about the looting, and Mr. Battaglia mentioned that the local sheriff also knew about it. Mr. Henry’s investigation started to open up.
The sheriff turned over the case file of a deputy who had been caught with a stolen weapon; the deputy had “finally admitted” he had received it from a National Guardsman.
Under the Freedom of Information Act, the National Guard’s public information officer “finally turned over a one-page document,” Mr. Henry said, listing the names of 18 military personnel who had been court-martialed after the events surrounding Katrina. The tally was later increased to 21, including a lieutenant, a captain, nine noncommissioned officers and 10 privates.
Mr. Henry believes the official list is “just the tip of the iceberg,” adding, “A lot of guys didn’t get caught.” Of those who were caught, “A few of them got fines and jail time, mostly in the form of suspended sentences,” he said. “Some took a reduction in rank. The enlisted men were discharged and the officers were allowed to resign.”
The series led to a review by the Pentagon and the reorganization of the Louisiana National Guard.
“Other media reports were portraying the National Guard as the heroes after Katrina,” Mr. Henry said, adding he is quick to agree with that assessment. “But the public depended on these guys, and in some cases they betrayed that trust. Not just a few misfits, but men who had been in the military many years.”
Credits: Taylor Henry, producer, reporter, writer; Jennifer Townley, Tom Cole, video editors; John Denison, graphics designer; Richard Sommers, assistant producer; Jack Dietle, Ed Rowan, Michael Tuberville, Jerry Hester, photographers; Taylor Henry, news director; Roy Frostenson, executive producer

35 Comments

  1. Today, 9-07-08, a letter was read at our Church regarding the conditions of a shelter in Monroe,LA during the Gustav hurricane. One of the nephews of a Racine Domminican sister wrote his Aunt a letter. He was working in the shelter when a bus with persons with developmentally and mental health disabilities came in about 3am. The persons had been on the bus for over 20 hours and were hungry and had gone to the bathroom in their clothing. This man was the only viable volunteer, working with an older gentelman with a back back and 2 women in their 60’s. He asked the national guard people there at the time if they would assist him in getting these persons off of the bus and they refused, saying they couldn’t move from their posts, while continuing to hold their M16 rifles. This is a sad commentary on a group of people whom we have all been lead to believe, help others in times of disaster. I feel that someone “in power” should know that this happened. I looked for an address for the National Guard in Monroe, LA, but was unable to find it. Therefore, I am hoping that by writing this text, the word will get to the proper authorities so that corrections can be done and this will not happen during future catastropheses.
    Thank you.
    Mary Ellen White
    St. Clair Shores, Michigan

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