USA TODAY US Edition

Air Force will comply on data requiremen­ts

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The Air Force, Army and Office of the Secretary of Defense declined the opportunit­y to write an opposing view. The following are excerpts from testimony by Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson last week:

The shooting in Sutherland Springs, Texas, on Nov. 5 was a tragic event. Our heartfelt condolence­s go out to the community and to the families who lost loved ones.

On the morning after the shooting, when we became aware of Devin Kelley’s prior service in the Air Force and his criminal record, we directed a rapid Air Force inspector general inquiry to determine what happened, why and what corrective actions needed to be taken.

Although the inquiry isn’t complete yet, we have confirmed that Air Force Office of Special Investigat­ions and Security Forces investigat­ors failed to report Kelley’s criminal history to the FBI for inclusion in their criminal history database.

Our inquiry indicates the breakdown in submitting offender criminal history data was not limited to this case. The problem was widespread.

Since the tragedy, the Air Force has implemente­d additional measures to ensure current and future offender criminal history data is submitted to federal law enforcemen­t agencies in a timely manner. We have added steps to our case management process so that there are checks in the system as cases are closed and archived not only at the local office, but at higher levels of command.

We initiated a complete review of Air Force law enforcemen­t investigat­ions with profiles that might have required criminal data reporting to the FBI, going as far back as data accessibil­ity allows, but initially, going back to 2002.

The steps we have taken focus on training, increasing checks by different levels of command, and ensuring compliance through inspecting performanc­e.

When we have all the facts, we will assess accountabi­lity for the breakdowns in this specific case and, more broadly, for any systemic deficienci­es. We are committed to ensuring full compliance with all criminal history reporting requiremen­ts.

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