Pentagon IG finds no misconduct in ex-admiral’s ties to disgraced officer

The Pentagon’s watchdog on Wednesday released its report into a former top admiral, finding that his professional relationship with a former Navy commander who had been reprimanded for inappropriate sexual behavior did not constitute misconduct.

But the inspector general did find that former Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Bill Moran violated Pentagon policy by using his personal email for work.

Moran abruptly retired last month, despite being confirmed by the Senate to be the next chief of naval operations (CNO), after Navy leaders called Moran’s judgment into question when it was discovered that he continued corresponding with the former commander.

{mosads}“We agree with [then-CNO] ADM [John] Richardson’s and the secretary of the Navy’s concerns about ADM Moran’s judgment in continuing to solicit and accept the Navy commander’s public affairs guidance after his removal from the CNO’s staff for inappropriate behavior towards junior female officers and a female civilian employee,” the inspector general report said.

“We do not consider ADM Moran’s continued relationship with the Navy commander to be misconduct; rather, we consider it a performance issue,” the report added. “We found no applicable standard that prohibited ADM Moran from continuing his personal or professional relationships with the Navy commander after his removal from the CNO’s staff.”

The report recommended the Navy secretary take “appropriation action” regarding Moran, as well as issue guidance reminding Navy personnel of Pentagon policy against using personal email to conduct official business.

In a statement on the findings included the report, Moran stressed that “at no time was there any exchange of classified material” on his personal email account. He also sought to provide “context” on his relationship with the former commander, saying it is his “ethos to ensure accountability and then help get them back on their feet.”

“I understand and accept that some view my continuing professional relationship with this Navy commander as insensitive, inappropriate, or wrong,” Moran said. “I regret this. I made the decision to retire rather than put the institution through additional turmoil at a critical time. It is important for the record to note, that for over a decade, I dedicated myself to eradicating and combating sexual harassment, sexual assault, toxic environments, unconscious bias and all of the other behaviors that are contrary to mutual respect and good order.”

The lightly redacted inspector general report does not name the former commander Moran continued to consult. But the description matches that of Cmdr. Chris Servello, and multiple news reports have previously identified Servello as the commander in question.

Servello was Richardon’s former spokesman until accusations of misconduct at a 2016 office Christmas party surfaced that led to lawmakers and the media dubbing Servello “Bad Santa.”

Servello was accused by fellow officers and a civilian of making unwanted sexual passes and slapping a woman on the buttocks while dressed as Santa Claus at the party.

A 2018 inspector general report on the Navy’s handling of the incident knocked Richardson for failing to swiftly take disciplinary action against Servello.

Moran told the inspector general he continued to rely on Servello’s advice for public affairs because the commander “understood my voice really well,” was “a hell of a good writer” and was “very good with the media.”

“Just the best I had ever come across,” Moran said, according to the report.

Moran also told the inspector general he understood the “concerns and perceptions” about his continued contact with Servello.

“I tried to explain that [the Navy commander] was a colleague and a friend who disappointed me terribly on a personal level, but on a professional level that he has an awful lot to offer to make senior leaders like me think clearly,” Moran said, according to the report. “And there are those who would say well, you obviously didn’t care about the victim. And I would say no, I didn’t have a relationship with the victim. I had a relationship with this guy and I expressed my personal disappointment to him, but I also cared for him.”

As part of the investigation, the inspector general reviewed 572 pages totaling 472 emails from Moran’s personal Gmail account and found that he used it to discuss official Pentagon communications with Servello and other Navy military, civilian and contract personnel.

The emails generally fit into four categories: 174 on advice for Moran’s speeches and articles, 110 on Navy strategy, 171 on news articles about the Navy and 17 on general correspondence.

According to the report, there were emails about upcoming speeches at ship commissionings, preparations for Moran’s confirmation hearing to be chief of naval operations, discussions of Navy strategy in Asia and China’s regional influence, and media engagements on Navy efforts to prevent future ship collisions, among others.

Moran told the inspector general “convenience was the driver” in his use of personal email for work and that it was the “easiest, most effective, most reliable way to get access to media,” particularly if there was breaking news that could affect a speech he was about to give.

He argued that Gmail could open embedded links that were blocked by government accounts, according to the report.

The inspector general concluded that convenience is “not an acceptable reason” to use personal email for work.

“We found no evidence that ADM Moran’s use of personal email met the [Department of Defense] DoD’s criteria for rare and extraordinary circumstances, or that he requested or received an exception to policy to use his personal e-mail account to conduct ‘official DoD communications,’” the report said. “Therefore, we substantiated that his use of personal e-mail violated DoD standards.”