Department of Homeland Security office in Springfield in disarray, wracked by internal squabbling, c

A setting from a local high school? Sadly, no. They are scenes from the Springfield office of The Department of Homeland Security, according to documents made public in federal court.

Department of Homeland Security office in Springfield in disarray, wracked by internal squabbling, court records show

This article hits home with me as it comes from an office in my area. Wasn't sure exactly where to post :/

The article essentially shows how extremely inefficient and outlines the total lack of professionalism which exists in the Springfield MA DHS office. The agents there are acting like children, get into fights, misuse the weapons, etc. Stories like this make me extremely depressed.

I guess it goes hand it hand with the ratings that DHS have gotten. Many might remember how this department has been shown to be extremely inefficient, has extremely wasteful spending and the worst place to work

Among a half-dozen federal agents and support staff in Springfield, dueling personnel complaints have been filed by employees against each other and a former supervisor, records show. An internal investigation of the office at 1550 Main Street is pending and one agent, William Hoyt, has been banned not only from the building - but the parking garage.

Former supervisory Agent Timothy Gaynor - who in emails to his higher-ups likened his job to managing unruly, insubordinate adolescents - was transferred in recent weeks. Gaynor also was under investigation by the Office of Inspector General for a number of personnel complaints while meting out discipline to his staff, according to internal documents. It is unclear from the court records where that investigation stands.

These are the people who's job is to keep us safe and they are getting along like a bunch of preteen middle schoolers? They have access to automatic weapons, can arrest folks and other law enforcement actions on top be being federal agents with jurisdiction essentially anywhere in the US!

The excerpt below explains some of the childish actions that have occurred at the office:

In early 2015, Gaynor sent a disturbing memo entitled "Personnel Safety Concerns About RAC Springfield Office Environment" to a Homeland Security Department supervisor in Boston. It detailed several examples of alleged confrontations between Springfield employees in 2014.

-He alleged Agent Gregory Boucher made hang-up or "heavy breathing" calls to Macy at the office in March of 2014 and they were flagged by caller ID.
-He alleged that Hoyt became "physically aggressive" toward him and balled up his fists during a meeting the same month. "Based on my 16 years of law enforcement experience this is the first time I have encountered such behavior and considered this a personal threat," the memo noted.
-He alleged that agents under his purview continued to be "insolent" and "defiant" and resisted investigative work.
-He alleged Hoyt, and agents Ross Gazzaniga and Timothy Irving got into a fistfight in the men's room at the Homeland Security office in July of 2014.

I think this here below takes the topping on the cake - agents going to the extreme that they use their assault weapons while engaging in this little fights/arguments:

At any rate, things continued to deteriorate between Macy and Hoyt, according to documents she filed with the court.

She alleges that on Dec. 1, Hoyt entered the office while she was there, and began screaming profanities at Gaynor about her. Then on Dec. 3, Macy said Hoyt came into the office with his wife, punched in the code to the firearms holding room and emerged with "an armful of automatic weapons."

"They went into his office. I heard clicking metal noises. I started dialing 911 and my boss. They heard me. She said 'we are leaving.' My boss told me to go into the office and lock the door," reads a second application Macy filed in Eastern Hampshire District Court for a restraining order on Dec. 9.

Does this make anyone confident in the abilities of our federal investigators??

The one thing I can say is that this is some awesome local news reporting! This is the type of thing that we rarely see nowadays. Good job Ms/Mrs Barry!

a reply to: charolais

The agents there are acting like children…

This country is being run by adult children. Only an adult child is aggressive and trained well enough to claw their way to the top of these hallowed halls. They hide in plain sight. In appearance at first glance they are professional looking enough, but cross them and the temper tantrum, bullying and emotional tidal wave comes out.

Mature people recoil from such behavior, it doesn't make sense. How can you be so old and so childish at the same time. How do you reason with the mind of a five year old?

You can't. They won't listen. When dealing with actual five year olds, you just say, thats nice honey and mostly ignore their flailing about. They'll "grow out of it", right.

link 1

link 2

Even just one of those incidences should be grounds for dismissal IMO. Fist fight? Fired. Screaming profanities at someone? Fired. Arm full of firearms that don't pertain to your current job/operation? Fired and arrested.

Good that this came to light. I Hope something is actually done about it.


a reply to: charolais

originally posted by: Athetos
Even just one of those incidences should be grounds for dismissal IMO. Fist fight? Fired. Screaming profanities at someone? Fired. Arm full of firearms that don't pertain to your current job/operation? Fired and arrested.

Good that this came to light. I Hope something is actually done about it.


a reply to: charolais

Agreed. Things like this are just so disheartening.

Unfortunately most of the public couldn't care less... and I think that's even more disheartening.

a reply to: Athetos

In private industry the police would have been called and the combative individuals would have been escorted from the building. Their belongings would have then been mailed to them.

I don't know what one has to do to be canned in the public sector. I've always heard that being a government employee has a job for life. Now I'm beginning to understand why.

-dex

originally posted by: DexterRiley
a reply to: Athetos

I don't know what one has to do to be canned in the public sector. I've always heard that being a government employee has a job for life. Now I'm beginning to understand why.

-dex

Agreed!

It's pretty bizarre when the worst complaints that people have about a Gestapo-like government agency is that it's "inefficient" and "Doesn't work right".

Just sayin'

originally posted by: BrianFlanders
It's pretty bizarre when the worst complaints that people have about a Gestapo-like government agency is that it's "inefficient" and "Doesn't work right".

Just sayin'

I have many other things I could say about DHS (and many other departments/agencies for that matter) but I was aiming at keeping this thread directed towards the OP and the incidents at the Springfield DHS office!

a reply to: charolais

This is utterly disgusting.

There are several parts of this article which really jumped off the page at me. The segment which referred to the agents fitness for duty carriage of a firearm, the segment involving the fist fight, and the part where a reference is made to the agents being unwilling to engage in investigative work..First of all, every single person named in the article probably needs to hand in their badge and gun, or have it taken from them. People who cannot behave like adults, should not be given firearms to use while at work. That is a pretty simple standard to work by, even in a nation with proper respect for the right to bare them at all.

Second of all, the fist fight in the bathroom should have been grounds for dismissal, no matter the circumstance. Unless one of the combatants was some sort of enemy sleeper agent, looking to take out the building and everyone in it, professionalism and decorum should have won out, and in every individual who fails to take account of these things, you have someone who is unfit to do any kind of law enforcement job, what so ever.

Third...last time I checked, the DHS was a law enforcement organisation dedicated to protecting the lives of US citizens, by monitoring and grabbing up terrorists and foiling their nefarious plots. Now, we all know how much bull is involved with that agency, and the reason for its existence, given the amount of overlap there is between the job of the DHS and the job of the FBI for example. However, given that they are there and not going any place, the first rule ought to be to hire people who want to investigate crime, track and eventually catch dangerous individuals, and do not mind doing a little leg work, not to mention getting shot for their trouble if needs be. Simply put, none of the individuals referred to in this article, can possibly be made of the right stuff for that line of work.

Hell, these special little snowflakes are probably incapable of flipping a burger without getting irate. These people should not have authority over ANYONE because they cannot even adequately control themselves!

originally posted by: TrueBrit
a reply to: charolais

Third...last time I checked, the DHS was a law enforcement organisation dedicated to protecting the lives of US citizens, by monitoring and grabbing up terrorists and foiling their nefarious plots. Now, we all know how much bull is involved with that agency, and the reason for its existence, given the amount of overlap there is between the job of the DHS and the job of the FBI for example. However, given that they are there and not going any place, the first rule ought to be to hire people who want to investigate crime, track and eventually catch dangerous individuals, and do not mind doing a little leg work, not to mention getting shot for their trouble if needs be. Simply put, none of the individuals referred to in this article, can possibly be made of the right stuff for that line of work.

It's funny that you mention the DHS/FBI overlap because if you read the article carefully you will see that one of the agents involved, Will Hoyt, was actually transferred to the FBI after they realized he was not capable of working with his fellow DHS coworkers!

a reply to: charolais

The dude should be fired.

No one named in that article should currently work in law enforcement. Disgraceful bunch of cretins!

originally posted by: intrptr
a reply to: charolais

The agents there are acting like children…

This country is being run by adult children. Only an adult child is aggressive and trained well enough to claw their way to the top of these hallowed halls. They hide in plain sight. In appearance at first glance they are professional looking enough, but cross them and the temper tantrum, bullying and emotional tidal wave comes out.

Mature people recoil from such behavior, it doesn't make sense. How can you be so old and so childish at the same time. How do you reason with the mind of a five year old?

You can't. They won't listen. When dealing with actual five year olds, you just say, thats nice honey and mostly ignore their flailing about. They'll "grow out of it", right.

link 1

link 2

Thanks for those bits of reading intrptr. I can picture these agents fitting the descriptions quite well actually. It's appalling the lack of professionalism and maturity.

a reply to: charolais

How do you get rid of an over bloated government agency? well you cut their spending, budgets cuts has turned Home land of deception into the mess is right now.

Putting 16 different agencies under the umbrella of DHS was a mistake to begin with.

Government in general is inefficient. DHS is inefficiancy on steroids.

a reply to: charolais

Let me make you more depressed. Everyone in authority acts this way, just like any other adults. The idea is that the above average people fill roles that require a higher level of authority but in practice that doesn't happen. People are petty and irresponsible and there's no recruitment standards that weed that out, in any industry or office.

originally posted by: TrueBrit
There are several parts of this article which really jumped off the page at me. The segment which referred to the agents fitness for duty carriage of a firearm, the segment involving the fist fight, and the part where a reference is made to the agents being unwilling to engage in investigative work..First of all, every single person named in the article probably needs to hand in their badge and gun, or have it taken from them. People who cannot behave like adults, should not be given firearms to use while at work. That is a pretty simple standard to work by, even in a nation with proper respect for the right to bare them at all.

From what I've heard from several police officers, their behavior isn't really any different. There's a lot of bad officers out there, it makes sense there would be bad DHS officers too.

a reply to: charolais
You Americans and your assault weapons!

No wait.

I'm American.
And these are federal agents.

originally posted by: Aazadan
a reply to: charolais

Let me make you more depressed. Everyone in authority acts this way, just like any other adults. The idea is that the above average people fill roles that require a higher level of authority but in practice that doesn't happen. People are petty and irresponsible and there's no recruitment standards that weed that out, in any industry or office.

Trust me, as I age in life I have found this to be true on every level. From school, college, work in a professional field, etc. people are all no different. You are correct, these folks are filling roles which require a higher level of authority, but immature/lazy/irresponsible people exist in all walks of life and that's something I think more people need to understand.

originally posted by: bg_socalif
Government in general is inefficient. DHS is inefficiancy on steroids.

Can't argue that one!