A Warning to the Civilian Community: Active Threat from the JBLM DES

We are writing to express deep concern about the ongoing pattern of misconduct within the Joint Base Lewis‑McChord Directorate of Emergency Services (JBLM DES) and the growing threat it poses to both service members and the civilian community surrounding the installation.

Recent reporting from the JBLM DES' own employees has documented a troubling history of civil rights violations, retaliation, and unchecked surveillance of the civilian community by the JBLM DES Protection Division. Whistleblowers have reported that DES personnel are engaged in intelligence‑gathering activities targeting civilians involved in lawful political protests, violating First Amendment protections and operating with what one JBLM DES Police Officer described as “dangerously unchecked surveillance.” These reports also detail a culture of retaliation and intimidation under DES leadership, including Deputy Director Ted Solonar, whose tenure has been associated with harassment of and retaliation against employees who attempted to report misconduct.

Equally alarming are allegations of physical misconduct by DES police personnel. In one case, whistleblowers reported that a DES officer was captured on video grabbing a female soldier, pinning her against a wall, repeatedly striking her in the face, and attempting to force a DNA swab into her mouth — an incident they described as a violent assault. According to these reports, the case was buried, and the officer later moved into a federal law‑enforcement role, raising serious concerns for public safety.

These issues are not isolated. They reflect a systemic failure of oversight within the DES — a failure that now appears to extend to the highest levels of JBLM leadership.

Multiple individuals who attempted to report DES misconduct have stated that the JBLM Commander responded not by investigating their claims, but by issuing retaliatory debarments that barred them from the installation entirely. These debarments have reportedly been used to prevent whistleblowers from accessing on‑base Criminal Investigation Division (CID) offices, effectively blocking them from reporting ongoing DES criminal activity through official channels. This represents not only a misuse of command authority, but a direct obstruction of justice.

When those who attempt to report wrongdoing are punished, silenced, or physically barred from the very offices responsible for investigating crimes, the message is unmistakable: misconduct will be protected, and accountability will be suppressed.

This is unacceptable — and dangerous.

The civilian community around JBLM has long borne the consequences of the base’s internal crises, from violent incidents to the spillover effects of inadequate oversight. The use of debarments to silence whistleblowers only deepens the divide between the installation and the public it is supposed to coexist with.

We call on the Commander of Joint Base Lewis‑McChord to immediately halt the use of retaliatory debarments, restore access to CID offices for those attempting to report DES misconduct, and implement transparent, independent oversight mechanisms. The Commander must ensure that individuals responsible for abuses, such as DES Protection Division Chief Daniel L. Vessels, — whether through direct action or through negligence — are removed from positions of authority and held accountable.

The people of Washington, both civilian and military, deserve a law‑enforcement body that respects constitutional rights, operates transparently, and protects rather than endangers the community.