Posted on: Friday, April 13, 2001
Greeneville court of inquiry to submit report today
By Susan Roth
Advertiser Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — The admirals investigating the USS Greeneville accident are expected to deliver their report to the commander of the Pacific Fleet today in Hawai'i, not tomorrow in San Diego as originally planned.
Navy officials said fleet commander Adm. Thomas Fargo decided to stay in Hawai'i to oversee care for the crew of a Navy surveillance plane who arrived in the state yesterday after they were detained in China for 12 days.
"He wants to ensure that all the crew's needs are met and that they get all the support they need," said Pacific Fleet spokesman Jon Yoshishige.
Fargo welcomed the 24 crew members when they landed at Hickam Air Force Base yesterday morning. They were scheduled to meet with Navy officials to tell of their ordeal and get some rest before heading to Washington state to see their families at an Easter Sunday celebration.
Navy officials had said earlier this week that the admirals known as members of the court of inquiry on the Greeneville accident would deliver their report in San Diego, where Fargo had planned to speak at a submariners' ball tomorrow night celebrating the 101st anniversary of the Navy's submarine force.
Instead, Yoshishige said the members of the court of inquiry — Vice Adm. John Nathman, Rear Adm. David Stone, Rear Adm. Paul Sullivan, and Rear Adm. Isamu Ozawa of Japan's Navy — were expected to meet with Fargo at his Pacific Fleet offices sometime this afternoon.
Yoshishige emphasized that it will not be a public event and the report is not expected to be released.
If the report recommends a court-martial of Greeneville Cmdr. Scott Waddle or other members of his crew, however, the proceedings would be public.
Though some media outlets have reported on some details of the report, Navy officials have said those reports were not accurate.
Fargo has 30 days to review the report before making a decision on the next hurdle for Waddle and his officers, Lt. Cmdr. Gerald Pfeifer, executive officer of the Greeneville, and Lt. j.g. Michael Coen, officer of the deck at the time of the accident. Fargo can ask the admirals additional questions or he can accept the report as is.
If Fargo does not ultimately recommend a court martial, Waddle, Pfeifer and Coen could be subjected to some sort of administrative punishment.
The investigation sought to determine whether there are grounds to charge Waddle with dereliction of duty, improper hazarding of a vessel and negligent homicide in the deaths of nine Japanese crew members of the Ehime Maru, who were lost at sea Feb. 9 when the Greeneville rammed their fishing boat in an emergency surfacing exercise.
