VETERAN PUBLIC SERVICE: WASTE, FRAUD AND ABUSE

Warden v. Esperanza en Escalante

Introductory Statement
This case focuses public attention on government programs that "lie,
cheat and steal," violate the law and the public trust, rip-off the program
members they are paid to serve, foster government dependency, and
otherwise contribute to government Waste, Fraud and Abuse, as defined by the Office of the Inspector General.
Plaintiff, Roy Warden
When I signed up with the U.S. Army in 1966 I signed a blank check, and
surrendered my civilian rights, for the opportunity to jump out of airplanes in defense of the American way of life. This included protection
by the rule of law. By so doing I voluntarily subjected myself to the arbitrary and capricious decision-making of my military superiors.
Esperanza en Escalante and the VA are not military organizations. They
are civilian organizations contracted to supply services to veterans. Unlike the military, they are legally bound by the rule of law to honor the
agreements they make.
In other words, they are bound by the American way and the same rule
of law which I signed up to defend.
Standing
In July 2013, shortly after gaining admittance into Esperanza en Escalante1 (EEE) on the basis of my homeless veteran status, I came to
an agreement with EEE to turn my political activism into a political movement to perform public service to military veterans, who currently bask
in the adoration of a grateful nation, as set forth in a Time Magazine June
20, 2013 cover story by Joe Klein: Can Service Save Us?

Esperanza in Escalante1 (EEE), a Tucson based, Arizona 501 (c3) non-profit

corporation which has a contract to provide housing services to homeless
veterans, is a classic example of government waste, fraud and abuse.
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The Vets Feeding Vets Garden Project, essentially a boot-strap2 veteran-directed, veteran-operated program to assist homeless and jobless
veterans, has now become a valuable asset to which I have developed a
proprietary interest.
Unfortunately, the project also has a great deal of tangible value to Esperanza en Escalante (EEE), a civilian run program, where the project is
currently located. EEE wants to take over and use my project as a basis
for soliciting additional funding in the form of grants, cash and equipment donations from a variety of government and private sector
sources, thus developing an additional revenue stream for EEE.
Quite simply: Vets Feeding Vets has encroached upon territory already
occupied by government run agencies and civilian administered programs, more interested in creating dependency and permanent revenue
streams, which currently solicit billions of dollars every year from Congress, and private sources, to dispense for the ostensible purpose of
helping veterans.
Causes of Action:
a) Breech of Oral Contract
b) First Amendment Retaliation (This can serve as a stand alone
tort, or more importantly, as a means of getting additional facts
before the jury as they relate to intent to defraud, and punitive
damages.3)
EEE Background:

Can Service Save Us? identified a new movement of veteran directed,

veteran operated service organizations, sidestepping the traditional civilian run agencies most responsible for fraud waste and abuse.

Within several months of my entry into a veteran homeless program administered by Old Pueblo, I was warned by a federal government employee: Someone is trying to get you disqualified from this program. I
have several tape recordings which relate to provocative retaliation by
an EEE employee, and failure of the EEE Director to stop it.
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1.

Esperanza in Escalante4 (EEE), a Tucson based, Arizona 501 (c3)

non-profit corporation5, employs approximately 8-10, owns 19
acres of land located at 3700 S. Calle Polar, 857306 just north
and adjacent to the Davis-Monthan Boneyard and provides
veteran in transition services to approximately 53 (formerly)
homeless veterans, some with families.

2.

EEE, which receives a variety of grants from government (local

and federal), and donations from private organizations and individuals, provides a classic example of government waste,
fraud and abuse.

3.

EEEs stated public mission is to provide a variety of services

to homeless veterans; however; their economic purpose is to
write grants, solicit donations, develop projects which require
funding, and create revenue streams.

4.

The EEE website is an excellent example of exaggeration and

misleading representation.

5.

EEE partially operates as a scam. The Case Manager staff

seem to have basic degrees in social sciences. They create and
update quarterly Treatment Plans, use clinical terms such as
therapeutic asset, clinically eligible, etc., and create the illusion that EEE provides a clinical setting, and clinical services,
to mentally disturbed veterans, etc., thus making them eligible
for enhanced federal funding.

6.

However; EEE staff operate only as supervisors, custodians, and

property managers; all clinical services are provided by the VA.

7.

Moreover; rather than promote the self-sufficiency and community spirit they advertise on their website, EEE policy actually

EEE was started in 1990 by Vietnam Veterans of American Chapter 106 of

Tucson Arizona.

http://starpas.azcc.gov/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=wsbroker1/names-detail.p?name-id=05233221&type=CORPORATION

Estimated value, including improvements, is 2 million dollars.

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fosters discontent between veterans, submission to arbitrary

and capricious decision making which is devoid of due process
when it comes to resolving veteran disputes, and continued
veteran dependency upon EEE, even upon departure, for which
the organization maintains a continued revenue stream
through the administration of federally funded programs like
Shelter Plus.
Statement of Facts:
8.

In late July 2013, within weeks of my entry into the program on

July 9, 2013, I came to an agreement with EEE management regarding creating an independent, ongoing Vets Feeding Vets
program. Subsequently, I put up a Facebook site, had business
cards printed, printed and distributed fliers, began cleaning out
the (former) garden site7, which had suffered from years of nonuse and neglect, etc., and otherwise began promoting the objectives of Vets Feeding Vets as an independent, veteran organized, veteran run organization serving the needs of veterans, as partially set forth in the Mission Statement which is part
of the Vets Feeding Vets Facebook page.

9.

Subsequently; I shared my objectives and goals with both the

veteran residents and every member of the EEE staff in great
detail, some of whom became Facebook friends. Case Manager Aindrea McCammon put references to my directing the
Vets Feeding Vets organization in quarterly updates of my
Treatment Plan, including the fact that after transitioning
out of the program into my own living quarters I would live close
to the EEE location so I could fulfill my obligation to serve as
Director of Vets Feeding Vets.

10. Since my portion of the garden started producing in the summer of 2014 Ive (1) promoted the program to every resident of
EEE and numerous outside agencies, (2) distributed more than
50 shopping bags full of vegetables to EEE residents, (3) contacted the Arizona Chapter of the Combat Veterans Motorcycle
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This included rototilling, working pick and shovel, buying and adding compost and manure, watering, planting, weeding, harvesting, etc., some of
these tasks executed while I was in a wheelchair due to my broken hip.
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Association which solicited our first official donation from

Lowes Home Improvement, (4) contacted two volunteers at the
VA (recommended by VA Administrator John Adams) who
promised to help me distribute organic vegetables within the
VA, (5) began distributing collard greens to a veteran member
of the Hud Vash Program who is my neighbor at Sunflower
Apartments, and (6) will provide organic salad to all the currently homeless men at the Primavera Shelter8 on May 5, 2015,
as part of the Mormon Church Community Outreach.
11. Issues with Vet Serving Vet Gardener9 Mike Garcia began
more than a year ago in what now appears to be intentional
provocation. Mike began encroaching upon my gardening
space, blocking access to both sides of my trench, taking construction blocks from my Key Hole Garden, filling in the keyhole garden structure with trash, constructing additional structures within the garden space which blocked mandatory wheelchair access, digging holes outside the designated garden area
which created liability, picking produce from my production
without asking, etc.
12. Subsequently; on March 15, 2015 I confronted Mike and told
him he had to restore wheelchair access to the entire space and
my access to both sides of my garden, stop space encroachment, etc., fill in the hole he dug outside the garden which was
presenting a hazard, etc., to which he replied angrily, in sum and
substance, You cant tell me what to do. Wheelchair people
dont need access here and you can build another area for them
elsewhere if you want.
13. On March 16, 2015 I brought the issue of Mikes non-cooperation to the attention of Mikes Case Manager, Aindrea McCammon, and gave her a copy the Vets Feeding Vets Garden Agreement, dated March 15, 2015. (Exhibit 1)

I once resided for three months at Primavera.

Presently there are four gardeners, 3 of which Ive assigned to a separate

raised garden space. Ive granted space in my garden area to accommodate
a new, forth gardener, Lori.
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14. Several days later, Case Manager McCammon informed me, in

sum and substance, there were issues with the Vets Feeding
Vets Garden Agreement and that I should speak with EEE Director Phyllis Russell10 for further clarification, to which I replied: It is already clear that I am the Manager of the Vets
feeding Vets project. I already have the authority to make, and
enforce, administrative decisions.
15. Subsequently; Case Manager McCammon advised me that VA
Administrator John Adams had (suddenly) decided to advance
my move out date, originally set for July 9, 201511, to April 1,
2015, for the ostensible reason I had been disqualified from the
program because I was no longer clinically eligible12 to receive
EEE benefits. (July 9, 2015 date set forth in Exhibit 2)
16. On March 25, 2015 VA Administrator John Adams called me, denied to have communicated with EEE regarding my position as
Director of Vets Feeding Vets, suggested I tread softly regarding the Vets Feeding Vets program, and warned that EEE had
the power to withhold funding from the Shelter Plus program
(rent subsidy), etc., all of which I documented in a letter to him
dated March 25, 2015. (Exhibit 3.)
17. Subsequently; I executed, (and scanned) a Rental Application to
Sunflower Apartments, and, as instructed, gave the application
to Case Manager McCammon for processing and submission to
Sunflower.
18. On April 9, 2015, when I met with Case Manager McCammon
and EEE employee Gemma Kone-Kartes, to fill in and process
my application for a Shelter Plus rent subsidy, I was dismayed
10

Phyllis Russell is the Statutory Agent for EEE.

11

This date, originally determined by VA Administrator John Adams himself,

had been set for July 9, 2015. This date was additionally set forth in my
Treatment Plan and in a document dated October 20, 2014 submitted to
the Court of Appeals, written by Case Manager Kern. ( Exhibit 2)

12

Clinical eligibility is a manufactured term as applied to EEE Transitional

Housing, for which the only qualifying criteria is homelessness.
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to find the form already filled out, with several intentional misstatements of fact which understated my income and assets.
19. I became angry when Gemma encouraged me to sign the form
anyway (I will make the necessary changes later), and documented the incident in a letter to Case Manager McCammon
dated April 9, 2015. (Exhibit 4)
20. Sometime later I learned that EEE had altered the Rental Application to Sunflower Apartments document in a manner significant to the issues of this case, prior to submission to Sunflower
Apartments. I obtained a copy of the altered application from
Sunflower management.

21. After moving to Sunflower I received a letter from EEE Director

Phyllis Russell, dated April 13, 2015, which, amongst other
things, denied the existence of any ongoing Vets Feeding Vets
project. (Exhibit 5)

22. On May 4, 2015 I went to the garden to water and harvest

kale for a salad Im making for the May 5, 2015 dinner at
the Primavera Homeless Shelter.
23. I noticed Gardener Mike Garcia, in what appears to be intentional and continuing provocation, had made substantial changes to my Key Hole Garden Structure, appropriating it for his own use. (see paragraphs 11-13)
24. I became extremely angry and confronted Mike. Things became extremely contentious and Mike variously told me:
(1) You cant make me stop, (2) I can do whatever I
want, (3) You cant tell me what to do, (4) Show me
where I signed anything,13 (5) You dont know how to garden; your big plans14 will never come to anything, (6)
13

Referencing my original guidelines to the gardeners: Were supposed to

grow food and give it away to needy veterans.

14

As set forth in the Mission Statement: to supply food to veterans off site
and those in the VA hospital.
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What are you going to do if I dont stop, burn an American

Flag, etc.,
25. During this exchange Mike was taunting, mocking, sneering, laughing and otherwise enjoying himself for eliciting
my angry response.
26. A small crowd gathered; security came, told me to leave
the property and to call Case Manager Angie Kern tomorrow.

AS OF MAY 10, 2015