Convicted VA worker still paid ILLEGAL FEES: Woman who charged vets for free
services still eligible for state pension, too

April 07, 2002

Sean Robinson; The News Tribune

 
A veterans advocate and former state senator who admitted accepting more than
$101,000 in illegal payments from former prisoners of war will continue to
receive her taxpayer-funded salary through the end of the month. Lena Swanson,
64, pleaded guilty last week in U.S. District Court to accepting illegal
payments from former POWs and other veterans. She will be sentenced May 21
and faces a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine. As a
state-paid service officer, Swanson was prohibited from accepting fees or
gratuities for assisting veterans with their benefit claims. She was paid
$45,500 a year by the state. John King, director of the state Department of
Veterans Affairs, where Swanson worked for 27 years, said Swanson resigned
from the department before U.S. attorneys filed formal charges against her in
late March. She remains eligible for a state pension. "State employees do not
lose their pensions due to misconduct," King said. "That's just standard
practice in the state of Washington. The plea agreement struck by U.S.
attorneys and Swanson prohibits her from working on behalf of veterans in any
capacity. "I'm confident that she'll never be in a position to do this again,"
King said. Swanson's phone line in Bremerton has been disconnected. Her
attorney, Peter Mair, could not be reached for comment. News of the charge
against Swanson rippled swiftly through the tight-knit community of local
veterans and their advocates. She is a well-known figure in their circle. In
1992 she won a community service award from a Seattle newspaper, recognizing
her work on behalf of veterans. Reports of the charges against her and her
guilty plea triggered stern reactions. "I think this woman ought to put some
jail time in, myself," said retired Army Col. George Riedel of Parkland, past
state commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. "These guys need to be able
to trust the people that are servicing their claim. When you break that
trust, you just don't break the law, you break common decency. "Swanson
admitted receiving about $300,000 in payments from about 250 veterans and
POWs she assisted in processing benefit claims, court documents said. That
includes more than $101,000 that she solicited from 26 veterans. She called
it compensation for her expenses. The rest of the money was "unsolicited
gratuities" veterans paid to Swanson in appreciation for her assistance,
documents said. Citing privacy restrictions, U.S. attorneys did not reveal the
names of any victims but acknowledged they live in Washington and other
states. King said Swanson was part of a group of service officers working
directly for the state agency. They help veterans process benefit claims with
the federal Department of Veterans Affairs, receiving formal powers of
attorney and acting as advocates. About 30 officers work for service
organizations that contract with the state, he said. Others work exclusively
for private organizations such as Veterans of Foreign Wars and Disabled
Veterans of America. Officers are paid regular salaries by their
organizations, and do not work on a fee-for-service basis. "Our organization
is very adamant that if we were to take any kind of gratuity, that we'd be
fired on the spot," said Bob Talbot, a service officer with American Veterans
who knew Swanson. "That is a no-no, period; it is a sacred element. "Swanson
was the only employee in the state agency with service officer certification
at the state and national level, King said. That allowed her to process
claims for veterans in other states as well as Washington. Other service
officers who know Swanson said she shouldn't have crossed the line. "You don't
do this for money," said Jane Adamson, a Northeast Tacoma resident and a
recently retired service officer for the American Legion. "You take it on
because you love your veterans, you love your fellow man and you want to help
them. I am totally stunned that Lena would do this." Swanson used the money
for personal expenses and gambling, documents said. She also used it to
bolster her assistance efforts for veterans, which included travel expenses
and costs related to her home office. King said federal investigators brought
the case to his attention almost a year ago. At that time, Swanson was placed
on administrative leave and ordered to perform no more work for the state.
She continued to receive her paycheck. In February 2002, she told the same
newspaper that honored her in 1992 that she was still working for the
Department of Veterans Affairs and performing off-hours work for former
prisoners of war. In 1997, local Democrats appointed Swanson to the state
Senate seat vacated by Brad Owen when he won election as lieutenant governor.
She lost an election bid for the seat that fall, falling in the primary to
the current senator, Tim Sheldon (D-Potlatch). The Department of Veterans
Affairs is taking new steps to protect veterans from fraud, King said. They
include stepped-up efforts to inform veterans that department employees do
not accept payments for their services. The department also may establish new
audit procedures to review the handling of veterans' cases. He sees no
evidence of other questionable activity. "I think it's a unique anomaly," he
said. "I'm very confident that this isn't going on anywhere else in the state
of Washington." - - -*

Reach staff writer Sean Robinson at 253-597-8486 or
sean.robinson@mail.tribnet.com

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