Military Personnel

The Pentagon is investigating 10 U.S. military members in a widening probe into whether an advance team of Secret Service and military personnel hired local prostitutes or engaged in other misconduct before President Obama visited Colombia for a summit last week, U.S. officials said. The Pentagon investigation is focusing on five Special Forces Army soldiers, two Marines, two Navy personnel and one member of the Air Force, a U.S. military official said.  The Navy and Air Force personnel are members of explosive detection unit, the official said,.

Fleet Week , which has been a New York City tradition since 1984, starts Wednesday (that's today) with a parade of tall ships and war ships that will be docked and open to the public through Tuesday. Members of the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard will be aboard ships and participating in parachute jumps and other equipment demonstrations. There are lots of free activities to go and see. In honor of Fleet Week, Gray Line New York honors all military personnel in uniform with a free tour of Manhattan on its double-decker buses.  The deal: Members of the military (all branches, not just sailors and Marines)

The Pentagon was warned repeatedly going back a decade that it was accepting military recruits with criminal histories and was too lenient with those already in uniform who exhibited violent or other troubling behavior. Six studies prepared over 10 years by an outside expert at the Pentagon's request found that too little was being done to discipline lawbreakers in uniform or even identify problem recruits. A 1998 study estimated that one-third of military recruits had arrest records.

JEJU ISLAND, South Korea -- To the South Korean military, this picturesque island is the perfect place to build a naval base: a strategic location guarding the country's southern flank from possible invasion. To its residents, its small-town feel, harbor and coral reefs make it close to perfect just the way it is. The conflict between the two visions has turned into a South Korean David and Goliath story, with Mayor Kang Dong-kyun of the town of Gangjeong leading the majority of its 1,930 people in fighting the giant.

At a Starbucks in South Los Angeles, 14-year-old Bill Kirkpatrick III sat down with his mentor, Joe Egender, to set goals for the coming year. On the teen's to-do list for 2011: maintain a 3.0 or higher grade-point average, become a better role model for his 8-year-old brother, make it as a starter for the school basketball team and be "the flower that grew from concrete" ? a reference to a poem by the late rapper Tupac Shakur. FOR THE RECORD: Big Brothers: An article in the Feb. 21 LATExtra about the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization said Joe Egender took his "little brother" Bill Kirkpatrick III to see Dr. Dre in concert.

Servicemen and servicewomen have a world of travel bargains available. Here are some areas to explore: Commercial flights - Contact commercial airlines directly or go to http://www.military.com and enter "military travel center" in the search box in the upper right corner to find available discounts. Some airlines also offer military personnel early boarding privileges and waive baggage fees. Be sure to ask. Hotels - Military discounts can be as much as 30% at more than 4,000 U.S. hotels.

JEJU ISLAND, South Korea -- To the South Korean military, this picturesque island is the perfect place to build a naval base: a strategic location guarding the country's southern flank from possible invasion. To its residents, its small-town feel, harbor and coral reefs make it close to perfect just the way it is. The conflict between the two visions has turned into a South Korean David and Goliath story, with Mayor Kang Dong-kyun of the town of Gangjeong leading the majority of its 1,930 people in fighting the giant.

CARTAGENA, Colombia -- Five members of the U.S. military may have taken part with Secret Service agents in misconduct involving prostitutes at a hotel in Cartagena,and have been confined to their quarters for violating curfew. The service members -- assigned to support the Secret Service at this weekend's Summit of the Americas -- may have been involved in "inappropriate conduct" at the Hotel Caribe, where a team of now-recalled Secret Service agents was staying, the United States Southern Command said Saturday.

WASHINGTON - Eleven members of the U.S. militaryare under investigation for alleged involvement in the Colombian prostitution scandal, an Army spokesman said Friday, bumping up by one the previously reported total. Six of the group are from an Army Special Forces unit, two are members of the Marine Corps, two are in the Navy, and one is from the Air Force, according to Col. Scott Malcom, who heads public affairs at United States Southern Command. The Marines and Navy personnel are based in San Diego, and the Air Force member is from Charleston, S.C. The Army personnel are from the 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne)

The new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warned banks not to violate laws that protect active-duty military personnel from home foreclosures and high interest rates. The move comes after news reports of alleged violations by JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Germany's Deutsche Bank of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, a 2003 law that protects military families. In letters Tuesday to the chief executives of the 25 largest banks that provide mortgage servicing, Holly Petraeus, the head of the still-forming bureau's Office of Servicemember Affairs, urged them to educate their employees about the law and take other "proactive steps.

? Three more Secret Service employees who were involved in the Colombian prostitution scandal are leaving the agency, bringing the total to a half-dozen agents or uniformed officers who saw their careers cut short in a widening investigation of alleged misconduct. The latest casualties of the embarrassing episode "have chosen to resign," according to Paul Morrissey, spokesman for the Secret Service. He also announced that a 12th agency employee is being investigated, one more than previously known.

WASHINGTON - Three more Secret Service employees who were involved in the Colombian prostitution scandal are leaving the agency, bringing the total to half a dozen agents or uniformed officers who saw their careers cut short in a widening investigation of alleged misconduct. The latest casualties of the embarrassing episode “have chosen to resign,” said Paul Morrissey, spokesman for the Secret Service. He also announced that a 12th agency employee is being investigated, one more than previously known.

WASHINGTON - President Obama has confidence in the Secret Service director, his spokesman said Tuesday, as a prostitution scandal widened with allegations that at least 20 women joined members of the U.S. advance team arranging security for the president's visit to Colombia last weekend. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who was briefed by Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan, told reporters that "20 or 21 women foreign nationals were brought" to the Hotel Caribe in Cartagena, where the Secret Service and other members of the advance team were staying.

The Pentagon is investigating 10 U.S. military members in a widening probe into whether an advance team of Secret Service and military personnel hired local prostitutes or engaged in other misconduct before President Obama visited Colombia for a summit last week, U.S. officials said. The Pentagon investigation is focusing on five Special Forces Army soldiers, two Marines, two Navy personnel and one member of the Air Force, a U.S. military official said.  The Navy and Air Force personnel are members of explosive detection unit, the official said,.

WASHINGTON - The Pentagon is investigating 10 U.S. military members in a widening inquiry into whether an advance team led by the Secret Service hired prostitutes or engaged in other misconduct before President Obama visited Colombia for a weekend summit, U.S. officials said Monday. The Pentagon investigation is focusing on five Army Special Forces soldiers, two Marines, two Navy personnel and one member of the Air Force, a U.S. military official said. The Navy and Air Force personnel belong to an explosives detection unit, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an ongoing investigation.

WASHINGTON -- Republican Rep. Darrell Issa, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, said Sunday that he will monitor an investigation into allegations that Secret Service agents and members of the military may have been involved with prostitutes while in Colombia last week to prepare for President Obama's participation in the Summit of the Americas. “We will participate in over-the-shoulder investigation,” Issa told CBS' Bob Schieffer on Sunday, saying it was too soon to say whether hearings would be called.

The U.S. Air Force says two of its airmen have been killed and two wounded in a shooting outside Frankfurt airport. Spokeswoman Maj. Beverly Mock said German police have the suspect in Wednesday afternoon's shooting in custody and that she could not release any further details on the victims until their next of kin have been notified. The gunman opened fire on a bus carrying the airmen as it sat outside Terminal 2 at the airport, Frankfurt police spokesman Manfred Fuellhardt said.