Gerald Walpin

Gerald Walpin (September 1, 1931 – June 24, 2016) was an American lawyer and author.[1] He served as the Inspector General of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) from January 2007 until June 2009, when he was removed by U.S. President Barack Obama.[1]

Gerald Walpin
Inspector General of the Corporation for National and Community Service
In office
January 8, 2007 – July 12, 2009
PresidentGeorge W. Bush
Barack Obama
Preceded byCarol Bates (Acting)
Succeeded byKenneth Bach (Acting)
Personal details
Born(1931-09-01)September 1, 1931
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedJune 24, 2016(2016-06-24) (aged 84)
New York City, New York, U.S.
EducationCity University of New York, City College (BA)
Yale University (LLB)

Personal life

Walpin was born September 1, 1931 in New York City,[2] and graduated from the City College of New York in 1952.[3][4] He attended Yale Law School, where he was managing editor of the Yale Law Journal, graduating cum laude in 1955. Walpin was married, with three children and six grandchildren.[3]

Career

From 1957 to 1960, he served in the United States Air Force Judge Advocate General, with a rank of lieutenant.[3]

Walpin was an Assistant U.S. Attorney and Chief of Special Prosecutions for the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York for five years, after which he went on to become a senior partner at the New York-based law firm Rosenman & Colin LLP—and then of counsel at its successor Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP—for a combined total of over 40 years.[3]

From 2002-2004, Walpin was president of the Federal Bar Council, an association of attorneys that practice in the courts within the Second Circuit. He received the American Inns of Court Professionalism Award in 2003 for outstanding professionalism as an attorney and for mentoring younger lawyers.[3]

Inspector General of CNCS

Appointment by George W. Bush

On August 3, 2006, President George W. Bush nominated Walpin as Inspector General (IG) of Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), an office in the CNCS charged with conducting independent and object audits, investigations and inspections of the CNCS and its service programs, which include AmeriCorps, Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA) and Senior Corps.[5] After he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on December 9, 2006, Walpin was sworn in on January 8, 2007.[3][5][6]

Americorps investigations

After its May 20, 2009 meeting that discussed Walpin's report criticizing the St. HOPE Academy settlement agreement and Walpin's forthcoming report questioning the validity of the largest AmeriCorps program—the Research Foundation of City University of New York (RFCUNY) New York City Teaching Fellows program, the bipartisan CNCS Board of Directors unanimously requested that the White House review Walpin's conduct as Inspector General.[7][8]

Removal and lawsuit

Walpin was suspended with pay on June 11, 2009, by President Barack Obama, who on the same day advised the U.S. Congress that he would remove Walpin from office, effective 30 days from then, because Obama no longer had "the fullest confidence in" him as Inspector General.[9][10] and on June 16, 2009, the White House submitted a letter with additional information on the reasons Walpin was removed.[7]

On July 17, 2009, Walpin filed a civil lawsuit in federal court seeking his reinstatement, arguing that his removal violated the 2008 Inspector General Act.[11] On July 20, 2009, Walpin issued a statement saying the primary reason for his lawsuit was to protect future Inspectors General.[12]

On October 19, 2009, the chairman of the Integrity Committee of the Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) notified Walpin that his May 20, 2009, response to an April 29, 2009 complaint about him by acting U.S. Attorney Lawrence G. Brown had sufficiently and satisfactorily addressed the matter and closed the complaint.[13]

On June 17, 2010, U.S. District Court Judge Richard W. Roberts dismissed Walpin's suit.[14]

Death

Gerald Walpin died on June 24, 2016, in a hospital after being hit by a sport utility vehicle in Manhattan while crossing at Lexington Avenue and East 79th Street.[1]

References
  1. "Gerald Walpin, Watchdog Fired Over AmeriCorps Inquiry, Dies at 84". The New York Times. June 26, 2016. Retrieved 2016-07-16.
  2. Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory: District of Columbia, U.S. Government Lawyers, State Bar Association Profiles, Law Schools, Volume 5 Google Books
  3. Meet Inspector General Gerald Walpin, official biography of the former Inspector General; previously online at www.cncsig.gov/PDF/Bios/MeetWalpin.pdf Archived 2009-05-06 at the Wayback Machine, obtained via google cache.
  4. "Chosen at City College to head student council". The New York Times. May 16, 1951. p. 30. Retrieved 2009-06-30.
  5. U.S. Senate (December 9, 2006). "Presidential Nomination PN1904-109 Gerald Walpin". THOMAS. Retrieved 2009-06-26.
  6. . (May 17, 2007). "Inspector General historical data - Federal departments" (PDF). ignet.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-08-13. Retrieved 2009-07-09.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. U.S. Congress (December 5, 2008). "U.S.C. Title 5 Appendix - Inspector General Act of 1978 (Incorporating Inspector General Reform Act of 2008, Pub. L. 110-409)" (PDF). USAID. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-06-28. Retrieved 2009-06-21.
  11. O'Keefe, Ed (July 20, 2009). "Fired IG Gerald Walpin Files Suit". Federal Eye blog. washingtonpost.com. Retrieved 2010-06-19.
  12. Tapper, Jake (July 20, 2009). "Fired Inspector General says his lawsuit was filed to protect future IGs". Political Punch blog. ABCNews.com. Retrieved 2009-07-20.
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