Rep. Roy demands answers from VA on employee’s brutal assault of 73-year-old Vietnam vet

WASHINGTON—On Monday, Rep. Chip Roy (TX-21) asked the VA to hold an employee accountable for brutally beating and choking a 73-year-old Vietnam veteran at Fort McPherson VA Clinic in Atlanta, Georgia; the victim suffered numerous injuries and was hospitalized for three days due to a brain bleed from the assault.

The assailant, Lawrence F. Gaillard, Jr. is a VA patient advocate who was arrested and charged with a felony for the assault but was ultimately released on bond. Reports indicate that Mr. Gaillard is still employed by the VA.

“This vile display of behavior is horrifying and antithetical to the VA’s critical mission of caring for ‘those who have borne the battle’ in defense of our nation,” Rep. Roy wrote to VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “Every veteran who walks through the doors of a VA facility should be treated with the utmost respect worthy of their service to our country.”

Rep. Roy called on the VA to investigate the incident and terminate Gaillard.

“The VA must take immediate action to hold this employee accountable – the least of which is removing him as an employee of the VA,” Rep. Roy wrote.

Full text of the letter can be found below and at the link here.

Dear Secretary McDonough, 

Disturbing graphic Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)surveillance footage has recently surfaced showing a VA employee brutally beating, choking, and slamming to the ground a 73-year-old Vietnam veteran at the Fort McPherson VA Clinic in Atlanta, Georgia. This vile display of behavior is horrifying and antithetical to the VA’s critical mission of caring for “those who have borne the battle” in defense of our nation.

 Reports indicate that the assailant, Lawrence F. Gaillard, Jr. is a VA patient advocate and was arrested and charged with a felony for the assault but was ultimately released on bond. Worse, these reports indicate that Mr. Gaillard is still employed by the VA. This, after his victim, veteran Phillip Webb suffered several injuries and was hospitalized for three days with a “brain bleed” as a result of the assault.

The VA must take immediate action to hold this employee accountable–the least of which is removing him as an employee of the VA. An incident such as this should never again happen, and the VA must take all necessary steps to ensure that it never does. Every veteran who walks through the doors of a VA facility should be treated with the utmost respect worthy of their service to our country.

Therefore, I request answers to the following questions by July 7, 2022:

1. When did officials at the Fort McPherson VA Clinic first become aware of this incident?
   1. What actions did these officials take?
2. Have Fort McPherson VA Clinic officials taken any disciplinary actions against Mr. Gaillard?
   1. If so, when did Fort McPherson VA Clinic officials initiate disciplinary action? Please describe what, if any, disciplinary actions have been taken.
3. Have There been any complaints or incidences of inappropriate, abusive, or violent conduct by Mr. Gaillard before?
   1. If so, did any officials at VA take any disciplinary action at that time?
   2. If any such complaint or incident did occur, please describe the nature of the event. 
4. What is Mr. Gaillard’s VA employment status?
   1. If Mr. Gaillard is not employed by the VA, when was he terminated?

Thank you for your attention on this important matter.

Sincerely, 

Chip Roy
Member of Congress

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