Former Ft. Bliss commander reprimanded for personal misconduct

Major General Dana Pittard was well-received when he was assigned as post commander to Fort Bliss in 2010.

Pittard, an El Paso native and Eastwood High School graduate, was reprimanded on allegations of steering a defense contract awarded to a former classmate during his time at Fort Bliss, according to The Washington Post.

The three-year investigation was launched by the Army’s Inspector General after an anonymous whistleblower claimed Pittard used his authority to steer a near half a million dollar contract to a firm owned by a former West Point classmate.

The Washington Posted said a review board is now deciding if Pittard will be stripped of his two-star general rank before he is allowed to retire this year.

The contract was for a project to help Fort Bliss become more energy efficient.

Pittard declined an interview with The Washington Post, but did release a statement for the article. He said he just wanted the project to move forward quickly.

“Throughout my 34 years of service as an Army leader, I have always operated with an understanding that some risk is acceptable in taking action that will benefit our force,” said Pittard’s statement.

Major General Pittard spent three years in El Paso before he was reassigned to command U.S. troops training Iraqi forces overseas.

To read the full article from The Washington Post, click here.