CO fired after alleged hazing during drill

A Navy Reserve commander has been fired because of alleged hazing and command climate problems, the Navy reported Monday.

Lt. Cmdr. Jack O’Neill, commanding officer of Navy Operational Support Center, Rock Island, Ill., was fired on March 19. Capt. George Whitbread, commander of Navy Region Midwest Reserve Component Command, made the decision.

Sailors were allegedly hazed during a March 9 drilling weekend, according to the Navy. Details of the hazing, and O’Neill’s involvement, have not been released.

The incident was reported March 10, the investigation began the next day and the investigation finished on March 13, said Johnny Michael, spokesman for Navy Reserve Forces Command.

O’Neill is the sixth commanding officer fired this year.

He has been temporarily reassigned to the Army Garrison at Rock Island Arsenal. It was the only local position he could be reassigned without requiring a move or creating an undue burden on his family. He is working on an emergency planning project, Michael said.

Lt. Cmdr. Gregory Cissell, a member of NRWRCC’s staff, has been named temporary CO of NOSC Rock Island.