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Former Director of Smithsonian Latino Center Mis-used Funds

14:10 H | Topics: Controversia - Washington DC

Lavish spending. Mis-use of government funds. Soliciting tickets to social functions like concerts and awards shows. Resigning over scandal.

Sounds like a Washington politician scandal? Well, the Washington is accurate, but this is not about a politician. Headlines across the nation are focusing on the release of a report investigating former Smithsonian Latino Center director Pilar O'Leary's misconduct:

The director of the center, Pilar O’Leary, resigned on Feb. 8 after two and a half years in the post. At the time, the Smithsonian said only that she had stepped down and was being succeeded by an acting director.

But a report released on Monday after an inquiry by the inspector general, A. Sprightly Ryan, said, “The evidence gathered in this investigation indicates that on multiple occasions O’Leary violated these general ethical rules as well as specific prohibitions on conduct that constitutes or appears to constitute a conflict of interest.”

According to the NY Times article, the Smithsonian's 19 museums are under particular government scrutiny because 70% of their funding comes from the federal government.

Via // NY Times