Charlie McMillan

LANL News:

Following is a statement from Los Alamos National Laboratory Director Charlie McMillan regarding this morning’s resignation of Deputy Director Beth Sellers:

“Beth Sellers has made me aware of her intent to resign as the Laboratory’s deputy director. It is with regret that I’ve decided to accept her resignation. I do this so that the Lab can move quickly past any institutional distraction and continue to deliver on our mission.

Beth Sellers

“I thank Beth for her service to the Laboratory and the nation. Her contributions will be missed, especially her energy and passion for the Laboratory mission and her deep interest in the Lab’s people.

“After a short transition of duties, we will begin the search for Beth’s successor.”

This morning Sellers issued a statement to LANL employees saying that a family member of hers was awarded a consulting agreement with the Lab in the fall of 2012 and that at the time was not properly disclosed for full evaluation of potential conflict of interest. 

“I realized this mistake several months later and immediately requested a review from Lab Counsel and Audits and Ethics. We undertook a comprehensive review of our processes and several improvements have been made to prevent a recurrence, but it is apparent to me that this incident will be a continuing distraction to the Lab’s important missions. This is unacceptable to me as a Laboratory leader, so I have decided to voluntarily step down.”