The United States Senate will hold a public hearing on May 23 to review the prostitute scandal that occurred in April when U.S. agents solicited prostitutes during their visit to Colombia for the Summit of the Americas.
U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman announced the hearing when he appeared on the CNN Sunday morning program “State of the Union.”
According to Lieberman, the hearing will determine what measures will be taken to prevent such an embarrassing event from recurring and if the agents’ prior conduct “could have been a warning of what was to happen.”
Secret Service Director Mark Sullivan and Acting Inspector General Charles Edwards will testify, according to Lieberman.
A total of 12 Secret Service agents and 11 support staff are currently under investigation for the scandal, while nine agents have already been dismissed.
Although prostitution is legal in Cartagena, the officers’ conduct violated Secret Service protocol by compromising U.S. security and damaging the country’s image.
