EagleTribune.com, North Andover, MA

LAWRENCE - A military discharge record for School Committee member-elect James Stokes is a forgery littered with inconsistencies, city officials said yesterday.

Now Mayor Michael Sullivan said he is outraged and is calling for a criminal investigation into whether Stokes, 65, created the fake record.

Stokes is scheduled to take his spot on the School Committee Jan. 2. Nothing in state law will stop him from doing that, even though he identified himself as a veteran on the November ballot.

The one-page discharge sheet claims Stokes left the U.S. Marine Corps in 1982.

"I have concluded that the document Mr. James Stokes submitted to this office is falsified to corroborate his statement that he served in military service," Veterans Services Director Francisco Urena wrote in a letter to Sullivan. "This document has various errors that are inconsistent of a veteran's record with 20 years of service."

Stokes did not return a call for comment. He has said he intends to take his seat on the School Committee.

Sullivan said he will forward the results of the investigation to the Essex County district attorney's office.

"I think the DA needs to take a look at this and ask questions of Jim Stokes," Sullivan said, calling the discharge paper "alarming and appalling."

State law allows for a misdemeanor charge for publishing a false statement about a candidate with intention to aid or harm that candidate. Federal law makes it a crime to forge, counterfeit or falsely alter a military discharge certificate. The federal Stolen Valor Act also makes it a crime to falsely claim ownership of certain military medals.

Spokesmen for the Essex County district attorney and U.S. district attorney did not return calls to say if they are investigating Stokes.

The city's investigation into Stokes was launched at the request of School Committee member Gregory Morris, who Stokes defeated 560-424 in last month's election. Morris wrote in a letter to City Clerk William Maloney that he will "be seeking a legal court injunction if this matter has not been rectified by January 1, 2008."

The discharge record, one of thousands on file in Urena's office, uses a military service number that belongs to a veteran from Boston. It also contains a series of inaccuracies that would be obvious to anyone familiar with military administrative procedures, Urena, an Iraq veteran and retired Marine, said.

For instance, the discharge recognizes a series of medals, including the "Purple Heart Medal" and a "Combat Action Medal."

"It's not called a combat action medal," Urena said. "It's a combat action ribbon."

The discharge also lists Stokes' specialty as a "GenWhseMan" or "general warehouseman." Beneath it is the list of combat medals.

"Where does a general warehouseman see so much combat?" Urena asked. "How did he get field promoted to captain? You're jumping the ranks."

It is not known how the record became included in city files. Urena said it was there before he came on the job in February of this year. Stokes earlier this month requested, and was given, a copy of the discharge.

Military discharge records are typed by administrators for the military, Urena said. Mistakes are made but a separate form exists to correct those errors.

The National Personnel Records Center also has no record for Stokes and a spokeswoman for the Marines said there is no record of Stokes. The city's investigation did turn up a legitimate discharge record for Stokes' son, also named James Stokes, who served in the Marines until 1986.

Urena said the results of the investigation were disappointing.

"It's horrible," he said. "It's a disgrace, in a way. There's so many Marines that died to uphold this honor."

"As elected officials and as members of the community, we should set an example for the younger generation," he said. "And what sort of example are you setting by claiming to be something that you weren't?"

Stokes this month has also faced criticism for a decades-old criminal record that includes two short stints in jail for fraud and cheating a person of property. The city personnel office would not allow him to play Santa Claus at the annual tree lighting, though Personnel Director Frank Bonet would not say if that decision was made because of information in a criminal records check on Stokes.