The D.C. government
entered into a contract with a convicted felon who claims he’s invented a way to double the range of electric vehicles.
Self-described inventor Lawrence Hardge created a small box to be installed into D.C.’s parking enforcement vehicles. Electrical engineers say this product is untested and practically impossible.
[...]
“There's not technologies that I'm aware of that can really boost that same battery pack to significantly more than 200 mile range," said
Paul Albertus, associate director of the
Maryland Energy Innovation Institute. "There's a variety of limitations just from basic chemical theory. There's only so much energy you can store for the materials that you put into a battery."[...]
Court documents show Hardge was sentenced to 26 years in prison for a felony conviction in 2001. He was found guilty of selling unregistered securities from his home state of Mississippi.
[...]
But WUSA9's questions remain: How did a convicted felon with an invention not independently tested and deemed impossible by experts get a lucrative contract with the D.C. government, and access to government equipment? We’ve asked D.C. government to explain that to us, but they’ve declined an interview.
Grrr. Modern politics SHOULD do after-action reviews, and possible problem analyses every time they make a decision. Inherent in politiucal decisions is that they affect a lot of people. And it’s a damn crime that they aren’t h\eld account able for results.
