FRESNO – Madera High School 1984 graduate, Major General Clay L. Garrison has been ousted as head of the California Air National Guard. The General has been relieved of duty following complaints of reprisals against whistleblowers and allegations of a cover-up of misconduct that reached into the highest ranks of the organization.

Lt. Col. Thomas Keegan, spokesman for the California Military Department, said the department had lost "faith, trust and confidence" in Garrison's ability to lead. Garrison, also a graduate of the Air Force Academy, was the top commander of the county’s second largest state air guard leading more then 4,700 members of the California Air National Guard.

The cover-up allegations stem from a March 2015 incident when Staff Sgt. Jennifer Pineda, a 15-year veteran of the Guard, was about to change into her uniform in a women's bathroom at the 144th Fighter Wing in Fresno when she discovered her boots had been soiled with urine. Complaints were filed by the sergeant and several other guardsmen that apparently fell on deaf ears with the higher ups.

According to a Los Angeles Times report, Guard members were afraid to approach Garrison with any reports of wrongdoing, fearing they would be punished. The article states that Garrison did not act alone in allowing this cover-up to happen but it all happened under his watchful eye. Garrison should have demanded a more thorough investigation from the start.

The California Military Department asked the U.S. Air Force Inspector General's Office to over-see an investigation into whether whistleblowers at the 144th suffered reprisals for questioning the actions of their superiors on a range of matters.

"Based on this (Los Angeles Times) article, and in addition to other evidence collected, it would appear that there is a culture of reprisal, or at a minimum the perception of reprisal, that has a long stemmed history within the 144th," the inspector general report states.

Garrison will retire in the coming weeks.