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Army Releases December & Calendar Year 2011 Suicide Data

2012-01-20T11:21:00.000-05:00

Army Releases December & Calendar Year 2011 Suicide Data

The Army released suicide data today for the month of December and calendar year (CY) 2011. During December, among active-duty soldiers, there were 11 potential suicides: two have been confirmed as suicide, and nine remain under investigation. For November, the Army reported seven potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, five have been confirmed as a suicide, and two remain under investigation. For CY 2011 there were 164 potential active-duty suicides of which 140 have been confirmed as suicides, and 24 remain under investigation.

During December, among reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were five potential suicides (four Army National Guard and one Army Reserve): three have been confirmed as suicide and two remain under investigation. For November, among that same group, there were eight potential suicides. Since the release of that report, three cases have been added for a total of 11 cases (11 Army National Guard and no Army Reserve). Of those, nine were confirmed as suicides and two remain under investigation. For CY 2011, there were 114 potential not on active duty suicides (80 National Guard and 34 Army Reserve): 102 have been confirmed as suicide, and 12 remain under investigation.

A report released today, “Army 2020 Generating the Health and Discipline of the Force,” referred to as the “Army Gold Book,” represents the next phase in Army health and disciplinary promotion efforts. The report assesses progress made, as well as identifies and addresses remaining gaps in policy, programs and procedures relating to soldier health and discipline since the release of the “Army Red Book” in July 2010. It also underscores the importance of ongoing leader education, tireless commitment and open communication at all levels in assuring that the right choices continue to be made for our soldiers, the Army and our nation.

“As we look ahead to the strategic reset, transitioning from a predominantly wartime Army to a ready and responsive one, leaders at every level must be actively engaged. They must understand the issues addressed in this report, apply the many lessons learned and, unlike the mostly reactive efforts of the post-Vietnam Army, continue to take a proactive approach to generating health and discipline in the force.

“This report should serve as a comprehensive guide, a roadmap of sorts reflecting not only how far we have come in recent years, but more importantly, provide direction as we look ahead to the strategic reset and the many challenges we will inevitably face as we come back home,” according to the “Gold Book.”

Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Trained consultants are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and can be contacted by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or by visiting their website athttp://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org .

Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdf and Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf .

The Army's comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.preventsuicide.army.mil .
Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).

Information about Military OneSource is located at http://www.militaryonesource.comor by dialing the toll-free number 1-800-342-9647for those residing in the continental United States. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource website for dialing instructions for their specific location.

Information about the Army’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf/.
The Defense Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil .

The website for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is http://www.afsp.org/, and the Suicide Prevention Resource Council site is found athttp://www.sprc.org/index.asp .

Source: DOD Announcement, verbatim

Death Memorial

2012-01-19T07:15:00.000-05:00

Petty Officer 3rd Class Matthew David Brandt, June 4, 1982 - January 19, 2005

My story begins on January 18, 2005 (January 19th -- Guam). It was about 10:30 p.m. when two Naval officers knocked on my door. When I opened the door, the first thought that crossed my mind was that Matt had been hurt or in an accident. It never occurred to me that he was dead.

I asked them to come in and my husband and daughter came downstairs. My husband had this terrible look on his face and my dughter and I didn't know what was happening.

I said, "What happened to Matt? Is he OK?" They said, "No, your son has passed away. He was found not breathing in his barracks."

That is all the information we were told. They had no explanation. I thought someone had hit me with a truck and knocked me down, all I could do is say there must be some mistake. I just talked with him the day before and he was fine.

Neither officer had any details as to what happened or why he was dead.

Before entering the service, Matt had never had any major medical problems -- no migraine headaches, just the normal kid and teenagers illnesses. After boot camp he was sent to technical school and then he requested Guam as one of his top picks. He was then transferred there for a two year stay.
After about six months, he was bitten by some kind of poisonous spider. They had to operate on his knee to remove the poison and he was hospitalized for a week. He started going to the ER everytime he got one and their protocol was Percocet and morphine shots and go back to your barracks and sleep it off. They always did the same thing.

For some time he would visit the doctor's office or the ER -- approximately 45 times to be more accurate. During that time, he was given numerous prescritions for pain. He complained about not liking to take some of them because they messed his eating and stomach up. At one pint, they admitted him to the hospital for testing to try and figure out what was happening.

One doctor did a spinal tap and Matthew had to go back to the hospital to get a blood patch where his spinal fluid was leaking and causing problems. During this time he was placed on medical hold, meaning he could not be moved to another duty station until he was better. He was referred to a neurologist in town for treatment, which meant Acupuncture. The neurologist prescribed Valium.
Even though his medical doctor on base referred him to the doctor in town, not once were records of the outcome of the appointments sent back on base.

At one point, the base doctor consulted a USN Neurologist for his opinion, and was told to abort giving Matt any morphine. Also, the medical doctor on base requested he be sent to Tripler Army base in Hawaii for treatment, but she never followed up.

When Matt would come home for a visit, he never complained of headaches. We thought they had gotten better. The last visit home was Thanksgiving 2004. He came home and surprised me the week before. He was healthy and seemed to be happy. He was excited that he was finally going to be taken off medical hold and moved to another duty station. He went back to Guam on December 10th.
I talked with him several times a week and everything seemed to be fine. On January 17th, he called and talked for a while and was again, very happy to be moving to California. According to his friend, that day he got very sick and was throwing up and complaining about a headache. She said she wanted to take him to the ER. He did not want to go because he didn't want to mess up his leaving Guam. However, she insisted and took him anyway. While he was there, he got the standard treatment. His friend said they gave him two shots in his IV and a prescription to take home. They left them back in the ER room for about two hours.

When the nurse came back by, his friend said he was complaining of blurred vision and is still not better. The nurse said, "He will feel better in a while." She then proceeded to place a pen in his hand and help him sign his name. At this point, they left the hospital.

Matthew's friend took him back to his barracks and said he could barely stay awake to eat anything. He then went to bed and she said he started snoring very loudly, which for him was unusual. She fell asleep and about 8 a.m. woke up and he was not breathing. She then called 911 and they came and tried to revive him. They took him to te hospital where he was pronounced DOA.

It took ten days for the Navy to return my son to us. They performed their autopsy and said Matt died of pneumonia.

I was told that is what they were putting on the death certificate in order to get him released. They were still waiting on toxicology reports and various other tests that would take some time to complete.
In the meantime, he was shipped home and we buried him. Several months went by and we called about every two weeks to discuss how the JAG investigations were going.

At some point, we were given another updated death certificate which stted that Matt died of an accidental overdose. As far as the Navy was concerned, he woke up in the middle of the night and took some other drugs to ease his pain and that is what caused him to die.

According to a witness who was with him all night, he never got up at all after he went to bed. During the course of the investigation there were many unanswered questions tht were left unanswered.
We were visited by some JAG investigators to interview us about Matt. Of course we had no idea what to say. We only knew what was going on over in Guam according to what Matt told us.

On September 21, 2005, we were hand delivered the complete JAG report. It contained several interviews with Matt's friends and co-workers along with doctors' reports, medical reports, etc.
The findings of the JAG report were nothing but a lot of procedural changes along with a few disciplinary actions on some of the medical personnel involved with Matt. When I requested information as to when those actions were to be taken, I was told that was strictly information for the Navy and not for me.

I still think that there are many pieces of the puzzle still missing. I am not sure who is responsible for my son's death, and I am not sure I will ever know. I do know that there are doctors practicing medicine on young boys and men in the service who are not held accountable for anything, which I think is an atrocity. I never knew what the Feres Doctrine was until this happened to us. I am sure there are many Americans who have never heard of it.

We are currently still waiting for the NCIS Investigation to be completed. It has now been three years and I really don't know much more than I knew on the night I was told about Matt's death, except there were lots of medical mistakes made during his time in the Military. He was given a lot of drugs that he should not have been given. He was a good sone and I would have given my life for him to still be here.

Mary Ann White, mother of Matthew Brandt.

If you know anything about this case, contact Mary Ann White through this website

American Society in Crisis: Non-Hostile Deaths Are Overtaking Veterans

2012-01-16T06:58:00.000-05:00

Source: Huffington Post
Journalist: Cilla McCain
Original Post: American Society in Crisis: Non-Hostile Deaths Are Overtaking Veterans
Type: News Article

November 7, 2011 — For nearly a decade, I've been researching and writing about the issue of non-hostile deaths in the military. Early on in my research, I would get upset at the information provided by our troops and their families. Their revelations painted a picture of a dysfunctional military culture that allows medical and legal malpractice, as well as violent crime, to thrive and exist. As a result, I naively reached out to every genre of media available, imploring them to bring the looming crisis of military deaths to the public consciousness. Nobody ever found it newsworthy; an apathy that made me confused and at times livid.

I remember calling my friend Hunter Glass to vent my frustration. In his efforts to help me make sense of it all, he spoke some very prophetic words:

"Well, everyone will wake up one day. It's just like putting bad fuel in your car day after day. You may get away with it for years, but one day, the damage to your engine will get so bad that it shuts down."

Glass, is a respected detective, consultant and lecturer on the topic of crime and security threats in the military. He travels constantly, speaking to citizens and law enforcement officials trying to prepare us for the inevitable dangers making its way to our society as the war comes home. With the exception of reaching Dan Rather and a few others, his message has fell on deaf ears.

Oscar-winning writer/director, Paul Haggis, also began publicly addressing the fact that we need to be thinking about the long term effects of war when his 2007 movie "In the Valley of Elah" was released by Warner Brothers. Despite stellar casting of Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron and Josh Brolin, Elah, fell largely on deaf ears too.

Now, we finally have the Veteran's Administration admitting that America is losing a veteran to suicide (also classified as non-hostile death) every 80 minutes. This is indeed a public health crisis of limitless repercussions that stretch far beyond the deceased. There is little doubt, the children, wives and parents of these veterans will need assistance dealing with the tragedy, emotional trauma and stigma of suicide. If this were any other form of widespread death, the entire country would be shouting the words "pandemic," with media and government officials advising citizens of the best ways to protect themselves.

"The Center for a New American Security" released a policy brief in October 2011 titled "Losing the Battle: The Challenge of Military Suicide" that has researchers and administrators at military medical facilities buzzing with activity. The brief examines the phenomenon of military suicide and the preventative measures currently in place. It goes even further by pointing out the problems with these existing measures and offers solutions for improvement. However, as the brief states, one of the most elusive aspects to suicide prevention is removing the stigma of mental illness.

There is much confusion as to why the stigma persists despite massive efforts aimed to remove it. Even worse, the efforts are ultimately short-sighted, because the stigma reaches much further than a service members unit and military career. Right now, insurance companies and civilian employers are allowed to ask about the health backgrounds of its applicants. It is naïve to assume the decision makers involved would not hold PTSD or TBI against veterans. In the outside world, there must be laws to protect our veterans from discrimination for having mental health issues.

Another point of confusion is the fact that as much as 50% of the troops who take their own lives have never deployed. So if the cause of suicide is not PTSD or TBI, then what is going on? This question brings to mind another major issue not getting the attention it deserves; the possibility that some of these "suicides" are actually "murders."

Let's face it, with a veteran allegedly committing suicide every 80 minutes, it is certainly possible, if not probable, that at least a small percentage of these deaths are in fact homicides. With such an overwhelming suicide crisis in our midst, investigators may automatically assume every unattended death is just one more suicide. Homicide is not mentioned in the brief, yet in July 2011, the Inspector General of the Department of Defense established the creation of the Violent Crimes Division. Their press release states:

DoD IG Establishes Violent Crimes Division. The Department of Defense Office of Inspector General has established a new division that will evaluate DoD and military service criminal investigative policies, programs, and training focused on violent crimes including murder, suicide, sexual assaults, robbery, child abuse, and aggravated assault.

Although the DoD has not openly admitted to the possibility that some of the alleged suicides could indeed be homicides, the creation of the Violent Crimes Division clearly indicates a high level of concern for the way murders and suicides are investigated by calling for an evaluation of the policies.

While writing the book "Murder In Baker Company" I was made aware of a three-year investigation conducted by Congressman Frank Pallone (NJ) and former Congressman Dave Levy (NY) to recognize deficiencies and correct the findings of flawed military death investigations. The two congressmen presented their investigative report on September 12, 1996 to the Subcommittee on Personnel of the Senate Armed Services Committee. I included a copy of it in the exhibits section of my book because the issues it addresses are still going on today. The lengthy report clearly outlines the dangers of investigators and medical examiners utilizing a psychological autopsy, or psychological profile, as it is known today, to determine the likelihood of suicide. Their concerns for the accuracy of the psychological profile were summed up as follows:

"Psychological profiling as is currently being utilized in military psychological autopsies is only as good as the information provided to the profiler by criminal investigators who have performed a thorough investigation. If, in fact, a DoD investigator is misusing information, misquoting witnesses, and is deliberately or unknowingly misdirecting the profiler, the psychological autopsy is irretrievably corrupted."

The Pallone and Levy presentation also requested a "board of investigative review" be established to handle conflicting medical, technical and investigative findings presented by surviving military families. But the request was to no avail. The DoD maintains the final word on whether military investigations have been carried out properly. In other words, it has the privilege of policing itself and answers to nobody.

There is also the issue of the "51% rule" for determining suicide. The 51% rule basically means that if 51% of the evidence collected in a death investigation suggests suicide, then "suicide" can be the official cause of death and the remaining 49% of evidence, ignored - evidence that may indicate homicide. This method is used in both civilian and military sectors.

To make it all even more preposterous, the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Laboratory or "USACIL," which is the military's premier crime lab, is under heavy scrutiny for systematic botching and falsification of evidence testing. Senator Patrick Leahy (VT) and Senator Chuck Grassley (IA) wrote a letter in May 2011, to Inspector General Gordon Heddell of the DoD imploring him to establish an independent entity to investigate. In the letter, the senator's stated:

"The failure to address these issues in a timely manner could damage the Nation's trust in the military justice system."

Recent reports of prosecutions relating to theft rings and corruption among troops of all branches and ranks add to the belief that murder in such an environment is also highly probable. The idea of preventing "damaged trust" is too little, too late for many military families who don't believe their deceased loved ones took their own life. Kimberly Stahlman and Tracy Shue, widows of Colonel Mike Stahlman (USMC) and Colonel Philip Shue (USAF) are not waiting for the bureaucrats to take action. They are taking their message of injustice and the need for a system of checks and balances in military death investigations to the American people and have established "The Stahlman-Shue Bill of Rights for Bereaved Military Families" to insure investigations are accurate and that the nation's military families have a voice in the process. Right now, our society is twisting in a wind of confusion about the death toll. But it's not necessary. By allowing our veterans and their families to be heard, we may finally get to the bottom of all the questions plaguing this dire crisis.

Pay attention people, the military engine is knocking loudly.

--reprinted with permission of the author

Widow of Marine Corps Colonel Involved in Haditha Trials Launches Campaign to Prove Her Husband Was Murdered

2012-01-14T07:31:00.000-05:00

Military widows join forces to raise awareness of non-hostile military deaths.

(1888PressRelease) January 12, 2012 - Easley, SC - Kimberly Stahlman, widow of Colonel Michael Stahlman USMC, is fighting to prove that her husband did not commit suicide but was instead murdered. However, the Marine Corps refuses to help. As part of this fight she partnered with Tracy Shue, widow of Colonel Philip Shue USAF and writer/military family advocate Cilla McCain and drafted a Bill of Rights for Bereaved Military Families. To bring this campaign to the public, they have started a petition to Congress and launched MilitaryHomicide.org as a resource for other military families facing the same circumstances.

Marine Corps Colonel Michael Stahlman was an investigating officer in the case against Lt. Andrew Grayson, an intelligence officer charged with making false statements, attempting fraudulant discharge, and obstructing justice, in connection to the deaths of 24 Iraqi civilians in the city of Haditha. Colonel Stahlman was vocal in his disappointment with the manner in which the entire Haditha matter was handled by the Marine Corps hierarchy and recommended that charges against Grayson be dropped. The recommendation was rejected by prosecutors and Grayson eventually was cleared of all charges in June 2008.

At the time of Grayson's acquittal, Colonel Stahlman was serving as the Rule of Law Coordinator at Camp Ramadi Iraq, where he was found unconscious with a gunshot wound to the left side of his head on July 31, 2008. Never regaining consciousness, he died months later on October 5, 2008 at Bethesda Naval Hospital. His shooting was immediately suspicious to his widow Kimberly. Despite the fact that Colonel Stahlman was right-handed and had no history of depression, the Naval Criminal Investigative Services and the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology apparently labeled his shooting a suicide within hours of the incident without performing all available evidence testing.

Mrs. Stahlman hired experienced forensic reconstruction consultants to dissect all of the evidence collected after the shooting. The result was the conclusion that Colonel Stahlman did not shoot himself, but was instead the victim of homicide.Mrs. Stahlman presented the scientific evidence to NCIS, AFIP and South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham, but she was shocked when they refused to thoroughly address the detailed and compelling forensics analysis or investigate further.

In addition to the petition efforts, Mrs. Stahlman separately is working with attorneys Victor A. Kubli and Alan M. Grayson to pursue legal action to, among other things, correct the manner of death finding for Colonel Stahlman and defend his remarkable legacy of years of exemplary military service. She also is telling the story of her struggle in a forthcoming book co-authored with McCain. Release date is not yet available.

For further information, please visit www.militaryhomicide.org or, for the status of efforts to correct the manner of death finding for Colonel Stahlman, contact attorney Victor A. Kubli at (301) 801-2330.

Questions linger in US soldier's death: Was it a game?

2012-01-13T06:27:00.000-05:00

By Jeff Black, msnbc.com

An Army soldier who says he killed his roommate during a pistol game called “quick draw” remains free even though he's charged with murder, there are questions about evidence in the case, and the dead soldier’s family is calling for answers.

Sgt. Matthew Gallagher, a 22-year-old from Falmouth, Mass., was shot in the head by Sgt. Brent McBride, 25, on June 26, 2011, on their base in Al-Kut, Iraq, according to the Army.

But the details and circumstances of Gallagher’s death remain under investigation.

When first notified of Gallagher’s death weeks after the incident, his widow, Katie Gallagher, and his mother, Cheryl Ruggiero, were left with the impression he was killed in combat.

Read the entire story here.

--submitted by Lois Vanderbur

Death of Private Danny Chen

2012-01-09T18:17:00.003-05:00

We thought she was safe

2012-01-08T06:51:00.000-05:00

Last April, straight out of the Army’s course for human resources specialists, Gamboa was sent to the Headquarters Company of the 1st Personnel Command, in Schwetzingen, Germany — and, her mother thought, to safety.

But on Sunday, two Army officers showed up at Posada’s door. They told her that her daughter, a 19-year-old private first class, full of life and laughter and recently home for the holidays, was dead.

“They just told me she was found stabbed in her barracks,” Posada said.

Read the entire story here.

Private Chen’s Family Learns More About Hazing by Fellow G.I.’s

2012-01-06T07:54:00.000-05:00

The officers in command of the battalion of Pvt. Danny Chen, who the Army says committed suicide in Afghanistan in October after being hazed by fellow soldiers, were aware of the harsh treatment he had repeatedly received, his family said Thursday.

The family had already been told by investigators that other soldiers had taunted Private Chen with racial epithets and forced him to crawl on the ground while they pelted him with rocks. But this week, new details of his treatment were disclosed to the family.

At a news conference, family members and their supporters said Private Chen had been mistreated virtually every day of his six-week stint in Afghanistan. They said he had been called a “gook,” a “chink” and “dragon lady.” He was also forced to wear a green helmet and shout orders in Chinese, to a battalion that had no other Chinese-American soldiers, they said.

Read the entire story here.

Editor's note: Many of the families in this group can relate to this story. Our sons and daughters were subjected to similar group bullying within the military services. We have been kept in the dark. The details have been buried by the military, even though we have spent years and a great deal of money in legal fees to try to get answers.

We are happy that, at last, a light in being shone on these abuses. We are glad that politicians and the local communities of victims are coming forward and forcing public attention.

We'd like to think that we have had some part in getting this change for the better.

Man Guilty of Murder of Marine

2011-12-28T15:35:00.000-05:00

SANTA ANA – A court-martialed Marine was found guilty Tuesday of first-degree murder in the killing of a fellow Camp Pendleton Marine in a secluded area of San Clemente in a dispute over stolen drug money.

An Orange County jury of six men and six women deliberated a day and a half before convicting Christian William Carney, 25, of Manorville, N.Y., of murder, criminal threats and attempting to dissuade a witness.

Carney faces a possible 28 year and eight months to life in prison at his sentencing Jan. 20 by Superior Court Judge William Froeberg.

Jurors found a sentencing enhancement that Carney personally used a gun not to be true, a charge that would have added another 25 years to Carney's prison term.

Deputy District Attorney Ebrahim Baytieh portrayed Carney as a liar during his closing arguments, asking jurors not to be fooled by the defendant's "crying on cue" and "acting" during his testimony, calling him a "vicious, cold-blooded killer."

The prosecutor said we should thank Carney for his military service, including a tour of duty in Iraq, but asked jurors not to give him a pass for the fatal shooting of Stephen Serrano, 20, on May 13, 2008.
Serrano's parents kissed after the verdicts were read. His wife wept. In another section of the courtroom gallery, Carney's mother, also in tears, called out to her son as he was taken away in handcuffs: "I love you Chris, and I know you didn't do this."

Serrano's relatives said afterward they were pleased with the outcome.

"It's a tragedy that ... their family also had to suffer with the loss of their son," said Serrano's mom Christl McKenney, who in her hand held her son's Marine boot camp graduation photo facing the jurors as the verdicts were read.

Baytieh zeroed in on the many lies he said the defendant told when he took the witness stand.
Carney was caught in the biggest one of them all, the prosecutor said, when he testified Serrano was fatally shot by another fellow Marine, earlier than the time he actually was killed.

The defendant testified he had no idea Alvin Reed Lovely, 24, of Dallas, then also a Pendleton Marine, would shoot Serrano, when the two confronted Serrano about stealing Carney's drug money.

"When you are a liar and a murderer, justice will catch up to you," said Baytieh after the verdicts were announced.

Most of the jurors left the courtroom without comment.

One juror, who did not identify himself, said the key factor pointing toward guilt was evidence that Carney knew Lovely had a gun when they walked Serrano up the isolated San Clemente hillside. The juror said it made sense that Carney knew something volatile could happen.

Defense attorney Jennifer Keller told jurors her client made a lot of bad choices but is hardly a killer.
The bottomline, she argued, was that Lovely, and not Carney, shot Serrano.

Keller expressed disappointment with the verdicts.

"We thought his testimony rang very true," she said of her client. "This was really a case of somebody picking the wrong companion, and he's going to suffer for the rest of his life for it."

Lovely will be tried later on charges of murder, criminal threats, plus using a gun. He faces 38 years to life if convicted.

"Hopefully, we get the same justice with Lovely," said Serrano's wife Sophia.

Carney has been tried and court-martialed for drug dealing at Camp Pendleton and is serving six years, according to testimony.

Baytieh ended his arguments with a photo of Serrano in a white suit and the numbers 2 and 1,310 displayed in bold yellow letters respectively to the left and right of the picture for the jury to see.
Two represented the number of days before Serrano was discovered face down and on his knees in a San Clemente drainage ditch, while 1,310, the prosecutor said, was the number of days that had passed since the victim died.

Read the entire story here.

First-ever audit of Arlington headstones finds errors

2011-12-24T06:43:00.001-05:00

(Reuters) - More than 64,000 headstones at Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington, D.C. may contain typos or other errors, according to a new government report.

The errors, which mar 25 percent of the 260,000 grave markers in what is arguably the nation's best-known military burial ground, include misspelled names and incorrect ranks, birth dates and death dates.

The report -- the first of its kind in Arlington's 147-year history -- was prompted by two studies from the Army's Inspector General that found "serious mismanagement and process failures" at the cemetery. It was published on Thursday.

The audit team spent a year counting gravesites in the cemetery, photographing the grave markers and then comparing the information on them with all available paper and electronic records.
Read the entire story here.

Army: Recruiters not at fault in Vermilion man’s death

2011-12-23T10:58:00.000-05:00

VERMILION — A U.S. Army Recruiting Command investigation found that recruiters were not at fault in the death of 20-year-old Army recruit Glenni “Glenn” Wilsey V, who died of a heart attack while dieting to enlist in the Army, but one recruiter admitted giving Wilsey a waist band against Army policy.

Wilsey’s mother, Lora Bailey, declined to discuss the report, saying she did not want to jeopardize other investigations into her son’s March 3 death.

However, in an email this week, Bailey indicated that she plans to meet in the “near future” with U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, and Maj. Gen. David L. Mann, who ordered the investigation.

“I do believe the investigation was done with integrity and no bias on the part of Major General Mann and his staff,” Bailey wrote in the email. “The investigation has brought up several issues which need to be addressed before I am able to release anything.”

Read the entire story here.

submitted by Lora Bailey

Death Memorial

2011-12-23T06:36:00.001-05:00

Dear Military People and Nonmilitary People:

What you are about to read is one of the most important things you can do for yourself, your family and any future person who is to ever join the military. I will try to keep this short, but must explain some things first so you know this is not a farce.

My name is Renee Thurlow. My husband is in the military and in October 2001 our son joined the USMC. Our son never finished. He died a horrible death in boot camp on December 23, 2001. We are NOT placing blame on the institution. We need a strong military. We need one with honorable people in it. That is why we are trying to make it a safer place. Through these last two years we have found that many military people and people in general are under the misconception of being able to sue the government and not being able to sue the government.

I am going to pass on what we have learned. There are thousands of others out there like us who have lost children going to serve this country and the government gives us no help. They fill everything full of lies and cover-ups. We are not taking this sitting down. I am not some freaked out mother who cannot deal with the loss of her son. I am a PROUD mother and wife of two of my guys who serve/served this country like you do.

This could happen to you or one day if your child or grandchild goes off into the military it could happen to them. Those in our government will NOT help you. THIS IS ABOUT THE Feres doctrine. IT IS A DOCTRINE THAT PREVENTS ANY MILITARY MEMBER FROM SUING THE GOVERNMENT not for simple negligence but for intentional, deliberate or grossly negligent acts.

If you go to a military hospital and they cut off the wrong foot, oh well! Tough is what you will be told basically. Many of us have been busting our humps trying to change this. We KNOW if there were an ACCOUNTABILITY factor there would be almost no deaths due to pure grossly negligent or criminal negligence. Unfortunately, the only way to hold someone accountable for their individual wrongful acts if the government will not is through petitioning the federal court for redress of wrong. All of us who have lost a child would rather have our children back, but that is not going to happen. Many people out there have their children living with them because they were not taken care of medically (in a proper manner) in the military hospitals and these children cannot function on their own. This could one day be you or someone you know. We have the greatest chance coming up to change this forever.
WE CANNOT do it without the entire United States joining us!

NO Senator as of this date has stepped forth to stop the abuses under the Feres doctrine! This is unsatisfactory and they have their cushy jobs because of men and women who serve this country and they will not lift a finger to help protect you!

We want them to recognize that fact and care enough to make things safer for those serving this country. It is only right! It could happen to your child.

Justin’s story has been featured in People magazine December 15, 2003, issue and NBC Dateline is on the agenda. The problem of Americans dying due to the gross negligence and or wrongful acts and omissions of federal employees in our military is alarming! Since Justin died I know of at least 6 other deaths in boot camp alone and this does NOT include the ones who died at Camp Pendleton from Meningitis.

This is obscene that these kids are dying needlessly!

This is not just for those of us who have lost kids. It concerns the VA and the people who have served and have been thrown to the side. This is NOT a joke.

Just a FEW minutes of your time can help prevent the possibility of you or someone you love dying needlessly. Your voice can aid in changing the fact that abuses that are happening right here in our own country to our own men and women go unanswered and without any accountability to those who inflicted the injustice.

Our prayers and thanks go out to ALL of the military men and women who serve this country and to the families who know the deepest meaning of sacrifice and support.
Our prayers and thanks go to those who have been lost on the battlefield and to their families who know the truest meaning of loss.

Our prayers and hearts go to those especially who have been robbed of their family member through the abuses caused by an institution that promotes honor as one of their first attributes.

This is for you son – every tear and every heartbeat. I love you with all of my heart. “Until we meet at
HIS feet.”

PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW. MILITARY AND NON MILITARY. THANKS AND GOD BLESS ALL OF YOU AND YOUR FAMILIES

Gratefully,
Renee Thurlow

Linked by trauma, officer seeks recognition for soldier he never knew

2011-12-22T12:44:00.001-05:00

WASHINGTON — Spc. Jacob Andrews and Maj. Andrew DeKever served in the same brigade in Afghanistan in 2009. Separated by rank, role and age, they never met, but both men returned from war with psychological wounds.

One sought help and recovered. The other was abandoned by the Army and hanged himself.

Read the entire story here.

Army Charges 8 in Death of Fellow Soldier

2011-12-21T12:58:00.002-05:00

Eight U.S. troops are facing charges including involuntary manslaughter and negligent homicide in the death of Pvt. Danny Chen, 19, who was found dead of “an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound” in a guard tower in Afghanistan in October, the U.S. military said Wednesday.

Chen’s case became a major news story in New York after family members alleged he had been hazed before his death because of his Chinese ethnicity. An Army official told the family that Chen had been beaten by superiors and subjected to racially motivated taunts, according to an October story in The New York Times.

“After two months of agonizing over the loss, it is of some comfort and relief that the Army is taking this seriously,” Chen’s mother, Su Zhen, said through an interpreter at a news conference Wednesday in New York, according to an MSNBC report.

Last week, hundreds of supporters took to the streets of Lower Manhattan to demand that the Army take action, and news of the military charges quickly led the stories on the websites of most major New York City news organizations.

Of the eight soldiers charged, five face charges including negligent homicide and manslaughter, while three others face charges including making false statements or dereliction of duty.

ISAF spokesman Sgt. 1st Class Alan Davis said via email from Afghanistan that “the charges relate to conduct that occurred in the time leading up to [Chen’s] death.”

All eight soldiers charged served in the same unit as Chen: Company C, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 1st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division, based out of Fort Wainwright, Alaska. They were assigned to Combat Outpost Palace in southern Afghanistan.

Read the entire updated story here.

'Quick Draw' Being Blamed For Soldier's Death

2011-12-18T06:34:00.000-05:00

Army Sgt. Matthew Gallagher's Death Ruled Homicide

BOSTON -- A game of "quick-draw" is being blamed for the homicide of a North Falmouth soldier.

According to the Cape Cod Times, an investigative hearing was held Saturday in Fort Hood, Texas, regarding the death of Army Sgt. Matthew R. Gallagher.

An Army Criminal Investigation Division special agent who testified at the hearing said Gallagher’s roommate, Army Sgt. Brent McBride, admitted to accidentally shooting Gallagher in the head by accident hours after the incident in the Wasit province of Iraq.

Cheryl Ruggiero, Gallagher’s mother, was first told by the Pentagon that her son died in combat on June 26, a week before his 23rd birthday.

Initially, the Department of Defense called his death non-combat related. But Ruggiero said she was informed in August that her son's death was a homicide.

Read more: http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/30021671/detail.html#ixzz1gswKgmVp

Read the entire article here.

Army Releases November Suicide Data

2011-12-16T07:21:00.000-05:00

The Army released suicide data today for the month of November. Among active-duty soldiers, there were seven potential suicides: none have been confirmed as suicide and seven remain under investigation. For October 2011, the Army reported 17 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, four cases have been confirmed as suicide and 13 cases remain under investigation.

During November 2011, among Reserve Component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were eight potential suicides (eight Army National Guard and no Army Reserve): two have been confirmed as suicide and six remain under investigation. For October 2011, the Army reported 12 potential suicides among not-on-active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, one case has been added for a total of 13 cases (five Army National Guard and eight Army Reserve). Four cases have been confirmed as suicide and nine cases remain under investigation.

As of Nov. 30, 2011, the Army has identified 260 potential soldier suicides for CY 2011. Of that total, 154 were active duty suicides: 100 have been confirmed as suicide and 54 remain under investigation; 106 were Reserve Component not on active duty suicides (73 Army National Guard and 33 Army Reserve): 84 have been confirmed as suicide and 22 remain under investigation. Compared to previous years, the Army had 305 in CY 2010 (159 active-duty and 146 not-on-active-duty) and 242 in CY 2009 (162 active-duty and 80 not-on-active-duty).

"Suicide continues to be a challenge for our Army Family," said Sgt. Maj. of the Army Raymond F. Chandler III. "It is a devastating loss when one of our own, whether soldier, civilian or family member, dies by suicide."Chandler also said that overcoming this challenge will take the Army's collective efforts, dedication, support and understanding. "To that end, I am calling on all of our leaders, but especially the noncommissioned officers, the backbone of our great Army, to make a difference. We must cultivate a climate that encourages help-seeking behaviors and supports those who ask for help," said Chandler. "By standing shoulder to shoulder, we can ensure that no one stands alone!"

Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.Trained consultants are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and can be contacted by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or by visiting their website at http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org .

Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdfand Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf .

The Army's comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located athttp://www.preventsuicide.army.mil
.
Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).

Information about Military OneSource is located at http://www.militaryonesource.com or by dialing the toll-free number 1-800-342-9647 for those residing in the continental United States. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource website for dialing instructions for their specific location.

Information about the Army's Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf .
The Defense Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil .
The website for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is http://www.afsp.org , and the Suicide Prevention Resource Council site is found at http://www.sprc.org/index.asp .

Source: Official DOD Announcement

March & Vigil for Fallen Private Danny Chen on Thursday

2011-12-14T06:10:00.001-05:00

The New York chapter of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA-NY), a nonprofit civil rights organization for justice, is mobilizing later this week on behalf of Private Danny Chen. A nineteen-year-old son of Chinatown, Private Chen died from non-combat related injuries at an American Army base in Afghanistan in early October. The circumstances surrounding his death are somewhat suspicious, and many fear a cover-up reminiscent of Pat Tillman just a few years earlier.

Read the entire story here.

Chinatown Soldier's Death Prompts Meeting With Pentagon Officials

Read more: http://www.dnainfo.com/20111213/lower-east-side-east-village/chinatown-soldiers-death-prompts-meeting-with-pentagon-officials#ixzz1gVYOWqVr

Mother of Marine killed after rape claim leads training sessions on sexual assault cases

2011-12-13T07:07:00.002-05:00

MARY McCARTY Dayton Daily News
First Posted: December 03, 2011 - 12:36 pm
Last Updated: December 03, 2011 - 3:09 pm

DAYTON, Ohio — Mary Lauterbach of Vandalia remains a powerful voice for her daughter, Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach, nearly four years after she was murdered by fellow Marine Cesar Laurean.
On Nov. 16, Mary Lauterbach and her attorney, Merle Wilberding, attended the North Carolina Court of Appeals hearing in Raleigh, N.C., and listened as Laurean's attorneys argued that his first-degree murder conviction should be overturned because the judge did not allow jurors to consider a lesser charge of second-degree murder.

"We wanted to make our presence visible, and to remind them that Maria was a real person," Lauterbach said.

"We wanted to be a witness to justice," added Wilberding. "We're glad we went."

Laurean's state-appointed attorney, Ann Peterson, acknowledged that her client killed Lauterbach, but argued that the crime might not have been premeditated. Attorneys for the state countered that the fact that Laurean burned the body and buried Lauterbach in his backyard was proof of premeditation.
Lauterbach, 20, was eight months' pregnant at the time of her murder. Laurean is currently serving a life sentence without parole at the Pasquotank Correctional Institution, a high-security adult male prison in Elizabeth City, N.C.

"The trial court got it right," Wilberding said.

It was the second time in less than a month that Lauterbach, who now leads training sessions for the military, had been called upon to bear witness for her daughter.

On Oct. 28, three Department of Defense staffers flew to Dayton to brief Lauterbach on the Inspector General's report on the investigation of her daughter's sexual assault case. The scathing 46-page report concluded that the Naval Criminal Investigative Service criminal investigation was both "substantively and procedurally deficient" and that NCIS agents did not conduct the investigation "diligently, timely or completely, and logical investigative steps were not completed."

The report also noted that Camp Lejeune's Sexual Assault and Prevention Response Program officials violated policy in its response to Lauterbach's rape complaint. Consequently, the report concluded, Camp Lejeune's Sexual Assault Case Management Group, which is responsible for reviewing rape cases, was unable to "assure her safety, well-being and recovery after the sexual assault, principally because it did not know about it."

Lauterbach said the Inspector General's report is an important step toward accountability. The yearlong investigation revealed much she hadn't previously known about her daughter's sexual assault case. On May 11, 2007, Lauterbach reported she was raped by then-Cpl. Laurean, one of her supervisors. Laurean claimed he had consensual sex with her.

"The details of the investigation were even worse than we knew," Mary Lauterbach said. "Only three of the eight witnesses were interviewed before Maria died, and they weren't interviewed thoroughly. They didn't investigate the crime scene or check Laurean's alibis, or they would have found out that he was working on the day of the assault, as he claimed to be."

Read the entire story here.
--submitted by Bonnie Palecco

More US Soldiers Committed Suicide Than Died in Combat

2011-12-11T06:50:00.000-05:00

Read the entire story here.

Submitted by Lois Vanderbur

Report: Troops' Cremated Remains Went To Landfill

2011-12-08T07:50:00.000-05:00

Semper Fi Screenings

2011-12-05T06:13:00.000-05:00

The Camp Lejeune Documentary, Semper Fi: Always Faithful will screened in NY and California this month. If you are in the area, please take to the time to attend. Each screening will be followed by a brief question and answer session immediately after the film. Here are the dates and times for the next three screenings.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14 - NEW YORK
8PM
STRANGER THAN FICTION SERIES
IFC CENTER
323 SIXTH AVENUE @ 3RD STREET
NEW YORK, NY
http://stfdocs.com/films/semper_fi_always_faithful/

Rachel & Jerry will be at this screening

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14 - SAN FRANCISCO
7:30 PM
Embarcadero Cinema
One Embarcadero Center, Promenade Level
San Francisco, CA 94111
(415) 267-4893

Tony will be at this screening

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 15 - LOS ANGELES
7:30 PM
LANDMARK WESTSIDE PAVILION
10850 WEST PICO BLVD.
LOS ANGELES, CA 90064
Jerry and Tony will be at this screening.

The film continues to generate a lot of attention, especially on Capitol Hill. Last week we learned that S-277, the Caring for Camp Lejeune Veterans Act of 2011 is not dead yet and there is talk about moving the bill forward. We will keep everyone informed as new developments arise. If anyone has any questions, please post them on the bulletin board for our website, www.tftptf.com. Unfortunately, we can not answer each email individually.

Have a blessed holiday season and Merry Christmas.

Mike Partain

TFTPTF.COM

The Shameful Way the Military Handles Non-Combat Deaths

2011-12-03T16:47:00.000-05:00

Little or no information is given to families

What drove 1st Lieutenant Debra Banaszak of the Missouri National Guard over the edge?
It is a question her family tried to answer for a year after she committed suicide in Kuwait in 2005. Her family simply could not believe this loving mother and police officer who also had served 17 years with the Army National Guard would take her own life.

The family tried to pry more information out of the military, but what they were getting in return did not give them closure.

To this day, the Missouri National Guard still offers a press release dated October 31, 2005 — which is just three days after Banaszak was found dead — as the only information they can provide regarding her death. The release simply states that Banaszak “died of a non-combat related injury” on Oct. 28 in Kuwait.

“I’ve given you all the information I can on this,” said Major Tamara Spicer, public affairs officer for the Missouri National Guard, just recently to this reporter.
When pressed for anything more concrete than the 2005 press release, she continues to repeat herself and says nothing more: “I’ve given you all the information I can on this.”
Because of the military’s lax response, the Banaszak family told this reporter they have had to put the death of Debra behind them, or continue to suffer.

Read the entire story here.

Death Anniversary

2011-12-03T07:03:00.000-05:00

THOMAS TRAYLOR MURDER – ANOTHER MILITARY TRAGEDY

By Charolette Traylor

On December 6th, a week after Thanksgiving 1998, AOC Thomas Richard Traylor, USN, age 36, was found dead, in rural Inyokern, CA, from a gunshot wound to the chest. The cause of death was listed as suicide. He had been missing for two days. Traylor was a Navy Aviation Ordinance Chief on active duty stationed at the Weapons Testing Squadron, Naval Station, China Lake, CA.

On that morning of Dec 6th, Traylor’s neighbors, Larry Seymour & Joanie Hanson, found Traylor. They became alarmed when Traylor’s vehicle set on a dirt road for two days, only a quarter of a mile from Traylor’s home. They drove to the scene and found Traylor dead sitting behind the steering wheel of his vehicle. They immediately returned home and called the authorities.

The Inyokern County Fire Department was the first to arrive on the scene. Next was the County Reserve Deputy Roger Clark and Reserve County Coroner Ron Lunsford. The Liberty Ambulance Service arrived but did not transport. The remains went to the Kern County Morgue, Bakersfield, CA.

Mrs. Traylor had been in San Francisco for a couple of months making arrangements to place an elderly aunt into a rest home. She last spoke to Traylor on Thursday evening, Dec 03, 1998, around 6:00 P.M. from (SF). At that time Traylor was on his way out to a squadron get-together and promised to call her the following morning – which would be then Friday, Dec 04, 1998. When Mrs. Traylor did not receive the promised phone call from her husband the following morning she immediately contacted Traylor’s Gunner, CWO2 Vince Howell, at the Weapons Testing Squadron and was told Traylor had not been heard from or seen since the previous day which had been Thursday.

Mrs. Traylor continued to try and contact Traylor by phone through Saturday. Alarmed because this was not Traylor’s pattern of behavior by not calling his work, Mrs. Traylor drove home to Inyokern. When she left SF on Sunday, Dec 06, at 9:30 A.M. she gave specific instructions to contact her by cell phone immediately if her husband was located. After seven hours of driving she arrived home at 4:30 P.M. Mrs. Traylor’s neighbor, Joanie Hanson then went to the Traylor home and informed Mrs. Traylor she was a “widow.”

Around 5:30 P.M. Deputy N. Dancy and Deputy J. Dancy arrived at the Traylor home – they had had a shift change at the Sheriff’s Dept and had no details on Traylor’s death. In shock, Mrs. Traylor called the Coroner’s Office, Bakersfield, CA and spoke to the Homicide Officer Glenn Johnson, who informed Mrs. Traylor her husband had committed suicide. Mrs. Traylor protested and told Homicide Officer Johnson her husband had never been suicidal and that Traylor detested anyone who considered such a cowardly act!

The China Lake Weapons Testing Squadron personnel arrived after Mrs. Traylor’s son-in-law, CAPT T. Glick, USMC, Cherry Point, NC called the China Lake Command – they were LCDR Severson, CDR J. L. Budnick, MMCM(SS)B. Stone, and The Gunner, CWO2 V. Howell. They had no further information on the death.

China Lake is located in a remote area, 150 miles northeast of Los Angeles, CA, between the Sierra Nevada Mountains and Death Valley, away from the public eye. Traylor was attached to VX-31, Hanger-3, at China Lake. Traylor supervised the Avionics/Armament Division of the Naval Weapons Testing Squadron and overlooking the Explosive Safety Inspections. He was instrumental in the squadron’s preparedness for the rigorous maintenance, and loading/downloading of conventional weapons on FA-18s. Traylor’s technical knowledge of missile and bomb launching well qualified him in the training of weapons personnel and he often made trips to Point Mugu, CA and Puerto Rico, Cuba. He was extremely conscientious in the sensitive information surrounding his work. The China Lake Bombing Range covers 20,000 square miles of restricted air space where the famous Sidewinder and Tomahawk missiles were developed.

Traylor was written-up by his command for been absent from work that Friday, Dec 04, 1998.
Traylor was buried on December 10, 1998, Mrs. Traylor spent the remainder of December 98 with her parents in Missoula, MT.

In January 1999, when Mrs. Traylor returned to Inyokern she went to the Sheriff’s Branch Office, Ridgecrest, CA, and learned her husband’s case had been closed. Not accepting her husband’s death as a suicide she started her own investigation as follows.

When Mrs. Traylor took her case to Traylor’s Squadron Commanding Officer, Commander R. Rutherford he stated “Well, you and your husband were having marital problems, you were separated and he killed himself”. This was a shock to Mrs. Traylor she expected the Commanding Officer to support her in a further investigation.

Prior to Mrs. Traylor going to SF she had been counseling with a Mr. Richard Rohrlick, the China Lake Base counselor, concerning her husband’s increased drinking; she also spoke to her husband’s Gunner concerning this same matter.

Mrs. Traylor last visited her husband at Inyokern on Nov 19,1998, two weeks earlier, to celebrate their wedding anniversary. At that time Traylor seemed jumpy and paranoid in public (which was not like him) and then cried when she left to return to SF.

She spoke to her husband weekly and it was during one of the last conversations he told her “he didn’t think he was going to live long,” when the remark alarmed her he changed the subject.
Below is a list of things Mrs. Traylor noted at her home on her arrival on that fatal Sunday, Dec 06, 1998: Traylor’s uniform for work was folded and lying on the bed in preparation to wear Friday, Dec 04, 1998.

On the couch was clean unfolded laundry.

Traylor had his stair-master in front of the TV for exercising in preparation of his annual physical.
The master bathroom window was open, the screen lying on the lawn, and a towel lain over the windowsill. Someone had broken into the house by crawled through the window.

Traylor had just purchased a $350.00 pipe corral for his horses and was assembling it in the yard.
All the small animals at the Traylor home were locked in the house the two days Traylor was missing: three cats, two dogs, and outside were three horses, starving. Traylor would never have left his beloved animals without first making arrangements for their care and feeding.

Back tracking Traylor’s days leading up to his death:
Dec 02-Wed: Neighbor, Joanie Hanson noticed Traylor was outdoors cleaning the horse corral and later with his friend, The Gunner outside working on Traylor’s motorcycle.

Dec 03-Thur: At 3:00 P.M. Traylor left his work on base to kept his appointment with Richard Rohrlick, the base counselor, to discuss rehabilitation for himself.

At 9:00 P.M. Traylor was seen by a female bartender, Mickey at Tommy T’s, a local sports bar in Ridgecrest. Later it was verified there had been a military get-together on that evening Dec 03, 98, the last night Traylor spoke to his wife and was seen alive.

TRAYLOR’S Planned Schedule for 4,5,6 Dec 1998:
DEC04-Fri: Traylor had a Squadron promotion ceremony to conduct.

DEC05-Sat: Traylor was to attend a farewell party for his First Class John Barfield, Traylor never missed a party but he was a no show.

DEC06-Sun: Traylor had committed himself to drive to San Diego, CA to move shipmate, Todd Roger and wife who were transferring to China Lake, a 3-1/2 hour drive one-way.

Traylor’s Military Identification card had been on him when he was found and the Officer-of-the-Day, at Weapons Test Squadron, LT Neviou and AO2 Hall were notified, but Mrs. Traylor was never called.

A resident of Inyokern saw Traylor’s truck sitting on the dirt road near the Traylor home on Friday and Saturday, Dec 04, 05, 1998.

A neighbor told Mrs. Traylor how her husband had been parking his vehicle in the desert in the evenings for a couple of weeks before his death. From where Traylor parked he had a clear view of his home without being seen himself.

Traylor’s AO1 “Shorty” Wellington and AME3 Gerry Sims claimed to have driven to the Traylor home on Saturday, Dec 05, 1998, searching for Traylor but did not see Traylor’s vehicle sitting near the Traylor home.

AO2 Phil Kamp’s wife, Brenda stated that Traylor started to act strange, no longer would he let anyone drive him home after he had had to much to drink; instead Traylor would leave the social gatherings when no one was aware, this was just prior to his death.

During Mrs. Traylor’s investigating she was told her husband often expressed his love for her and looked forward to her return from SF at Christmas permanently; and how he expected a visit then from their first grandchild.

Mrs. Traylor had to harass the Naval Crime Investigator Service’s (NCIS) for their results, it was a duplicate of the Sheriff’s Report. NCIS reasoning behind the lack of a JAG investigation was because Traylor was found off the base and it was Kern County’s responsibility to investigate. The Navy was tossing the case back to the County.

After six-months of waiting Mrs. Traylor received Coroner D. Brown’s report. The report was vague and assumptions were made about the Traylor’s separation supporting suicide. No internal autopsy had been performed to validate the gun and shells found in Traylor vehicle with him were the weapons that killed him. There were no X-rays. No tape recording of the external autopsy or diagram. No resin testing of the hands – proving Traylor held the gun. Last, no time of death was established through eye testing or did the report state if rigor had set-in yet, how long had Traylor been dead? A Toxicology Test was done showing an alcohol level of 0.28 but no urine test to back it.

In June 1999, Mrs. Traylor met with Kern County Coroner M. Kaiser at Bakersfield, in protest of the suicide theory and present the true facts. Coroner Kaiser agreed there was not enough evidence to justify a suicide. She changed the death certificate to “undetermined” and amended the Coroner’s Report – still the case was not reopened by the county.

Mrs. Traylor was not able to obtain an appointment with the China Lake Base Commanding Officer CAPT C. H. Johnston, to present the new death certificate and to again request a reinvestigation. Nor would the California Congressman William Thomas pursue the case. The FBI stated they saw no crime committed.

Traylor’s best friend, “The Gunner” avoided Mrs. Traylor for a year after the death. When she was finally able to corner him he told her “All you want to do is talk about Traylor, I want to believe it was a suicide,” and avoided Mrs. Traylor from then on.

The Summer of 1999, Mrs. Traylor drove her husband’s vehicle to the base gas station and while inside paying she noticed CDR Budnick, the Squadron Test Pilot, standing frozen in shock staring at Traylor’s vehicle like he’d just seen a ghost until he saw Mrs. Traylor and regained his composure.
In November 1999, Mrs. Traylor obtained the photographs of the scene of death from the County Technical Laboratory. The photos revealed the following:

Traylor is shown sitting behind the steering wheel of his vehicle with his cap on his head and his glasses in his right hand.

A shotgun is pointing at Traylor from the floorboard of the passenger’s side of the vehicle with the barrel propped against the side of the console, a card, and a “Bud Light” beer can.

Blood is shown running straight down Traylor’s right-thigh verifying he died where he was found.
Mrs. Traylor can verify the blood location and pattern in the vehicle, because on Monday, Dec 07, 1998, the day after Traylor was found Mrs. Traylor reclaimed her husband’s vehicle. The vehicle has not been impounded in a police lot but towed to a business garage in Inyokern on Dec 06.

Blood was found on the front of the console and the cup-holders in that area – the console divided the bucket-seats. Blood was found near the gas peddle and the seat part of the driver’s buck-seat and blood dripped to the floorboard. But, the largest splattering of blood is on the drive-shaft.

A box of shells (birdshot) was on the passenger seat with opened mail.

When Mrs. Traylor presented these photos to Kern County Homicide Officer Johnson for answers and a reinvestigation he became angry and escorted her out of his office.

After AO1 Wellington viewed the photos he stated “the Squadron never thought Traylor committed suicide”. Unfortunately, the Squadron couldn’t help – they had been given a “Gag Order” not to speak to Mrs. Traylor; they feared for their own lives if they talked.

CONCLUSION

The investigation was shut down because the Navy had Kern County close the case immediately without an investigation through their “Good Old Boys Connect”, call the death a suicide and lay blame on the wife.

So, it wasn’t necessary to notify or even contact Mrs. Traylor for questioning as a suspect of murder. That is why Homicide Officer Johnson so bluntly informed Mrs. Traylor her husband had committed suicide, nine hours after Traylor had been found.

To strengthen their suicide theory, there was a letter found in the vehicle addressed to Traylor asking him to sign a waiver. This was assumed to be leading towards divorce papers in the first Coroner’s Report. The letter actually concerned Mr. Traylor’s release from Mrs. Traylor retirement money. Mrs. Traylor of course, was never questioned about the letter.

Traylor, himself was an extremely private individual and more so about his personal life. The only two people that had information on the Traylor’s marriage were The Gunner, (CWO2 V. Howell), and Mr. Richard Rohrlick, the base counselor. One of these two people gave the background for the theory of suicide.

The vehicle was moved and never sealed-off because again there wasn’t going to be an investigation. The Coroner’s Report lacked vital information, as stated previously. The Sheriff’s Report excluded fingerprints, footprints, or tire prints from the scene. Photos: show Traylor’s hands and arms had no blood or blow-back from skin on them. Traylor didn’t drink Bud Light beer as the photos show from inside the vehicle; and he didn’t take his glasses off and hold them after he shot himself. The photos were staged.

When Traylor made the statement to his wife “he didn’t think he was going to live long” that was a tip-off his life was in danger. He tried to avoid his death by hiding in the desert. But Traylor was ordered to the Thursday night military get-together; here he was gotten drunk, followed, stopped just short of his home, and killed. Traylor’s shotgun was obtained from his home by gaining entrance through the bathroom window – so identification was not necessary. The squadron get-together may have occurred at the Sierra Club, Inyokern, CA a mile from the Traylor home.

The China Lake Base is a highly secured installation due to warfare weapons developed there. Traylor was military property for fifteen years, there should have been a JAG investigation by the Navy.
In 2000, Mrs. Traylor again tried to re-open the case by contacting Kern County and she received a reply from Sheriff Sparks threatening to reverse the cause of death “Undetermined back to suicide” if she continued to pursue the matter.

In Aug 2003, Prof. J. Starrs, Dr. J. Frost, and team from George Washington University, Washington, D.C., performed the internal autopsy on Traylor. It was found that the angle of the shot was from the upper right side of the chest to the lower left side of the media. The angle of the shot was not possible inside the confinement of the cab of the vehicle.

THEORY

The shot came from outside of the passenger’s side of the vehicle when Traylor leaned over and opened the passenger’s door. The impact forced Traylor’s body back into the area of the console and the drive-shaft of the vehicle where the majority of the blood was located. There was no blood on the dashboard, steering wheel, windshield, driver’s door, or the roof of the vehicle. According to the autopsy Traylor’s heart stopped immediately. Traylor’s body was set back into the seat, glasses placed in his hand and cap put on his head. Some item was removed from Traylor’s right thigh that left a square pattern clear of blood. There was no blood on the beer can or the card that supported the gun pointing at Traylor. Again Mrs. Traylor can verify the location of the blood splatter. Last, Traylor’s wristwatch was not on any of the photos from the scene but returned to Mrs. Traylor with the personal effects.

The whole concept of suicide is an insult to Thomas R. Traylor’s integrity.

QUESTION:

Why wasn’t Mrs Traylor notified that Sunday? It wasn’t necessary. Her name and SF phone number were written on an envelope next to the Traylor’s kitchen phone.

Why was it not necessary to identify the shotgun as being owned by Traylor? (The gun had never been registered nor had a hunting license been bought. Traylor had not used any of his number of guns in years nor in the thirteen months he had been at China Lake and his only acquaintances were military. Traylor also owned a handgun – which would have been easier to use in the vehicle).

Traylor grew-up outside of El Paso, TX, enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1983, a Navy career-man retiring in five years. He was a kind-hearted, soft-spoken man with no enemies.

If you have information about this case, or would like to contact Mrs. Traylor, email us and we’ll forward your message to her.

A final request from Iraq vet who took own life

2011-12-01T06:40:00.000-05:00

By Chris Bieri

Grand Forks, N.D.,--Sean Alexander Dacus, a veteran of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, wrote out a final request Tuesday morning before fatally shooting himself in the chest outside the emergency room at Altru Health System.

According to police, the 31-year-old Grand Forks resident walked into the Altru Clinic just before 11:30 a.m. and borrowed a marker at the coffee shop.

He wrote on his arm "Do not resuscitate" and below that, "Donate organs please," a police source said. To the right of those lines, he wrote "A-," which police believe was his blood type.

Read the entire story here.

A Tribute to the Brave

2011-11-29T06:25:00.001-05:00

Frozen tears of the Dark Woods

by Isaiah Robinson

50 men entered the dark woods

50 men understood

The 50 men, they saw in their eyes

Those 50 men wouldn't survive

But 50 men young and brave

Knew not of the end that would happen that day

But still they traveled in the dark woods.

50 men entered the dark woods

40 men still understood

Those 50 men they saw in their eyes

10 of them didn't survive

That journey into the dark woods

But still the 40 men

Knew all 40 wouldn't reach the end

But still they traveled into the dark woods

50 men entered the dark woods

Only 20 men still stood

Those 50 men they saw in their eyes

30 of them had already died

They journey brought pain and sorrow

And fear of not seeing tomorrow

But they continued those 20 men

Into the dark woods.

50 men entered the dark woods

1 man still stood

At the end of those dark woods

Frozen tears filled his eyes

Of the 49 men who didn't survive

The journey into the dark woods.

--------------------------------------------

Isaiah is the 15 yr. old nephew of the late Col. Rocky Baragona

Death Anniversary

2011-11-27T06:55:00.000-05:00

Our son TJ was on the promotions list to get his Sgts promotion. On the day of his death he was threatened that he was being removed from the promotions list. He was pronounced dead at 7:19AM Iraq time and at 2:30PM was posthumously awarded his Sgt. stripes. What they withheld from him in life, they gave to him in death.

His death was deemed a suicide by his commander before the CID investigation was completed and before the autopsy was completed. In their circular thinking, we have been told that the suicide determination was made based on the CID report, but CID says it was based on the autopsy.

On the day of our son’s death, as I said, he was pronounced dead at 7:19AM Iraq time, CID was not notified until 10:00AM of his death and CID did not arrive until 2:00PM. Before they arrived, someone in the chain of command ordered the area to be cleaned. As a result there was nothing for CID to look at when they did arrive.

A ballistics expert, who looked at the CID report and autopsy for us, says that the wound described in the autopsy could not have been made by the weapon our son was carrying, less than 12-18 inches from his head.

As he told us, “Your son’s arms were not long enough to have held the weapon that far from his head and pulled the trigger.” He shared that without a doubt, “Your son did not take his own life.”

The investigation done by CID was ordered reopened by the Army Office of the Inspector General. Their findings were that there had been procedural errors made in the investigation, but they did not comment on the outcome.

My husband, who is a Viet Nam vet says we will never know what really happened that morning.

Liz Sweet

If you have any information on this case, contact Liz Sweet through this website.

FBI Says Gangs Infiltrating the US Military

2011-11-23T07:38:00.000-05:00

The U.S. military is facing a "significant criminal threat" from gangs, including prison and biker gangs, whose members have found their way into the ranks, according to an FBI-led investigation.
Some gang members get into the military to escape the streets, but then end up reconnecting once in, while others target the services specifically for the combat and weapons training, the National Gang Intelligence Center says in a just-released 2011 National Gang Threat Assessment/Emerging Trends.

Whatever the reasons, it's a bad mix.

""Gang members with military training pose a unique threat to law enforcement personnel because of their distinctive weapons and combat training skills and their ability to transfer these skills to fellow gang members," the report states. Gang members have been reported in every branch of the armed forces, though a large proportion of them have been affiliated with the Army, the Army Reserves or Army National Guard, it says.

Read the entire story here.

Fort Hood shooting victims, families seek $750 million

2011-11-22T18:44:00.000-05:00

In what could be the first step toward a massive federal lawsuit, 83 people —victims of the 2009 shooting rampage at Fort Hood and family members of those killed in the attack — have filed administrative claims against the U.S. government alleging willful negligence and seeking about $750 million in damages.

The claimants include family members of eight of the 13 people killed during the rampage, the worst shooting ever on an American military installation.

The claims allege that the federal agencies bowed to "political correctness" in ignoring warning signs regarding Maj. Nidal Hasan, the Army psychiatrist facing 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted premeditated murder in the shooting. Witnesses have said Hasan, who was scheduled to deploy to Afghanistan shortly after the shooting, shouted "Allahu Akbar" — an Arabic refrain meaning "God is greatest" and something of a war cry for Muslim terrorists — before opening fire inside Fort Hood's Soldier Readiness Processing Center, killing 12 soldiers and one civilian and wounding more than 30.

Read the entire article here.

Article submitted by Richard Stites

Army limiting use of anti-malaria drug

2011-11-21T06:18:00.000-05:00

LOS ANGELES — Almost four decades after inventing a potent anti-malarial drug, the Army has pushed it to the back of its medicine cabinet.

The dramatic about-face follows years of complaints and concerns that mefloquine caused psychiatric and physical side effects even as it was used around the globe as a front-line defense against the mosquito-borne disease that kills about 800,000 people a year.

“Mefloquine is a zombie drug. It’s dangerous, and it should have been killed off years ago,” said Dr. Remington Nevin, an epidemiologist and Army major who has published research that he said showed the drug can be potentially toxic to the brain. He believes the drop in prescriptions is a tacit acknowledgement of the drug’s serious problems.

Read the entire story here.

Army Releases October Suicide Data

2011-11-20T06:10:00.001-05:00

Army Releases October Suicide Data

The Army released suicide data today for the month of October. Among active-duty soldiers, there were 17 potential suicides: one has been confirmed as suicide and 16 remain under investigation. For September 2011, the Army reported 16 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, one case has been added for a total of 17 cases. Three cases have been confirmed as suicide and 14 cases remain under investigation.

During October 2011, among reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were 12 potential suicides: none have been confirmed as suicide and 12 remain under investigation. For September 2011, the Army reported six potential suicides among not-on-active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, two cases have been added for a total of eight cases. Three cases have been confirmed as suicide and five cases remain under investigation.

Maj. Gen. David E. Quantock, director of the Army Health Promotion and Risk Reduction Task Force, knows how the tragedy of suicide affects our soldiers, civilians, and families. He joins the task force as the former commanding general of the U.S. Army Maneuver Support Center of Excellence, Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. “Our people are the Army and their health and well-being are top priorities. This is very important work and I can assure you that the Army team is fully engaged and is totally committed to it,” said Quantock.

Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Trained consultants are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and can be contacted by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or by visiting their website at http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org .

Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdf and Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf .

The Army’s comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.preventsuicide.army.mil .

Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).

Information about Military OneSource is located at http://www.militaryonesource.com or by dialing the toll-free number 1-800-342-9647 for those residing in the continental United States. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource website for dialing instructions for their specific location.

Information about the Army’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf/.
The Defense Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil .

The website for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is http://www.afsp.org/, and the Suicide Prevention Resource Council site is found at http://www.sprc.org/index.asp .

Source: http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=14924

McCaskill Calls for Greater Accountability for Contractors

2011-11-19T06:11:00.000-05:00

PoliticalNews.me - Nov 17,2011 - McCaskill calls for greater accountability for contractors

Following new report from federal watchdog, Senator calls again for suspending federal work with bad contractors

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Citing the case of a private contractor that was never held accountable for negligence in the death of a U.S. servicemember, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill used a Senate hearing to renew her call for the federal government to stop doing business with contractors responsible for wrongdoing.

Read the entire story here.

Lawmaker: Commands shouldn't investigate military rape cases

2011-11-18T06:54:00.000-05:00

The concerted campaign by Rep. Jackie Speier, D-San Mateo, aims to remove military sex crimes investigations and prosecutions from the standard chain of command. Even if it falls short, the campaign already is a case study in how 21st century political momentum is built.

"This silent epidemic is over," Speier said of military sexual assault Thursday.

This week, Speier introduced a bill that would assign all military sexual assault cases to a new Sexual Assault Oversight and Response Office. Another new Pentagon office would oversee all sexual assault-related prosecutions.

Speier says the new bureaucracy is necessary for sexual assault-related cases because the current system is "woefully inadequate" and overly influenced by the chain of command.

Read the entire story here.

Azerbaijan: Non-Combat Deaths Put Military Reforms in Spotlight

2011-11-15T06:52:00.001-05:00

A coalition of several Azerbaijani human rights groups has been tracking non-combat deaths and notes a disturbing upward trend. Based on Defense Ministry information not released to the public, the Group of Monitoring Compliance with Human Rights in the Army (GMCHRA) has recorded the deaths of 76 soldiers to date in non-combat incidents for 2011, and the injury of 91 others. That compares with 62 non-combat deaths and 71 cases of injury in 2010. Possible reasons for the increase were not identified.

“Civil society cannot stand aside from these problems,” commented Arzu Abdullayeva, one of GMCHRA’s founders and the head of Azerbaijan’s National Committee of Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly.

In general, the Azerbaijani public has remained passive on this issue. In 2009, several anonymously posted videos on social networking websites depicted soldiers beating, as well as the humiliation of fresh draftees – a practice known as dedovshchina during the Soviet era. The videos prompted prosecutions and prison terms for the accused. But this case has proven the exception, rather than the rule.

Read the entire story, from EurasiaNet.org by clicking here.

Private Needham's War

2011-11-13T18:10:00.000-05:00

48 Hours Mystery:
Video and written story here.

We remember

2011-11-11T07:45:00.000-05:00

For the families of the fallen, every day is Veteran’s Day.

Remains of war dead dumped in landfill

2011-11-10T07:24:00.000-05:00

The Dover Air Force Base mortuary for years disposed of portions of troops’ remains by cremating them and dumping the ashes in a Virginia landfill, a practice that officials have since abandoned in favor of burial at sea.

The Dover, Del., mortuary, the main point of entry for the nation’s war dead and the target of federal investigations of alleged mishandling of remains, engaged in the practice from 2003 to 2008, according to Air Force officials. The manner of disposal was not disclosed to relatives of fallen service members.

Read the entire story here.

Hotline for Families

2011-11-09T14:25:00.000-05:00

HOTLINE FOR FAMILIES

The Air Force has set up a toll-free number for families of fallen service members with questions about the Office of Special Counsel investigation or Air Force mortuary operations. That number is 1-855-637-2583, and the service will also answer questions through dover.pm@pentagon.af.mil.

Semper Fi Screenings in North Carolina

2011-11-09T06:36:00.000-05:00

This weekend there will be two screenings of the Camp Lejeune Documentary, "Semper Fi: Always Faithful" in North Carolina. This is the first time the film has been seen in the state.

The first screening will be held Saturday, November 12th at 4PM in Wilmington NC. This screening is part of the Cucalorus Film Festival. For tickets and more information, please visit the film's website. www.semperfialwaysfaithful.com.

The second screening will be held on Sunday, November 13th in Jacksonville. NC at 3PM. This screening is free to the public and will be held at the Jacksonville Northside High School.

Jerry Ensminger and the film's producers will attend both screenings and participate in a post viewing question and answer session. This is your opportunity to see for yourselves how this fight has evolved and support our cause.

Mike Partain

Air Force morgue lost body parts from war dead

2011-11-08T18:25:00.002-05:00

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 17:47:45 -0500
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Dover military mortuary entrusted with the solemn duty of receiving and caring for America's war dead twice lost body parts of remains shipped home from Afghanistan, the Air Force revealed Tuesday.

Three mortuary supervisors have been punished, but no one was fired in a grisly case reminiscent of the scandalous mishandling and misidentifying of remains at Arlington National Cemetery.

The Air Force, which runs the mortuary at Dover, Del., acknowledged failures while insisting it made the right decision in not informing families linked to the missing body parts until last weekend — months after it completed a probe of 14 sets of allegations lodged by three members of the mortuary staff.

Gen. Norton Schwartz, the Air Force chief of staff, told a Pentagon news conference he and the service's top civilian, Michael Donley, are ultimately responsible for what happens at Dover and for its mistakes.

"There's no escaping it," Schwartz said.

Read the entire story here.

Air Force Officials Disciplined Over Handling of Human Remains

Mishandling of remains sparks anger

Air Force Investigates and Improves Mortuary Operation

2011-11-08T18:17:00.000-05:00

The Air Force announced today that it has completed a year-long investigation of the Air Force Mortuary Affairs Operations (AFMAO) at Dover Air Force Base, Dover, Del., and the point of entry for U.S. service members who are killed or die overseas. The service implemented multiple corrective actions and took action regarding three senior mortuary officials responsible for operations at AFMAO after some employees complained about the handling of certain cases.
The Air Force Inspector General began its investigation in June 2010. The investigation focused primarily on the handling of remains of four service members. The Air Force inspector general’s investigation was conducted in coordination with other federal offices and included nearly 50 interviews and an extensive review of mortuary operating procedures. Investigators found no evidence anyone intentionally mishandled remains, but concluded the mortuary staff failed to maintain accountability while processing portions of remains for three service members. While it is likely that disposition of remains was by an appropriate method, it could not be shown that it was in accordance with the families’ directions.

Each family received remains of their service member for interment; the staff, however, was not able to ensure additional portions of remains were handled in a manner consistent with the families’ instructions.

The Air Force determined senior AFMAO officials failed to provide proper management and corrective actions when they did not respond appropriately to indications that procedures were inadequate to prevent problems related to the tracking of portions of human remains.

Additionally, the Air Force investigation determined the mortuary staff could have communicated more clearly with the representatives of a sister service about restorative actions taken to prepare the remains of a service member, killed by an improvised explosive device, whose family requested to view him in uniform. In addition, the investigation found that while there were some deficiencies in administrative procedures, documentation, and electronic record keeping, the processes to which they related were appropriately conducted. Public health was not endangered.

“The investigation concluded that the mission was always conducted with reverence, dignity, honor and respect for all served through the facility,” said Gen. Norton Schwartz, Air Force chief of staff.

“However, the standard is 100 percent accountability in every instance of this important mission. We can, and will, do better and as a result of the allegations and investigation; our ability to care for our fallen warriors is now stronger,” Schwartz said. “In fact, throughout the past year new processes have been put in place to ensure the exacting standards are met every time.”

The Air Force has contacted family designated representatives of the four families directly affected and discussed these matters with them personally.

“It is the AFMAO staff’s mission and obligation to fulfill the nation’s commitment to caring for our fallen service members while also serving and supporting the families of these heroes,” said Secretary of the Air Force Michael Donley. “The employees who brought forth their concerns gave the Air Force an opportunity to make the operation of AFMAO better and stronger. Their initiative allowed us to correct procedures and make long-term improvements to management of Air Force mortuary operations.”

The Air Force has requested, and the Secretary of Defense has directed, an independent assessment of the current overall operations of the Port Mortuary.

An independent panel of the Defense Health Board will evaluate current operations to ensure continued effectiveness of the Port Mortuary. In addition, the review panel will identify whether the Air Force should be considering or taking any further actions to enhance these operations.

“I want to reassure our men and women in uniform, and the American public, that the Air Force mortuary standards they expect for our fallen heroes are being met,” Schwartz said.

The Dover mortuary’s staff consists of members of all branches of the military, including civilians and reservists. The staff includes mortuary affairs specialists, morticians and other technical experts. The staff operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and regularly responds to the trauma of war as staff members prepare the remains of fallen warriors under often-difficult circumstances. Since 2003, the mortuary center has prepared more than 6,300 deceased individuals for return to their loved ones.

Families of fallen service members may contact the Air Force toll free at 1-855-637-2583 or e-mail at dover.pm@pentagon.af.mil if they have questions about this investigation or Air Force mortuary operations.

For additional information, media should contact Air Force Public Affairs at 703-695-0640 or after hours at 202-528-4929.

Source: http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=14909

Kin recall Hood victims on 2-year anniversary

2011-11-07T07:14:00.000-05:00

WASHINGTON — Two grieving families walked through endless rows of headstones at Arlington National Cemetery on a cool autumn day to pay their respects to two soldiers they never met.

But they are forever linked to Maj. Libardo Eduardo Careveo and Lt. Col. Juanita Warman, bound by tragedy. Their relatives and both soldiers were among 13 people gunned down in a Fort Hood, Texas, shooting rampage two years ago today that left more than two dozen others wounded.

Staying connected with the other victims’ families has helped in the grieving process, although they may never truly heal, they said.

Read the entire story here.

Multiple missteps led to drone killing U.S. troops in Afghanistan

2011-11-07T06:55:00.000-05:00

"Hey now, wait. Standby on these," the pilot cautioned. "They could be animals in the field." Seconds later, tiny white flashes appeared by the figures -- the heat signature of gunfire. "There they are," he said, now sure he was looking at the enemy.

At an Air National Guard base in Terre Haute, Ind., an intelligence analyst whose job it was to monitor the video to help prevent mistakes on the mission also observed the muzzle flashes -- but noticed that they were firing away from the embattled Marines.

Marines at Patrol Base Alcatraz, 12 miles from the firefight, watched their screens too, as they kept in contact with both the drone crew and the platoon members, who had set out from the base just an hour earlier. It would be their decision whether to call in a missile strike.

Thirty-one seconds after the pilot reported muzzle flashes, the Marines at Alcatraz ordered that the Predator be prepared to strike if the shooters could be confirmed as hostile. At 8:49 a.m., 29 minutes after the ambush began, they authorized the pilot to fire.
In minutes, two Americans would be dead.

Read the entire story here.

Local DJ dedicates portion of radio show to read the names of war casualties

2011-11-06T06:29:00.000-05:00

Fred Boenig, also known by his radio name DJ Chance Austin, experienced every parent’s worst nightmare in May 2010.

Military cars pulled up to his house and informed him that his 19-year-old son, Airman 1st Class Austin Harper Gates Benson, 19, of Hellertown, had died in Torkham, Khyber, Afghanistan.
Benson was a 2008 graduate of Saucon Valley High School where he was voted “Most Likely to Change the World” by peers, according to his father.

Boenig would soon find out that his son wasn’t killed in combat, but from a self-inflicted gunshot.

Read the entire story here.

Non-hostile Deaths

2011-11-05T17:58:00.000-05:00

American Society in Crisis: Non-Hostile Deaths Overtaking Veterans

http://thesolidtruth.com/2011/11/05/american-society-in-crisis-non-hostile-deaths-overtaking-veterans/

__._,_.___

Death Anniversary

2011-11-05T06:39:00.001-05:00

Statement of Stefanie E. Pelkey
before the Committee on Veterans Affairs
House of Representatives
27 July 2005

My name is Stefanie Pelkey and I am a former Captain in the U.S. Army. This testimony is on behalf of my husband, CPT Michael Jon Pelkey, who died on November 5, 2004. Although he was a brave veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, he did not die in battle, at least not in Iraq. He died in a battle of his heart and mind. He passed away in our home at Fort Sill, Oklahoma from a gunshot wound to the chest. My Michael was diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) only one week before his death by a licensed therapist authorized by Tricare.

The official ruling by the Department of Defense is suicide, however, many people, including myself; believe it was a horrible accident. We also believe that he would not have been sleeping with a loaded pistol if it weren’t for the PTSD.

When I met my husband, we were both officers in a Field Artillery unit in Idar-Oberstein, Germany. Michael was working as the assistant Operations Officer for the unit. He was responsible and hard-working. He loved life, traveling, and having fun. He hailed from Wolcott, Connecticut and was one of six siblings. He received his commission from the University of Connecticut. Being a soldier was a childhood dream.

We were married in November 2001 and our journey as a military family began. Michael deployed for Iraq with the 1st Armored Division in March 2003, three weeks after our son, Benjamin, was born. He left a happy and proud father. He returned in late July of 2003. It seemed upon his return that our family was complete and we had made it through our first real world deployment. Aside from his lack of appetite and a brief adjustment period, he seemed so happy to be home.

He noted several concerns on his DD Form 2796, post-deployment health assessment, to include diarrhea, frequent indigestion, ringing in the ears, feeling tired after sleeping, headaches, and strange rashes. He also noted on this form that he had felt that he was in great danger of being killed while in Iraq and he witnessed the killings or dead coalition and civilians during this time. However, the most worrisome notation on this form was the admission of feeling down, depressed, and sometimes hopeless. He also noted that he was constantly on guard, and easily startled after returning from his deployment.

A few days after returning to Germany, he reported to his primary care physician on July 28, 2003, as a part of a post-deployment health assessment. He expressed concerns to his primary care physician that he was worried about having serious conflicts with his spouse and close friends. The physician referred him to see a counselor, however, the mental health staff on our post was severely understaffed with only one or two psychiatrists. Michael was unable to get an appointment before we moved from our post in Germany to Fort Sill, Oklahoma only five days later.

There was no time for therapy and doctors’ visits, as we were packing our home and taking care of our then six-month-old son. When we got to Fort Sill, we both settled into our assignments. Everything seemed normal for a while. Michael was in the Officers Advanced Course for Field Artillery and I was a Chemical Officer for a Brigade. We settled into our home and about six months later, the symptoms of PTSD started to surface, only, we did not know enough about PTSD to connect the dots.

When my husband returned from Iraq, there were no debriefings for family members, service members, or forced evaluations from Army Mental Health in Germany. As a soldier and wife, I never received any preparation on what to expect upon my husband’s return. If only the military community had reached out to family members in some manner to prepare them for and make them aware of the symptoms of PTSD, my family’s tragedy could have been averted. I believe that it is crucial that spouses be informed about the symptoms and make a point in telling them that PTSD can happen long after what psychiatrists call an adjustment period. Spouses are sometimes the only ones who will encourage a soldier to seek help. Most soldiers I know will not willingly seek help at any military mental facility for fear of repercussions from commanders and even jibes from fellow soldiers. My husband worked around many high ranking officers and was most likely embarrassed about seeking help. What would they think of an officer having nightmares, being forgetful, and having to take anti-depressants?

Months after arriving in Oklahoma, there were several instances in which I found a fully loaded 9mm pistol under Michael’s pillow or under his side of the bed. I would yell at him and tell him that the baby could find it and get hurt. Then I would find it under the mattress or in his nightstand. I could not seem to get through to him that having this weapon was not necessary and it posed a danger. These episodes alone started to cause marital tension. Finally, after about two months of haggling over the issue of this weapon, Michael finally agreed to put his pistols away. I thought the situation was resolved. As a soldier myself, I could understand that having a weapon after being in a war might be somewhat habitual for him. Little by little, other symptoms started to arise, including forgetfulness.

Michael would not even remember to mail a bill or pick-up his own prescriptions. This became a great problem for him. How could a Captain in the US Army forget to mail bills and miss appointments? He was not like this before his deployment. One of the greatest tests PTSD posed to our marriage was that Michael began to suffer from erectile dysfunction, which would cause him to break into tears. He did not understand what was happening. I did not know what was happening.

On other occasions, he would over-react to simple things. One night, we heard something in the garage around 8 pm. It was still fairly light outside and it could have simply been a child or an animal. We lived in a small town with very little crime. Michael proceeded to run outside with a fully loaded weapon and almost fired at a neighbor’s cat. These over-reactions occurred on several occasions.

The symptoms would come and go to a point that they didn’t seem like a problem at the time. We would later laugh about them and make jokes about the little scares we had. He would always make excuses and tell me that we needed to be careful, so I let it go. There were times that everything seemed just right in our home and he seemed capable enough. He was succeeding in his career as the only Captain in a research and development unit at Fort Sill. It was a job in which he was entrusted with researching and contributing to the Army’s latest in targeting developments.

We soon bought a new house and he was so proud of it. We were finally getting settled. Then the high-blood pressure and severe chest pains surfaced along with erectile dysfunction. Finally, the nightmares began. This would be the last symptom of PTSD to arise and it was the one symptom that I feel ultimately contributed to my husband’s death. These nightmares were so disturbing that Michael would sometimes kick me in his sleep or wake up running to turn on the lights. He would wake up covered in sweat and I would hold him until he went back to sleep. He was almost child-like in these moments. In the morning, he would joke around and tell me the boogie man was going to get him and sadly, we both laughed it off.

However, at this time, I do want to point out that Michael was seeking help for all of the symptoms I have discussed. He was put on high blood pressure medication. He also complained of chest pains and was seen on three occasions in the month preceding his death. He even sought a prescription for Viagra to ease marital tensions. However, no military physician Michael ever saw could give him any answers. No doctor ever asked him about depression or linked his symptoms to the war.

Michael tried to seek help from the Fort Sill Mental Health facility but, was discouraged that the appointments he was given were sometimes a month away. So, he called Tricare and was told that he could receive outside therapy, if it was “Family Therapy” so, we took it. Family therapy, marital counseling, or whatever they wanted to call it, we were desperate to save our marriage. After all, the symptoms of PTSD were causing most of our heartaches. In the two weeks prior to his death, we saw a therapist authorized by Tricare as a couple and individually. This therapist told Michael that he had PTSD and that she would recommend to his primary care physician that he be put on medication. She also told him that she had a method of treating PTSD and she felt she could help him because he was open to receiving help. He was so excited and finally expressed to me that he could see a light at the end of the tunnel. He finally had an answer to all of his problems and some of our marital troubles. It was an exciting day for us. Not to mention, two weeks before his death, he interviewed for a position in which he would be running the staff of a General Officer. He was so proud that he was given the job after speaking with the General for only fifteen minutes. He was beaming with pride and so excited about his new job. Things were looking up for him.

He met with the therapist on a Monday. Tuesday, we celebrated our third wedding anniversary. It was a happy time. I felt hope and relief with the recent positive events. Michael must have felt something else. Friday my parents were visiting. I was at a church function and my father returned from playing golf to find Michael. He looked as if he were sleeping peacefully, except for the wet spot on his chest. His pain was finally over and his battle with PTSD was won. No, he wasn’t in Iraq but, in his mind he was there day in and day out. Although Michael would never discuss the details of his experiences in Iraq, I know he saw casualties, children suffering, dead civilians, and soldiers perish. For my soft-hearted Michael, that was enough. Every man’s heart is different. For my Michael it may not have taken much, but, it changed his heart and mind forever.

There were no indications of suicide but, plenty of signs to indicate PTSD. He suffered greatly from the classic symptoms of PTSD. It’s plain to see in retrospect. His weapon became a great source of comfort for him. He endured sleepless nights due to nightmares and images of suffering that only Michael knew.

My husband served the Army and his country with honor. He was a hard worker, wonderful husband and father. He leaves behind a 28-month-old son, Benjamin. One day I would like to tell my son what a hero his father was. He went to war and came back with an illness. Although PTSD is evident in his medical records and in my experiences with Michael, the Army has chosen to rule Michael’s death a suicide without documenting this serious illness. I have been told by the investigator that any PTSD diagnosis must be documented by an Army Mental Health Psychiatrist to be considered valid. At the time Michael sought help, he knew it was an urgent matter and was not willing to wait a month or even a few days. He knew it was time. Michael sought the help Tricare offered us and took it. Due to the fact that we were in family therapy and the fact that it was coded as family therapy, Michael is not going to get the credit he deserves. He is a casualty of war. I have heard this spoken from the mouth’s of two Generals. He came home from war with an injured mind and to let him become just a “suicide” is an injustice to someone who served their country so bravely. He loved being a soldier and he put his heart into it. I will be submitting petitions to have the PTSD officially documented and to have my husband put on the Official Operation Iraqi Freedom Casualty of War list. There are many soldiers who have committed suicide due to PTSD in Iraq and received full honors and benefits. Army Master Sergeant James C. Coons of Katy, Texas committed suicide and was found dead in his room at a hotel for outpatients being treated at Walter Reed Army Medical. Although Coons died outside a combat zone, his family’s petition to have him counted as a casualty of combat was approved. Michael deserves the same honors.

There are so many soldiers suffering from this disorder and so many families suffering the aftermath. I don’t want my Michael to have died in vain. He had a purpose in this life and that was to watch over his soldiers. I intend to keep helping him do so by spreading our story.

My husband died of wounds sustained in battle. That is the bottom line. The war does not end when they come home.

Stefanie Pelkey

Brief: DoD must alter suicide prevention plan

2011-11-04T06:49:00.001-05:00

By Patricia Kime - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Nov 3, 2011 18:17:03 EDT
The policy brief, “Losing the Battle: The Challenge of Military Suicide,” from the Washington-based Center for a New American Security think-tank, exhorts the Defense Department to change protocols and policies that it says hinder suicide-prevention efforts.

It recommends changes ranging from establishing unit cohesion programs after deployments to encouraging commanders to speak with troops about their privately owned firearms.

Service in wartime, say authors Margaret Harrell and Nancy Berglass, can chip away at three endemic human factors that keep people from committing suicide. Some psychiatrists have identified these as belongingness, usefulness and a natural aversion to pain or death.

According to the report, service members feel a strong sense of belonging when they are in a field unit, but this may wane after they transfer from their unit or leave the military.

Read the entire story here.

New Report: Military Losing the Battle Against Suicide

A Veteran Dies By Suicide Every 80 Minutes, Center For A New American Security Study Reveals

2011-11-03T12:30:00.000-05:00

By Eleanor Goldberg The Huffington Post November 2, 2011

A veteran commits suicide every 80 minutes, according to a study published Monday.

Military suicides have increased since the start of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to a Center for a New American Security Suicide report. In the fiscal year 2009 alone, 1,868 veterans of these wars have made suicide attempts, according to armytimes.com.

These staggering figures underscore the need for the VA to develop more mental-health programs and an accurate system for recording the number of veterans and service members who take their lives.

"America is losing its battle against suicide by veterans and service members," authors Dr. Margaret C. Harrell and Nancy Berglass concluded. "And as more troops return from deployment, the risk will only grow."

Faced with the stigma of post-traumatic stress disorder, unemployment rates tipping 12 percent and a loss of the military camaraderie, many veterans report feeling purposeless upon returning home.

Marine Corps veteran Jason Christiansen, 35, of St. Paul, Minn. is one such veteran that nearly killed himself after watching his life unravel upon completing his service. He lost his job as an auto dealer in 2008, avoided debt collectors and fell into a serious depression, Minnesota.publicradio.org reports.

"At one point, I was sitting there with a gun in my mouth," Christiansen told the news outlet.

A friend pushed Christiansen to seek help at a VA program, a key player in the rescuing of veterans in despair.

The Veterans Crisis Line, launched in 2007, has fielded more than 400,000 calls and has saved more than 14,000 lives, according to the Veterans Affairs mental health website.

The epidemic is raging among those who are currently serving too. From 2005 to 2010, approximately one service member committed suicide every 36 hours, the CNAS study revealed.

While the VA mental-health programs have proven to be effective, the authors of the report offered concrete suggestions on how to prevent even more military members and veterans from taking their lives.

Establishing an Army unit cohesion period
When soldiers are deployed to a new mission, the unit quickly disbands, leaving service members reeling from the loss of the leaders and the service members that they had learned to trust and rely on. "This lack of unit stability following a deployment has unfortunate implications for individuals struggling with reintegration," Harrell and Berglass noted. The authors suggested that the Army follow the Marines protocol of keeping a unit together for 90 days following deployment.

Discussing personally-owned weapons with service members
Though 48 percent of military suicides in 2010 occurred at the hands of privately-owned weapons, the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act bars military leaders from broaching the topic with military members, even if they appear to be severely depressed. The authors want Congress to rescind the act, so that military leaders can, at the very least, suggest that service members purchase gunlocks or store their weapons outside of the home if they suspect that they may be at risk for committing suicide.

Improving the analysis of veteran suicide data
The VA estimates that about 18 veterans commit suicide every day, but this statistic is based on limited data. Only 16 states submit the cause of death among veterans and the VA relies on 3-year-old data for its reports. Improved information collection could help determine if veterans are committing suicide soon after leaving the military and if there's a higher risk among post-9/11 veterans compared with earlier generations, the study noted.

"The DOD does not currently take sufficient responsibility for veteran suicide," the authors said. "Given the potential implications of veteran suicide for the all volunteer force, the DOD should seek to understand which veterans, and how many veterans, are dying by suicide."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/02/suicide_n_1070491.html

Contributed by Liz Sweet

Court-martial for 3 NCOs in wake of EOD death

2011-11-02T06:49:00.000-05:00

By Markeshia Ricks - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Oct 31, 2011 13:15:46 EDT
It was supposed to be a routine detonation of unserviceable ordnance and a morale booster for a couple of dozen troops at Joint Base Balad, Iraq.

Instead it turned into a nearly 30-minute nightmare that left Senior Airman James Hansen dead and one soldier severely wounded.

Now, 13 months after the accident, three noncommissioned officers have been charged in Hansen’s death.

Two of the NCOs — Master Sgt. Garet Vannes and Tech. Sgt. Gregory Divito Jr. — face dereliction of duty and negligent homicide charges. Tech. Sgt. Matthew Hefti has been charged with dereliction of duty and negligent homicide.

Read the entire story here.

Report rips platoon boss behavior in fratricide

2011-11-01T05:08:00.000-05:00

By Joe Gould - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Oct 31, 2011 13:05:12 EDT
A new investigation into the 2008 friendly fire death of Pfc. David Sharrett II in Iraq blasts the platoon leader who shot Sharrett and abandoned him as he lay dying, saying the officer displayed “serious personal judgment errors.”

After a botched pre-dawn raid, then-1st. Lt. Timothy Hanson left the battlefield on a helicopter while Sharrett and two of his soldiers were still missing, the report stated. Sharrett was found clinging to life at least 10 minutes after Hanson left.

“[Hanson] failed to uphold the Soldier’s Creed to include the Warrior Ethos,” wrote the chief investigator, Brig. Gen. David Bishop, chief of staff of Third Army, U.S. Army Central, “and he displayed a lack of regard for completing his assigned mission and ensuring the welfare and safety of his Soldiers which calls into question his leadership.”

The new investigation, dated March 31, is the third since Sharrett was killed. It backtracks on the first investigation’s widely reported conclusion that Hanson “misidentified” Sharrett as an insurgent and shot him because Sharrett failed to switch on his infrared beacon.

Read the entire story here.

Soldier’s Death Raises Suspicions in Chinatown

2011-10-31T06:23:00.000-05:00

From The New York Times:

"And though military officials have reassured the Chens that a thorough investigation is being conducted, their grief is laced with suspicion, shared by their supporters in the local Chinese community, that they will never learn the truth."

"From the little that the military has told them, family members believe that investigators are focusing on suicide as the cause of death. If that is the determination, the case may echo that of another Asian-American, Lance Cpl. Harry Lew, a Marine from California who killed himself in April in Afghanistan after fellow Marines allegedly subjected him to a brutal hazing. Last week, the Marines were ordered court-martialed. "

Read the entire story by clicking here.

Navy calls sailor's death a suicide, but family suspects it was murder

2011-10-26T18:26:00.001-05:00

Published: October 26, 2011

Antonacci's family, however, doesn't believe he committed suicide and fear he
might have been murdered for his role in the investigation, according to ABC News.

The family says they were first told Antonacci had died in a car crash, then that he had an aneurysm; they learned the truth about his death on Facebook, they told ABC News.

The Antonaccis say their son was targeted by the Marine's friends and had asked the Navy to move him off base at Naval Station Great Lakes, Ill., for protection. They say his autopsy showed facial injuries inconsistent with a self-inflicted hanging.

Read more about the death of Kyle Antonacci

Death Anniversary

2011-10-26T06:49:00.003-05:00

PFC Christopher Klassen
December 13, 1986 — October 25, 2008

Missing evidence is among military crime lab’s new problems

2011-10-25T11:29:00.000-05:00

WASHINGTON — The Army’s crime lab, already beleaguered by multiple internal investigations, has something new to explain: missing evidence.

Examiners misplaced evidence in a possible suicide investigation and an assault case. One of the analysts didn’t notify his superiors for months that a handwriting sample he was supposed to examine had been missing, a miscue that delayed an investigation into the matter until recently.

Meanwhile, two former senior employees of the lab’s high-profile forensics testing in Afghanistan have accused their bosses of firing them in August in retaliation for complaining about mismanagement.

Read the entire story here.

Death Anniversary

2011-10-25T06:39:00.003-05:00

SGT Christopher T. Monroe

December 3, 1985 — October 25, 2005

When Chris turned 17, he got his mother to sign the papers so he could join the Army Reserves. Part of the reason he joined was the educational benefits that he could use when he graduated from high school. The other reason was the terrorists in Afghanistan and Iraq. He went to his basic training at Fort Jackson the summer of 2003. He would wear his uniform to high school twice a week during his senior year.

After he graduated from high school he was interested in going to Indiana University and he met the love of his life. Angela is a good hearted girl who was just a few months older than Chris but that made no difference to him. He had asked her to marry him about six months after they had met and her family had adopted him like he was their son.

In 2004 his reserve unit in Indiana said that a unit in Michigan needs a few people to go on a deployment to Iraq starting in the summer of 2005. Without hesitation he volunteered for this deployment and was transferred to the Michigan reserve unit. He was looking into buying a house so
that when he married Angela they had a place of their own. He wanted to get married before he went to Iraq but Angela said that they should wait because they would have plenty of time after he got back from Iraq for that.

On October 25, 2005, Chris was driving a 5 ton truck pulling an armed HUMV that was going to have maintenance work done on it. They were just outside of Basra, Iraq on a 6 lane highway with a gravel median separating the 3 lanes. Chris was driving the number two vehicle in the convoy when on the other side of the road they saw a civilian BMW flip over. The NCO with him yelled IED! but they discovered it was not an Improvised Explosive Device. The convoy from Chris on back stopped to help the civilian driver. The senior officer on site ordered Chris to pull his 5 ton across the road so the weapon on the HUMV could provide defense in front of the convoy. Everyone was to get out and provide security while the medics helped out the Iraqi civilian driver. Chris was standing on the left front side of his 5 ton with his weapon at the ready, providing a secure perimeter when it happened.

Unknown to the convoy the rear check point had let a 3 SUV British security detail enter the convoy’s perimeter. It was 850 meters from the rear check point to where Chris was standing.

The next morning around 10:30am, an Army Chaplain and a Sergeant First Class were at my door. This is where the real story about Chris begins. I was told that Chris had been killed in an accident the night before and was handed a business card to the Fort Hood Casualty Affairs Office. They told me to call them and they would give me more information. I called them and they told me as much as what I had already been told. My family was dealing with the Casualty Affairs Office at Fort Knox my father gave me the phone number to that office so I gave them a call as well. They said they did not have a copy of the divorce decree and needed to see it so I faxed it to them. It was at this point I was asked as the primary next of kin what I wanted to have done with the body. We had planned to have him sent back home to Indiana to go with what had already been planned. It was about this time they discovered I had served in the military and all information about Chris was only volunteered if I asked, and then it was limited.

Even though by Army regulation I was the primary next of kin, that was removed from me. On the Friday after he was killed I asked what the time frame was for him getting back home. I was told that when he got to Dover they would have to do an autopsy and then embalm him that this would take about 72 hours. That Friday he had not left Iraq yet but they would let me know anything when it happened. Over the weekend and Monday no one called me about Chris so Tuesday I called Fort Knox. When I asked the first thing out of the mouth of the Casualty Affairs Officer was, “Uh Oh, they have already sent an escort.” I asked what that meant because I had never had this happen before. They said Chris had arrived from Iraq Sunday night and that Chris was going to be coming in to Indianapolis the next night. I had to go to Fort Hood and get my airplane tickets to leave the next day. I got to Indiana a few hours before Chris did.

No one beyond the Chaplain and the SFC came to see me before I left for Indiana. That night my ex-wife and I met with the Casualty Affairs Officer from the reserve unit in Indiana. We went to the Indianapolis airport with a hearse to pick up Chris. The next time I saw Chris was the Flag draped coffin on the loading dock at the freight section at the airport. The Casualty Affairs officer did not bring enough people to put Chris into the hearse. The Casualty Affairs Officer, his driver, the escort, two police officers, Angela’s aunt, and I. put Chris in the hearse. At the funeral home I asked the funeral director if an autopsy had been done on Chris. He said he could not see that one had been done. Even when I got to Indiana no one from the military came to see me to offer their condolences. The Casualty Affairs Officer spent all of his time with my ex-wife even though his driver had been assigned to be her escort. Even though Chris was at his battle station with his weapon loaded ready to return fire if fired upon, he did not receive the Purple Heart. so before we buried him I gave him mine that I had received when I was in the Marines when I was in Beirut, Lebanon.

Angela had been named as the beneficiary of Chris’ SGLI and had a power of attorney to deal with Chris’ affairs before he was killed. At a meeting Angela had with the Casualty Affairs Officer. he gave her copies of the interim casualty report. When I asked for a copy of the documents I was told I would have to file a freedom of information act request to get them. When the media reported about Chris’ funeral on TV all of his family and Angela were mentioned but I was not. It was a sad joke that we made that I was nobody, just his father.

When I got back to Fort Hood and told them what had happened they could not believe it. The woman at Fort Hood that I was dealing with I had known when I was in the Army gave me the documents I could not get in Indiana.

It took about 4 months for the Army to send me the reports about the events of Chris’ death. One of the first documents I received was the autopsy results. The cause of death was blunt force trauma, they claimed. A few days later I received a copy of the final casualty report stating the cause of death was blast force trauma. It was when I got the final report from the Army investigator I had more questions than they answered. The first lie was the conditions at the time of the accident. In the report they said it was pitch black outside at 6:30pm but I had been over there and knew this is not right. I have a program for star watching that allows me to program in day, time, and place. When I put in the day, time and as close to the place of the events there was almost 2 hours of daylight when it happened.

The blame for the accident was placed on several American soldiers. rather than the driver of the SUV that had hit him. The investigator said because the British security detail driver was allowed to enter the convoys perimeter he was not at fault. I contacted the British government about this accident but they informed me they knew nothing about it. It was not a British SUV like the Army investigator said. I found out that Chris was fully conscious from the moment he was hit to the moment he died. One of the things that got me was that the onsite medical personnel took 15 minutes to determine that a traumatic surgical amputation of his right leg was urgent and he needed to be Medevaced out.

It was during the flight to the hospital that Chris died. The death certificate lists cause of death as traumatic amputation of the right leg but the autopsy does not list amputation at all. Many of the injuries listed in the autopsy were not evident on Chris. On the autopsy report the cause of death was blunt force trauma but the final casualty report the cause of death was blast force trauma. That is not a misspelling that is a mistake. All reports are screened to be sure they are accurate.

The driver of the SUV, a British citizen, works for a company called Erinys which is a South African company with its home office in London. This company serves one propose and that is to supply mercenaries to hot spots world wide. The driver a British citizen was one of these mercenaries. The director of operation in Iraq for this company is a good friend of Dick Cheney and was supposed to become the Prime Minister of Iraq but things did not work out the way they had planned. Erinys has a web site that states they have an office in Houston, Texas, but when you go to the address it is nothing but a post office box. The company states it has a manager of operation at this office but they have failed to register this office with our government. Failing to register their office is a violation of federal law. Neither the mercenary company nor the driver of the SUV is not being held accountable for the wrongful death of SGT Christopher Monroe. I was told that because the Army investigator blamed U.S. soldiers for letting the SUV pass they were the cause of death. There is a belief that the investigator was paid off by the mercenary company to put the blame on our soldiers because of the flaws in statements and documents.

The driver makes the point in his statement that at the time of the accident he was told it was not his fault. There is no way anyone could make that statement without an investigation. The SUV was destroyed that night burned in place because they said it could not be recovered but when the investigator went to the accident site later the burned our SUV was gone. That was the way of destroying any evidence.

The Casualty Affairs Officer when he received the personal effects of my son by regulation he was to hold them for 40 days so that any legal action could be made in dividing them between the mother, father, and fiancée. The Casualty Affairs Officer, who was a Captain, was advised by an Inspector General Officer of the rank of Colonel. He told the Captain to follow regulations. The Captain told the Colonel what he could do with the regulation and immediately gave all of the personal effects to the mother who said she would return things to the father and fiancée.

When I was in the military, regulation was the heart of the operations of the military. You can add to the regulation but you could never take away from the regulation. I have a JAG lawyer and Inspector General Officer who agree that by regulation I should have been the primary next of kin and the one to receive the personal effects, but the Army refuses to agree with their own regulations. I have even gone to my congressional representative and senator in getting things corrected but they have not done a thing. One of the things I was promised was photographs taken by the unit photographer of Chris in his casket at the funeral home. The Army refused to answer all requests made of them.

Perry Monroe

If you have any information about this case, please contact me through this website.

Group Asks Army for Details in Death of Chinatown Soldier

2011-10-17T19:27:00.000-05:00

By Kristi Oloffson

Two weeks after a 19-year-old soldier and Chinatown resident serving in Afghanistan died of an apparent suicide, a local organization is asking the military to make public the details of an investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.

OCA-NY, a social-justice group formerly known as the Organization of Chinese Americans, is sending a letter to Army Secretary John McHugh and is requesting a meeting with the secretary to discuss the death of Private Danny Chen. Chen, who was deployed over the summer, was found dead in the living quarters of an army base in the Kandahar province of Afghanistan on Oct. 3.

A spokesman for Chen’s parents said Army representatives have told them that their son was subjected to violence and taunting by his fellow soldiers..

Read the entire story here.

U.S. Deaths in Drone Strike Due to MIscommunication, Report Says

2011-10-15T05:54:00.002-05:00

The Pentagon says Marines in Afghanistan and the crew controlling the drone in Nevada were unaware analysts watching the firefight via live video in Indiana had doubts about the targets' identity.

Reporting from Washington—

A Marine and a Navy medic killed by a U.S. drone airstrike were targeted when Marine commanders in Afghanistan mistook them for Taliban fighters, even though analysts watching the Predator's video feed were uncertain whether the men were part of an enemy force.

Those are the findings of a Pentagon investigation of the first known case of friendly fire deaths involving an unmanned aircraft, the April 6 attack that killed Marine Staff Sgt. Jeremy Smith, 26, and Navy Hospitalman Benjamin D. Rast, 23.

Read the entire story here.

Army Releases September Suicide Data

2011-10-14T10:00:00.000-05:00

The Army released suicide data today for the month of September. Among active-duty soldiers, there were 16 potential suicides: two have been confirmed as suicide and 14 remain under investigation. For August 2011, the Army reported 19 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, four cases have been confirmed as suicide and 15 cases remain under investigation.

During September 2011, among reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were six potential suicides: two have been confirmed as suicide and four remain under investigation. For August 2011, the Army reported nine potential suicides among not-on-active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, one case has been added for a total of 10 cases. Three cases have been confirmed as suicide and seven cases remain under investigation.

"There is nothing more important than the health and well-being of our soldiers, DA civilians, and family members," said Gen. Ray Odierno, the Army's Chief of Staff. "We need each and every member of our team. One suicide is one too many. Prevention and intervention efforts must be at the top of our priorities. They are also critical to maintaining trust, the bedrock of our profession. Soldiers must trust their fellow soldiers and their leaders to help them through difficult times. Leaders can make a difference, one soldier at a time, by recognizing and responding to high risk behavior early. I believe it is a sign of strength to ask for help."

Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Trained consultants are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and can be contacted by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or by visiting their website at http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org .

Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdfand Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf .

The Army's comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.preventsuicide.army.mil .
Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).

Information about Military OneSource is located at http://www.militaryonesource.com or by dialing the toll-free number 1-800-342-9647 for those residing in the continental United States. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource website for dialing instructions for their specific location.

Information about the Army's Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf/.
The Defense Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil .
The website for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is http://www.afsp.org/, and the Suicide Prevention Resource Council site is found at http://www.sprc.org/index.asp .

The website for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors is http://www.TAPS.org, and they can be reached at 1-800-959-TAPS (8277).

Source: Department of Defense Release

KBR Dodges Lawsuit From Shocked Marine

2011-10-13T12:48:00.000-05:00

RICHMOND, Va. (CN) - A Marine who was shocked while trying to install a wiring box at the military base near Fallujah, Iraq, cannot pursue negligence claims against defense contractor Kellogg Brown & Root, the 4th Circuit ruled.

     Peter Taylor had sought relief from the appellate court after a federal judge dismissed the claim in April 2010. Senior U.S. District Judge Robert Doumar had agreed with KBR that Taylor lacked subject-matter jurisdiction since the political question doctrine bars negligence claims. Doumar also found that the "combat activities" exemption of the Federal Tort Claims Act pre-empts the suit.
The 4th Circuit declined to revive Taylor's claim, but it did vacate the trial court's finding about the pre-emption issue since the lack of jurisdiction removes the judges need to consider this aspect of the case.

     Taylor, a hospital corpsman for the Marines, had been stationed at a camp about 15 miles outside Fallujah at the time of the July 2007 accident. A generator malfunction had incapacitated the tank ramp that troops used to maintain Marine tanks, Humvees and other vehicles.

     Power outages were a recurring problem for the Marines, so Taylor and others tried to find another source of electricity for the ramp, ultimately deciding to install a wiring box and hook it up to their generator. KBR technicians who had arrived at the base to work on another repair job allegedly knew that the Marines are working with the wiring on the generator. Nevertheless, one of KBR's technicians turned on the generator power while Taylor was working on it, causing him to get electrocuted, according to the complaint.
Read the whole story here.

Death Anniversary

2011-10-12T06:15:00.000-05:00

Sgt. Loren James Janeczko, Aug. 6, 1972 - Oct. 12, 2001

After Sept. 11, 2001, Loren Janeczko returned to active service in the Army.

On Oct. 12, 2001, one short month later, Sgt. Janeczko was killed in a “shoot out” with New Jersey Police. According to media reports, he was supposed to have “flipped out” and started shooting people, wounding two fellow soldiers on the Ft. Dix Army base, fleeing in a vehicle, and then wounding two New Jersey police officers, and taking a hostage before he was shot and killed by police.
According to the richly detailed story presented to the media in a press conference, the hostage got away when Loren’s gun jammed and Loren was then killed by a member of the New Jersey Police.
The Army claimed that there had been a “mental health hearing” the morning of his death, and that “two soldiers were accompanying him to clean out his locker” prior to discharge.
—————————————
It was a year after his death when the investigation reports, requested in October 2001 through the Federal Freedom of Information Act, were received. The reports are not complete. Much of the information is redacted. One brief report is from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The other, more voluminous in terms of paper, was from the Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID).
In a brief sentence, within the Army CID report, it is revealed that NO HOSTAGE WAS EVER TAKEN. This was confirmed on the telephone by a CID officer. Why would such a story be fabricated and fed to the media? Why has this story never been corrected in the media? The hostage story was not a garbling of events. It was presented in a formal press conference given by the New Jersey State Police spokesperson a day or two after the incident. It was a deliberate dissemination of misinformation.

Both the FBI and CID reports refer to the fact that Loren made an allegation of sexual assault against soldiers in his sleeping quarters four days before he was killed. The reports state that the Department of Defense Police on Ft. Dix were investigating the matter. He was placed in a private room for his own safety and security. He wasn’t being escorted to his locker and there wasn’t any “mental health hearing” the morning of his death. The commander had decided to turn the tables on him, as is frequently done in the Army, and to accuse him of assault. This is how the Armed Services get rid of whistleblowers and people who “make waves” by expecting to be treated with respect.

On October 12, 2001, a commanding officer decided to interrogate him for what was described, by a DOD officer’s statement to the CID, as a prolonged period of time. He was not allowed to make any arguments in his own defense and became increasingly stressed, as he watched the accused soldiers walking freely near the office and speaking to one another.

At this point, according to the report, this commanding officer decided to search his room and locker. He was ordered to lay out his possessions on the bed. Reportedly, rolled up inside a “dirty T-shirt” was a gun and ammunition. Strangely, the ‘statement’ of the DOD Police Officer In Charge (OIC), for that day’s shift, states: “…had been searching Sgt. Janeczko’s wall locker and as he had removed some items, some ammunition had fallen on the table.” Note that the OIC made no mention of a GUN! In fact, Loren possessed no gun at Ft. Dix which used that caliber ammunition.

The commanding officer, by her own statement, corroborated by other statements, said, “Now we’ve got you, buddy! You are going to jail.” She then left Loren in the room with two other soldiers and events proceeded.
—————————-
When the DOD police were called and asked for a copy of their investigation into the allegation of sexual assault, their first response was that there was no report of any allegation or investigation. After the JAG and Inspector General were contacted, the chief of the DOD Police stated that there was, indeed, an investigation report. He supplied the case number and said that it would be supplied to the family. Two weeks after that conversation, a person in the DOD Police office stated that the report would be delayed because the “legal department” was reviewing the report. A month after the request was made, another fragmentary and incomplete report was received. The summary states that the matter would be handled by the Unit Commander, however, a DOD police officer’s statement claimed that the sexual assault investigation was ongoing at the time of the Commander’s “interrogation”.
The CID report also states that the death investigation was jointly handled with the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice. They house exhibit 16, which includes the total summary of the investigation, all crime scene photos and evidence.

The New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice states that they are not subject to the Freedom of Information Act and that they will not give up any or all of their investigation reports. New Jersey has an Open Records Act and a Government Records Council, which has the power to help people get such information. At present, all requests for investigation reports have been denied and appealed. It seems that in the “opposite speak” so prevalent in America today, the Act is actually a Closed Records Act, designed to protect the police from scrutiny by the public.

The autopsy report supplied by the New Jersey Medical Examiner’s Office contains no forensic information. There is no ballistics information. There is no powder burn analysis, even though it was noted that Loren’s hands were “bagged.” A letter to the ME resulted in a reply that requests for further information have been referred to the NJ Division. of Criminal Justice.

Update, 2007:
I have now received an unredacted (although still incomplete) Investigation Report from the State of NJ. I also requested and received photographs, audio and video tapes, and other evidence. This required hiring a lawyer and going to the NJ Superior Court Law Division. Common law, in most States, allows the family to have access to such records.

By cross-referencing information contained within the report, I know that other specific documents have been withheld. My next task is to find someone in the government who will listen to reason and will follow the law in regard to access.

This investigation report sheds a new light on the events immediately leading up to my son’s death. I will not publicly reveal these facts here, but the story told to the media by the police and the Army differs wildly from what actually happened.

The Army, in the meantime, insists that they must suspend the re-investigation of the case and a DoD Hotline case, while individual civilian police sue the Army in the US District Court for money damages. Naturally, this makes no sense at all to the family. We have never threatened to sue the Army and we know that, in any case, we are precluded from doing that by the Feres Doctrine.
There will surely be an appeal if the tort case is dismissed, which will prolong the inactivity of the investigations. It is all a well-established method of withholding information. I maintain that there is no valid excuse for suspending and withholding new investigation material from an immediate family trying to understand what happened.

No forensics have been released by any of the three agencies involved. Repeated requests of the FBI have only resulted in FOIA denials so far.

I will press on.

Update, 2009:
The Department of Defense Hotline Inspector General, in a written report, has acknowledged that the Department of Defense Police on Ft. Dix did not meet their responsibility of investigating a reported sexual assault. They did no investigation at all, instead, turning the matter over to Command, as has been very common in the military services. (This is often the time when soldiers who have reported sexual assault by fellow service members will be punished for doing so.)

I have also obtained the depositions in the Civil Tort. This turned out to contain much valuable information about Loren’s death and the events leading up to it. There are also specific references to additional investigation material, including who possesses it. Some of this material was already requested in the Superior Court and declared “lost.”

The officer who has referred to herself as his Commander, was actually a Major and the Mobilization Commander, and had only met Loren the morning of his death. She set the day in motion and then proceeded to manage the media reporting from Ft. Dix. She also arrived at the scene of Loren’s death and identified his body at the Medical Examiner’s Office, referring to herself the whole time as “his Commander.” Her name appeared in the autopsy report incorrectly, either an inadvertent clerical error or a deliberate attempt to mislead. It was revealed in her testimony that she had previously worked in the NJ Attorney General’s Office and that the lead investigator in the death investigation was someone she referred to as her “buddy.”

There is much more to this story, but the Army is being given an opportunity to do the actual investigation of the events leading up to Loren’s death. It’s been eight years. I wonder how much longer they will take.
——————————-
Update, 2011:
I continue to ferret out information and documents, even though certain specific documents and evidence are being withheld without explanation by people who simply have the power to keep our family at bay. I'm hoping that someone from the giant blue wall of silence (police) or the giant green wall of silence (Army) will want to unburden his/her conscience after ten years. I'm not looking to sue, I just want to have the truth come out.
-------------------------------------------------

I have serious concerns about the climate of our country in terms of the Media and of the inordinate power of Federal agencies to keep secrets.

The print and electronic media in this country is willing to publish whatever they are told by police without any independent verification. The “facts” published are fed by other unverified “facts” which appear to fit the pattern of whatever scenario has been presented. The media is now an entertainment business, which does not encourage actual investigative reporting with very few exceptions.

As we know from current events, the Federal Government now has usurped the power of the people in the United States. Expectations that public servants must respond to requests for information are ignored and the people have become the servants of the Government.

We can reverse these injustices, but only if each of us makes the personal effort to challenge the government, at any level, and insisting that government honors its responsibility to provide truthful information.

Donna Janeczko

If you have any information about this case, please contact me through this website.

"Friendly Fire"

2011-10-07T06:16:00.001-05:00

Link to discussion of "friendly fire" non-combat deaths on The Truth Has Changed radio show.

Link to "friendly fire" documentary trailer and showing dates.

Death Anniversary

2011-10-05T06:11:00.000-05:00

Col. Michael R. Stahlman October 5, 2008

Link to story by Cilla McCain

Electrocution case against KBR can be tried in U.S. court, judge rules

2011-10-04T06:19:00.001-05:00

Stars and Stripes

Published: October 4, 2011

YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — A civil lawsuit brought against KBR by the parents of a U.S. soldier electrocuted in Iraq can go forward in U.S. court, after a federal judge ruled the case should not be governed by Iraqi laws.

Attorneys for the defense contractor had argued that Iraqi laws should apply to the case because Army Staff Sgt. Ryan Maseth’s death in 2008 occurred on a military base in Iraq. But, for the second time in four months, Judge Nora Barry Fischer sided with Maseth’s family, saying U.S. law is applicable because the base was under American control, according to an Associated Press report.

The 24-year-old Maseth, a Green Beret, died in January 2008 while showering at the Radwaniyah Palace Complex in Baghdad, a facility maintained by KBR. A Defense Department investigation concluded that KBR workers failed to properly ground a water pump, which led to his electrocution.

Fischer’s ruling — handed down last month in the U.S. District Court of Western Pennsylvania — means KBR could be found liable and ordered to pay punitive damages to the plaintiffs, Cheryl Harris and Douglas Maseth.

“I’m very pleased. It’s been a long 3½ years,” Harris, Maseth’s mother, told Stars and Stripes from her Pennsylvania home Monday. “KBR is trying to prolong the case and argue everything they can.”
In her ruling, the judge found that KBR’s attorneys were trying to have it both ways. The judge said in a footnote that, in her view, KBR’s litigation strategy “is one that constantly shifts to a point where it eventually takes contradictory positions,” according to the AP report.

Fischer had made the same ruling in June, but KBR lawyers had asked her to reconsider.

She noted that KBR first argued it couldn’t be sued because the Army exercised an “envelope of control” over the contractor and its work at the base, so the judge shouldn’t even have jurisdiction or, at least, KBR shouldn’t bear any ultimate responsibility for anything that went wrong there. But later, the judge said, KBR argued that Iraqi law should hold sway because the country’s laws dictated much of what went on at the base — including the sometimes shoddy construction of Iraqi buildings that were commandeered and used to house soldiers like Maseth, according to the AP.

Daniel Russell, an attorney for KBR, said Monday the contractor had no immediate comment on the decision, the AP said.

Following a string of other fatal and nonfatal electrical incidents involving U.S. personnel in Iraq, it was Maseth’s death that spurred a DOD investigation into the widespread electrical problems at bases throughout the country. Both KBR employees and military commanders failed to ensure the safety of troops at the base where Maseth was electrocuted in the shower, according to a July 2009 inspector general report.

KBR reported electrical problems at the palace complex to the military before Maseth was killed, yet was never told to fix the problems until after his death, a KBR spokeswoman told USA Today that same month.

The IG report found that electrical shocks were so commonplace that many incidents went unreported and were considered to be just part of duty in Iraq.

Despite the IG’s findings, the Army decided no one should be held criminally liable for Maseth’s electrocution.

While many contractors and government employees “breached their respective duties of care … none of those breaches in and of themselves were the proximate cause of his death,” the Army said in a statement released after the IG report came out.

The Army’s handling of the case disturbs Harris as much as KBR’s failure to take responsibility in the case.

“Soldiers are shocked and shocked and then one is killed, and it’s no one’s fault?” Harris said Monday.

Fischer now must determine whether to apply liability laws from Pennsylvania, Maseth’s home state; Tennessee, where Maseth’s unit was based; or Texas, where KBR is headquartered, AP reported.

reedc@pstripes.osd.mil

Read the entire story here.
More:

Judge: U.S. laws govern shower death lawsuit

Death by Polypharmacy

2011-10-02T06:44:00.001-05:00

This is a link to a discussion with Stan White on the topic of polypharmacy used as a "treatment" for PTSD.

Here is a link to an article discussing the same issue.

Death Anniversary

2011-09-28T06:25:00.000-05:00

1st Lt. Phillip Kent

Who was Phillip? …My only son, grandson, soldier, comrade, friend, and scholar who loved his country and was ready to fulfill his military duty with enthusiasm and determination.

Phillip was a Veteran (one of who fought in a war) of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He brought his men/equipment home safely but tragically he came home a broken man suffering from PTSD.

Upon returning he found his marriage broken, little or no debriefing from the Army…. As a parent, I contacted Army Chaplains. ‘No help, no returned calls.

Phil was forced to resign his commission or face more harassment from fellow officers. Phil left Fort Hood, Texas in November 2004. He returned home to South Carolina, and succumbed to death by his own hand.

Each time I share my story I become a stronger human being. I appreciate the many Care Organization that help bridge the gap that exists between soldier families, citizens and bureaucrats, who have never been there; who cope with their fears and inadequacies by avoidance and denial.

Laura Kent
Mother of 1st Lt. Phil Kent

If you have any information about this case, please contact me through this website.

Edit

Death Anniversary

2011-09-26T06:04:00.002-05:00

Cpl. Andrew White, USMC

Our youngest son, Cpl. Andrew White, USMC, was home from Iraq five days when his older brother, SSgt. Robert F. White, 82nd ABN US ARMY, was killed in action in Afghanistan on September 26, 2006.

On 12 February 2008, Andrew died while being treated by the VA for PTSD. He was taking 60 mg. Paxil, 4 mg. of Klonopin, and 1600 mg. of Seroquel. He died in his sleep.

Since then, his mother and I have been on a mission to find answers so that no other family will suffer these losses while their loved ones are being treated for PTSD.

With the help of several new friends, we have found that at least 57 others have died in similar circumstances — some from these same meds, while other deaths are still under investigation.
If you know of any families that have lost loved ones while taking these meds, please contact us through this website. We have been to Congress with our story and the stories of at least eight other families (five in West Virginia). Our goal is threefold:

Collect the stories of other soldiers who have died from meds while being treated for PTSD.
Lobby Congress to force the DOD and VA to use less medication and more counseling for PTSD, and
Lobby for an in-depth investigation into why the VA and DOD continues to prescribe the lethal mix of antidepressants, antipsychotics and pain killing drugs.

Stan and Shirley White, Cross Lanes WV
To contact the Whites, email us and we’ll forward your message.

Dying in Their Sleep: The Invisible Plague Attacking U.S. Soldiers

Death Anniversary

2011-09-24T08:06:00.001-05:00

Jayson David Coffman, September 24, 1999

The Torment Must End: Let the Truth Be Told

My son, Jayson David Coffman, my firstborn of five children was taken from me, brutally, violently and without justice, without the truth. Jayson was stationed at Ft. Story, Virginia, a U.S. Army post right on Virginia Beach. His life was taken at the young age of 20, without justifiable cause and without the benefit of support from his family or legal counsel. Jayson, like many military personnel, did not die in battle overseas, but on a military facility right here in the United States.

I will never forget the day I heard the news. It will ring in my mind for the rest of my life. I was told my son committed suicide and was hung in the woods just five minutes from his barracks. I was shocked beyond my wildest dreams and it was then that my life came crashing down around me. My head was spinning and my heart went numb. I lost all composure and at times I was a rock. I was angry, hurt, confused and shocked to the bone. I had just spoken to him only a few days beforehand. I heard a happy, well-adjusted voice over the phone announce to me that he had purchased a ring and was going to ask his girlfriend to marry him. We laughed, teased each other and both said, “I love you” before we hung up.

Little did I know that my son would leave this earthly plane through such a vicious attack to his person. The information became known to me long after the investigation was over through military personnel who did not want to get into trouble for telling the truth, but had to get it off their chests.
My dear one, the one I held in my arms, formed in my body and cared for over twenty years of his life, was beaten by soldiers on his post for talking to a girlfriend of a fellow soldier. Alcohol was purchased for him by an NCO (non-commissioned officer) and he was then reported for drinking on the job. The NCO kept his job and was told to keep his mouth shut. When Jayson was counseled for the drinking, he was told that his Army career was over and that life as he knew it would never be the same.

He was reported missing on September 24, 1999 and was not “discovered” until three and a half weeks later. The military police told me they would not look for him. The Marines found him hanging from a tree just within sight and walking distance from his barracks. The Army told me that two soldiers, the Captain and a Sergeant, looked for him daily. How could they have not seen him? The smell from rotting flesh was so strong that when the Marines found him, they could hardly stand it. He was found with his wallet, ID and a note to his girlfriend in his pocket, yet I was told that those things were found in his locker. He was not searched for because his things were thrown in a box marked AWOL (absent without leave). He was just left to hang there and rot for three and a half weeks so there would be no toxicology report in the autopsy. He was found with his knees on the ground, legs crossed; one arm was dislocated from his shoulder and found to the right of his body and on the ground. (No explanation for this was noted in the autopsy report.) Beer bottles were at the scene, yet the mother of the girlfriend called me to tell me that the autopsy report had shown no alcohol in his blood. The thing was, that the autopsy report had not yet come out and his body was too decomposed to even get a toxicology report. His girlfriend’s father was a Colonel in the Air Force and was notified of my son’s death three daysbefore I was notified. My son was dead and discovered and I was not even told for three days! It took until the end of October to get his body back in California.

I was contacted by soldiers he worked with, and told that the Army killed my son. I believe them, they were present. They covered it up by allowing a great deal of time to pass by so no evidence could be found. They lied about his wallet and told me it was in his locker and then placed it on his body with his ID and a note to his girlfriend that they most likely got out of a box of letters that my son kept for his girlfriend. He wrote to her often and sometimes did not send the letters.

Jayson was drowned in alcohol; died from his own vomit and hung to make it look like a suicide. His things were all sent back to me at Christmastime all thrown in a box: dirty underwear and socks all mixed with now-broken items that had belonged to my son. His pillow was included and still had the stains from his tears on it.

He was supposedly on 24-hour suicide watch that night, but if he were, he would never have been able to get out alone unseen. The last time he was seen by his roommate, it was late at night and he was in his bed, asleep, yet his body was found fully dressed in his Army uniform. He was hung by his bedsheet, which was never reported missing from his room.

I had made a big deal about the fact that my son would never have left and gone AWOL without his wallet and personal items. I find it strange that his wallet and ID were then found on his body.
I was not sent the Criminal Investigation Report and autopsy until a year later. The report states that he died from suicide. We live with a lie and my son’s life looks just like a lie.
No family should have to go through this kind of pain. Every day after taking my kids to school, I wouldpark in th garage in my car, turn off the engine and cry until my guts felt like they would fall out. Then I just went numb.

I was warned not to pursue investigation of the Army and their deeds because my fate may end up just like my son’s. This came from a dear friend who worked closely with my son and knew all of the truth. He was there. Many stories have emerged over the years and brought to my attention regarding military abuse of our enlisted soldiers. These are our husbands, wives, and children. Our kids, from the age of eighteen, are being told that the military will assist them to further their careers and give them pride. They enlist, as Jayson did, to make a better life for themselves. They just never are told about the humiliation, and the fact that they might just have to die at the hands of their fellow soldiers.

There are many stories that are coming out into the open and our purpose is to expose them all in order to enlighten the public as to what kind of behavior goes on in our U.S. Military. Don’t get me wrong, we love our country. It is the wrongdoing from our U.S. Forces and officials who turn a blind eye when it comes to military accountability. We desire justice for the sake of our kids. Our kids and loved ones deserve to have the truth be told concerning their deaths. No other family should have to endure what we have hadto endure. The cover up and the murder and the reckless care of our military personnel must be stopped NOW.

Jenine Marie Mason

Petition regarding non-combat death investigations

2011-09-23T10:09:00.002-05:00

Please consider creating an account at whitehouse.gov and sign our petition.

Ensure that the Department of Defense honor its own Instructions 5505.10 and 1300.18 regarding non-combat deaths.

"All military non-combat deaths, not of natural causes, must be investigated as potential homicides, as the most current Department of Defense Instructions, 5505.10 and 1300.18 specify. We believe that the Department of Defense should obey their own guidelines regarding investigations. Rules about informing family members of these fallen military men and women should be followed. Breaches of the Uniform Code of Military Justice by members of the Armed Forces which have contributed to these non-combat deaths or to the dissemination of false official statements must be punished according to the UCMJ. An independent review panel should be created to investigate discrepancies presented by families. "

Link to Discussion of DoD Instructions on Non-combat Death Investigations

2011-09-22T14:00:00.000-05:00

Click here to listen to a discussion about the Department of Defense Instructions on the investigations of non-combat deaths. Learn something about the rules which are often ignored and about the acknowledged rights of families in these cases.

No End in Sight for a Family’s Agonizing Guessing Game

2011-09-21T05:37:00.002-05:00

"Struggling under what she sees as a blanket of resistance from the Army, Sylvia McBeth remains among the countless parents who have lost children in the military and must live with a never-ending question: Just what happened to my kid?"

Posted on Sep 21, 2011

Images courtesy friends of Morganne McBeth

By John Lasker

Jumping out of high-flying aircraft isn’t how most 19-year-old women get their kicks, but for Morganne McBeth that was one of the joyous things in her young life. “She loved it. She’d tell us, ‘You are in a totally different universe,’ and this was fun for her,” her step mother, Sylvia McBeth of Fredericksburg, Va., said of the Army paratrooper. Morganne’s brother, Army Sgt. Christopher McBeth, 28, who has completed two tours in Iraq, added, “She lived for this.”

Read the whole story here.

Trial in Medic's Case Delayed

McHugh Cites Major Improvements at Arlington National Cemetery

2011-09-20T16:24:00.000-05:00

Secretary of the Army John M. McHugh today released publicly a “Report to Congress,” updating improvements made at Arlington National Cemetery more than a year after he ousted the cemetery’s leadership and made sweeping changes in its structure and oversight.

“In just over a year, the cemetery’s new management team has made major progress in reconciling decades’ worth of paper records with physical graveside inspections to regain accountability,” McHugh wrote in a letter to members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. “They have put in place new policies and procedures to protect against and prevent the type of errors uncovered in the Army’s previous investigations. Equipment and training have been modernized, contracting procedures revamped, a historic partnership created with the Department of Veterans Affairs, the workforce improved and reinvigorated, and ongoing outreach and information has been provided to family members and the American public.”

McHugh provided the report to Congressional oversight committees in response to legislation seeking the status of a directive he signed that made sweeping reforms at Arlington National Cemetery. In compiling the report, McHugh directed the Army’s inspector general to again inspect the facility to determine compliance. An earlier inspector general report, also ordered by McHugh, found failures in management and oversight that contributed to the loss of accountability, lack of proper automation, ineffective contract compliance, and a dysfunctional workforce.

“Perhaps most important, the inspector general found the mismanagement that existed prior to these changes, ‘no longer exists,’” he said. “And that ‘significant progress has been made in all aspects of the cemetery’s performance, accountability and modernization.’ We’re confident that the Army is on the right path toward repairing the cemetery’s failures and restoring the confidence of Congress and the American people.”

McHugh noted that even while making massive improvements in the cemetery’s management and oversight, the pace of 27 to 30 funeral services per day -- many with full military honors -- has not abated.

“Since 1864, the United States Army has been steward of this, the country’s only active military shrine,” McHugh said. “I believe this report will demonstrate the Army’s steadfast commitment to repairing what was broken in the past, and ensuring America’s continued confidence in the operation of its most hallowed ground.”

NOTE: The secretary’s “Report to Congress” and the Department of the Army inspector general’s report on inspection of Arlington National Cemetery are available at: http://www.army.mil/arlington .

For more information contact Lt. Col. Lee M. Packnett at 703-697-7592.

Source: Department of Defense Announcement

Army Releases August Suicide Data

2011-09-15T16:59:00.001-05:00

The Army released suicide data today for the month of August. Among active-duty soldiers, there were 19 potential suicides: three have been confirmed as suicides and 16 remain under investigation. For July 2011, the Army reported 22 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, five cases have been confirmed as suicide, and 17 cases remain under investigation.

During August 2011, among reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were nine potential suicides: none have been confirmed as suicide and nine remain under investigation. For July 2011, the Army reported 10 potential suicides among not-on-active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, one case has been added for a total of 11 cases. Three cases have been confirmed as suicide and eight cases remain under investigation.

“Suicide prevention training and awareness are vital components of the Army's health promotion and risk reduction efforts against the tragic occurrence of suicide within our ranks,” said Lt. Gen. Thomas P. Bostick, Army Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1. “It is a priority that deserves our full attention and continued emphasis by all leaders. Junior leaders and first-line supervisors can be especially effective in assisting those in a moment of crisis. We collaborate extensively with other federal and national programs to assure we remain abreast of the very latest research and best practices. To date, our focused efforts have resulted in thousands of trained individuals throughout the Army who now have the skills to recognize the signs of suicide, exercise appropriate intervention techniques, and engage the numerous organizations within the Army and DoD that stand ready to help at any hour of the day or night. These skills are invaluable and have equipped many in our Army to lend a hand to fellow soldiers, Department of the Army civilians, and their families in their daily encounters,” said Bostick.
Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Trained consultants are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and can be contacted by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or by visiting their website athttp://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org .

Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdf and Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf .

The Army's comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.preventsuicide.army.mil .
Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).

Information about Military OneSource is located athttp://www.militaryonesource.comor by dialing the toll-free number 1-800-342-9647for those residing in the continental United States. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource website for dialing instructions for their specific location.

Information about the Army’s Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf/ .

The Defense Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil .
The website for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is http://www.afsp.org/, and the Suicide Prevention Resource Council site is found athttp://www.sprc.org/index.asp .

The website for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors is http://www.TAPS.org, and they can be reached at 1-800-959-TAPS (8277).

Source: http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=14794

Lost Warriors: Inside the Crisis of Military Suicides

2011-09-12T14:09:00.002-05:00

After suicide, Army silence, censors heighten survivors' pain

Star Tribune Series on Military Suicides

Pvt. Keiffer Wilhelm's parents blame Army cruelty

2011-09-11T05:37:00.000-05:00

Shortly after a 19-year-old Fort Bliss soldier killed himself with a gunshot to the head in 2009 while serving in Iraq, four of his unit leaders were charged with cruel treatment of their soldiers.

The case of Pvt. Keiffer Wilhelm opened a discussion on both the Army's training procedures and the problem of suicide among its soldiers. And none of the parents involved were happy with the outcome.

Read the entire story here.

Military suicides not just a number to 1 lawmaker

2011-09-10T06:32:00.001-05:00

A House Armed Services hearing Friday on the status of suicide prevention programs in the military gave leaders from the Navy, Army, Air Force and Marine Corps a chance to answer lawmakers' questions about identifying service members at risk and other steps they are taking to stop suicides. The military witnesses highlighted their efforts and described how services members often "dance with some dragons," which was how Marine Lt. Gen. Robert Milstead Jr., put it.

Read the entire story here.

Another non-combat death: Soldier from Echmiadzin shot dead in Karabakh’s military unit

2011-09-07T13:13:00.000-05:00

Another violent incident has taken place in a Karabakh military unit resulting in the death of a soldier. At 6:00 am on Wednesday, near combat positions in Askeran, private Hayk Mkrtchyan reportedly received fatal gunshots.

Military authorities in Stepanakert said the serviceman of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army (born in 1992) had been drafted from the military registration and enlistment office of Armenia’s town of Echmiadzin. The local military commissar Hayk Mkrtchyan later told the “Human Rights in Armenia” website (www.hra.am) that Mkrtchyan was killed with a shot fired by a fellow soldier. The shooter has not been named yet.

This is the second non-combat death within the Armenian armed forces within a space of two weeks. Also, earlier this week, media and online social networks disseminated a video material telling about how a serviceman identified as Hovhannes Vardanyan ended up in a madhouse after serving 14 months in the armed forces. The Military Prosecutor’s Office has already instituted a criminal case in connection with this footage on the hallmarks of a penal code article dealing with abuse of power, stretch of authority or inaction.

Armenia’s human rights activists estimate that since the cessation of hostilities in Karabakh in 1994, as many as 1,500 young men have died while serving in Armenian armed forces. In contrast, throughout the 1992-1994 war, about 6,000 combatants were killed on the Armenian side. So far authorities have refused to disclose the statistics of army casualties in peacetime.

A number of human-rights organizations on Tuesday issued a statement, calling unacceptable torture and violence against soldiers and attempts to cover up such cases. They also demanded concrete steps to combat hazing and remedy the general atmosphere within the army ranks.

2011-09-02T09:49:00.000-05:00

This is a link to a radio discussion about the movie, "Semper Fi -- Always Faithful" with Jerry Ensminger and Pam Baragona. The movie is a documentary about the problem of contaminated water at Ft. LeJeune, North Carolina.

Death Memorial

2011-08-31T06:58:00.000-05:00

My son’s name was Kenneth John Laga, he died on 31st August 2005, along with two other young soldiers in Gutersloh, Germany.

I had lost my oldest son (non military) 7 months earlier, so Kenneth’s death was unbearable, and also totally needless. The 3 boys were on a visit to the medical centre at another barracks.

Kenneth was with 26 Regiment, Royal Artillery. The regiment had to replace the original duty driver that morning, as he was on a course. The replacement driver, it transpired, had never driven a Land Rover Wolf alone, let alone on right hand drive roads (Germany), he should not have been given the full license to drive the vehicle as he should have undergone conversion training before being allowed to drive, this was his first driving duty!

He did not get his work ticket signed before setting off (the work ticket is the equivalent to the insurance document), he lost his way, took a gentle left hand bend too quickly for his ability and lost control of the vehicle and smashed into two trees. All the three boys died later that day of massive head and body injuries.

The front seat belts were torn apart as the roof ripped off the vehicle, it was left holding on by one screw. What happened after has been a disaster as far as I am concerned. My husband died 16 months later, he had a massive heart attack at the age of 53.

The only person who has faced any punishment was the driver, he was fined £1,000 at a court martial for careless driving, he appealed against this all the way to the House of Lords, all paid for by tax payers money. I have lost track of how many times I have asked about the Sgt who issued him with the full license, in fact he has been promoted now to Staff Sgt. He has not had a court martial or faced any internal discipline, he answered at the inquest that he had had an informal chat with his new commanding officer.

Elaine Laga, Mother of Kenneth Laga.

If you would like to contact Elaine Laga, please email us and we’ll put you in contact with her.

Military Suicide Prevention Task Force Report

2011-08-29T18:01:00.000-05:00

Military Suicide Prevention Task Force Report
August 24, 2011

The Armed Services Suicide Prevention Task Force presented its final report. The report contained a number of finding and included recommendations to overhaul the Department of Defense's ability to react to increasing suicide .. Read More

View the C-Span Program here.

Armenian Military Probes Another Non-Combat Death

2011-08-29T13:04:00.001-05:00

Naira Bulghadarian

Military authorities have launched a criminal investigation into the non-combat death of yet another Armenian soldier, which highlighted their continuing failure to root out chronic abuses within the army ranks.

Armenia’s Defense Ministry reported at the weekend that Aghasi Abrahamian, an 18-year-old conscript serving in an army unit near Nagorno-Karabakh, died shortly after being hospitalized with serious injuries late on Friday.

A ministry statement said that military investigators are now trying to establish the causes of Abrahamian’s death. It said they opened a criminal case under a Criminal Code clause dealing with involuntary manslaughters caused by beatings.

The ministry’s Investigative Department reported no arrests among military personnel as of Monday evening.

Abrahamian’s grief-stricken relatives insisted, meanwhile, that the conscript was beaten to death and that the investigators should treat the case as a deliberate murder.

“My boy was brutally beaten to death,” his mother Gayane told RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) in her Yerevan apartment where Abrahamian lay in state on Monday.

“I sent a healthy boy [to the army] and I expected to get back a healthy boy, not a dead body,” she cried.

Read the entire story here.

Update: Two Arrested Over Armenian Serviceman's Death

Death Memorial

2011-08-29T05:59:00.000-05:00

My son, Nolan Edward Stites, was an Army Reservist assigned to the 52nd Combat Engineer Battalion on Fort Carson, Colorado. He successfully completed nine months in the Army Reserve “delayed entry” program with the 52nd Engineers and received a promotion due to his excellent performance. In the summer of 2000 he reported to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri for Basic Combat Training where he became ill with clinical depression shortly thereafter. Nolan sought help for his illness and was a patient under care of the U.S. Army when he died during his seventh week on the Missouri army post.

Nolan graduated from high school with honors, never got into trouble and was respected as mature by all adults that knew him. He was an active church member, did not smoke, drink, use drugs or have any history of mental or family problems. Nolan was a rugged and physically fit outdoorsman, expert marksman with all types of firearms and loved the military. He held high ideals and was very patriotic. Nolan’s many NCO and Officer friends familiar with his out-door skills and endurance considered Nolan potentially a model soldier.

During his second week at Fort Leonard Wood, Nolan complained of the heat and humidity and said his forehead was severely sunburned and swollen. Nolan, a native of Colorado, was not used to Missouri’s climate in July. Two weeks later he called home and reported leg cramps, insomnia, loss of appetite and cognitive problems with reading, writing and understanding what was being said to him.

I, as his father, unwittingly made the mistake of responding with a letter, advising him to seek medical care on post, a recruit’s only source of help. Nolan, being one not to complain, tried to tough it out and continued training until his ailments progressed to bladder control problems, making it impossible to go on. He went to his roommates, drill sergeants and finally the Brigade Chaplain for assistance.

Nolan told the Chaplain he was depressed and had suicidal thoughts, a common symptom of depression. The Chaplain recognized Nolan needed to be seen by a mental health professional and, as required in this type of case, reported his findings to the Company Commander. The Company Commander immediately removed Nolan from training and put him on “Suicide or Unit Watch,” the Standard Operational Procedure in use on Fort Leonard Wood at that time. According to the Captain, Nolan ranked in the top 10% of the company when he placed my son on unit watch.

Unit watch is a disciplinary program of humiliation and ostracism used by the military to deter
manipulative recruits from claiming mental problems to get out of the service. They removed Nolan from all training but not the unit; made him sleep in the War Room, using tired, resentful, and untrained teenagers to guard him at night. Without any medical treatment, Nolan was forced to parade around in front of his peers for fifteen days, minus belt and bootlaces. Ostracized from training and
humiliated as a marked man, Nolan was so distraught over his situation he told a roommate he was considering ending his life by jumping from the third story window. The worried roommates got together and wrote their drill sergeant a note expressing their concerns to no avail; their note was ignored!

On the fifth day of his ordeal, Nolan saw an Army social worker that misdiagnosed him as “a Special Ed. student that never got help” and “unfit for service.” (Nolan had just graduated from high school with a grade point average above 3.5.) The social worker returned Nolan to the barracks on full “Unit Watch” without further follow-up for the last ten days of his life. On unit watch, Nolan was subjected to sleep deprivation, humiliation, and embarrassment. In front of the entire platoon, Nolan’s drill sergeant challenged him to jump and kill himself, even offered to open the window. (This kind of mental abuse is devastating to a patient suffering from clinical depression.) Nolan wrote his drill sergeant a note pleading for help, “nobody will help now but I need emergency help to live, my parents want me to live and so do I.” The platoon sergeant in charge never took appropriate action with the note.

After two weeks of unit watch my son called me about his desperate situation. I then called the Red Cross for help and they misspelled Nolan’s last name so bad they had difficulty in locating him on Fort Leonard Wood. Over the telephone, eight hundred miles away, I told the drill sergeants to take Nolan to the hospital. After examining Nolan, the ER doctor gave him an I.V. for dehydration, set up an appointment with the mental health service for the next day and returned Nolan back to the barracks
for more “unit watch.” The platoon sergeant placed Nolan next to a window on the third floor. Nolan saw no hope for help and wrote a farewell letter to his family stating, he didn’t know how to get help, there was only one place left for him to go, and “God could never forgive me for disgracing my country and my family.” Stripped of self-esteem and with “no light at the end of the tunnel,” my son, PV2 Stites, did as his sergeant suggested, jumped to his death!

A year later I received a pathetically flawed CID investigation report through FOIA. It did not explain the pencil point size puncture wound to my son’s abdomen, inconsistent with injuries sustained from landing on his back. The CID agent in charge of the investigation photographed another recruit’s ID
tag at the death scene and identified it as Nolan’s without reading it. The broken chain from the tag was in blood, two inches from my son’s right ear. Nolan was right handed and his body position was face up. The other boy’s ID tag was sent to us in my son’s personal possessions. Based on my research about unit

watch, I suspect my son was being hazed but because of the Feres Doctrine I cannot sue and subpoena witnesses to find out the truth.

If a soldier is suicidal he doesn’t belong in the unit, if he is not suicidal, why take away his belt and bootlaces to mark and humiliate him in front of his peers? That defines what unit watch is all about, punishment for saying you are ill. Nolan’s death did not result from an accidental slip of a surgeon’s knife but 15 days of deliberate abuse. I consider his death a “psychological homicide.” The culprit
in this case was not any one individual but the government of the United States for allowing this sadistic and abusive program to exist!

Five weeks earlier, another recruit, PVT Gary Moore from our state of Colorado, also killed himself on Fort Leonard Wood after suffering three weeks of abuse and being made fun of on “Unit Watch.” Both families were denied redress when we filed Tort claims for gross negligence and medical malpractice, resulting in death. The government using the Feres Doctrine responded with a letter denying our claims stating, “The United States is not liable to service members under the FTCA for injuries that arise out of or are in the course of activity incident to service.”

No one was held accountable or punished; the sergeant that told Nolan to kill himself was promoted.

Our and Gary Moore’s family discovered, like many other families of deceased active duty soldiers, the Federal government is above the law and you can’t do anything about it.

Richard R. Stites, AKA, “Singe”
Father of the late PV2 Nolan Edward Stites

If you have any information about this case, please contact me through this website

3 Hawaii Marines charged in Afghanistan hazing case

2011-08-26T06:11:00.001-05:00

By William Cole

Three Hawaii Marines have been charged with multiple offenses ranging from assault and maltreatment to violation of orders and dereliction of duty for alleged hazing leading up to the April 3 death of fellow Marine Lance Cpl. Harry Lew in Afghanistan, officials said today.

Lew, 21, committed suicide April 3 after being hazed by two other Marine lance corporals, the Marine Corps Times said, citing an investigation into the death.

Read the entire story here.
Marine suicide tied to hazing in Afghanistan

Facing Ninth Deployment, Ranger Kills Himself

2011-08-23T14:58:00.003-05:00

Husband's suicide was to avoid ninth deployment, widow says

Provide resources to address Army suicides

Bereaved parents urge Armenian president to solve army murders

2011-08-23T06:42:00.000-05:00

All around the world, there are families grieving the loss of soldiers who have been murdered by fellow service members or who have died otherwise, usually at a young age, in uninvestigated non-combat deaths. This story is from Armenia, where the families have come together to fight for justice.

Excerpt:
"The chief military prosecutor admits that many crimes have been committed by inspectors in connection with the criminal cases into our sons' deaths. However, no one has yet been punished. You have upset us. Moreover, murders in the army will continue as indifference and illegality rule there,” the letter says.
Read the entire story here.

Sgt Patrick Rust - His Last Known Journey

2011-08-21T12:28:00.000-05:00

Posted on August 20th, 2011

by Simon Barrett in All News, crime

Several weeks ago I was introduced to the strange case of Sgt. Patrick Rust by Denny Griffin of Crimewire. It is a cold case, 2007 although the events only happened five years ago, it has long since entered the dusty file section for the investigators. You can read a basic synopsis of the case on www.patrickrust.com. The story that Denny Griffin told me was a very disturbing one. Denny and his Crimewire team only take on cases that have a ’solvable factor’.

The Patrick Rust case has that factor. I invited Denny Griffin and his fellow Crimewire investigator Bill Sullivan to join us on The Sunday Afternoon Murder Club radio program. You can listen to the recording here.

There are a number of aspects to this case that really bother me. I just want to look at one. Maybe it is taken out of context, maybe I am off the mark.

Read the entire story, with visuals, here.

Military Training Accidents

2011-08-19T05:59:00.000-05:00

Link to radio discussion of training accidents.

Senator slams DoD on suicide prevention efforts

2011-08-19T05:49:00.000-05:00

By Andrew Tilghman - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Aug 18, 2011 17:15:00 EDT

It’s been a year since a blue-ribbon commission on military suicide prevention issued its final report and a list of recommendations for major changes at the Pentagon. But many of its key recommendations — including the creation of a Pentagon-level office to coordinate the roughly 900 suicide prevention programs across the force — have not been implemented.

Now a U.S. senator is ratcheting up pressure on the Defense Department to set those proposed changes in motion. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., fired off a letter Wednesday after the Army reported that suicides among soldiers had reached a new all-time high.

Read the rest of the story here.

Upsurge of suicides at Lewis-McChord, Army-wide

2011-08-17T05:09:00.000-05:00

By Hal Bernton

Seattle Times staff reporter

Since the first of July, five soldiers from Joint Base Lewis-McChord have died in apparent suicides, part of an Army-wide upsurge in such deaths despite stepped-up prevention efforts.

Their memorial services came so close together that one bereaved mother, at a hotel in DuPont where the Army had her stay, encountered another couple struggling with the loss of their son.

"This is just too much in too short a time," said Karrie Champion, whose 21-year-old son, Spc. Jonathon Gilbert, died July 28. "This is just not right."

In recent weeks, commanders have met with soldiers stricken by grief over the passing of their comrades, and a recent directive at the base put a heightened focus on an Army-wide effort to reduce suicides.

Read the entire story here.

Documentary on Friendly Fire Deaths to Premiere

2011-08-16T15:56:00.001-05:00

ASKATD Long Trailer from 5414Productions on Vimeo.

In the works for over two years, A Second Knock at the Door offers a rare glimpse into the lives of military families dealing with the loss of loved ones to friendly fire. Through interviews and investigative reports obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, this documentary explores several key incidents in which the families of the fallen were forced to embark on a quest for the truth after the Army attempted to bury the true cause of death within the "fog of war."

Unwilling to allow these soldiers to be defined by their death, A Second Knock at the Door thoroughly explores these men outside of the uniform through the eyes of their community where they were known simply as sons, husbands, fathers, fiancés, and friends.

A Second Knock at the Door is a portrait of strength and sacrifice, faith and honor, and an undying belief in the goodness of the men and women who give their lives for their country.

Read the entire story here.

Patrick Rust Case on The Simon Barrett Show

2011-08-14T06:35:00.002-05:00

The link to Simon's show announcement is http://www.bloggernews.net/126958

The direct link to the show is http://www.blogtalkradio.com/simon-barrett/2011/08/14/sunday-afternoon-murder-club--sgt-patrick-rust

No solace for family of soldier who took own life

2011-08-13T05:53:00.000-05:00

By Bill Murphy Jr.
Published: August 12, 2011

Every day now it seems there’s another bit of unfinished business in the life of Army veteran Jacob Andrews, who committed suicide in April.

A few days ago, it was a notice that the state of Missouri wants to collect the cost of a surgery Andrews had as a 10-year-old when he was on Medicaid. Last week, it was a notice from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs certifying---without mentioning his death---that Andrews was eligible for the post-9/11 GI Bill.

Between the two came another VA letter, this one in response to an inquiry from the office of U.S. Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.), denying responsibility for having erroneously told Andrews in November that he was ineligible for the GI Bill despite the year he spent fighting in Afghanistan.
Read the entire story here.

Army Released July Suicide Data

2011-08-12T16:59:00.001-05:00

Army Released July Suicide Data

The Army released suicide data today for the month of July. Among active-duty soldiers, there were 22 potential suicides: three have been confirmed as suicide and 19 remain under investigation. For June 2011, the Army reported nine potential suicides among active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, three cases have been confirmed as suicide, and six cases remain under investigation.

During July 2011, among reserve component soldiers who were not on active duty, there were 10 potential suicides: none have been confirmed as suicide and 10 remain under investigation. For June 2011, the Army reported five potential suicides among not-on-active-duty soldiers. Since the release of that report, one case has been added for a total of six cases. Four cases have been confirmed as suicide, and two cases remain under investigation.

"Every suicide represents a tragic loss to our Army and the nation. While the high number of potential suicides in July is discouraging, we are confident our efforts aimed at increasing individuals' resiliency, while reducing incidence of at-risk and high-risk behavior across the force, are having a positive impact," Gen. Peter W. Chiarelli, vice chief of staff of the Army, stated. "We absolutely recognize there is much work to be done and remain committed to ensuring our people are cared for and have ready access to the best possible programs and services."

Soldiers and families in need of crisis assistance can contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. Trained consultants are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and can be contacted by dialing 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or by visiting their website at http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org .

Army leaders can access current health promotion guidance in newly revised Army Regulation 600-63 (Health Promotion) at: http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/r600_63.pdf and Army Pamphlet 600-24 (Health Promotion, Risk Reduction and Suicide Prevention) at http://www.army.mil/usapa/epubs/pdf/p600_24.pdf .

The Army's comprehensive list of Suicide Prevention Program information is located at http://www.preventsuicide.army.mil .
Suicide prevention training resources for Army families can be accessed at http://www.armyg1.army.mil/hr/suicide/training_sub.asp?sub_cat=20 (requires Army Knowledge Online access to download materials).

Information about Military OneSource is located at http://www.militaryonesource.com or by dialing the toll-free number 1-800-342-9647 for those residing in the continental United States. Overseas personnel should refer to the Military OneSource website for dialing instructions for their specific location.

Information about the Army's Comprehensive Soldier Fitness Program is located at http://www.army.mil/csf .

The Defense Center for Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) Outreach Center can be contacted at 1-866-966-1020, via electronic mail at Resources@DCoEOutreach.org and at http://www.dcoe.health.mil .
The website for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is http://www.afsp.org , and the Suicide Prevention Resource Council site is found at http://www.sprc.org/index.asp .

The website for the Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors is http://www.TAPS.org , and they can be reached at 1-800-959-TAPS (8277).

Source: DOD Announcement, verbatim

Army reports record suicide numbers for July

South Korea military faces 'barracks culture'

2011-08-12T04:50:00.000-05:00

By Lucy Williamson BBC News, Seoul

All this training is to prepare the new recruits for external enemies, but the military is also facing a threat from within; a barracks culture that some say is helping to kill its soldiers before a real shot has been fired.

Last month, a marine corporal shot and killed four of his comrades. He said he was being bullied.

Several other soldiers killed themselves in the weeks that followed. Since then, South Korea's defence ministry has brought out new orders banning beating, cruelty, humiliation and bullying within the armed forces, to tackle what it calls a "distorted military culture".

Calls to military helplines have shot up since the recent spate of deaths. But the issue of soldiers dying in their barracks has overshadowed the military here for decades. And the deaths have often been left unexplained.
Read the entire story here.

US soldier gets life for slaying sergeants in Iraq

2011-08-11T06:15:00.000-05:00

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) -- An Army sergeant based at Fort Stewart was sentenced Wednesday to life in a military prison without parole for shooting and killing his infantry squad leader and another U.S. soldier in Iraq after they criticized him for poor performance.

The military jury's sentence also calls for Sgt. Joseph Bozicevich, 41, of Minneapolis to be demoted in rank to private and to receive a dishonorable discharge. The same court-martial convicted him of premeditated murder May 25 in the slayings of Staff Sgt. Darris Dawson of Pensacola, Fla., and Sgt. Wesley Durbin of Dallas at a small patrol base outside Baghdad on Sept. 14, 2008.

Read the entire story here.

Numbers of Combat and Non-combat Deaths

2011-08-11T05:49:00.003-05:00

The problem of counting non-combat deaths is tackled by a reporter and this is her summary, based on goverment statistics:

Q&A on the News

By Lori Johnston

For the AJC

Q: How many deaths in Afghanistan and Iraq were due to combat and how many are non-combat related? — Don Haller, Douglasville

A: As of Aug. 9, there had been 4,408 U.S. military and 13 Department of Defense civilian deaths in Operation Iraqi Freedom, for a total of 4,421 according to the DOD. Of those, 3,489 were the result of combat, meaning 932 were non-hostile. There have been 1,619 U.S. military deaths and two DOD civilians deaths in Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan only), of which 270 were non-hostile. Operation Enduring Freedom also includes U.S. military forces in 15 other countries: Guantanamo Bay (Cuba), Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Philippines, Seychelles, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Uzbekistan and Yemen. There have been 100 deaths in those countries, 89 of which were non-hostile. The numbers of fatalities can be found at www.defense.gov/news/casualty.pdf

Read story here.

Army settles malpractice claim for $2.15 million

2011-08-09T04:51:00.000-05:00

An Army soldier who filed a lawsuit over the treatment of his wife’s cancer at a military hospital at Fort Campbell, Ky., has reached a settlement with the federal government for $2.15 million, The Associated Press reported.

A Nashville judge on Friday approved the settlement of the medical malpractice claim made by Staff Sgt. Adam Cloer on behalf of his wife Melodee Cloer, who died last year at age 53 after being diagnosed with rectal cancer. The settlement is subject to final approval by the U.S. Attorney General.

Read the entire story here.

Link to Radio Discussion of Suicide

2011-08-06T17:39:00.001-05:00

Richard Stites talks with Pam Baragona on The Truth Has Changed Radio Program.

Listen here.

Witness: Soldier hit over 200 times in initiation

2011-08-06T17:29:00.000-05:00

By Steve Mraz

Stars and Stripes

Published: March 28, 2007

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Pvt. Terrance Norman and Sgt. Rodney Howell each punched Sgt. Juwan Johnson 20 or more times in the face, chest and back during a July 3, 2005, initiation into the Gangster Disciples in which Johnson suffered more than 200 blows in six minutes, a witness testified Tuesday.

Pfc. Latisha Ellis, who attended the “jumping in” ceremony, provided details on Johnson’s beating and details about the activities and structure of the Gangster Disciples in Kaiserslautern. Johnson, 25, of the 66th Transportation Company, died from multiple blunt-force injuries on July 4, 2005.

Ellis’ testimony came during the second day of a joint Article 32 hearing for Norman and Howell, who face several charges in Johnson’s death, including involuntary manslaughter.

Read the entire story here.

Sergeant set for Article 32 in 2009 killings at Camp Liberty

2011-08-06T05:20:00.000-05:00

ByMegan McCloskey

Stars and Stripes

Published: August 5, 2011

WASHINGTON — The soldier accused of carrying out the deadliest case of fratricide in the Iraq War will be in court Monday for the military’s version of a grand jury.

In May 2009, Army Sgt. John Russell allegedly stole a gun, barged into a combat stress clinic in Baghdad and opened fire, killing five servicemembers and wounding two others. He is charged with five counts of premeditated murder, two counts of premeditated attempted murder and one count of assault.

Read the entire story here.

Recovering From My Service to Our Nation

2011-08-05T11:05:00.000-05:00

This is an account of an airman whose military career was ruined by a rape by a "fellow" member of the Air Force.

Read the entire story here.

Link to Radio Discussion

2011-08-01T13:13:00.001-05:00

To listen to last week's discussion on The Truth Has Changed radio show, "Defending the Fallen - How Do We Effect Change?", click here.

Army wants to rid top ranks of toxic leaders

By Michelle Tan and Joe Gould - Staff writers
Posted : Sunday Jul 31, 2011 8:25:09 EDT
The Army is working to flush toxic leaders from its ranks. A survey of more than 22,630 soldiers from the rank of E-5 through O-6 and Army civilians showed that roughly one in five sees his or her superior as “toxic and unethical,” while only 27 percent believe that their organization allows the frank and free flow of ideas.

“You could look at this and say 82 percent of Army leaders are doing good and great things, but our nature isn’t going to be congratulatory,” said Col. Thomas Guthrie, director of the Center for Army Leadership, which has conducted the Annual Survey of Army Leadership since 2005. “Eighteen percent is too high even if it is perceived. It’s trying to change those climates out there, those individual behaviors, that’s taking some time. We do have to invoke some change, and we have to look internally for that.”

Read the rest of the story here.

This relates to our discussions about bullying in the military.