Families of Soldiers Call for Investigation into Deaths After Military Hazing

Submitted by Richard Stites

What the Danny Chen Case Has Accomplished Through the OCA

Nineteen year old Army Private Danny Chen died on October 3, 2011.  He was found shot to death and it has been assumed that the gunshot was self-inflicted.  I do not know how thorough the forensic examinations were.  The Army is typically reluctant to reveal detail on their investigations.  There is always the possibility, without proof to the contrary, that he was murdered.  We will probably never know for sure.  That is the result of the unreasonable secrecy which the US Military holds to in cases of non-combat deaths.  I hope that someday they will reexamine this policy.

Because of the extraordinary aid of the OCA, the Organization of Chinese Americans, this case received extensive media coverage and excellent legal representation.  The soldiers involved in the racial and physical harassment of Private Chen were prosecuted.  As of December 2012, all the trials were completed. 

The Chen family has recently stated that they feel no sense of closure and Elizabeth OuYang, the spokesperson for the OCA has expressed similar disappointment that justice was not done in the case.

I understand their sentiments and agree with them to an extent. 

To the Chen family, I want to say that from my experience they will never feel a sense of closure.  I’m sorry, but that’s the way I see it.  They have lost a loved son to injustice.  They will mourn for the rest of their lives.  They will long for the son they have lost.  But they will learn to live with it.  I send them my sympathy, and, more importantly, my empathy, as I have similarly lost a soldier son to injustice. Unfortunately, there are thousands of families in the US who have had this experience. 

Here is what I want to say on the positive outcome of the Chen case.  Yes, I think there was a positive outcome and I think that the OCA is to be congratulated and praised for their proactive role in this outcome.

It is just slightly more than one year since Danny’s death.  The Army has publicly acknowledged that egregious  injustice was done which caused Danny to commit suicide.  The resolution of this case is much more unusual than you might expect.  Most of the families of non-combat death victims have never received any acknowledgement of wrongdoing by any of the Military Services, either of individual servicemembers or by command.  The OCA will continue to work to eliminate hazing and harassment of Military members.  The public has been made aware.  This is a big accomplishment with a positive result.

Eight soldiers were tried and found guilty of various offenses in just over a year.  The Chen family and OCA should know that this is extraordinarily rare!  True, the charge of negligent homicide was dropped in each case, but they had to know that this serious charge was a long shot to prove.  Each defendant got some sort of punishment.  This is also exceedingly uncommon, and further acknowledgement of wrongdoing within the ranks.

It is a start.  Some justice was done. 

Typically, families are on their own in seeking justice for their children and spouses.  They spend inordinate amounts of money on lawyers and bring cases which drag on for years and yield little justice.  This is common even in the case of provable homicide.  They receive little cooperation from the Military and/or civilian police when it comes to investigation.  The perpetrators are rarely prosecuted.  Within our group of families, there are many who are still trying to obtain information about their loved ones deaths after decades without much success.  They can find no ombudsmen or affordable legal counsel.  They cannot break through the barrier of secrecy and bureaucracy which protects the Military.  We need more groups like the OCA in America. 

Donna Janeczko

Recent articles on the Chen case:

http://www.stripes.com/news/last-of-accused-in-pvt-danny-chen-s-death-to-be-removed-from-army-1.201082
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/18/danny-chen-hazing-trial-mother_n_2324247.html
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/c/danny_chen/index.html

Comments from some of our members:

Well said. I know how disappointed they must be. I know they expected more, we can all relate to that. A friend of mine told me that Liz Ou Yang was on the news last week expressing her disappointment in the outcome. I don't think that they realize what they actually were able to accomplish.
Bonnie Palecco

 I agree, well said. I have nothing but respect and admiration for this family, unfortunately the loss of a child can overshadow any positive actions they have accomplished. Just getting the military to even acknowledge anything is a miracle, as most of us already know! In a very short time, This family has created great change for the future of others!! We know how crippling grief can be, The mourning process involves a great deal of anger and pain, which is very difficult to see past at times! I pray given time, the family will be able to see more clearly the good they have done for this world, and the hope they have given to others to keep going in our own battle for justice!!! And yes , as we all know they will mourn, always!!

Lora Bailey

Well said! Thanks for posting it. After 21 years we have less.

Congratulations to the family for making this much progress.

Kirk would have been 45 on the 28th!

Lois Vanderbur

 

Last of accused in Pvt. Danny Chen's death to be removed from Army

Pvt. Danny Chen's platoon leader will be booted from the Army after being punished outside of a court-martial.

First Lt. Daniel L. Schwartz was the last of eight soldiers from Fort Wainwright, Alaska, to be punished in Chen's death.

Chen, 19, was a Chinese-American soldier from New York who committed suicide in Afghanistan in October 2011.

Read the entire story here.

Seventh Soldier Found Guilty in Suicide of Pvt. Danny Chen

A seventh soldier has been found guilty in connection with the suicide of Pvt. Danny Chen.

Jurors in the court-martial of Staff Sgt. Andrew Van Bockel, 27, found him guilty of hazing, as well as dereliction of duty and maltreatment.

The latter charges specifically pertained to racist nicknames for Chen and orders that the 19-year-old speak Chinese.

Liz OuYang, who has served as a spokeswoman for Chen’s parents, said that Van Bockel argued in court that his treatment of Chen was “corrective training” intended to make the greenhorn a better soldier.

“This verdict shows it was not corrective training, it was torture,” OuYang said.
The jury will deliberate on the sentence Wednesday.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/seventh-soldier-found-guilty-connection-suicide-pvt-chen-article-1.1205562#ixzz2CrK2hBs7

Sgt. found guilty on 1 count in hazing death

Read the story here.

Soldier sentenced to hard labor in Pvt. Danny Chen suicide case

Anniversary of Chen's Death to be Observed

NEW YORK — Supporters of Pvt. Danny Chen are planning to commemorate the one-year anniversary of his death with a series of actions seeking justice for the 19-year-old from New York.

On Oct. 3, 2011, Chen was found dead in Afghanistan after being hazed by six superiors while serving with C Co., 3^rd Battalion, 21^st Infantry Regiment, 1^st Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 25^th Infantry Division. Eight have been charged in connection with his death and have been or will be court-martialed at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

Staff Sgt. Blaine Dugas, Sgt. Adam Holcomb, Spc. Thomas Curtis, Spc. Ryan Offutt and Sgt. Travis Carden have been convicted and sentenced for charges of dereliction of duty, hazing, maltreatment, including racial taunting, and assault. Charges of involuntary manslaughter were dropped. Three more will be tried:

Read the entire story here.

Spc. Thomas Porter Curtis IV sentenced to 3 months prison in Pvt. Danny Chen hazing case

A soldier who oversaw punishment of Pvt. Danny Chen in Afghanistan will spend three months in prison for his role in hazing the Chinese-American soldier.

Spc. Thomas Porter Curtis IV, 27, of Hendersonville, Tenn., was sentenced Monday to prison and demoted to the Army's lowest rank - private - following a day-long court-martial.

Curtis pleaded guilty to hazing, two specifications of maltreatment and two specifications of assault in connection with his treatment of the 19-year-old Chen.

Read the entire story here.

Platoon sergeant gets demotion in rank in Pvt. Danny Chen suicide case, but won't serve prison time

Staff Sgt. Blaine Dugas will lose a rank, but will not have to spend any time in prison after being convicted during a Special Court-Martial on Fort Bragg.

Dugas, a platoon sergeant with the Fort Wainwright, Alaska-based unit of Pvt. Danny Chen, was convicted during the two-day proceeding of using alcohol in a combat zone and dereliction of duty.

Dugas, 36, of Port Arthur, Texas, is the third of eight soldiers in Chen's unit to be court-martialed in connection with Chen's suicide in Afghanistan last year.

Read the entire story here.

Platoon Sergeant Gets 90 Days for Role in Hazing of Private

http://www.stripes.com/news/platoon-sergeant-gets-90-days-for-role-in-hazing-of-private-1.186092

Danny Chen Case: Specalist Ryan J. Offutt Pleads Guilty To Hazing Asian-American Private

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — A second soldier accused of driving an Asian-American private to suicide has received a six-month prison sentence after pleading guilty to reduced charges in a court-martial at Fort Bragg.

Spc. Ryan J. Offutt of Greenville, Pa., pleaded guilty Monday to one count of hazing and two specifications of maltreatment in the death of 19-year-old Danny Chen of New York. Authorities say Chen shot himself last year in Afghanistan after being hazed over his ethnicity.

Offutt also will be demoted to private and receive a bad conduct discharge. He had faced several charges, including negligent homicide.

Read the entire story here.

Military Hazing Has Got to Stop

LAST fall, at an outpost in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Danny Chen, a 19-year-old Army private, was singled out for hazing by Sgt. Adam Holcomb and five other soldiers, all of whom were senior in rank to their victim. They believed Danny was a weak soldier, someone who fell asleep on guard duty, who forgot his helmet. So for six weeks, they dispensed “corrective training” that violated Army policy. When he failed to turn off the water pump in the shower, he was dragged across a gravel yard on his back until it bled. They threw rocks at him to simulate artillery. They called him “dragon lady,” “gook” and “chink.”

Read the entire story here.

http://chu.house.gov/press-release/reps-chu-cummings-honda-and-others-introduce-legislation-prevent-hazing-military

Trial News

Sergeant Acquitted of Driving a Suicide

FORT BRAGG, N.C. — A military jury on Monday acquitted a sergeant on the most serious charges in the death of Pvt. Danny Chen, a Chinese-American from Manhattan who killed himself last year while deployed in Afghanistan, but found him guilty on lesser charges.

Read the entire article here.

Heartbroken mother of Pvt. Danny Chen says he was 'the best son in the world' at sergeant's court-martial trial

The heartbroken mother of a New York Army private believed to have killed himself because of hazing from fellow soldiers took the witness stand Tuesday to profess “he was the best son in the world.”

Su Zhen Chen, 49, tearfully testified in the court martial trial of Sgt. Adam Holcomb, who is accused of driving her son, Pvt. Danny Chen, to suicide by physically and mentally abusing him.

“I don’t even know if my son killed himself or not, or if somebody else killed him,” the mother testified.

Read the entire story here.

Velazquez bill would combat hazing incidents in the military

BY ALINE REYNOLDS | East Village soldier Danny Chen’s suicide last October has contributed to the writing of legislation that would more stringently enforce anti-bullying in the armed forces.

The Service Member Anti-Hazing Act, which U.S. Congressmember Nydia Velazquez is introducing to Congress this week, would require all branches of the U.S. military to more effectively combat hazing through targeted policies and training.

The federal bill comes on the heels of 301 U.S. soldiers’ suicides last year alone and a total of 1,100 soldiers’ suicides during the Afghanistan and Iraq wars, according to Velazquez.

Read the entire article here.

Trials of soldiers accused of hounding New York Army Pvt. Danny Chen being moved to U.S.

Court martials moved from Afghanistan to Ft. Bragg, N.C. 
Pvt. Danny Chen’s grieving family got a reason to cheer Wednesday after the Pentagon announced it was moving the trials of eight soldiers accused of hounding the New Yorker to death from Afghanistan to the U.S.

The commander at Ft. Bragg, N.C., “has agreed to accept court-martial jurisdiction over the eight Soldiers charged in relation to the death” of Chen, Army spokesman Randy Randolph said in a statement.

Told of the decision, Chen’s parents said they were happy with the switch.
“We are very pleased to hear the news that the court martials have been transferred to the United States,” they said in a statement. “We will now have an opportunity to watch justice being brought for our son.”

Read the entire story here.

S.I. dad says Marine son victim of hate, just like Pvt. Danny Chen

Danny Chen and Hamson Daniels McPherson grew up separated by New York Harbor and died just months apart under mysterious circumstances while serving their country.

Chen, 19, was an Army private from the lower East Side.

McPherson, 21, was a Marine private from Staten Island.

Both their deaths were initially ruled suicides.

And both men, their families claim, were driven to the brink by racist hazing and abuse inflicted on them by comrades in arms.

Read the entire story here.

Lawmaker tells military officials to end culture of hazing

WASHINGTON — Military officials testified Thursday that hazing is not and will not be tolerated by the services, but lawmakers questioned whether recent high-profile incidents of abuse indicate deteriorating leadership in overtaxed, war-weary units.

Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., whose nephew committed suicide last April after being hazed by members of his Marine Corps unit, pleaded for an end to the culture of hazing.

“Although the military has policies in place, they’re not being enforced,” she said during a hearing held by the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel. “While people on the outside are horrified by these stories, usually the rank and file say that hazing is a necessary tool … to ensure everyone’s safety.”

Read the entire story here.

Lawmakers Blast Culture of Military Hazing
Marines Update Hazing Policy

Military Matters Podcast: Interview With Elizabeth OuYang

Link to OCA-NY, where you can sign the petition to have the 32 Hearing moved from Afghanistan to the United States so that Danny Chen's family may attend.

Courts-martial recommended for 4 more in Pvt. Danny Chen’s death but involuntary manslaughter counts are dropped

Courts-martial have been recommended for four more soldiers accused of hounding Manhattan Pvt. Danny Chen to his death, but they won’t be tried for involuntary manslaughter.

Instead, the foursome faces still serious but lesser charges that could result in prison sentences upon conviction, the military said.

Chen’s immigrant parents, who live on the Lower East Side, were expected to address the latest development in the tragic case later Tuesday.

In January, family friends cried coverup after Army investigators dropped the charge of involuntary manslaughter against one of the alleged ringleaders, Spc. Ryan Offutt.

Staff Sgt. Andrew VanBockel, Sgt. Jeffrey Hurst, Sgt. Adam Holcomb and Spc. Thomas Curtis will be prosecuted for charges including dereliction of duty, maltreatment, negligent homicide, reckless endangerment, assault, communicating a threat and violation of a general regulation, the military said Tuesday.

Read the entire story here.

PVT Danny Chen- What You Can Do To Help

Dear Members and Supporters:

 We have received an outpouring of support and offers to help seek justice for Private Danny Chen and his family and to stop hazing in the military.  Below is a list of action items you can do to help.
Sign OCA-NY's petition demanding that the court martials be convened in the U.S. (click here)
Spread the word about this petition.

Contact OCA-NY,  oca-ny@oca-ny.org This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , with stories about hazing in the U.S. military

If you belong to an organization, let OCA-NY know if you can commit to sending one person to observe the court martials, which if held in the U.S. will likely take place in Fort Wainwright, Alaska, the location from which Danny's unit was dispatched to Afghanistan.

If you know of families or churches in Alaska who could house people attending the court martials, please let OCA-NY know.

Hold a teach-in at your home, church, school, or organization about Danny Chen's case and hazing in the army.  Outreach to our youth is critical-they must be informed.  OCA-NY can help provide suggested speakers.

Write or call your local city council person to introduce a resolution calling for reforms in the army dealing with hazing and effective diversity training. Currently, New York City's Councilwoman Margaret Chin introduced a resolution calling for reforms of the military's diversity training. (click here)

Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper or online publication to call for a greater awareness about Pvt. Danny Chen's case.

Write songs, poetry, plays, or other creative works to help spread the word about Danny's case.
Let OCA-NY know of interested persons who would like to be added to our listserves to receive updates on Danny Chen's case.

Join OCA-NY as a member, see www.oca-ny.org to download our membership form or join a local OCA chapter in your area, see www.ocanational.org for more information.

Please stay tuned. We will be announcing more public awareness projects in coming weeks that will need your input and suppport, particularly what you can do on a federal level to help push reforms in the military. If you have additional ideas on how people can help, please let OCA-NY know.

Thank you,

Liz Ou Yang, President OCA-NY

--submitted by Bonnie Palecco