Bodies of 2 Missing U.S. Soldiers Found
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: July 11, 2008
Filed at 4:27 a.m. ET
DETROIT (AP) -- The bodies of two U.S. soldiers missing in Iraq for more than a year have been found, their families said Thursday night. The military would not immediately confirm the report.
The father of Army Sgt. Alex Jimenez, of Lawrence, Mass., said the remains of his son and another soldier, Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, of Waterford, Mich., had been identified in Iraq.
Jimenez, 25, and Fouty, 19, were kidnapped along with a third member of the 2nd Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division during an ambush in May 2007 in the volatile area south of Baghdad known as the ''triangle of death.'' The body of the third seized soldier, Pfc. Joseph Anzack Jr. of Torrance, Calif., was found in the Euphrates River a year later.
Jimenez's father, Ramon ''Andy'' Jimenez, said uniformed military officials came to his home in Lawrence on Thursday to tell him that his son's body and some of his son's personal effects had been discovered. Fouty's stepfather, Gordon Dibler, said military officials came to his Oxford home to break the news.
The Pentagon generally waits 24 hours after notifying the next of kin before making a release public.
Andy Jimenez told The Associated Press through a translator that the news ''shattered all hope'' the family had to ''see Alex walk home on his own.''
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Showing posts with label 10th Mountain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 10th Mountain. Show all posts
Friday, July 11, 2008
Body of missing Lawrence soldier discovered in Iraq
Body of missing Lawrence soldier discovered in Iraq
By Jeannie Nuss & Milton J. Valencia
Globe Correspondent And Globe Staff / July 10, 2008
The body of Alex R. Jimenez, a Lawrence-based soldier who was kidnapped more than a year ago, has been found in Iraq in a tragic ending to a family's wrenching hope for his return.
Jimenez's father, Ramon "Andy'' Jimenez, was notified by Army servicemen who came to his home yesterday that his son's body was found two days ago by Iraqi authorities, who contacted their American counterparts.
The elder Ramirez, who had held out hope that he would one day see his son's return, seemed to come to terms with the news.
"It comforts you when you accept something, and Alex did what he wanted to do,'' said Andy Jimenez, who was joined yesterday by friends and family, and a community of supporters who had rallied around him since Alex first went missing on May 12, 2007.
Sergeant Alex Jimenez, an Army specialist, was 25 when he and other members of the Second Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division were ambushed while on patrol on a deserted highway south of Baghdad. Several members of his unit were killed.
Jimenez and two other soldiers were kidnapped. The body of Private First Class Joseph J. Anzack Jr., 20, of Torrance, Calif. was discovered in a river just 11 days later. Private Byron W. Fouty, 19.of Waterford, Mich., is still missing. There was no information on Fouty yesterday.
Two Pentagon officials with knowledge of the case said that the military plans to announce the discovery of Jimenez's body today, in accordance with Pentagon policy that no announcement will be made until 24 hours after a family is notified.
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By Jeannie Nuss & Milton J. Valencia
Globe Correspondent And Globe Staff / July 10, 2008
The body of Alex R. Jimenez, a Lawrence-based soldier who was kidnapped more than a year ago, has been found in Iraq in a tragic ending to a family's wrenching hope for his return.
Jimenez's father, Ramon "Andy'' Jimenez, was notified by Army servicemen who came to his home yesterday that his son's body was found two days ago by Iraqi authorities, who contacted their American counterparts.
The elder Ramirez, who had held out hope that he would one day see his son's return, seemed to come to terms with the news.
"It comforts you when you accept something, and Alex did what he wanted to do,'' said Andy Jimenez, who was joined yesterday by friends and family, and a community of supporters who had rallied around him since Alex first went missing on May 12, 2007.
Sergeant Alex Jimenez, an Army specialist, was 25 when he and other members of the Second Brigade of the 10th Mountain Division were ambushed while on patrol on a deserted highway south of Baghdad. Several members of his unit were killed.
Jimenez and two other soldiers were kidnapped. The body of Private First Class Joseph J. Anzack Jr., 20, of Torrance, Calif. was discovered in a river just 11 days later. Private Byron W. Fouty, 19.of Waterford, Mich., is still missing. There was no information on Fouty yesterday.
Two Pentagon officials with knowledge of the case said that the military plans to announce the discovery of Jimenez's body today, in accordance with Pentagon policy that no announcement will be made until 24 hours after a family is notified.
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Thursday, July 3, 2008
Sgt. Austin D. Pratt's family, a lesson on how to forgive
Family forgives as they learn how their son died
Sgt. Austin D. Pratt's death is 'negligent homicide'
By DONNA HICKMAN
Daily Journal Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Six and a half months ago, Sgt. Austin David Pratt was killed in Iraq in what the Army would only describe as a “non-combat related death under investigation.” The investigation is over now and Monica and David Pratt know the details of how their son died. They also know how to forgive the young soldier responsible.
Austin, 22, Cadet, had arrived in Iraq on Dec. 12, 2007. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division. Three days later, his unit went out to the local police station. When there wasn’t enough room for him to travel with them, he stayed back at camp with other soldiers. They were in the Green Zone, the safe zone, in Rustamiyah, Iraq — not far from Balad. As David Pratt tells it, Austin was sitting on a cot watching a movie on his computer. Another soldier was nearby just “messing with” his gun.
“He was loading and unloading it. He did that a couple of times and loaded a magazine (a clip with several rounds of ammunition in it) and he dropped the magazine. When he dropped the magazine, the mechanism slid forward. He had chambered a round. He held the weapon in the air — not knowing he had loaded a round — and brought it down slowly and pointed it at my son and fired. ”
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http://dailyjournalonline.com/articles/2008/07/02/news/doc486b9ccad46d6596152435.txt
Sgt. Austin D. Pratt's death is 'negligent homicide'
By DONNA HICKMAN
Daily Journal Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Six and a half months ago, Sgt. Austin David Pratt was killed in Iraq in what the Army would only describe as a “non-combat related death under investigation.” The investigation is over now and Monica and David Pratt know the details of how their son died. They also know how to forgive the young soldier responsible.
Austin, 22, Cadet, had arrived in Iraq on Dec. 12, 2007. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 30th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division. Three days later, his unit went out to the local police station. When there wasn’t enough room for him to travel with them, he stayed back at camp with other soldiers. They were in the Green Zone, the safe zone, in Rustamiyah, Iraq — not far from Balad. As David Pratt tells it, Austin was sitting on a cot watching a movie on his computer. Another soldier was nearby just “messing with” his gun.
“He was loading and unloading it. He did that a couple of times and loaded a magazine (a clip with several rounds of ammunition in it) and he dropped the magazine. When he dropped the magazine, the mechanism slid forward. He had chambered a round. He held the weapon in the air — not knowing he had loaded a round — and brought it down slowly and pointed it at my son and fired. ”
go here for more
http://dailyjournalonline.com/articles/2008/07/02/news/doc486b9ccad46d6596152435.txt
Monday, June 30, 2008
Six Units Get Call for 2009 Iraq Deployment
Six Units Get Call for 2009 Iraq Deployment
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, June 30, 2008 – The Defense Department has alerted six combat units for deployment to Iraq from January to March 2009, officials said here today.
Though the announcement identifies forces for the current level of effort in Iraq, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said, it does not try to predict decisions down the road.
“It’s proper, prudent planning to give units the time to train and to ensure they are notified in a deliberate fashion and well in advance of when they would have to deploy,” Whitman said.
The four Army combat brigades and two Marine regimental combat teams cover about 33,000 personnel. These are normal rotation forces, and all of the units have the capability of performing full-spectrum combat operations.
The Marine units notified today are Regimental Combat Team 8 and Regimental Combat Team 6, both based in Camp Lejeune, N.C.
The Army units are the 1st Cavalry Division’s 1st and 2nd brigade combat teams, based at Fort Hood, Texas; the 10th Mountain Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team, based at Fort Drum, N.Y.; and 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the Pennsylvania National Guard’s 28th Infantry Division.
The announcement for the 12-month deployments assumes a force level of 15 brigade combat teams in Iraq. “This is a planning effort for maintaining a 15-combat-brigade level,” Whitman said.
“That doesn’t mean decisions down the road couldn’t affect this,” he added. “You can always have units that redeploy earlier and deploy later. This is a planning effort to sustain the current level of operations.”
The last surge brigade will leave Iraq by the end of July. Some 45 days later, officials in Iraq, U.S. Central Command and the Pentagon will assess conditions in Iraq “post-surge,” Whitman said. Decisions after that review could affect deployments, he said.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50359
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, June 30, 2008 – The Defense Department has alerted six combat units for deployment to Iraq from January to March 2009, officials said here today.
Though the announcement identifies forces for the current level of effort in Iraq, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said, it does not try to predict decisions down the road.
“It’s proper, prudent planning to give units the time to train and to ensure they are notified in a deliberate fashion and well in advance of when they would have to deploy,” Whitman said.
The four Army combat brigades and two Marine regimental combat teams cover about 33,000 personnel. These are normal rotation forces, and all of the units have the capability of performing full-spectrum combat operations.
The Marine units notified today are Regimental Combat Team 8 and Regimental Combat Team 6, both based in Camp Lejeune, N.C.
The Army units are the 1st Cavalry Division’s 1st and 2nd brigade combat teams, based at Fort Hood, Texas; the 10th Mountain Division’s 3rd Brigade Combat Team, based at Fort Drum, N.Y.; and 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the Pennsylvania National Guard’s 28th Infantry Division.
The announcement for the 12-month deployments assumes a force level of 15 brigade combat teams in Iraq. “This is a planning effort for maintaining a 15-combat-brigade level,” Whitman said.
“That doesn’t mean decisions down the road couldn’t affect this,” he added. “You can always have units that redeploy earlier and deploy later. This is a planning effort to sustain the current level of operations.”
The last surge brigade will leave Iraq by the end of July. Some 45 days later, officials in Iraq, U.S. Central Command and the Pentagon will assess conditions in Iraq “post-surge,” Whitman said. Decisions after that review could affect deployments, he said.
http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=50359
Monday, May 5, 2008
10th Mountain:"They're kind of a canary in a coal mine," said Paul Rieckhoff
Iraq war strains U.S. army mental health system
By Claudia Parsons
1 hour, 10 minutes ago
FORT DRUM, New York (Reuters) - Fort Drum, a bleak U.S. Army base in upstate New York, is a test case for how the military is handling a looming mental health crisis.
The military and its critics agree on one thing -- there are not enough therapists to treat all the soldiers who return from Iraq and Afghanistan traumatized by the experience.
The 10th Mountain Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team (2BCT) is the most-deployed brigade in the U.S. army since 2001. It served two tours in Afghanistan, totalling 11 months, and was sent to Iraq twice for tours of 12 and 15 months.
"They're kind of a canary in a coal mine," said Paul Rieckhoff, a former Army captain who founded the advocacy group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. "They're a good barometer to understand the human cost of the war."
A report by advocacy group Veterans for America said the mental healthcare system at Fort Drum was not meeting the demands placed on it and had prepared inadequately for the return of more than 3,500 soldiers from Iraq late last year.
"Even though we knew this group were coming back from their 4th deployment and there would be these problems, we still had massive waits of two months (for appointments)," Veterans for America spokeswoman Adrienne Willis said.
The report, released in February, said there were not enough counselors, psychologists and psychiatrists, there was too much reliance on group therapy over individual care and there was a lack of continuity in care. The lack of a hospital on base was also a problem.
It said commanding officer Gen. Michael Oates deserved "commendation" for setting the tone that psychological wounds were legitimate combat wounds. Nevertheless, the stigma of mental problems kept many soldiers from speaking up, it said.
Todd Benham, head of Fort Drum's behavioral health department, attributed long wait times to a lack of staff. He said the unit had plans to expand but it takes time to recruit, particularly in a rural area such as Fort Drum.
"It's definitely a crunch, it's difficult recruiting and certainly it's more difficult up here," Benham said.
"I don't think anybody is pretending the stigma has gone away or we didn't have significant wait times for a while," Benham said. "We understand there was an issue."
"Yes, we recognize Fort Drum needs some help, but that's something we've been working on for a year or more," he said.
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linked from ICasualties.org
By Claudia Parsons
1 hour, 10 minutes ago
FORT DRUM, New York (Reuters) - Fort Drum, a bleak U.S. Army base in upstate New York, is a test case for how the military is handling a looming mental health crisis.
The military and its critics agree on one thing -- there are not enough therapists to treat all the soldiers who return from Iraq and Afghanistan traumatized by the experience.
The 10th Mountain Division's 2nd Brigade Combat Team (2BCT) is the most-deployed brigade in the U.S. army since 2001. It served two tours in Afghanistan, totalling 11 months, and was sent to Iraq twice for tours of 12 and 15 months.
"They're kind of a canary in a coal mine," said Paul Rieckhoff, a former Army captain who founded the advocacy group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. "They're a good barometer to understand the human cost of the war."
A report by advocacy group Veterans for America said the mental healthcare system at Fort Drum was not meeting the demands placed on it and had prepared inadequately for the return of more than 3,500 soldiers from Iraq late last year.
"Even though we knew this group were coming back from their 4th deployment and there would be these problems, we still had massive waits of two months (for appointments)," Veterans for America spokeswoman Adrienne Willis said.
The report, released in February, said there were not enough counselors, psychologists and psychiatrists, there was too much reliance on group therapy over individual care and there was a lack of continuity in care. The lack of a hospital on base was also a problem.
It said commanding officer Gen. Michael Oates deserved "commendation" for setting the tone that psychological wounds were legitimate combat wounds. Nevertheless, the stigma of mental problems kept many soldiers from speaking up, it said.
Todd Benham, head of Fort Drum's behavioral health department, attributed long wait times to a lack of staff. He said the unit had plans to expand but it takes time to recruit, particularly in a rural area such as Fort Drum.
"It's definitely a crunch, it's difficult recruiting and certainly it's more difficult up here," Benham said.
"I don't think anybody is pretending the stigma has gone away or we didn't have significant wait times for a while," Benham said. "We understand there was an issue."
"Yes, we recognize Fort Drum needs some help, but that's something we've been working on for a year or more," he said.
click post title for more
linked from ICasualties.org
Friday, April 25, 2008
PTSD visits up at Fort Drum
PTSD visits up at Fort Drum
Behavioral health visits among soldiers on Fort Drum are up by over 250 percent. The reason -- multiple combat tours as well as public awareness. Our Amy Ohler has more on a health summit where military and civilian health care providers, as well as state and local politicians came together to discuss the area's services.
Friday, April 25, 2008
PTSD visits up at Fort Drum
Updated: 04/24/2008 06:34 AM
By: Amy Ohler
FORT DRUM, N.Y. -- As soldiers continue to deploy, the rate of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder increases. Currently, about 200 10th Mountain Division soldiers are being treated by the behavioral health department on Fort Drum.
"Some folks come back stronger. Certainly there's a resilient population, a strong population and you know the data saying 'oh well if there's 30 percent coming back with some sort of mental health concern, that means 70 percent are not' so I would say a lot of them are coming back. I would say stronger, stronger marriages," said Todd Benham, Chief of Behavioral Health Department.
But those who don't come back stronger need adequate care. It's a topic that was discussed Wednesday among area health care providers and politicians.
"I think in the public mind, it often too much focuses on there's an engagement. There's a war. It's over and the problems dissipate. We need to build a system because Fort Drum is located here a system that has that capacity for the longer period of time rather than just time to the particular engagement that is in the forefront of minds," said Dennis Whalen, NYS Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services.
So is the area keeping up with the soldiers' needs?
"Yeah I think we're keeping up with the services adequately. Waiting lists have been reduced in the last year specifically because of an increased attention to staffing and increased capacity in our mental health clinics and inpatient units," said Roger Ambrose, Director of Community Services for Jefferson County.
But some say more still needs to be done, such as attracting additional providers to the area. It's something that will continually need to be assessed as the area continues to change.
Secretary Whalen said he thinks the Doctors Across New York Program that was enacted in the budget will help attract doctors to the North Country. He says also in the budget they decided to start to move dollars from the inpatient side to outpatient service, which will help to provide preventive care.
http://news10now.com/content/top_stories/114750/ptsd-
visits-up-at-fort-drum/Default.aspx
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Iraq Casualty from Clearwater Florida
April 16, 2008
Not yet a citizen, Clearwater soldier dies in Iraq
Arturo Huerta-Cruz, 23, the soldier killed in Iraq Monday, moved to the United States from Mexico as a child and dreamed of being an architect.
His family moved from Hidalgo, Mexico, to Clearwater when he was 7 and he attended Sandy Lane Elementary.
Huerta-Cruz was a resident alien, not an American citizen. He took some architecture classes at St. Petersburg College, but decided to join the military because he wanted the experience.
The 10th Mountain Division soldier was a chemical operations specialist who enlisted in the Army in May 2006, after which he was stationed at Fort Drum, N.Y. In November 2007, he deployed to Iraq and served in the Kirkuk area of northern Iraq.
He received the Purple Heart, Army Achievement Medal and the National Defense Service Medal.
--Stephanie Garry and Jose Cardenas, Times Staff Writer http://blogs.tampabay.com/breakingnews/2008/04/clearwater-sold.html
Latest Coalition Fatalities
DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom.
Spc. Arturo Huerta-Cruz, 23, of Clearwater, Fla., died April 14 in Tuz, Iraq, of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry), Fort Drum, N.Y.
04/16/08 MNF: Marines attacked by IED
Two Multi-National Force – West Marines were killed in action April 14 when their vehicle was attacked by an enemy force with an improvised explosive device in al Anbar Province.
04/16/08 DoD Identifies Army Casualty
Sgt. Joseph A. Richard III, 27, of Lafayette, La., died April 14 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds sustained when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 4th Brigade Special Troops Battalion...
04/15/08 DoD Identifies Marine Casualties (2 0f 2)
Cpl. Richard J. Nelson, 23, of Racine, Wis...died April 14 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq. They were both assigned to Marine Forces Reserve’s 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division..
04/15/08 DoD Identifies Marine Casualties (1 0f 2)
Cpl. Richard J. Nelson, 23, of Racine, Wis...died April 14 while conducting combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq. They were both assigned to Marine Forces Reserve’s 2nd Battalion, 24th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division..
04/14/08 DoD Identifies Army Casualty
Spc. William E. Allmon, 25, of Ardmore, Okla., died April 12 in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when his vehicle encountered an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team...
04/14/08 MNF: MND-B Soldier attacked by IED
A Multi-National Division – Baghdad Soldier was killed from wounds sustained when an IED struck the vehicle the Soldier was riding in while conducting a combat patrol in northeastern Baghdad at approximately 4:45 p.m. April 14.
04/14/08 MNF: Coalition force soldier attacked by IED
A Coalition force soldier was killed in an improvised explosive device attack in the Salah ad Din Province April 14. The name of the deceased is being withheld pending next of kin notification and release by the Department of Defense.
http://icasualties.org/oif/
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Air Force Combat Station named for Staff Sgt. Carletta Davis
Air Force renames clinic after fallen soldier
Staff report
Posted : Thursday Apr 10, 2008 11:17:39 EDT
The Air Force combat clinic at Forward Operating Base Warrior in Kirkuk, Iraq, was renamed and dedicated to Army Staff Sgt. Carletta Davis, a combat medic who was killed by an improvised explosive device Nov. 5.
She was killed during her third rotation to Iraq.
Davis was assigned to Charlie Company, 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, and was a member of her brigade commander’s personal security detachment.
Her patrol struck an improvised explosive device during combat operations Nov. 5, south of Kirkuk, according to a Defense Department press release.
The roadside bomb also killed Pfc. Adam Muller, Staff Sgt. John Linde and Sgt. Derek Stenroos, all with 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division.
go here for more
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/04/army_davisclinic_041008w/
Staff report
Posted : Thursday Apr 10, 2008 11:17:39 EDT
The Air Force combat clinic at Forward Operating Base Warrior in Kirkuk, Iraq, was renamed and dedicated to Army Staff Sgt. Carletta Davis, a combat medic who was killed by an improvised explosive device Nov. 5.
She was killed during her third rotation to Iraq.
Davis was assigned to Charlie Company, 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, and was a member of her brigade commander’s personal security detachment.
Her patrol struck an improvised explosive device during combat operations Nov. 5, south of Kirkuk, according to a Defense Department press release.
The roadside bomb also killed Pfc. Adam Muller, Staff Sgt. John Linde and Sgt. Derek Stenroos, all with 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division.
go here for more
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/04/army_davisclinic_041008w/
Sunday, March 30, 2008
PTSD:The War Inside
A Soldier's Struggle With PTSD
March 29, 2008
Stars and Stripes|by Tracy Burton
Army Spc. Brandon Garrison looks fine. He pulls his wife, Lily, close. He gives her a quick kiss on the cheek and wraps his hand over her stomach, carrying their first child.
Inside, Garrison fights a rage that consumes most of his days since returning from 17 months of combat in Afghanistan. It's a demon that shows no mercy and interrupts even simple routines like eating and sleeping. At any moment, halfway through a football game or in the middle of the night, he can lose himself to this evil.
This is his war now. A war that started on a battlefield a half a world away and has now embedded itself in his mind. Through nightmares, flashbacks, anxiety and fear, he battles this beast each day.
Garrison is among thousands of troops experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, as they return from Afghanistan or Iraq. The 21-year-old from northeastern Kansas is also part of a growing number of servicemembers whose well-being has been compromised in a system that's supposed to take care of them.
The most troubling challenges facing these troops include:
Psychological trauma and mental health care not always receiving the same priority as physical injuries.
Army claims of pre-existing personality disorders, which in many cases slash disability benefits and long-term mental health care for otherwise eligible combat veterans.
The enemy Garrison encountered daily in combat still haunts him. He sees the faces of his fallen brothers. He smells the dirty air, amid the blood. Screams of panic broken with hums of moaning pain lingers and the dust ensues yet another storm inside him.
That is until he finds his way back to Lily, and back to the life he knew before war.
"Without her, I seriously wouldn't be alive right now," Garrison said.
Garrison's platoon from the Army's 10th Mountain Division based in Fort Drum, N.Y., specializes in fighting in harsh conditions. In northeast Afghanistan they were stationed in Pech Valley Korengal Outpost, one the country's deadliest valleys.
click post title for the rest
When PTSD is caused by combat, it becomes the war inside. This piece said "This is his war now." but the truth is, it is the whole family's war. It becomes the war of the wife or husband, to win, defeat an enemy that came home and heal a wound no one can see. Vietnam was my husband's war but it became my battle 25 years ago. My book For The Love Of Jack, His War/My Battle is on the right side of the blog and it's free. 18 years of our life together are in that book and all the changes we went through as mild PTSD turned into a raging war.
It is not just their battle to fight. It's up to us to help them fight for their lives when they come home.
Friday, March 7, 2008
PTSD Spc. Bryan Currie AWOL-and so was his General
Soldier files deployment probe
Updated: 03/07/2008 05:07 PM
By: Amy Ohler
FORT DRUM, N.Y. -- With his lawyer and family by his side Specialist Bryan Currie spoke out about why he went AWOL.
"There was no care everywhere I looked. There was a lot of hazing from higher-ups. People that should be there to help platoon sergeants and stuff were just not there or didn't care," said Spec Bryan Currie, 10th Mountain Division.
While serving in Afghanistan with the 10th Mountain Division Currie was hit by a roadside bomb.
"Sustained a broken jaw, broken cheek bone, lost four teeth, burned my hands. I've got shrapnel wounds, PTSD, lacerated my lip I had to get stitches, my knees were swollen, I couldn't walk the dashboard crushed my legs," said Currie.
Currie said he had a hard time receiving care but once he found a doctor that would listen, that doctor wrote in his physical profile, "cannot deploy." It stated that Currie could not run, carry a weapon or wear protective gear.
"The doctor made his opinions and once my chain of command realized they needed one more guy they contacted him and he changed his opinion," said Currie.
Currie says he was told he had to deploy with his unit to Iraq, shortly after that he went AWOL.
click post title for the rest
go here for video
http://news10now.com/Video/video_pop.aspx?vids=68281&sid=1083&rid=1013
When I read stories like this AWOL comes into mind for the commanders giving the orders to the wounded that they have to go no matter what. They are Acting Without Logic. What's next? Sending them back without an arm and expecting them to shoot a rifle? Sending the wounded back to get wounded or killed again is not only appalling, conduct unbecoming an officer, disgraceful and inexcusable, it's dangerous to the rest of the men in the unit. The generals have to be held accountable for the sake of the men and women they order to go.
Updated: 03/07/2008 05:07 PM
By: Amy Ohler
FORT DRUM, N.Y. -- With his lawyer and family by his side Specialist Bryan Currie spoke out about why he went AWOL.
"There was no care everywhere I looked. There was a lot of hazing from higher-ups. People that should be there to help platoon sergeants and stuff were just not there or didn't care," said Spec Bryan Currie, 10th Mountain Division.
While serving in Afghanistan with the 10th Mountain Division Currie was hit by a roadside bomb.
"Sustained a broken jaw, broken cheek bone, lost four teeth, burned my hands. I've got shrapnel wounds, PTSD, lacerated my lip I had to get stitches, my knees were swollen, I couldn't walk the dashboard crushed my legs," said Currie.
Currie said he had a hard time receiving care but once he found a doctor that would listen, that doctor wrote in his physical profile, "cannot deploy." It stated that Currie could not run, carry a weapon or wear protective gear.
"The doctor made his opinions and once my chain of command realized they needed one more guy they contacted him and he changed his opinion," said Currie.
Currie says he was told he had to deploy with his unit to Iraq, shortly after that he went AWOL.
click post title for the rest
go here for video
http://news10now.com/Video/video_pop.aspx?vids=68281&sid=1083&rid=1013
When I read stories like this AWOL comes into mind for the commanders giving the orders to the wounded that they have to go no matter what. They are Acting Without Logic. What's next? Sending them back without an arm and expecting them to shoot a rifle? Sending the wounded back to get wounded or killed again is not only appalling, conduct unbecoming an officer, disgraceful and inexcusable, it's dangerous to the rest of the men in the unit. The generals have to be held accountable for the sake of the men and women they order to go.
Dark Cloud Hangs Over Fort Carson
There is a dark cloud hanging over Fort Carson along with Fort Drum and Fort Hood. The culture of use and abuse the wounded may finally be coming to an end as investigations into the conduct of the generals begins.
I cannot begin to say how disappointed I am in Graham. When he took over Fort Carson, there seemed to be so much hope for things to turn around. He appeared to understand what PTSD was and what needed to be done. At least, what he said gave that impression. This is all just more of the same. More commanders too unable to become educated enough to understand this wound for what it is. More commanders who are not ashamed of the fact they are being seen as just too pig headed to learn facts. Far too many of them retain the mentality of blaming the wounded instead of seeing the wound. The rest of this is just part of what the people in his command are up against. I just hope this wakes them all up enough to finally come to terms with the reality of this wound before it's too late for more.
This is just some of the report.
Soldiers seek Ft. Carson deployment probe
The Army will be asked to investigate generals for deploying ailing GIs.
By Erin Emery
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 03/07/2008 12:01:55 PM MST
Secretary of the Army Pete Geren will be asked today to convene a panel of officers to investigate "Army policies and practices which permit the deployment of medically unfit soldiers."
Spec. Bryan Currie, 21, of Charleston, S.C., will ask Geren to convene a Court of Inquiry — a rarely used administrative fact-finding process — to investigate top generals at Fort Carson; Fort Drum, N.Y.; and Fort Hood, Texas.
A Court of Inquiry is composed of at least three high-ranking military officers and can subpoena civilians. Geren can refuse the request.
"It's very important for the Army and very important for my clients. This is an investigation that is long overdue," said Louis Font, a Boston attorney who represents Currie and Spec. Alex Lotero, 21, a Fort Carson soldier from Miami.
The request says the Court of Inquiry should "investigate the extent to which the (generals) have been derelict in failing to provide for the health and welfare of wounded soldiers."
Font and Citizen Soldier, a veterans advocacy group, plan a news conference today in Watertown, N.Y. Copies of the request will be provided to the House Armed Services Committee and the Senate Armed Services Committee, Font said.
Maj. Gen. Mark Graham, commander of Fort Carson since September 2007, said: "We have caring and competent commanders who make these decisions every day. I'm confident in our Soldier Readiness Processing site here at Fort Carson."
For the rest go here
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_8483271
I cannot begin to say how disappointed I am in Graham. When he took over Fort Carson, there seemed to be so much hope for things to turn around. He appeared to understand what PTSD was and what needed to be done. At least, what he said gave that impression. This is all just more of the same. More commanders too unable to become educated enough to understand this wound for what it is. More commanders who are not ashamed of the fact they are being seen as just too pig headed to learn facts. Far too many of them retain the mentality of blaming the wounded instead of seeing the wound. The rest of this is just part of what the people in his command are up against. I just hope this wakes them all up enough to finally come to terms with the reality of this wound before it's too late for more.
This is just some of the report.
"Not full-mission capable"
The request for the Court of Inquiry says the panel should be assembled on behalf of Currie and four Fort Carson soldiers. They include:
• Lotero, a soldier diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder "who was subjected to ridicule and threats for seeking medical attention." He said his commanders took his medications away from him, saying it was for his own safety. Lotero had received a 30 percent disability rating at Fort Carson for PTSD and traumatic brain injury. In June, three weeks before he was to leave the Army with a medical retirement, he deserted because he said harsh treatment from commanders made him feel as if he would harm himself or others. He was apprehended in Florida on Feb. 1 and spent 29 days in jail. He's now back at Fort Carson in a Warrior Transition Unit. He will undergo a new medical board process after his legal issues are settled
• Master Sgt. Denny Nelson, who had a severe foot injury and was deployed to Kuwait. A physician in Kuwait urged in an e-mail to the brigade surgeon that Nelson be sent back to the United States: "This soldier should NOT have even left CONUS (the U.S.). . . . In his current state, he is not full-mission capable, and in his current condition is a risk to further injury to himself, others and his unit."
• An unnamed Fort Carson soldier who was deployed from Cedar Springs psychiatric hospital in Colorado Springs before he could finish a 28-day treatment program for alcoholism. An Army e-mail, dated Dec. 14, 2007, shows the soldier was taking psychiatric medications, pending a diagnosis of bipolar disorder, "but that information was not passed on" before he was discharged.
• Staff Sgt. Chad Barrett, 35, a Fort Carson soldier from Saltville, Va., who died in Iraq on Feb. 2. The Army is investigating the cause of his death. "He allegedly was found not deployable by military medical personnel, but he was deployed anyway and reportedly committed suicide in Iraq in February 2008," the request says. Barrett's wife, Shelby, who lives in Fountain, said Thursday that she does not believe her husband killed himself. She said she believes he died of a heart-related ailment, a condition that runs in his family.
Currie said he served with the 10th Mountain Division for 10 months in Afghanistan. He was driving a vehicle that was blown up by a roadside bomb and suffered combat-related injuries, including post-traumatic stress disorder.
He returned with his unit to Fort Polk, La., but he said his commanders harassed him for being injured.
"I suffer from physical injuries incurred in combat. Military medical personnel found that I am not deployable. My commanders, however, disregarded the medical findings," Currie says in the request. "Also, I sought medical attention for PTSD but was rebuffed."
Currie left Fort Polk, La., and is considered to be AWOL from the Army. He plans to turn himself in today at Fort Drum, where the general who commands the 10th Mountain Division is stationed.
Screening for Redeployment Passes Muster
This is from yesterday's post
Erin Emery
Denver Post
Mar 06, 2008
March 6, 2008 - Fort Carson, CO — A month-long investigation by Fort Carson's inspector general has found that screening processes for soldiers returning to war are sound, according to Maj. Gen. Mark Graham, commanding general at Fort Carson.
The investigation found that a lag in paperwork prompted Fort Carson in January to report that 79 soldiers who were deemed medical "no-gos" at a screening site were deployed, though the actual number was much lower.
The inspector general's report focused on the base's Soldier Readiness Processing (SRP) site and did not address decisions by commanders to send injured troops, called "borderline" by a brigade surgeon, into war zones.
"The process of the SRP works fine, and the commander is the one who makes the decision on whether the soldier deploys or not," Graham said. "I'm convinced that the process is good."
go here for the rest
http://www.veteransforcommonsense.org/ArticleID/9492
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Shame on Fort Drum Maj. Gen. Michael Oates
Drum to publish names of substance offenders
By William Kates - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Mar 5, 2008 20:20:10 EST
FORT DRUM, N.Y. — Upset with an increase in the number of 10th Mountain Division soldiers using illegal drugs and being arrested for alcohol-related offenses, Fort Drum will begin publishing the names and photos of offenders in its post newspaper, says commander Maj. Gen. Michael Oates.
Starting with the front page of Thursday’s edition, the Fort Drum Blizzard will feature photographs of the 45 soldiers who have been charged with DWI since Jan. 1. The names and photographs of soldiers committing such offenses will become a regular feature in the paper, although not on the front page.
“I don’t take this step lightly and I realize that there will be people offended by this,” Oates said. “But apparently talking to them is not deterring this behavior, and financial penalties are not deterring this behavior.
“I understand soldier culture well enough ... I may not understand youngster culture well enough ... but I think they would probably not be happy with this public recognition of their misconduct,” said Oates.
Department of Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Anne Edgecomb said Fort Bliss officials publish the names of those convicted of drunk driving offenses but she knew of no other Army installations publicizing the names of those arrested and their photos.
“Soldiers must live the Army values on and off duty. This requires discipline. Commanders at all levels are charged with maintaining discipline in their units. Addressing an issue before it becomes a larger problem is the right thing to do,” Edgecomb said.
Oates said there has been an “unacceptable” increase of substance abuse on the northern New York Army post over the last three months, although he did not provide any specific numbers.
Army-wide there were 4,621 incidents of active duty soldiers driving under the influence in 2006, the last year for which the Army has complete statistics, or about 2.3 per 1,000 soldiers, according to records. About 95 percent of those involved alcohol, according to Army records.
Despite the division’s frequent combat deployments, Oates was reluctant to blame the recent increase in substance abuse on those deployments, or the mental stresses that accompany them. Oates said Fort Drum officials have noted increased use of marijuana and cocaine among initial entry soldiers who have yet to be deployed.
Does he understand that the men and women under his command are not normal people who decide to drink and drive just because they can? Doesn't he understand these men and women cared so much about other people they were willing to lay down their lives in service to them? How could he even begin to think they would so callous about drunk driving they would do it intentionally without any reason behind it?
Substance abuse, or should I say substance use, is a form of self-medicating. If he knows nothing about PTSD then he needs to get educated fast! The 10th have endured some of the worst conditions over and over again. If he thinks putting their picture in the Fort Drum Blizzard will solve the problem he lives in fantasy land.
Shame on him and anyone else in command positions thinking so little about the men and women they command that they assume it's the soldiers who are all wrong. Fort Drum has a big problem coming to terms with PTSD and until they get it into their brain this is a wound and start to treat it like one, there will be many more suffering and more using alcohol and drugs to kill off flashbacks and calm nerves. Trying to shame someone for doing what they feel forced to do to cope is only adding to the shame the military chain of command has already done to them. Shame on Maj. Gen. Michael Oates. It's not the "youngster culture" he does not understand. It's the wound he does not understand!
By William Kates - The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Mar 5, 2008 20:20:10 EST
FORT DRUM, N.Y. — Upset with an increase in the number of 10th Mountain Division soldiers using illegal drugs and being arrested for alcohol-related offenses, Fort Drum will begin publishing the names and photos of offenders in its post newspaper, says commander Maj. Gen. Michael Oates.
Starting with the front page of Thursday’s edition, the Fort Drum Blizzard will feature photographs of the 45 soldiers who have been charged with DWI since Jan. 1. The names and photographs of soldiers committing such offenses will become a regular feature in the paper, although not on the front page.
“I don’t take this step lightly and I realize that there will be people offended by this,” Oates said. “But apparently talking to them is not deterring this behavior, and financial penalties are not deterring this behavior.
“I understand soldier culture well enough ... I may not understand youngster culture well enough ... but I think they would probably not be happy with this public recognition of their misconduct,” said Oates.
Department of Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Anne Edgecomb said Fort Bliss officials publish the names of those convicted of drunk driving offenses but she knew of no other Army installations publicizing the names of those arrested and their photos.
“Soldiers must live the Army values on and off duty. This requires discipline. Commanders at all levels are charged with maintaining discipline in their units. Addressing an issue before it becomes a larger problem is the right thing to do,” Edgecomb said.
Oates said there has been an “unacceptable” increase of substance abuse on the northern New York Army post over the last three months, although he did not provide any specific numbers.
Army-wide there were 4,621 incidents of active duty soldiers driving under the influence in 2006, the last year for which the Army has complete statistics, or about 2.3 per 1,000 soldiers, according to records. About 95 percent of those involved alcohol, according to Army records.
Despite the division’s frequent combat deployments, Oates was reluctant to blame the recent increase in substance abuse on those deployments, or the mental stresses that accompany them. Oates said Fort Drum officials have noted increased use of marijuana and cocaine among initial entry soldiers who have yet to be deployed.
“I think it is more generational and cultural at this point,” Oates said. “And I really don’t care in a lot of ways. Because in our (Army) culture we believe in discipline and it is against the law to use these drugs and to drive intoxicated. So regardless of your circumstances we are not going to tolerate this kind of behavior.
go here for the rest
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/03/ap_drumoffenders_030508/
Does he understand that the men and women under his command are not normal people who decide to drink and drive just because they can? Doesn't he understand these men and women cared so much about other people they were willing to lay down their lives in service to them? How could he even begin to think they would so callous about drunk driving they would do it intentionally without any reason behind it?
Substance abuse, or should I say substance use, is a form of self-medicating. If he knows nothing about PTSD then he needs to get educated fast! The 10th have endured some of the worst conditions over and over again. If he thinks putting their picture in the Fort Drum Blizzard will solve the problem he lives in fantasy land.
Shame on him and anyone else in command positions thinking so little about the men and women they command that they assume it's the soldiers who are all wrong. Fort Drum has a big problem coming to terms with PTSD and until they get it into their brain this is a wound and start to treat it like one, there will be many more suffering and more using alcohol and drugs to kill off flashbacks and calm nerves. Trying to shame someone for doing what they feel forced to do to cope is only adding to the shame the military chain of command has already done to them. Shame on Maj. Gen. Michael Oates. It's not the "youngster culture" he does not understand. It's the wound he does not understand!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Mental Health being withheld from Fort Drum Soldiers
Military Doctors Withholding Treatment from Soldiers with Mental Health Problems
By Maggie Mahar, Health Beat.
Posted February 27, 2008.
The military is denying crucial care to soldiers, making them vulnerable on the battlefield.
In recent months, VFA reports, it has been contacted by a number of soldiers based at Fort Drum who are concerned about their own mental health and the health of other members of their units. In response, VFA launched an investigation of conditions at Fort Drum, and what it found was shocking.
Soldiers told the VFA that "the leader of the mental health treatment clinic at Fort Drum asked soldiers not to discuss their mental health problems with people outside the base. Attempts to keep matters 'in house' foster an atmosphere of secrecy and shame," the report observed "that is not conducive to proper treatment for combat-related mental health injuries."
The investigators also discovered that "some military mental health providers have argued that a number of soldiers fake mental health injuries to increase the likelihood that they will be deemed unfit for combat and/or for further military service."
The report notes that a "conversation with a leading expert in treating combat psychological wounds" confirmed "that some military commanders at Fort Drum doubt the validity of mental health wounds in some soldiers, thereby undermining treatment prescribed by civilian psychiatrists" at the nearby Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown, NY.
"In the estimation of this expert, military commanders have undue influence in the treatment of soldiers with psychological wounds," the report noted. "Another point of general concern for VFA is that Samaritan also has a strong financial incentive to maintain business ties with Fort Drum -- a dynamic [that] deserves greater scrutiny."
Because some soldiers do not trust Samaritan, the report reveals that a number of "soldiers have sought treatment after normal base business hours at a hospital in Syracuse, more than an hour's drive from Watertown ... because they feared that Samaritan would side with base leadership, which had, in some cases, cast doubt on the legitimacy of combat-related mental health wounds.
go here for the rest
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/77867/
It is almost impossible to get these men and women to admit they need help. They were trained to take care of themselves and watch out for the backs of their brothers and sisters. I've been dealing with them and their denials for 25 years. They don't want to admit they need help. Yet still, Fort Drum, and other bases, treat those who do as if they are slackers! Disgraceful! How can it be that such very smart, able, dedicated leaders can remain so uninformed and uneducated as to the tactics of the enemy the soldiers bring home with them? PTSD is an enemy. It attacks and it kills. There is only one thing PTSD fears and that is knowledge.
By Maggie Mahar, Health Beat.
Posted February 27, 2008.
The military is denying crucial care to soldiers, making them vulnerable on the battlefield.
In recent months, VFA reports, it has been contacted by a number of soldiers based at Fort Drum who are concerned about their own mental health and the health of other members of their units. In response, VFA launched an investigation of conditions at Fort Drum, and what it found was shocking.
Soldiers told the VFA that "the leader of the mental health treatment clinic at Fort Drum asked soldiers not to discuss their mental health problems with people outside the base. Attempts to keep matters 'in house' foster an atmosphere of secrecy and shame," the report observed "that is not conducive to proper treatment for combat-related mental health injuries."
The investigators also discovered that "some military mental health providers have argued that a number of soldiers fake mental health injuries to increase the likelihood that they will be deemed unfit for combat and/or for further military service."
The report notes that a "conversation with a leading expert in treating combat psychological wounds" confirmed "that some military commanders at Fort Drum doubt the validity of mental health wounds in some soldiers, thereby undermining treatment prescribed by civilian psychiatrists" at the nearby Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown, NY.
"In the estimation of this expert, military commanders have undue influence in the treatment of soldiers with psychological wounds," the report noted. "Another point of general concern for VFA is that Samaritan also has a strong financial incentive to maintain business ties with Fort Drum -- a dynamic [that] deserves greater scrutiny."
Because some soldiers do not trust Samaritan, the report reveals that a number of "soldiers have sought treatment after normal base business hours at a hospital in Syracuse, more than an hour's drive from Watertown ... because they feared that Samaritan would side with base leadership, which had, in some cases, cast doubt on the legitimacy of combat-related mental health wounds.
go here for the rest
http://www.alternet.org/waroniraq/77867/
It is almost impossible to get these men and women to admit they need help. They were trained to take care of themselves and watch out for the backs of their brothers and sisters. I've been dealing with them and their denials for 25 years. They don't want to admit they need help. Yet still, Fort Drum, and other bases, treat those who do as if they are slackers! Disgraceful! How can it be that such very smart, able, dedicated leaders can remain so uninformed and uneducated as to the tactics of the enemy the soldiers bring home with them? PTSD is an enemy. It attacks and it kills. There is only one thing PTSD fears and that is knowledge.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Murtha On His Way To Fort Drum
Congressman to visit Drum, discuss PTSD treatment
By MARC HELLER
TIMES WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2008
WASHINGTON — The chairman of a House defense spending panel will visit Fort Drum next Friday to discuss the treatment of soldiers for disabilities and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Rep. John R. Murtha, D-Pa., who heads the House Appropriations subcommittee on defense, said he will meet with base commanders and Department of Veterans Affairs representatives as well as with soldiers and their families.
Mr. Murtha's plans follow reports of long waits for soldiers seeking psychological help at Fort Drum, which came on the heels of revelations that VA counselors stopped helping wounded soldiers navigate the bureaucracy in applying for disability benefits.
As a result, the Army and the VA signed an agreement this week spelling out each agency's responsibilities — a development Mr. Murtha acknowledged Thursday as progress toward addressing the issue identified in reports from National Public Radio.
Mr. Murtha said he wants to know more about how PTSD is being handled at Fort Drum, where the 10th Mountain Division is one of the most heavily deployed units to Iraq and Afghanistan.
click post title for the rest
By MARC HELLER
TIMES WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2008
WASHINGTON — The chairman of a House defense spending panel will visit Fort Drum next Friday to discuss the treatment of soldiers for disabilities and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Rep. John R. Murtha, D-Pa., who heads the House Appropriations subcommittee on defense, said he will meet with base commanders and Department of Veterans Affairs representatives as well as with soldiers and their families.
Mr. Murtha's plans follow reports of long waits for soldiers seeking psychological help at Fort Drum, which came on the heels of revelations that VA counselors stopped helping wounded soldiers navigate the bureaucracy in applying for disability benefits.
As a result, the Army and the VA signed an agreement this week spelling out each agency's responsibilities — a development Mr. Murtha acknowledged Thursday as progress toward addressing the issue identified in reports from National Public Radio.
Mr. Murtha said he wants to know more about how PTSD is being handled at Fort Drum, where the 10th Mountain Division is one of the most heavily deployed units to Iraq and Afghanistan.
click post title for the rest
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Fort Drum:"There’s a trickle-down problem" with PTSD
Report Faults Mental Care for Iraq Veterans at Upstate Base
by VFA on Feb 12, 2008
Lisa W. Foderaro, the New York Times
by VFA on Feb 12, 2008
Lisa W. Foderaro, the New York Times
In the report issued by Veterans for America, one soldier, Eli Wright, 26, who was a medic in Iraq in 2003 and 2004 and remains on active duty while awaiting a medical discharge, said his symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder began after his tour ended and have worsened since then.
“My nerves are basically shot,” Mr. Wright said in a recent interview at the Different Drummer Cafe downtown. “I have flashbacks if I hear loud noises, especially if weapons are being fired. Sometimes just putting on my uniform can bring me right back to my experience in Iraq.”
He said that when he was in Iraq, he treated more civilians than American soldiers, and that two in particular stood out in his mind: an old woman and a child who were shot through a door as soldiers were “going door to door, tearing apart entire neighborhoods” searching for insurgents.
Mr. Wright said he waited weeks at Fort Drum to see a mental health professional, who diagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder. He was prescribed medication and pointed toward group therapy, where, he said, “half the time the group is staring at the floor.” At times, he was taking two pills at once. “I couldn’t stay awake,” he said.
But his chief complaint with the Army is the long wait for treatment. “The average wait time is five to six weeks,” he said. “When a soldier is having a mental breakdown, he has to wait over a month to see a counselor about his problems.”
Mr. Forrester of Veterans for America said that while the top brass at Fort Drum, especially General Oates, have spoken passionately about the need for soldiers to seek psychological treatment, others have not.
“There’s a trickle-down problem with the message, and that is that there’s still a pervasive stigma around mental health treatment in the military, along with a lack of confidentiality,” he said. “For those who still doubt the legitimacy of these wounds, they often are quite abusive of fellow soldiers or people in their units.”
click post title for the rest
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Fort Drum:Staff Sgt. Dustin McMillen shot by MP update
Army: Soldier killed in standoff had no mental health record
2:58 PM EST, February 11, 2008
FORT DRUM, N.Y. (AP) _ A 10th Mountain Division soldier killed by a military policeman after holding two other military police officers at gunpoint had no record of mental health issues, according to Army officials.
Staff Sgt. Dustin McMillen was fatally wounded during the standoff early Saturday morning on the northern New York Army post.
McMillen, 29, of Vancouver, Ore., was an infantryman who served a combat tour of more than a year in Afghanistan, returning home last June. He joined the Army in 1998
Lt. Col. Paul Swiergosz, a 10th Mountain Division spokesman, said Army officials could find no record that McMillen requested or was referred to counseling for any battle-related illness or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
2:58 PM EST, February 11, 2008
FORT DRUM, N.Y. (AP) _ A 10th Mountain Division soldier killed by a military policeman after holding two other military police officers at gunpoint had no record of mental health issues, according to Army officials.
Staff Sgt. Dustin McMillen was fatally wounded during the standoff early Saturday morning on the northern New York Army post.
McMillen, 29, of Vancouver, Ore., was an infantryman who served a combat tour of more than a year in Afghanistan, returning home last June. He joined the Army in 1998
Lt. Col. Paul Swiergosz, a 10th Mountain Division spokesman, said Army officials could find no record that McMillen requested or was referred to counseling for any battle-related illness or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Monday, February 4, 2008
PTSD:Eugene "Doc" Cherry brought the war home from Iraq
Eugene "Doc" Cherry brought the war home
VFA News Analysis: February 4, 2008
by Jason Knobloch on Feb 4, 2008
The Chicago Tribune tells the story of Spc. 4 Eugene “Doc” Cherry, an Army medic who served in Iraq with the 10th Mountain Division and returned home with severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Unfortunately, Cherry’s experiences are ones that VFA has seen many, many times. Cursory exposure to the psychiatrist in the field, long waits for appointments back in America, commanders making it next to impossible for servicemembers with mental injuries to receive help, going AWOL: this is a pattern that affects more and more servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Their numbers will keep growing until the well-intentioned pronouncements about the military treating mental injuries as seriously as it does physical injuries makes its way into the heads of combatant commanders.
go here for the rest
http://www.veteransforamerica.org/2008/02/04/vfa-news-analysis-february-4-2008/
by Jason Knobloch on Feb 4, 2008
The Chicago Tribune tells the story of Spc. 4 Eugene “Doc” Cherry, an Army medic who served in Iraq with the 10th Mountain Division and returned home with severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Unfortunately, Cherry’s experiences are ones that VFA has seen many, many times. Cursory exposure to the psychiatrist in the field, long waits for appointments back in America, commanders making it next to impossible for servicemembers with mental injuries to receive help, going AWOL: this is a pattern that affects more and more servicemembers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Their numbers will keep growing until the well-intentioned pronouncements about the military treating mental injuries as seriously as it does physical injuries makes its way into the heads of combatant commanders.
go here for the rest
http://www.veteransforamerica.org/2008/02/04/vfa-news-analysis-february-4-2008/
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Drum soldier dies after reporting chest pain
Drum soldier dies after reporting chest pain
Staff report
Posted : Tuesday Jan 29, 2008 16:35:53 EST
A 10th Mountain Division soldier died Jan. 28 after complaining of chest pains while on duty, according to a press release from Fort Drum, N.Y.
Sgt. 1st Class Ritchie A. Morgan, 41, was a food service noncommissioned officer assigned to 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade.
Morgan was taken to Guthrie Acute Care Clinic in Watertown, N.Y., after he complained of chest pains. Life-saving measures were performed there before he was transported to Samaritan Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Morgan, a native of Murphysboro, Ill., joined the Army in September 1987. He served in Korea; Fort Carson, Colo.; Germany; Fort Stewart, Ga.; and Mission Viejo, Calif., before being assigned to Fort Drum in November 2003. His deployments include a six-month tour in Kuwait in 1998 and a six-month tour in Macedonia in 2001. Morgan is survived by his wife, who is at Fort Drum. The cause of death is under investigation.
go here for the rest
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/01/army_drumdeath_080129w/
Staff report
Posted : Tuesday Jan 29, 2008 16:35:53 EST
A 10th Mountain Division soldier died Jan. 28 after complaining of chest pains while on duty, according to a press release from Fort Drum, N.Y.
Sgt. 1st Class Ritchie A. Morgan, 41, was a food service noncommissioned officer assigned to 6th Squadron, 6th Cavalry Regiment, 10th Combat Aviation Brigade.
Morgan was taken to Guthrie Acute Care Clinic in Watertown, N.Y., after he complained of chest pains. Life-saving measures were performed there before he was transported to Samaritan Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Morgan, a native of Murphysboro, Ill., joined the Army in September 1987. He served in Korea; Fort Carson, Colo.; Germany; Fort Stewart, Ga.; and Mission Viejo, Calif., before being assigned to Fort Drum in November 2003. His deployments include a six-month tour in Kuwait in 1998 and a six-month tour in Macedonia in 2001. Morgan is survived by his wife, who is at Fort Drum. The cause of death is under investigation.
go here for the rest
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/01/army_drumdeath_080129w/
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Another Non-combat death
Helena soldier killed in Iraq
By MARTIN J. KIDSTON - Independent Record - 12/16/07
A 19-year-old soldier from Helena died in Iraq on Thursday of non-combat related injuries, the Department of Defense announced Saturday night.
Pvt. Daren Smith became the sixth soldier or Marine from Helena to die in the Iraq war since it began more than four years ago.
Capt. Michael MacKinnon was killed on Oct. 27, 2005; Cpl. Phillip Baucus on July 29, 2006; and Sgt. Scott Dykman on Dec. 20, 2006.
Three additional Helena men have died this year including Staff Sgt. Shane Becker on April 3, 2007; Spec. Donald Young on Aug. 8, 2007; and Smith on Thursday.
To date, 22 Montana men have died in Iraq dating back to Dec. 22, 2003, when 1st Lt. Edward Saltz was killed by a roadside bomb.
The DOD has not released any additional information regarding Smith’s death, but said the incident is still under investigation.
http://www.helenair.com/articles/2007/12/16/helena/a03121607_01.txt
UPDATE
8/13/08
Montana Discovers Local Soldier's Suicide in Iraq -- Files for Documents
Published: August 13, 2008 12:25 PMET
HELENA, MT. A U.S. Army investigation has determined the December 2007 death of a 19-year-old Montana soldier was a suicide.
Jeffrey Castro, a spokesman for the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, told the Independent Record on Tuesday that Pvt. Daren Smith died Dec. 13, 2007, of self-inflicted wounds. [As often the case, this information only became public due to the queries of a local newspapper.]
Castro declined further comment, prompting the newspaper to file a Freedom of Information Act request for details about the soldier’s death. Attempts to reach Smith’s family Tuesday were unsuccessful.
Records show that Smith, who was born in Butte and grew up in Helena, joined the Army in March 2007. He was deployed to Iraq around Nov. 30, where he was a cavalry scout with the 10th Mountain Division.
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003838442
By MARTIN J. KIDSTON - Independent Record - 12/16/07
A 19-year-old soldier from Helena died in Iraq on Thursday of non-combat related injuries, the Department of Defense announced Saturday night.
Pvt. Daren Smith became the sixth soldier or Marine from Helena to die in the Iraq war since it began more than four years ago.
Capt. Michael MacKinnon was killed on Oct. 27, 2005; Cpl. Phillip Baucus on July 29, 2006; and Sgt. Scott Dykman on Dec. 20, 2006.
Three additional Helena men have died this year including Staff Sgt. Shane Becker on April 3, 2007; Spec. Donald Young on Aug. 8, 2007; and Smith on Thursday.
To date, 22 Montana men have died in Iraq dating back to Dec. 22, 2003, when 1st Lt. Edward Saltz was killed by a roadside bomb.
The DOD has not released any additional information regarding Smith’s death, but said the incident is still under investigation.
http://www.helenair.com/articles/2007/12/16/helena/a03121607_01.txt
UPDATE
8/13/08
Montana Discovers Local Soldier's Suicide in Iraq -- Files for Documents
Published: August 13, 2008 12:25 PMET
HELENA, MT. A U.S. Army investigation has determined the December 2007 death of a 19-year-old Montana soldier was a suicide.
Jeffrey Castro, a spokesman for the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command, told the Independent Record on Tuesday that Pvt. Daren Smith died Dec. 13, 2007, of self-inflicted wounds. [As often the case, this information only became public due to the queries of a local newspapper.]
Castro declined further comment, prompting the newspaper to file a Freedom of Information Act request for details about the soldier’s death. Attempts to reach Smith’s family Tuesday were unsuccessful.
Records show that Smith, who was born in Butte and grew up in Helena, joined the Army in March 2007. He was deployed to Iraq around Nov. 30, where he was a cavalry scout with the 10th Mountain Division.
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003838442
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
10th Mountain Soldier survived Iraq, died at home
Soldier on leave from Iraq found dead
Staff report
Posted : Wednesday Nov 28, 2007 17:08:41 EST
A 10th Mountain Division Soldier home on leave from Iraq was found dead Nov. 21 in an apartment in Racine, Wis., according to a press release from Fort Drum, N.Y.
Pvt. Tue M. Tran, 20, was an infantryman assigned to 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team. The 10th Mountain’s 1st BCT deployed to the Kirkuk region in northern Iraq in September.
Tran was born in Vietnam. He immigrated to Wisconsin and joined the Army in January. He completed basic and advanced individual training at Fort Benning, Ga., before he was assigned to 1st BCT at Fort Drum in August.
Law enforcement officials in Wisconsin are investigating Tran’s death. He is survived by his daughter, parents and sister, all of whom live in Racine.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/11/army_soldier_death_071128w/
Staff report
Posted : Wednesday Nov 28, 2007 17:08:41 EST
A 10th Mountain Division Soldier home on leave from Iraq was found dead Nov. 21 in an apartment in Racine, Wis., according to a press release from Fort Drum, N.Y.
Pvt. Tue M. Tran, 20, was an infantryman assigned to 2nd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team. The 10th Mountain’s 1st BCT deployed to the Kirkuk region in northern Iraq in September.
Tran was born in Vietnam. He immigrated to Wisconsin and joined the Army in January. He completed basic and advanced individual training at Fort Benning, Ga., before he was assigned to 1st BCT at Fort Drum in August.
Law enforcement officials in Wisconsin are investigating Tran’s death. He is survived by his daughter, parents and sister, all of whom live in Racine.
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2007/11/army_soldier_death_071128w/
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