Wife's death, wartime PTSD tore at Orosi shooter

This story has it all. All the things tied together producing a sad ending. Alvarez, a Vietnam veteran was dealing with a lot from Vietnam. PTSD and Agent Orange plus a daughter born with Spina Bifida. He also had a marriage that survived over 40 years until his wife passed away in 2012.

It is a story about a veteran wanting to heal and seeing VA doctors to take an active part in getting better.

He cared about his daughters and grandkids. So what happened? Aside from having a gun in the house some will want to point to, when there was no sign of Alvarez being dangerous before, there was no need to remove his weapons. Some will want to blame PTSD but again they will be missing the point that this veteran was getting help as well as the part of the article pointing out that violence is hardly ever a part of PTSD. Most of the time they are a greater danger to themselves than someone else.

All the way around, this story has a lot of sadness.

Wife's death, wartime PTSD tore at Orosi shooter
By Lewis Griswold
The Fresno Bee
Tuesday, May. 28, 2013

OROSI -- His family meant everything to Anthony "Tony" Alvarez Sr., a 63-year-old Vietnam war veteran who was devastated when his wife died last year. He shared his home with his two daughters, Valerie Alvarez, who has spina bifida and uses a wheelchair, and Jennifer Kimble, who moved back home last summer with her husband and three children.

So what made this family man take a gun and shoot his daughters, killing Kimble and critically injuring Valerie Alvarez, before killing himself early Monday morning?

His wife's death, and the post-traumatic stress disorder that was the legacy of his wartime service, may have been too much for him to bear, his son said Tuesday.

Alvarez spared Kimble's three children, an 8-year-old girl and two boys ages 11 and 13, who were in the home at the time of the shootings.

"His grandchildren meant the world to him," Anthony Alvarez Jr. of Corcoran said Tuesday outside the home where the murder-suicide took place.
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Iraq veteran proves he violated probation on Facebook

Judge: Marine violated terms of release
Salem News
BY JULIE MANGANIS
STAFF WRITER
May 7, 2013

DANVERS — A Salem District Court judge has found “clear and convincing” evidence that Marine recruiter Matthew Fairbanks repeatedly violated the terms of his release in a pending assault and battery and weapons case, including failing to surrender an AK-47 to police.

Because of that, Judge Robert Brennan concluded that Fairbanks “poses a substantial risk of danger to the community” and ordered that he now be held without bail until trial.

Fairbanks, 23, an Iraq War veteran whose family has said may be suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, was living in the Endicott Greens apartment complex on Route 1 in January when police were called because of a disturbance in his apartment.

Fairbanks allegedly ripped a toilet out of a wall during the altercation with his 52-year-old father, and then used it to assault the older man, according to police. Officers subsequently found guns and other weapons in the apartment and in Fairbanks’ car.

Then, last month, police and probation officers learned that Fairbanks had posted a photo of himself on Facebook laughing and holding an AK-47 with a caption that said, “So then the judge says to me, he says, you will surrender all your firearms.”
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Oregon war veteran in custody after manhunt

Manhunt for possible armed man prompts Thurston HS lockdown
By KVAL News
Published: Apr 10, 2013

SPRINGFIELD, Ore. - While police search for a possibly armed war veteran with PTSD, Thurston High School went Code Blue and locked down the campus Wednesday morning.

Students were never in any danger, police later said. The wanted man was not armed when he was taken into custody.
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Woman charged with killing husband

DC woman who worked at Walter Reed hospital charged with fatal shooting of husband in DC
By Associated Press
Published: March 29

WASHINGTON — An employee of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center has been charged with fatally shooting her husband in their District of Columbia home, police said Friday.

Lalchan, who on her LinkedIn page identifies herself as a pharmacist at Walter Reed, called 911 just after midnight Thursday to say that she had shot her husband, police said. Officers found Christopher S. Lalchan lying dead on the living room floor with a gunshot wound to the back of the head. Police said they found four unregistered weapons — two pistols, a revolver and an antique gun — in the couple’s Southwest Washington home.
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Domestic Violence and Post-Traumatic Stress

Healing on the Home Front: Domestic Violence and Post-Traumatic Stress
Huffington Post
Posted: 03/13/2013
Barbara Van Dahlen
Ph.D.Founder and president, Give an Hour

Despite the diversity of the U.S. military members who have served in Afghanistan and Iraq, there still exists a popular misconception of the returning vet as the Marlboro man, a stoic figure wrestling alone with the after-effects of combat. After nearly a decade of providing mental health services to veterans, service members and their families, I know nothing is farther from the truth. Our returning service members are a reflection of the society they serve -- male, female, young, old, representing every profession, personality type and ethnic group imaginable. They are us.

And their mental health struggles are ours as well. Of the 2.6 million men and women who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001, some 20-35 percent will suffer some form of post-traumatic stress (PTS). In treating this population and their affected family members, we must also work from facts and avoid misconceptions. It is also important to differentiate between post-traumatic stress and the more commonly-known disorder PTSD. Post-traumatic stress is an understandable reaction to the horror of war or rape or surviving a natural disaster. It develops into a disorder if those suffering don't get the support and assistance they need. While we have all read headlines about returning veterans who have "snapped," it is critical to understand that violence is not a symptom of post-traumatic stress. Those who make national news, or any news at all, are the extreme minority. With post-traumatic stress, there is most commonly the wish to get away from stimulation, to numb, to shut down, to avoid others. There may be depression, anxiety, listlessness, an inability to concentrate, and bad dreams, all of which can interfere with healthy relationships, enjoying kids and partners and engaging in the workplace.
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My comment

Thank you for writing about how rare violence and PTSD is. Veterans are a greater risk to themselves than anyone else. Also thank you for creating Give An Hour. Too many do not seek help. Recent report said that 47% of the veterans committing suicide did not seek help, so having options is vital. The issue is, 53% did seek help and still committed suicide. That says a lot right there. We've been at this for over 40 years and with hundreds of millions of dollars spent, these results frankly are deplorable, especially when families are left out of all of this. They don't know what it is or how they can help their veteran heal.

They are also not aware of what their reactions can lead to. I've been married since 1984 when no one was talking about Vietnam veterans or their families, so I made a lot of mistakes. When the way my reactions to my husband's actions were adjusted life got better for my family. I was no longer fighting him but fighting for him. I just disagree with the PTS and PTSD difference. PTSD does not make them violent.

The mood-swings they go through can be nerve-wracking. One minute they are quiet, almost as if they are not even there in the room with you, and the next, act like you just attacked them. In the morning they may be "themselves" but in the afternoon, the stranger walks through the door again. Sooner or later, when we understand "why" they are the way they are, we also understand how we can sooth things over.

If I had a dollar for every time I asked my husband "What the hell is wrong with you?" my mortgage would have been paid off ten years ago and I would have bought a new car every year. That is with even knowing what PTSD is and what it was doing to him. I still let those words come out of my mouth but most of the time it follows his forgetfulness with short-term memory loss. That part is really frustrating. He also worries way too much about things he shouldn't have to be concerned about.

There are so many things that we just don't talk about so the impression of a PTSD veteran being dangerous lives on. So let's take a look at a few missed facts.

My ex-husband, not a veteran, tried to kill me. My second and current husband is a Vietnam veteran with PTSD but didn't try to kill me. Yes, he does overreact to situations but is not violent. Almost every report I've read among the over 18,000 post on this blog about violence and PTSD were connected to medications, so it is not a far reach to connect violence and substance abuse the same way we connect them to civilians and domestic violence. We need to remember they are just like everyone else even without Combat PTSD.

My Dad, a Korean War veteran, was violent but did not have PTSD, or what they called "shell shock." He was an alcoholic. Today many veterans are treated for addiction to drugs and alcohol. The problem comes when doctors don't know if it is addiction or using them to get numb because of PTSD. Sometimes the doctors are treating both conditions and it gets really complicated for them. If they are not experts on PTSD, then most of the time they get it wrong, treat them for addictions only to discover the treatment isn't working. If they treat them for PTSD and do not address the addiction, it won't work either. Usually if they are treated for PTSD and were only using the substances to numb, they use less and live better as they heal. My Dad ended up getting sober with AA and helping other alcoholics. My husband finds a lot of strength by helping other veterans and having connections with other veterans. He feels understood and cared about by them almost as much as he cares for them.

There is something else on domestic violence that needs to be pointed out. When they have a nightmare, many wives make the mistake of yelling at them to wake up or shaking them because they do not understand what that nightmare involves. They are being attacked and their lives are being threatened. To them, their partner is the enemy attacking them and they lash out. Wives have had bloody noses and black eyes because they woke them up the wrong way, called 911 and the veteran was arrested for it. Had the wife removed herself from the bed or at least got out of striking range, it wouldn't have happened. A normally non-violent husband ended up being charged with domestic violence needlessly.

There are rare times when the veteran is in fact violent and the spouse has to leave for their own safety. Each case is different but if you don't know what is involved, nothing gets better.

Victim transformed into survivor

Victim transformed into survivor
by Kathie Costos
Wounded Times Blog
March 8, 2013

President Obama signed legalization to protect women like me because most people in Congress gave a damn but some voted against it. These are the elected officials who couldn't care enough to vote for it.

My passion has been military/veteran families since 1982 when I met my second husband. The love he gave me after the life I lived is the biggest reason I am able to do what I do everyday. When I help a veteran or family member, they end up telling me to thank my husband for his service. What they don't know is that everyday he is behind everything I do. From supporting this work financially because I haven't been able to figure out how to get enough donations to keep going, to making sure I get off the computer and watch some TV for a while, to reminding me I am loved, he has kept me going, doing for others because he gave me more than I needed or even thought I deserved.

I was married before to Peter. I thought he was the love of my life even though my family tried to get me to leave him. Even my dog didn't like him. I wouldn't listen. Looking back now I can see that it was because of my home life growing up with an alcoholic father. He was abusive and violent, mostly to my older brother until I was 13. How can a little girl believe she is worthy of love when her Dad made her feel worthless? By the time he stopped drinking and I didn't have to come home ashamed, the fear of him drinking again never left my mind.

Peter acted as if I was his world. He acted like he adored me. Me? Go figure. We were married for a year and a half when one night he came home from work, said something to me, I said something back and the next thing I knew, he fist smashed my face. Shocked and confused I hit him back. He chased me around the apartment as I used all the defenses my brothers taught me to defend myself. I grabbed whatever I could to throw at him. I was holding my own pretty good until he punched me hard enough to knock me down. He got on top of me with his hands on my throat. Our landlady started banging on the door screaming she called the police and he snapped out of whatever had caused him to attack me in the first place.

The police came, long story short, he stalked me for over a year, or so I thought. He introduced himself to Jack right after we got engaged. He must have been stalking us all that time or he wouldn't have know who Jack was.

I was a victim of an abusive father, but became a survivor. I was a victim of an abusive spouse, but became a survivor. It was not easy to end my marriage and lose what I worked so hard for. It wasn't easy to deal with the fact he didn't really love me. It wasn't easy to get past the fact that two men in my life made me feel worthless. Pushing on, standing up, defending myself and refusing to surrender, made me a survivor.

I was worth fighting for. I didn't deserve what was done to me and they didn't deserve what I had to give to them. What made me stronger was not fighting back but fighting against holding onto hatred. I forgave both of them. I was not about to allow them to treat me badly ever again, but I was also not willing to surrender the rest of who I was to the evil they did.

My Dad and I had a pretty good relationship for years before he passed away but it took a long time. As for Peter, that took years too. I used to cringe every time I heard a muscle car speeding down the street. He was a great auto body man and had more cars than I could remember. Maybe that's why it was so easy for him to follow me but nothing gave him the ability to ever destroy me.

If you are being abused they are trying to do that to you. To destroy who you are inside. All the qualities they claimed they loved about you are targets for destruction. Don't let them do that. Had I really believed how worthless I was to them, I wouldn't have been able to do what I've done for over 30 years. The only thing stopping you is them. You deserve to be loved for real but not by them. You deserve to love yourself first. I wasn't able to do that until Peter almost killed me physically but in a way, it taught me to finally care about myself and appreciate the strength I had inside. I was no longer a victim. I was a survivor!

Port St. Lucie police officer shot during standoff

Port St. Lucie police officer shot during standoff
SWAT situation lasts 6 hours
UPDATED 5:49 PM EST Feb 28, 2013

Injured officer has nine shotgun pellets in his leg

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. —A police officer is recovering after being shot during a standoff with a man who's now facing serious charges, investigators said.
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Iraq war veteran had a lot on his mind before crash

PTSD may provide answers to deadly Thruway crash
WNYT News
Posted at: 02/24/2013
By: Dan Bazile

While state police continue to look into why 43 year old Julian With got on the Thruway the wrong way early Friday morning causing a deadly crash, his friends are speaking out. They say the Iraq war veteran had a lot on his mind.

“He was one of them easy go guy. He had his problems. But it was probably from the war, you know,” says neighbor David Stafford.

Aside from the war, Stafford says there were issues at home. With recently wrote on his facebook page that his wife had left him. Just hours before the crash, he was arrested by Bethlehem police for violating an order of protection in a domestic dispute. Add to that a post on his facebook page that said his mother had three months to live.
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Fort Knox soldier, wife found fatally shot

Knox soldier, wife found fatally shot
The Associated Press
Posted : Friday Feb 22, 2013

FORT KNOX, Ky. — Fort Knox officials say a soldier and his wife have been found fatally shot in their on-post housing unit in what appears to be an episode of domestic violence.

A statement from the central Kentucky Army post said military police found the couple Friday morning after getting a 911 call from the residence. Officers said they heard gunfire inside the residence when they arrived. Both people died at the scene.
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Military veteran reportedly killed by son

Military veteran reportedly killed by son outside of Massachusetts home
Published February 05, 2013
FoxNews.com

A military veteran was reportedly killed by his own son in front of their Massachusetts home, MyFoxBoston.com reports.

Michael Beaudry, 20, allegedly struck his father, 58-year-old Ronald Beaudry, multiple times with an unknown blunt object, the station reports.

The elder Beaudry was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital.

Witnesses told the station that the younger Beaudry attended to his father after striking him, cradling his father's head and apologizing.
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Las Vegas Police Officer Allegedly Shot Family, Burned Home, Killed Self

Hans Walters Murder-Suicide: Las Vegas Police Officer Allegedly Shot Family, Burned Home, Killed Self
The Huffington Post
By Andres Jauregui
Posted: 01/23/2013

Nevada police said that Lt. Hans Walters, a 20-year veteran of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, killed his family and set fire to his home before fatally shooting himself on Jan. 21.

A standoff at Walters' Boulder City, Nev., home occurred Monday, after an unidentified male caller claimed to a 911 dispatcher that he had killed his wife and child, set his house aflame and would "injure any officer that attempted to come to the scene."

Units from multiple departments responded, including a Las Vegas SWAT team. Officers reportedly encountered Walters in front of his house with a handgun. According to CNN, Walters ignored commands from police to drop his weapon and, instead, returned to the burning house.

Authorities believe the off-duty lieutenant shot himself after he entered the house.

The Clark County Coroner's Office confirmed Tuesday that Walter's 46-year-old wife, Kathryn, and 5-year-old son, Maximilian, each died of a gunshot wound to the head.
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No Excuse to vote against Violence Against Women Act

Let me make this perfectly clear as a survivor of domestic violence by two perpetrators. This country needs to stand up against criminals no matter what household title they have.

My Dad was a violent alcoholic until I was 13. He beat up my oldest brother most of the time, threatened my Mom and verbally abused all of us. He should have be arrested many times. By the grace of God all of us survived and my Dad stopped drinking then spent the rest of his life trying to make up for it. Still nothing could reverse the damage done to all of us. I forgave him but the rest of my family never really did.

My ex-husband was another story. We were not even married two years. 18 months after the day we got married, he came home one night and decided I should die. He started punching me and chasing me around the apartment while I fought back. Finally he got be on the floor, got on top of me punched me some more and then his hands were on my throat. Our landlady banged on the door screaming she had already called the police.

The officers took him to jail and he was out the next day. After all, it was just domestic violence. I got a restraining order but that did no good. That was over 30 years ago and things have changed but not by much. He was allowed to stalk me, and ruin my life but what got me was that when the judge order me to pay his healthcare coverage he topped that off with granting my ex-husband a divorce under cruelty because I fought back when he was trying to kill me.

Senate gives Violence Against Women Act another try
A new version of the bill dropped a provision that helped House Republicans block it last year [UPDATED]
BY JILLIAN RAYFIELD
JAN 23, 2013

Though House Republicans blocked the Violence Against Women Act last year, the Senate is not giving up. A new version of the bill, co-authored by Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, seeks to add pressure to House Republican leadership to reauthorize the law, which stalled and expired in September 2011, for the first time ever.

“This lifesaving legislation should be a top priority of the new 113th Congress,” Leahy said in a statement. “It is our hope that the Senate will act quickly to pass this strong, bipartisan bill to help all victims of domestic and sexual violence.”

“The Violence Against Women Act has helped countless victims of domestic and relationship violence for nearly 20 years,” Crapo said. “The path to reauthorization in the 113th Congress begins with reintroduction, and I look forward to working with Senator Leahy and my colleagues on compromise language that can garner the necessary support in both the Senate and House to pass this critical legislation.”
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Women are getting more and more equal treatment in this country and that is a wonderful thing but equality is not happening in too many houses. Don't let women go back to the dark days of what I went through. Home is the one place where we are supposed to feel safe.

To the women out there, my second marriage has lasted over 28 years now and I can tell you that just because one person treated you so badly, that person was a criminal and needed to face the punishment for his actions. You are worth of love but while it is hard to believe it, you are. My husband proved that to me and still does now.

Chaplain and family murdered in home, son arrested

Albuquerque Shooting: Teenager Kills 5 People, Including 3 Children
Huffington Post
By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN
01/20/13

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — A 15-year-old boy remained in custody Sunday night as detectives tried to piece together what led to the shooting of his parents and three of their children who were found dead in a New Mexico home.

The teenager was arrested on murder and other charges in connection with the shootings, which happened Saturday night at the home in a rural area southwest of downtown Albuquerque, said Lt. Sid Covington, a Bernalillo County sheriff's spokesman.

Authorities identified the victims late Sunday as Greg Griego, 51, his wife Sara Griego, 40, and three of their children: a 9-year-old boy, Zephania Griego, and daughters Jael Griego, 5, and Angelina Griego, 2.

Word of the shootings traveled quickly through the law enforcement community, and officials began offering their condolences for Greg Griego, a spiritual leader known for his work with firefighters and the 13 years he spent as a volunteer chaplain at the county jail.

"Chaplin Griego was a dedicated professional that passionately served his fellow man and the firefighters of this community," Fire Chief James Breen said in a statement. "His calming spirit and gentle nature will be greatly missed."

Jail Chief Ramon Rustin said Griego was instrumental in the creation of the Metropolitan Detention Center's chaplain program and worked to get inmates integrated back into the community.

Griego also was a former member of the pastoral staff at Calvary, a Christian church in Albuquerque. As part of his work there, he oversaw the Straight Street program for jail inmates.

Authorities said each victim suffered more than one gunshot wound, and several guns were found at the home, one of which was a semi-automatic military-style rifle.
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92-Year-Old Florida Veteran, Arrested Again For Violent Attack

Joe Hogan, 92-Year-Old Florida Veteran, Arrested Again For Violent Attack
Sun Sentinel
By Ihosvani Rodriguez
Posted: 01/05/2013

A 92-year-old war veteran is incarcerated for the third time since 2011 for allegedly setting off a violent attack against others, this time his 70-year-old wife.

Joseph Hogan on Friday remained in a Broward County Jail's medical facility after he was arrested on Thursday for allegedly pushing his 70-year-old wife to the ground and shoving her face against the concrete floor outside the couple's home in Hollywood, according to court officials.

He is facing one count of battery on a person older than 65.

Hogan's public defender, W. Dale Miller, said Thursday's incident is the latest in an ongoing saga of a 92-year-old man who appears to be in need of help over his increasingly violent behavior and deteriorating mental health.

Broward County Judge John "Jay" Hurley called the case "unique" and appeared perplexed during a bond court hearing on how to handle the jailing of a man in his 90s who may be suffering from dementia.

"The court is not inclined or comfortable jailing a 92-year-old man," Hurley said. "At the same time, this 92-year-old man now has two felony cases, and I feel that at least in the short term, it seems he's becoming more violent."
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Murder suspect is former Marine

Murder suspect is former Marine
KXAN.com
Friday, 04 Jan 2013
Shannon Wolfson

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The man suspected of murdering his girlfriend in Southwest Austin on December 29 is a former Marine who worked as a guard at the T Don Hutto Detention Facility in Williamson County, according to Austin police.

Ryan Clarke, 27, is charged with first degree murder in the killing of Cassandra Clark, 26. An arrest warrant for Clarke revealed Williamson County deputies found him in a white Chevy Trailblazer at the Southwest Williamson County Regional Park on Saturday morning. Clarke was slumped over the driver's seat of the vehicle. According to the arrest warrant, Clarke was covered in blood and holding a knife.

Clarke was then transported to Seton Hospital in Williamson County. The following day, Clarke told a hospital social worker he had injured someone at an apartment complex on West William Cannon in South Austin. When Austin police arrived at the apartment, they found Clark dead in the bedroom, with obvious physical trauma.
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Florida mother kills infant son in murder-suicide attempt

Florida mother kills infant son in murder-suicide attempt, police say
By CNN Staff
updated 4:17 PM EST, Fri January 4, 2013
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
The mother is in critical condition
Her 6-month-old son died of his injuries
Her family says she posted her plans on Facebook

(CNN) -- A 20-year-old Florida woman was in critical condition Friday after she shot and killed her 6-month-old son and then turned the gun on herself, police said.
Authorities found Melanie Reyes and her baby after performing a welfare check at the request of Reyes' family, who called 911 to report a statement on her Facebook page in which she "indicated she was going to shoot her child and herself," according to the Marion County Sheriff's Office.
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PTSD could be used as defense for Benjamin Sebena

PTSD could be used as defense for Benjamin Sebena
Currently in Milwaukee County Jail on $1 million bail
By Nick Bohr
Jan 03, 2013

Ben Sebena could use PTSD as defense

MILWAUKEE —The husband of slain Wauwatosa police officer Jennifer Sebena will learn Thursday whether he will stand trial in her death.

Benjamin Sebena, 30, is charged with first-degree intentional homicide.

The Iraq war veteran could use post-traumatic stress disorder as a defense.

In the two days he was in custody following the shooting death of his wife, Sebena slowly revealed details about their lives together and eventually, according to prosecutors, admitted to shooting her five times in the head.
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Man shoots wife, self in west Killeen

Police: Man shoots wife, self in west Killeen
Jan 1, 2013
Brandon Janes
Herald staff writer

A Killeen man is dead and his wife seriously wounded after what police are calling an attempted murder-suicide.

Just before noon Monday, Killeen police received a 911 call from a woman who had been shot multiple times by her husband during a domestic dispute, police said.

Police believe that, after shooting his wife, a 65-year-old man turned the gun on himself in the bedroom of their southwest Killeen home in the 2800 block of Lavender Drive, Killeen Police Department spokeswoman Carroll Smith said.

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Combat stress on Special Ops "worse" then they thought

Spec ops troops’ stress ‘worse than we thought’
By Gregg Zoroya
USA TODAY
Posted : Thursday Dec 20, 2012

TAMPA — The nation’s most elite fighting forces — celebrated this year in film and best-selling books — are under more emotional strain after a decade of war than commanders realized, according to the senior non-commissioned officer for special operations.

A tragic part of that is record suicides this year, said Command Sgt. Maj. Chris Faris.

According to Pentagon data, there were 17 confirmed or suspected suicides this year among commandos or support personnel through Dec. 2, compared with nine suicides each of the past two years.

That’s a suicide rate among these troops of about 25 per 100,000, comparable to a record rate this year in the Army and higher than a demographically adjusted civilian suicide rate.

“What we’re struggling with is, OK, what the heck is going on?” Faris said.

“These guys have been under tremendous pressure,” said Kim Ruocco, who assists families of special operations troops who commit suicide. They “have given over and over again without complaining ... and then, when they do have issues, spend a lot of time hiding it.”

The problems arise as popular media showers attention on these troops, particularly the famed SEAL Team 6 whose killing of Osama bin Laden led to best-selling books and the film “Zero Dark Thirty.”

A report last month by U.S. Special Operations Command — which oversees 66,000 troops including the Army’s secretive Delta Force, Navy SEALs with SEAL Team 6, Army Green Berets and Rangers — cites “an increase in domestic and family relational and behavioral problems, substance abuse and self-medication problems, risk-taking behavior, post-traumatic stress and suicide.”

Faris said, “It’s worse than we thought.” But he added that despite signs of strain, this select category of troops remains capable of meeting any missions they are given.

Ruocco, a director at Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), said she has worked with the families of a Green Beret and a Navy SEAL who killed themselves this year.
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Army veteran gets 30 years for trying to kill girlfriend

Army veteran gets 30 years for trying to kill girlfriend
Capital Gazette.com
Posted: Tuesday, November 6, 2012
By HEATHER RAWLYK
Staff Writer

An Army veteran who survived a deadly 2004 attack in Baghdad and spoke about the effects of post-traumatic stress disorder on “60 Minutes” was sentenced to 30 years in prison Monday for trying to kill his girlfriend in Severn last winter.

Jarob Derringer Walsh, 30, pleaded guilty in September to attempted second-degree murder before Judge William C. Mulford II in county Circuit Court in Annapolis.

“I don’t see this as a case of how we treat our veterans ...” Mulford said. “I see this as a case of how we treat victims of domestic violence and how we treat those who abuse women. And that’s what you are — someone who abuses women.”

The case stems from a violent attack in Severn on Dec . 10.
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