Fort Carson soldier who was arrested after barricading himself in home says he suffers from PTSD
The Gazette
By: Kaitlin Durbin
March 21, 2016
The incident started around 1 p.m. Sunday when Fernandez's wife called 911 to report that a phone call with her husband had ended abruptly and that she believed she heard gunshots before he hung up, the sheriff's office said.
A Fort Carson soldier who barricaded himself in his home Sunday and threatened to harm officers and himself told authorities he is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Sgt. 1st Class Raymond San Nicholas Fernandez, 39, was arrested Sunday on suspicion of prohibited use of a weapon and reckless endangerment after it took authorities hours to talk him into surrendering, according to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office.
Fort Carson officials confirmed Fernandez's employment in the military.
He's earned as many as 28 military awards, including a National Defense Service Medal, Kosovo Campaign Medal with Bronze Service Star, Korea Defense Service Medal, NATO medal and Senior Army Aircraft Crewman Badge.
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MARINE AWARDED SILVER STAR FOR HEROIC ACTIONS IN AFGHANISTAN
Marines.mil
By Sgt. Kirstin Merrimarahajara, II Marine Expeditionary Force
March 21, 2016
MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, North Carolina -- Sgt. Matthew S. Parker (ret.), received a Silver Star medal on base March 18, 2016.
Marine awarded Silver Star for heroic actions in Afghanistan
Sgt. Matthew Parker (ret.) speaks to a group of 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment Marines during his Silver Star ceremony at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina, March 18, 2016. Parker was awarded the Silver Star for his courageous actions during Operation Enduring Freedom in 2011, where assumed control of his platoon during a firefight after several leaders had been injured.
The Silver Star is the third highest military combat decoration and was awarded to Parker for his bravery and composure during an attack in Afghanistan on May 21, 2011, while he was deployed as a rifleman with 3rd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment during Operation Enduring Freedom. Parker courageously assumed control as the ground force commander after several leaders had been injured, called in fire support and evacuated casualties.
The award was presented by Maj. Gen. Brian Beaudreault, commanding general of 2nd Marine Division, who expressed his appreciation for what Parker did that day.
“You represented everything we want to teach in honor, courage, commitment and the warrior’s ethos… and for that I’m greatly indebted to you,” Beaudreault said. “You did everything we would want and hope for every Marine NCO leading a formation to do.”
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Pledge Of Allegiance, Suicide Prevention Training Among Bills That Survived Session
WSFU.com
By Sascha Cordner
MAR 18, 2016
Hannah Jines is a teacher from Lakeland. About seven years ago, her father committed suicide.
“On January 12, 2009, at 8 o’ clock, my uncle had called me and his exact words were, ‘there was an accident and your father didn’t make it,’” she said. “Now, I knew my dad had been struggling with depression and alcoholism, PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder], and so, in the pit of my stomach, I knew it wasn’t an accident, I knew it was a suicide. At first, no one in my family wanted to admit that it was a suicide, and no one definitely wanted to talk about it.”
She says stigma is one of the worst parts of losing someone to suicide.
“The stigma was so strong that our Pastor refused to let us name the church in his obituary,” Jines added.
Jines says it was around that time, she started getting depressed.
“My father was a retired Master Chief in the Navy. He served 25 dedicated years and he was so put together,” she continued. “No one would have ever thought that he would have ever taken his life. I never thought that I would have experienced a suicide in my family.
Unfortunately, mental illness does not discriminate. I felt like I had this picture perfect family and it was just shattered. I went through the darkest time in my life. I battled depression myself, afterwards, and I wanted to end my own life.”
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Suspected rapist goes AWOL, but Army doesn't search for him
Associated Press
By Richard Lardner
Published: March 21, 2016
Had anyone looked, Hazelbower may not have been hard to find. After fleeing Fort Campbell, he had gone home to Lanark, Ill., a small town two hours west of Chicago. Lanark Police Chief Matt Magill and other local law enforcement officials said they were never asked to search for him.
WASHINGTON — Army Pvt. Jameson T. Hazelbower went AWOL after learning he was suspected of raping a 15-year-old girl. Despite the potential threat to the public that he posed, the self-described sex addict roamed free for nearly three months before local police collared him in Winnebago, Ill., near where he grew up.
And that was only by chance, according to interviews, police reports and court-martial records obtained by The Associated Press.
An officer responded to a call late on a Friday night in March 2014 about a suspicious vehicle parked in a cul-de-sac outside an apartment complex. Hazelbower, his pants down to his knees, was in the car with a girl, barely 14. She was unharmed.
Hazelbower's case is a window into an obscure but significant aspect of the U.S. military's legal system. Deserters suspected of serious crimes are to be prioritized for capture based on the severity of the offenses. But the Army never searched for Hazelbower and the U.S. Marshals Service was not called in, even though marshals have arrested more than 200 deserters over the past five years alone.
In fact, there was a lack of urgency to locate Hazelbower despite strident warnings from his superiors at Fort Campbell, Ky., records show. The military's version of an arrest warrant described him as a "sexually violent predator" and a known drug abuser. Also, he had gone AWOL before. "CAUTION - ESCAPE RISK" is stamped in bold letters on the right side of the document.
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Ex-soldier who lied about fighting in Afghanistan duped veterans' charity who gave him place in street transformed by William and Harry on DIY SOS
Daily Mail
By POPPY DANBY FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 07:21 EST, 20 March 2016
Princes Harry and William helped out on BBC One's DIY SOS last October as they worked to build homes for ex-servicemen
Serviceman went AWOL for two years but never deployed to Afghanistan
Charity says it is indicative of a greater problem amongst veterans in need
Giles is due to move out this week to a one-bed flat elsewhere
An ex-soldier who lied about fighting in Afghanistan tricked a charity into giving him a home on the veteran's street transformed by Princes William and Harry on DIY SOS.
Aiden Giles, 27, claimed to be suffering from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after coming back from Afghanistan.
As a result, Giles played a part in the BBC programme, which was broadcast last October, and even moved in to a renovated house on the Manchester street.
Instead, defence sources revealed that when Giles's unit moved to the Hyde Park barracks in central London, he went absent without leave (AWOL) for two years.
It is suspected that he had gone to the Greek island of Zante, where his mother was living.
On top of this, during a spell in military custody he was released from the army but struggled to cope with civilian life and became homeless.
Giles's DIY SOS fraud was first exposed in December by The Walter Mitty Hunters Club.
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