Two Fort Campbell Soldiers Charged with Murder of Female Soldier

Two Soldiers Charged with Murder in Connection with Disappearance of Fellow Soldier Shadow McClaine
NBC News
by RACHAEL TROST
November 29, 2016

Shadow Branice McClaine U.S. Army

Criminal Investigation Command

Two soldiers have been charged with murder in connection with the September disappearance of Fort Campbell soldier Shadow McClaine.

Sgt. Jamal Williams-McCray and Specialist Charles Robinson, both part of the 101st Airborne Division, face charges of conspiracy, kidnapping and premeditated murder under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, according to NBC affiliate WSMV.

Williams-McCray is Shadow's ex-husband. It's unclear if Robinson knew Shadow.

The two soldiers are being held in pre-trial confinement pending a preliminary hearing, the station reported. Authorities have not commented on whether Shadow's body has been found.
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Veteran's Body Left in Shower Room After He Died?

10Investigates: Veteran's body forgotten about
WTSP
Noah Pransky
November 29, 2016

PINELLAS COUNTY, Florida – 10Investigates discovered a scandal – and attempted cover-up – at the Bay Pines VA Medical Center has cast a shadow over the facility’s otherwise reputable hospice unit.

A whistleblower tipped 10Investigates off to a Feb. 16, 2016 incident where an elderly veteran passed away, then forgotten about for nearly 10 hours in a shower room after his body was prepared for the morgue. According to an agency review, employees then lied and falsely documented the process to cover-up the mistakes.

The report, which was heavily-redacted by the VA, concluded “negligence” and a “lack of respect” for the deceased veteran.

“We honor America’s veterans,” said Bay Pines spokesperson Jason Dangle. Dangle is also a retired veteran. “We view this finding unacceptable and have taken appropriate actions to mitigate and correct the issue."

Dangle confirmed discipline for the employees involved, but the VA redacted all names and specifics as well for “privacy” reasons. So the public will never know where those employees might resurface.
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WWII Female Marine "Determined not to stay behind"

Boston honors female WWII marine
Veteran cited as inspiration
Boston Herald
Dan Atkinson
November 25, 2016

Family portrait of World War II veteran Elizabeth Mackay Howden Denekamp

In 1943, Betty Denekamp watched the men of West Roxbury going off to war, and was determined not to stay behind.

Denekamp joined the United States Marine Corps Women’s Reserve, and more than 70 years later, friends and family are going to see her service permanently commemorated outside the house she lived in nearly all of her life.

“That was the thing I always admired about her, she couldn’t hang around doing nothing,” said Edwin “Bud” Waite, a fellow World War II veteran and longtime friend of Denekamp who led the charge to memorialize her. “She had to do something.”

Her daughter Linda Denekamp said, “I thought it was so outstanding that a woman in those times would leave home at her age and go off and join the Marines. Everyone said the Marines were the best and that’s what she wanted to be.”
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Vietnam Veteran, Stephen Carl Reiman Family Member Found

Coroner finds sister of Vietnam veteran who will be buried Tuesday near Casper
Casper Star Tribune
Elise Schmelzer
Updated 3 hrs ago

After more than a week of searching, the Natrona County coroner has found a sister of the Vietnam veteran set to be be buried Tuesday morning near Casper. The sister plans to attend the funeral at the state veterans cemetery and will accept her brother’s flag.

Coroner Connie Jacobson said she spoke with the sister Sunday night and that the sister will fly into Casper from southern California on Monday evening.

Last week, Jacobson asked for help finding family members of Stephen Carl Reiman, a homeless Navy veteran who served during the Vietnam War. Reiman died Nov. 17 in Casper, shortly after moving to Wyoming from California for unknown reasons.

The sister, Diane Reiman, hadn’t heard from her brother for at least two years, Jacobson said. The sister began to cry on the phone during their brief conversation, Jacobson said.

“She’s relieved and grateful that he’s going to have a decent burial with honor,” Jacobson said. “I’m just glad it’s all coming together. And maybe she’ll get some answers.”
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'A war within myself': One veteran's struggle for life after combat

'A war within myself': One veteran's struggle for life after combat
USA TODAY Network
Gregg Zoroya and Tony Leys

"I MISSED THE BATTLEFIELD MORE AND MORE, AND THAT CONSUMED MY MIND."

Chapter 1: 'Fog of another war'

TOURS OF DUTY IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN LEAVE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL SCARS.
On July 7, the day he saw psychiatrist Anthony Miller, agency officials in Washington released preliminary findings from a sweeping analysis of suicides among veterans. Scientists pored through 50 million death records from 1979 to 2014, counting every suicide. There were 7,403 in 2014 alone. They learned that, on average, 20 veterans commit suicide each day.

Donald Trump called the findings shocking. President Obama told a Disabled American Veterans convention in August that the suicide trend was a national tragedy. "We all have to do better," he said.

The VA analysis found that most suicides are among its largest constituency of veterans: those from the Vietnam era. But the highest rate of suicide was among younger veterans who served during the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan — Ketchum's generation. Veterans ages 30-39 committed suicide at rates four times the national average and those 18-29 at nearly six times that average.

Caitlin Thompson, a clinical psychologist who runs the VA's suicide prevention program, recalled the wrenching experience of losing three veterans to suicide. They were patients of hers and a team of health care workers.

"That's why I dedicated my life to veteran suicide, because I see those three young men over and over and over," she said. “We know there is hope … we know that people do get better.”

The Iraq and Afghanistan wars were unique in physical and emotional demands. Because the wars lasted so long, large numbers of troops were required to serve multiple deployments that added up to years of cumulative combat duty. Ketchum did three tours.
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