Coroner: Soldier found in Clarksville died of self-inflicted gunshot wound
News and Tribune
BY ELIZABETH DEPOMPEI
Jun 12, 2018
Njoroge was assigned to the 14th Human Resources Sustainment Center, 1st TSC at Fort Knox, Ky., according to a news release from the U.S. Army. He was on leave in Clarksville at the time of his death.
CLARKSVILLE — An investigation into the death of a U.S. Army soldier on leave in Clarksville is ongoing.
Pfc. Bryan N. Njoroge, 21, of McKinney, Texas, was found unconscious on Clarksville High School property near the announcer station at the school's baseball field around 3:30 p.m. Saturday, according to a police report. The responding officer observed a gun and a "large amount of blood" surrounding Njoroge.
Clark County Coroner Billy Scott said Tuesday the death is preliminarily attributed to a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Toxicology results are pending.
A second police report from the Clarksville Police Department shows that a gun was reported stolen from American Shooters around 8 p.m. Friday. Using witness statements and security footage, police identified the theft suspect as Njoroge, who had left his military I.D. at the business.
An employee told police Njoroge had been in the indoor range three times during the day, each time renting the same gun. Njoroge reportedly came out to the front counter around 8:10 p.m. As other customers entered the store, Njoroge "slowly made his way away from the front counter towards the door" and left the store, according to the police report.
Njoroge was found deceased outside Clarksville High School the next day. The school is located less than a half-mile from American Shooters.
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‘Like Bricks In My Chest’: Teenager Pens Essay In Honor Of Vietnam Veterans
CBS 4 Denver
By Jeff Todd
June 11, 2018
WELD COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) – It’s a group known for not having a proper welcome home, but Weld County is working to change that history for Vietnam Veterans.
“It really made me feel like I’ve been welcomed home,” said Steve White.
Weld County started holding pinning ceremonies in 2016. The ceremony on June 2 honored 62 veterans with pins and certificates of appreciation, but it was even more special for White.
“To see them and shake their hands and thank them for their service, it was amazing,” said Caitlyn Olson, White’s granddaughter and the Keynote Speaker at the event. “How grateful they were for being recognized because that wasn’t something that happened at the time. That’s not how it should have been.”
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Veteran's remains stolen from vehicle in Wendover
KSL.com
By Jacob Klopfenstein
Posted Jun 11th, 2018
WENDOVER — Authorities are searching for the ashes and remains of a combat veteran that were stolen from a business vehicle at a Wendover motel on Monday.
The remains were stolen from a black Mercedes Benz ECO van belonging to Legacy Estate Management, Wendover Police Department officials said on Facebook. The vehicle was parked at the Quality Inn Motel at 245 E. Wendover Blvd.
Legacy Estate Management helps U.S. veterans and their families after their deaths, police said. The stolen remains were being escorted to the California coast, according to police. Also stolen from the vehicle were some clothing and electronics.
Wendover police are asking for anyone with information about the stolen items to contact them at 435-665-7771.
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On 06/11/2018, the Wendover Police Department investigated a vehicle burglary at the Quality Inn Motel in Wendover, Utah. The vehicle burglarized was a black Mercedes Benz ecovan with a business logo representing "Legacy Estate Management."
Items stolen from the vehicle included electronics and clothing. Legacy Estates Management serves veterans and their families after the passing of U.S. War Veterans. A specific item that was stolen from the vehicle was the ashes and remains of a combat veteran who was being escorted to the California coast.
The victim of this case would like to recover the remains of the deceased. Anyone with information as to the whereabouts of stolen remains are asked to contact the Wendover Police Department. Please share.
Local veteran with PTSD comes home to find house completely destroyed in fire
First Coast News
Author: Jeanne Blaylock
June 11, 2018
A local combat veteran in Starke lost his entire home in a large fire. He's devastated by the loss and Jeannie Blaylock has information on how you can help.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- "I feel like I've suffered enough in my life." Local combat veteran Chris Langston is one tough guy. A weightlifter. A combat veteran who served in the U.S. Marines.
But -- through tears -- he is telling about a phone call he got a few days ago. "I got woke up to a call saying my house was on fire. When I got here, it was gone."
Langston lives in Starke in Bradford County, Florida. He got home from Iraq 14 years ago. He'd seen his "best friend in the world" attacked and killed by a sniper. "It was complete devastation," he said. "Snipers don't play around too much."
It's given him nightmares and survivor's guilt. And PTSD.
But he was getting his life on track. His PTSD was getting much more manageable. He credits K9s for Warriors for a major part of that.
Langston is a graduate of K9s for Warriors, and his service dog, Kup, is right by his side. But even Kup can't smooth over the fact that Langston finds himself homeless now.
"I think this hurts the most," he said as he walks to a charred pile of some sort of fabric. A closer look shows some small red stripes of piping and a metal pin covered in an ashen hue.
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Is Awareness Fueling Suicide Triggers?
Combat PTSD Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
June 11, 2018
Right now there are more people talking about suicides, and more people trying to prevent their own, at the same time more are doing it? Who does this make sense to? If it make sense to anyone at all, they need to seek professional help...fast!
A report on NBC about the rise in calls to crisis lines mention this part.
Draper said the reason for the uptick is two-fold: a celebrity suicide can trigger suicidal thoughts in people who might already vulnerable to them, and publicizing the phone number to call for support increases odds that people will call.
Is it good that people are calling for help, or is it bad that with so many looking for help, seeing the rise is suicides on the flip side is worse?
How many times have you seen a commercial with happy people as the announcer talks about the medical condition making their lives miserable, followed by warnings of how the medication being advertised could make them suicidal? How many times does it take for reporters and researchers to begin to link any of them to the rise in suicides across American?
How many times do you have to read reports on opioid abuse before researchers share their warnings with reporters working on suicides?
How many times does it take before reporters understand the effects of "Lariam, an anti-malarial drug" connected to suicides as well as murders?
How many times does it take for reports from the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs to release the suicide numbers before reporters actually understand they are two totally different reports?
How many times does it take for the reporters in this country to correct the false narrative of awareness on anything when they have been oblivious for the last decade?
The awareness folks like to trim everything down to a soundbite, a slogan, a stunt, as long as they do not have to answer any questions. Reporters have been all too willing to oblige them.
Are these "awareness" risers triggering veterans instead of helping them? I mean, what it looks like when you are on the other end of the topic, knowing they don't seem to offer hope while feeding despair, is they really don't care at all.
When someone offers understanding, like on the Crisis lines, then you believe you do matter and that gives you an understanding that you are not only worth helping, but had someone to help you.
So when does the public get the dire warnings of suicides the same way drug companies are required to do when selling their products?
How about selling...no, make that giving, hope back to those who have lost it? Isn't that what gets you up every morning with hope that it will be better than yesterday was?
