Showing posts with label murder-suicide. Show all posts
Showing posts with label murder-suicide. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Double murder-suicide claimed lives of 3 Navy Corpsmen

Police: 3 Navy corpsmen dead in double murder and suicide



Associated Press
MAY 7, 2019

PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Authorities in Virginia say they're investigating the shooting deaths of three active duty service members in what appears to be a double murder and suicide.

The Virginian-Pilot reported Tuesday that the two women and one man were Navy corpsmen. The two women were stationed at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth. The man was stationed at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina.

Police say the two women were shot to death at a 7-Eleven in Portsmouth late Saturday night. The man was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a car parked nearby.

Naval Criminal Investigative Service identified the women who died as 19-year-old Shianne Soles and 23-year-old Meaghan Burns. Soles is from Veradale, Washington, and Burns is from Massachusetts.

NCIS identified the man as 22-year-old Donavon Moora, of New York.
go here for updates

Wednesday, March 13, 2019

Murder-suicide investigation includes police officer

Murder, suicide suspected in case involving Big Stone Gap police officer


Bristol Herald Courier
Nick Shepherd
Mar 12, 2019

JASPER, Va. — Authorities believe two people found dead in Lee County, including a Big Stone Gap police officer, was the result of a murder-suicide.

Early Sunday morning, the Virginia State Police were called to a traffic crash on Route 23 at the 28 mile marker in Lee County. A 2015 GMC pickup truck had been traveling north on Route 23 when it ran off the side of the highway into the median, according to a news release.

VSP Trooper D.G. Giles arrived at the crash and found two people dead inside the truck. They were identified as Bailey S. Smith, 21, of Duffield, Virginia and Emeri A. Connery, 26, of Coolville, Ohio. Both had gunshot wounds.
read more here

Monday, February 4, 2019

Veteran committed suicide on Facebook live

'PTSD suffering veteran', 33, shoots himself in the head on Facebook live after murdering a five-year-old boy and critically injuring his girlfriend


GRAPHIC CONTENT WARNING
Daily Mail
Luke Kenton
February 4, 2019

Jonovie Mclendon Jr., 33, executed himself live on Facebook on Friday morning
He killed a boy, 5, and critically injured his girlfriend, 27, before killing himself
A friend who served alongside him in the army says he thinks he had PTSD
The two victims' names haven't been released as an investigation continues
In the video Mclendon says 'it's been a long day' before pulling the trigger

Jovonie Mclendon Jr. (pictured), 33, committed suicide live on Facebook, on Friday. He pulled the trigger shortly after killing a five-year-old boy and critically injuring his girlfriend, 27, in Ohio
An army veteran who was thought to be suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder executed himself on Facebook live after murdering a 5-year-old boy and seriously wounding his girlfriend on Friday.

Jovonie Mclendon Jr., 33, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head on February 3.

Concerned family members dialed 911 saying Mclendon had told them he had killed his girlfriend, her son and was about to kill himself.

'He just called me a minute ago and said that he loved us and that he killed his girlfriend and her baby,' Mclendon's mother can be heard saying in the conversation.

In another call received by authorities, Mclendon told dispatchers he spent three-and-a-half years serving overseas and was 'just tired'.
read more here

Tuesday, March 20, 2018

VA employee wanted to help veterans with PTSD-until boyfriend killed her

Woman was on track to become licensed psychologist before boyfriend killed her, friends say
KSAT ABC 12 News
patty Santos
March 19, 2018

Santiago worked at the VA helping veterans. She was on a postdoctoral clinical fellowship in geropsychology at the South Texas Veterans Health Care System.
SAN ANTONIO - Tania Rendo Santiago had a way of connecting with people, her friends say.

Santiago's friend Kristina Arciniega said that's what drew her to the counseling psychologist. Arciniega said Santiago's personality is what helped her connect with her patients.

“She was there to give you great insight. She was also a friend,” Arciniega said. “She wasn't stuffy. She was well-rounded. She loved to walk with you, your dog and have fun and host people.”
When police arrived, officers said the gunman, Scott Caruso, 36, shot and killed himself. Friends said the two had been in a relationship.
read more here

Friday, June 16, 2017

"No training in the world could get you ready" for coming home

So many times we ask "why" when something like this happens. The question we avoid all too often should be asking why is it still happening? How many more years will it take, how much more money will have to be spent, before we see the truth? How many times will we send them into combat because they are willing to die to save others, only to let them what it did to them alone?

"Many times, the platoon set out at 2 a.m. and was in position by dawn, the call to prayer echoing across the desert. When prayer ended, the soldiers attacked. The 24-year-old rifleman’s job was to hunt down and kill the Taliban. He also carried the wounded on stretchers and collected corpses – arms, legs and heads – and put them on vehicles to take to an Afghan police station."
“No training in the world could get you ready for that,” said Mr. Trotter.
Lionel Desmond (front row, far right) was part of the 2nd battalion of the Royal Canadian Regiment, based at CFB Gagetown. Here, he is shown in 2007 in Afghanistan’s Panjwai district, in between patrol base Wilson and Masum Ghar.
And now the story of what happened along with the question that there may never be any answers to.



What happened to Lionel Desmond? An Afghanistan veteran whose war wouldn’t end

No one knows for sure why, 10 years after serving in Afghanistan, Lionel Desmond took a gun to his wife, his daughter, his mother and then himself. But an investigation byLindsay Jones sheds new light on the pressing need to better understand soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder – and to find ways to support them before it’s too late.
read the story here
This happened in Canada but it happens here too. It happens all over the world when we refuse to see that the men and women risk their lives because they care more than the rest of us do. Maybe that's the point. We care enough to write a check or pass something along on Facebook. The thing is, the participation trophy we get for doing something making us feel good isn't keeping them alive. 

Thursday, February 23, 2017

Lawsuit: Fort Hood Multiple Murder-Suicide Could Have Been Prevented

Lawsuit claims soldier’s gun access led to murder-suicide in Killeen
KXAN News
By Claire Ricke
Published: February 22, 2017

KILLEEN, Texas (KXAN) — One day away from the two year anniversary of a Killeen murder-suicide, a family is suing the U.S. government for failing to report a Fort Hood soldier’s restraining order violations, which allowed him to purchase a gun.

In the lawsuit filed at an Austin federal court, the family claims weapon access led to the murder of three people and suicide of the soldier. In February 2015, police say, Atase Giffa shot and killed his wife and two neighbors before killing himself.

According to the lawsuit, days before the murders Giffa and his wife were arguing, which escalated when he grabbed and threw her. Giffa’s wife Dawn was told by Killeen police to notify her husband’s commander about the incident. While she called the commander, Dawn and her son went to a neighboring home to find safety.

The commander told Dawn that Giffa would be on a 48-hour watch and constrained to the barracks for seven days as well as having a restraining order filed against him, states the lawsuit. Fort Hood is accused by the lawsuit of not recording Giffa’s restraining order violations in the crime datebase that would have made it harder for him to buy a gun. The lawsuit does not state where Giffa bought the gun.
read more here

Sunday, September 13, 2015

911 Dispatcher and Veteran's Death Under Investigation

Richmond couple found dead in apparent murder-suicide
WKYT News
By: Hillary Thornton
Sep 12, 2015

RICHMOND, Ky. (WKYT) - Richmond police say two people have been found dead inside their home.

Police say as they responded to a domestic call at a home on Blackwell Court around 11:30 p.m. Friday night. Upon arrival, police say they heard a gunshot. They immediately entered the home and found a husband and wife both dead with gunshot wounds. Police are calling it an apparent murder-suicide.

The landlord of the home tells WKYT that the couple was Jackie Rose, 23, and Jessie Rose, 23. He says Jackie worked as a 911 dispatcher and Jessie worked at a factory and used to be in the military.
read more here

Thursday, July 30, 2015

Baby Survived After Pregnant Woman Shot to Death in Murder-Suicide

Pregnant woman shot to death in murder-suicide, unborn baby survives
FOX 8 Cleveland
BY DARCIE LORENO AND LORRIE TAYLOR
JULY 29, 2015
“Chrissy was on her knees, she was yelling and screaming ‘he`s going to kill me, he`s going to kill me,’” Mary said. “I said Chris, don`t, I told him’ don`t kill Chrissy, don`t kill her, don`t kill Chrissy’ and he shot her in the head.”

“He looked at me, put the gun to his head and shot.”

CLEVELAND, Ohio — A pregnant woman was shot to death, but doctors were able to save her unborn child after an apparent murder-suicide Tuesday night.

That’s according to Mary Scruggs, the mother of the suspected shooter, Chris Scruggs, 32. Chris was the victim’s fiance and high school sweetheart, Mary says.

“He loved Chrissy and Chrissy loved him,” Mary said.

Mary says her son struggled with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; there were times when he wasn`t himself. “So you sensed there were moments when he was edgy? Asked Fox8’s Lorrie Taylor, “I knew, um hum, and I can understand that.”
read more here

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Iraq Veteran Arthur Guise VA National Cemetery Denied Burial

You may be thinking that as a murder, this veteran does not deserve to be buried at a National Cemetery. You may be thinking that since he did serve this country and risked his life for it, that was enough for you. The trouble is, there is no easy answer.

Here is a reminder of what happened.
'He saw a lot in Iraq. It changed him': Father of shooter in York County murder-suicide
The man who authorities said committed suicide after he shot a woman at a York County bar last night likely suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder following military tours in Iraq, according to his father.

Lenard Guise of Mount Holly Springs said Arthur Guise, his son, did two tours in Iraq during his time in the Army.

"I think that affected him," Guise said. "He was going to some counseling to help. He saw a lot in Iraq. It changed him."
Here is the latest.
Iraq War veteran denied burial in national cemetery after murder-suicide
York Daily Record
Written by Dylan Segelbaum
Jul 29, 2015

A request from the family of an Iraq War veteran accused of shooting his ex-girlfriend and then killing himself outside a bar in the Dillsburg area for him to be buried in a national cemetery has been denied.

"It's a very tiny, tiny, tiny occurrence that, unfortunately, it does happen now and again," said Michael Nacincik, a spokesman for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' National Cemetery Administration. "We have to follow the law, and that's what we did in this case."

On July 2, Arthur Guise, 31, of Dillsburg, walked into Flapjack's Restaurant and Pub, and, without saying a word, shot and killed Sharon Williams, 33, of Mount Holly Springs, before killing himself, the York County Coroner's Office has said. Both died at the bar, which is off Route 15 in Carroll Township. Under federal law, Nacincik said, veterans who commit a capital crime are barred from being buried in a national cemetery. Though he did not have exact numbers for denials, Nacincik said the administration handles the burials of 125,000 veterans per year.
read more here

Guise wanted help and tried to get it. Now he is dead and so is Sharon Williams. Folks are recovering from the shock but some are still grieving. While you are deciding what should be the right way to bury this veteran, we should also be wondering what was the right way to take care of him before he went from risking his life twice in combat into pulling the trigger of someone he used to care about.

Sunday, May 17, 2015

Body of Fort Knox Lt. Col's Daughter Escorted to Airport After Murder-Suicide

Police escort body of girl killed by father to airport
WLKY News
Mark Vanderhoff
May 15, 2015

LOUISVILLE, Ky. —The body of an 11-year-old girl killed by her father in Vine Grove headed back to Virginia.

Vine Grove police and other law enforcement agencies escorted the body of Tasha Jonas Friday morning from Vine Grove to Louisville International Airport.

Vine Grove Mayor Blake Proffitt said the officer who first responded to the scene was among those escorting the girl's body. Proffitt said Vine Grove police came up with the idea for the procession.

“They said they would like to do this to get her home with respect and get them on to the airport to where they could get her back to family,” Proffitt said.

Proffitt said it was personal for the first officer at the scene, and it was emotional for everyone involved.

Tasha Jonas was shot Monday by her father, 49-year-old John Jonas, before he turned the gun on himself at their Vine Grove home.
read more here

Mother of girl, 11, shot dead by soldier dad in murder-suicide heard daughter’s final words: friend
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
BY NINA GOLGOWSKI
Friday, May 15, 2015

An 11-year-old girl's last words of "Daddy, daddy, what are you doing?" were heard by her mother on the phone just before the child was shot to death by her own father.

Those crushing details, revealed by a family friend to a Virginia news station, come days after police say Ft. Knox, Ky. soldier John Jonas, 49, fatally shot his little girl and then himself.

"This definitely could have been prevented," that friend, Tanja Manojilovic, told WTKR.

Tasha Jonas, 11, was the victim of an ugly custody battle between her father, who lived with her in Kentucky, and her mother, who lived in Virginia, friends say.

Tasha Jonas, 11, was the victim of an ugly custody battle between her father, who lived with her in Kentucky, and her mother, left, who lived in Virginia, friends say.

Little Tasha Jonas' parents were embroiled in an ugly custody battle when the Monday night shooting occurred outside Jonas' Vine Grove home.
read more here

Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Marine Veteran Killed Children Then Herself

UPDATE
Autopsy: Veteran 15 weeks pregnant at time of murder-suicide
March 17, 2015

Johnny Isakson backs Atlanta VA director in wake of a veteran’s apparent murder-suicide
AJC News February 3, 2015
U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., speaks at a news conference at the Department of Veterans Affairs headquarters in Washington. Behind him: House VA Committee Chairman Jeff Miller, R-Fla.; House VA Committee ranking Democrat Corrine Brown, D-Fla.; VA Secretary Robert McDonald; Senate VA Committee ranking Democrat Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. (AJC/Daniel Malloy)
WASHINGTON — Georgia Republican U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, the chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee, backed the Atlanta VA’s leadership in the case of a Cobb County veteran accused of killing her three children and herself.

Internal VA documents labeled Kisha Holmes a “high risk for suicide” and she had missed mental health appointments in December.

She and her children, aged 10, 4 and 9 months, were found inside their Austell apartment last week.

Isakson said at a news conference Tuesday that he was privy to details of the internal investigation that he could not share, and the medical center’s director, Leslie Wiggins, called him “immediately” after the incident.

Isakson’s assessment:

“I can’t discuss everything I know, but I think as the story unfolds, people will understand the VA does an excellent job and we recognize one of the big differences with soft tissue issues – which is PTSD and TBI – you have to have a continuum of care and contact, where people can fall through the cracks.

 “The Atlanta VA has done a wonderful job of seeing to it that the veteran has the close touch and the close contact with the VA mental health supervisors there in charge of it, and I’m sure when all the facts come out, we’ll understand this tragedy was something, hopefully, that could have been prevented, but we’ll do a better job of seeing to it that it doesn’t happen again.”
read more here

After Georgia ex-Marine kills her children, then herself, VA suicide programs to be reviewed
Kisha Holmes, 35, was tagged as a high risk for suicide, according to reports. New legislation would require the evaluation of suicide-prevention treatment for vets.
BY DEBORAH HASTINGS
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, February 3, 2015

Thursday, January 8, 2015

A security assessment is underway at the El Paso clinic following the shooting

Texas VA shooter named as a 48-year-old former clinic clerk and Iraq veteran who threatened his victim before at nearby supermarket
Daily Mail
By OLIVER O'CONNELL FOR MAILONLINE
January 7, 2015
A security assessment is underway at the clinic following the shooting, which comes four months after it was found that the base was not compliant with Department of Defense directives

Jerry Serrato, 48, shot Dr Timothy Fjordbak, 63, before turning the gun on himself at the Fort Bliss veterans' clinic near El Paso, Texas
Serrato had previously worked as a clerk at the clinic, but authorities believe he did not have a working relationship with the victim
The shooting triggered a 'code white' active shooter alert as hundreds of patients and staff sought shelter
Serrato verbally threatened Fjordbak at an El Paso supermarket in 2013
He reportedly said to him: 'I know what you did and I will take care of it'
Fort Bliss had yet to implement new Department of Defense security measures, despite an announcement four months ago that it would
The clinic is also under fire for having the longest wait times for veterans to see a mental health professional, and longer to see a physician

An Army veteran who fatally shot a psychologist at a West Texas veterans' hospital before killing himself was a former clerk at the clinic.

He had publicly threatened the doctor in 2013, the FBI said on Wednesday.

The gunman in Tuesday's shooting, which caused hundreds of patients and staff to seek shelter, was Jerry Serrato, 48, who was medically discharged from the Army in 2009 after serving in Iraq two years earlier. Serrato used a .380-caliber handgun to shoot Dr Timothy Fjordbak, 63, and himself at the El Paso Veterans Affairs Health Care System at Fort Bliss, Texas.
read more here
Shooter at El Paso VA Dead, Doctor Shot

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Another Family Pushes for PTSD After Another Tragedy

Family of man who shot wife, himself pushes for PTSD awareness 
My Meridian Press
Holly Beech
November 7, 2014
Kevin and Kimberly Smith
“It’s sad, the families have to go through this,” she said. “These issues are real and they need to be addressed so people don’t have tragedies.”

Family members of a 24-year-old Meridian man who shot his wife and then himself said he came back from war a changed man.

According to Meridian Police, Kevin Smith shot his wife, 32-year-old Kimberly Smith, on Sept. 20 in the garage of their home while her five children where in their rooms sleeping. The grandmother to three of the children was also in the home and called the police.

Kevin’s aunt, Diane Delvecchio, told Meridian Press in an email that Kevin suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury after serving two tours in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army.

“PTSD and TBI are horrific,” she said. “Kevin was a good, kindhearted man that loved his family very much.”

According to a memorial site set up by his family, Kevin was honorably discharged with PTSD after serving for five years, including as a sniper.
read more here

Monday, September 22, 2014

Abused Mom Dies After Saving Baby

Mother saves baby with last breath
WSB Radio
By Pete Combs
September 18, 2014
She was young, beautiful and tragically killed by her daughter’s father early Sunday morning. Now, Jessica Arrendale, 33, is being hailed by her family as a hero for saving her six-month old daughter’s life, even as she died from a bullet to the head.

Jessica’s mother, Teresa Inniello, spoke exclusively with WSB’s Pete Combs Wednesday night, telling him the sad details of her daughter’s death and the miraculous survival of her granddaughter, Cobie.

It began Saturday night when Jessica and Cobie’s father, 30-year old Antoine Davis, went out for the evening. At some point, Ionniello said, Davis, a former Marine who served in Iraq, became belligerently drunk and abusive. It had happened many times, Ionniello said, but her daughter did not seem able to turn Davis away no matter how often he abused her.
read more here

Sunday, June 8, 2014

Military, Counselor and Police Were in Contact with National Guardsman Before Murder-Suicide

Update to Murder-suicide shocks neighborhood of National Guardsman
Military, Police Had Contact With Shooter Before Bristol Murder-Suicide
A husband and wife were found dead Wednesday morning from gunshot wounds at a home on Henderson Street, police said. Alexander, 26, and Kyla Ryng, 27, died in what police say was a murder-suicide. The couple had three young children, police said.
The Hartford Courant
By CHRISTINE DEMPSEY
June 06, 2014

BRISTOL — Days before a Connecticut Guardsman killed his wife and himself, his military counselor was so concerned about his demeanor during a phone conversation she called the police, a Guard spokesman said Friday.

City police visited the Henderson Street home of 1st Lt. Alexander Ryng on May 31 — for the second time that day — but police said there was no reason to take any action.

On June 4, Ryng fatally shot his wife, Kyla, then turned the gun on himself, leaving two of their three young children running next door to their grandmother's house for help.

Officers first visited the house the morning of Saturday, May 31, and talked with Kyla, who said her husband's brother, Skyler Ryng, had come into the house uninvited and grabbed her arm. Skyler Ryng, 28, had accused her of cheating on his younger brother, according to a warrant. Skyler later was charged with burglary and breach of peace.

Police returned to the house that afternoon after receiving the call from the behavioral counselor, who works for the Connecticut Army National Guard.

Col. John T. Wiltse, the Guard's director of public affairs, said the counselor asked police for a welfare check after talking with both Kyla and her husband on the phone. The counselor had called Alex Ryng to find out why he had not shown up for a counseling appointment that afternoon.
read more here

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Military murder-suicides were big news in 2006

Military Murder-Suicide Not Growing! But that didn't stop the headline trying to convince people that murder-suicide cases were growing. Hey why not just jump all over veterans when they had the chance? Right? Isn't that was the press has been doing all along?

Over on Fort Carson there were 15 Domestic Violence Incidents Every Month. Big news? Sure it was but that was back in 2006. The same year there was this piece of news, More than 56,000 troops, or 10 percent, have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan with a mental health diagnosis, making up a third of those in Veterans Affairs care. The cost of mental health care is high, he said — the VA spent $4.3 billion on post-traumatic stress disorder alone in 2004. 40,000 troops have deserted their posts (not simply those serving in Iraq) since the year 2000 according to the Pentagon. 100,000 of the 567,000 discharged veterans were disabled.

So why did I just waste a couple of hours after work to look for these stories? Because I am fed up with people deciding to write something for attention while the wrong attention is given to the troops and veterans. Had these people paid attention all along, I doubt things would still be this bad for them.

Cause of Death Because They Served But if you took all the "murder-suicide" cases since the beginning of the war in Afghanistan, and totaled them together, you still wouldn't see any kind of crisis. On Wounded Times there are a total of 88 "murder-suicide" posts. Keep in mind that I track reports from all over the country. If you look for "military suicides" you'll find 1,580. What you will find is a crisis in veterans committing suicide just as there was one back in 2007 when hardly nothing was being done.

Military Murder-Suicide Not Growing!

Why the press seems so focused on covering a crisis that is not real, should have all of us doing what I am doing right now. Scratching my head and wondering why they haven't been paying attention all along.

This article on Huffington Post has some great info however, the numbers go back a very long way and I am wondering why they did it. I have a lot more detailed information that will be up later on but for now, digest this. It says that it is "growing" but the numbers are from 2008!
This Map Shows The Deadly Aftermath Of War Right Here At Home
Huffington Post
Jan Diehm
Kathleen Miles
Posted: 04/07/2014

Army Spc. Ivan Lopez, the veteran who fatally shot three people before taking his own life Wednesday at Fort Hood, Texas, is among a growing number of recent veterans who have committed violent crimes after returning from war.

In 2008, The New York Times compiled a list of 121 cases in which veterans were charged with a killing after returning home, and Current TV, GOOD and MGMT.design collaborated to update the research in 2010. The Huffington Post collected data from these sources and more recent news articles to create the infographic below, which shows that at least 194 veterans have been charged with killings after returning from Iraq or Afghanistan. It also shows that there has been a concentration of such incidents around military bases. Our research may not be a complete tally, but these were the cases we could confirm.
read more here

I have to go out but check back tonight for more about why this report is pretty much not worth reading.
Approximately 30 percent of Fort Irwin soldiers who have returned from Iraq are experiencing some symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, said Lt. Col. Valvincent Reyes, the senior social work officer at Fort Irwin's mental health department.
August 2006

Saturday, April 5, 2014

Growing Plague of Ignorant Reporters

Wounded Times
Kathie Costos
April 5, 2014

The headline of "Murder-suicide is heavy price of an overextended military" with subtitle "The growing plague of military murder-suicide" may get attention but it is ignorant of the facts. There is no "plague" of military murder-suicides any more than there is in the civilian world. Given the vast number of weapons in this country, while it does happen, they rarely happen.

"On Wednesday, it was more than March Madness" but apparently Ken Allard, the author believed that slogan meant a lot more than the simple fact that it happened on the 2nd day of April.

While Lopez was in fact being evaluated for PTSD, the worst thing is he wasn't diagnosed with it but every reporter in this country decided PTSD needed to be part of the story. Allard made sure that was in the second paragraph.

The article went on to the topic of military suicides. A very important topic however suicides are not "murder-suicides.

This part is wrong too
"Upon reaching that grim milestone, the Army redoubled its already heroic efforts to identify and treat potential soldier-suicides. In 2013, the Army personnel chief announced that a “mere” 301 soldiers had taken their own lives: ” while not a declaration of success, it could indicate resiliency efforts are starting to take hold across the force."

While it very well may be what reporters quoted, the fact remains that the Army discharged 11,000 for misconduct alone in 2013. Pretty easy to get a reduction in suicides when that many soldiers were eliminated from the ranks plus the regular discharges the Army did. Since 2006 another 76,000 had been discharged according to a report from January.

"Ken Allard, a retired Army colonel, is a military analyst and author on national security issues." but it appears he has forgotten everything the Army knew and when they knew it.

Repeat Iraq Tours Raise Risk of PTSD, Army Finds was reported by Ann Scott Tyson of the Washington Post on December 20, 2006.
U.S. soldiers serving repeated Iraq deployments are 50 percent more likely than those with one tour to suffer from acute combat stress, raising their risk of post-traumatic stress disorder, according to the Army's first survey exploring how today's multiple war-zone rotations affect soldiers' mental health

What did leaders do? They just kept on doing it. Sending soldiers back into combat over and over again. Some reporters jumped on the story about soldiers being suicidal before they joined the military however none of them seemed to be able to ask how they got into the military in the first place if they had mental health issues. Doesn't make sense to folks paying attention but hey, as long as that was what someone said that was good enough to report on. Forget facts. Forget that Gregg Zoroya of USA Today reported this
"We're seeing some of the lowest rates of behavioral health issues. We're seeing leadership rates higher than they were in the past. Morale is on the rise. All of the key indicators that we would be looking at are looking much better," says Army Lt. Col. Maurice Sipos, a research psychologist and author of the report.

Despite the improvements, the stigma against seeking mental health help remains, the study shows.

Nearly half of the surveyed soldiers who need therapy said the perception of weakness discouraged them from seeking help. That rate has remained unchanged for years despite military efforts to reduce it, the report said.

Reporters can claim anything they want but the facts condemn what they write. There is no murder-suicide plague" but there is a suicide one. There is a pox on both houses of leaders who failed to take action to prevent them and reporters failing to report the truth and that is something they can never, ever explain.

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Police detail murder-suicide

Police detail murder-suicide in Jefferson County
9 News
Blair Shiff
January 22, 2014
He was deployed to Iraq for a month in 2011 and earned a number of awards and decorations.

JEFFERSON COUNTY - The man who killed his step mother and shot his dad was an Iraq War vet.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said 25-year-old Robert Leiman shot his dad and killed his stepmother, Margaret Leiman, 53, Monday night before turning the gun on himself.

Robert's father, Bruce, was shot and is still in the hospital in stable condition.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said Robert was involved in a disagreement with his parents before the shooting. Investigators cannot release the nature of the argument at this time, but have told 9NEWS Robert's response to what the argument was about "does not make sense."
read more here

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Marine shooter had suffered brain injury

Report: Marine shooter had suffered brain injury
By MATTHEW BARAKAT
Associated Press
December 16, 2013

McLEAN, Va. (AP) — A distraught Marine who fatally shot his ex-girlfriend and a colleague before killing himself at the Quantico Marine Corps base was suicidal, had signs of traumatic brain injury and should have received better psychological care, a military investigation found.

Sgt. Eusebio Lopez was receiving treatment in North Carolina after his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device in Iraq, but his medical care stopped abruptly when he was transferred to Quantico in 2012, according to a report obtained under the Freedom of Information Act. The reason appeared to be two-fold: His new doctors didn't know about his previous treatment and he didn't speak up.

The report also found problems with the response to the shooting because unarmed Marines were deployed to secure the perimeter around the barracks. Two of the bodies were not found until nearly four hours after the shots were fired.

Lopez shot Lance Cpl. Sara Castromata, 19, and Cpl. Jacob Wooley, 23, inside a barracks at the Officer Candidates School after a night of drinking. Lopez was upset Castromata had ended a relationship with him and had begun dating Wooley, according to the report obtained Thursday.
read more here