Army Veteran Richard Englander Murdered by Live-In Caregiver 5 Days After Move In Date; Sara Moore Sentenced to 25 Years to Life in Prison (February 6, 2014)

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Richard Englander, U.S. Army Veteran

Disabled Army veteran Richard Englander, 79, was attacked in his home by his live-in caregiver in Albany, New York on February 6, 2014. Englander served as a 1st Lieutenant with the 3rd Gun Battalion, 84th Artillery, US Army Europe and received many awards for outstanding service. As a result of his service during the war, Richard was exposed to plutonium in Germany and it left him disabled with Multiple Sclerosis. He was 100% dependent and in need of a live in caregiver. Richard placed an ad in the paper. And Sara Moore saw this job helping an elderly infirm as an opportunity because she needed a place to live. Sara Moore had never been a caregiver and Richard’s daughter was concerned and voiced those concerns but Richard decided to give her a chance.

Sara Moore moved in on February 1, 2014. It immediately became apparent to Richard that Sara was more interested in his finances then she was his welfare. Sara asked Richard if she could borrow some money on the second day of employment. Englander didn’t have any cash in the house so he gave her his credit card and she disappeared. On the third day of employment she left him alone for hours. And on the fourth day, she slept all day. As Richard was laying helpless in his bed, he realized she has got to go. On the fifth day of employment, Sara Moore stole one of Richard Englander’s checks and left the house to cash the check she wrote to herself. Sara had a secret that she didn’t share with her employer; she was addicted to crack cocaine.

Richard realized that Sara stole a check so he called the bank to initiate a stop payment and then called the police. Police report that Richard was coherent and cognizant at the time of the report. After Sara realized that the bank would not authorize her to cash Richard’s check, she became angry and went back to Englander’s home. Richard confronted Sara about the check. Sara went into Richard’s garage, grabbed a tire iron, and began viciously bashing Richard about the head while he was on the phone with the bank. The bank heard the beginning of Richard’s murder. Richard lost consciousness after the second blow. Sara hit Richard so many times that the medical examiner couldn’t determine how many times. After she got done hitting him with the tire iron, Sara used a knife and cut his esophagus.

Sara Moore then took another check and his credit cards and went back to the bank. The bank would not cash the check for Sara and called the police. First responders found Richard near death and he was transported to the hospital where he later died of the injuries. Meanwhile, Sara is using Richard’s credit cards which were on a watch list. As a result, police were able to track Sara down and arrest her. Sara was charged with second degree murder. She eventually plead guilty and was sentenced to twenty five years to life in prison. Richard was known for helping people and honorably serving his country. Sara was so desperate to get money that she preyed on a completely defenseless disabled elderly veteran.

(Deadly Women on Investigation Discovery states that 79-year-old Richard Englander served in the Army during World War II which effectively ended in 1945. According to reports, Englander died in 2014 at the age of 79. If the age is correct, he would have been 10 years old in 1945 (2014-79) when the war ended.)

Source: ‘The Vulnerable’ Deadly Women, Investigation Discovery

Investigation Discovery:

A secret addiction drives a young woman to sacrifice her wheelchair bound employer; a scheming caregiver betrays the man who trusts her; and a single mother’s desire for a better life leads to a brutal dismemberment. -The Vulnerable, Deadly Women (S9, E13)

Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.

Related Links:
Obituary: Richard Englander
A friendly face gone too soon
Wynantskill woman charged with killing Albany man
Wynantskill woman pleads not guilty to murder, robbery charges
Sara Moore Pleads Guilty to Woodside Drive Murder
Elderly man’s killer sentenced
Home care worker sentenced for brutal murder of patient
Murderer gets 25 years to life
Care provider faces 25-to-life after plea
Albany murder cast light on senior thefts
Albany murderer focus of ‘Deadly Women’ episode
The Vulnerable | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (S9, E13)
The Vulnerable | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (website)
The Vulnerable | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (Amazon)
The Vulnerable | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (Hulu)
Deadly Women Premiered ‘The Vulnerable’ on ID: Sara Moore Killed Disabled Veteran Richard Englander for Drug Money (November 6, 2015)
Deadly Women: 30 Military and Veteran Homicide Cases Featured on Investigation Discovery

JBLM Army Soldier Shawn Woods Died Saving a Woman Stabbed in Back by Boyfriend; Chase Devyver Sentenced to 31 Years in Prison (2014)

Shawn Woods
Sgt. 1st Class Shawn Woods, US Army

Sgt. 1st Class Shawn Woods (JBLM, Washington) was fatally stabbed Sunday, January 19, 2014 while trying to stop an assault outside his home. Chase Devyver was arguing with his girlfriend in the early morning hours in a parked car in front of their residence. When the girlfriend exited the vehicle and began walking toward the house, the defendant followed and stabbed her from behind. Shawn awoke to the screams and intervened in the assault but Devyver stabbed him to death. Shawn Woods died protecting a domestic assault victim. She was hospitalized but lived. He is a hero. Woods was slated to retire from the military after serving 20 years on active duty. Devyver was sentenced to 31 years.

Murdered JBLM soldier identified as member of 2-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team
Cedar Hill war veteran dies protecting assault victim
Suspect charged in JBLM soldier’s stabbing death
Man charged in JBLM soldier’s stabbing death
Suspect charged in Lewis-McChord soldier’s stabbing death
Man Charged with Murder in Stabbing of Soldier
Man charged with fatally stabbing JBLM soldier who came to woman’s aid
Cedar Hill war veteran dies protecting assault victim
Jury convicts man in stabbing death
Man convicted in stabbing death of JBLM soldier
Man sentenced to 31 years in stabbing death
Killer of good Samaritan soldier from JBLM gets 30-plus-year sentence
Man sentenced to 31 years in soldier’s stabbing death
War veteran died a hero on the home front
Washington State Domestic Violence Fatalities (Jan 1, 2014 – June 30, 2015)
Honoring Shawn Woods, US Army, in October, Domestic Violence Awareness Month

Missouri: Local victim of military sexual assault speaks out (2013)


Reports of sexual assault in the military went up 46 percent in 2013, but the problem is not new to the women who answer the call of duty. -41 Action News

“It seemed like sexual trauma in the military back then was unheard of. I was not trying to be the test baby. I wasn’t trying to be the Rosa Parks of that generation.” -Ja-Renna Floyd, US Army Veteran

Related Links:
Local military sexual assault victim speaks out

Homicide Hunter Premiered ‘Blood Red Highway’ on ID: AWOL Fort Carson Soldier Kills Store Owner Sam Melena for $32 (November 19, 2013)

The elderly owners of a beloved local grocery are brutally attacked and left for dead. Working with little beyond a vague witness description, Lt. Joe Kenda leads a state-wide manhunt to catch a pair of cold-blooded killers before they disappear for good. -Blood Red Highway, Homicide Hunter (S3,E8)

“When people become desperate, it’s very easy to do desperate things.” -Lt. Joe Kenda

Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.

Related Links:
Blood Red Highway | Homicide Hunter | Investigation Discovery (S3,E8)
Blood Red Highway | Homicide Hunter | Investigation Discovery (website)
Blood Red Highway | Homicide Hunter | Investigation Discovery (Amazon)
Blood Red Highway | Homicide Hunter | Investigation Discovery (Hulu)
Sam & Rosa Melena Found Near Death, Sam Later Died; AWOL Army Soldier Lawrence Todd Sentenced to Life in Prison for Murder (November 14, 1978)
Violent Crime, Suicide, and Non Combat Death at Fort Carson, Colorado
The US Military Recruited Violent Felons to Support the War Efforts
Homicide Hunter: 10 Active Duty Military and Veteran Murder Cases Featured on Investigation Discovery

Politico: McCaskill’s ‘lonely’ sex-assault stand (2013)

My Approved PortraitsSen. Claire McCaskill is on the verge of a historic victory reforming the Pentagon’s sexual assault policies.

But rather than basking in acclaim during the debate’s climatic week in the Capitol, the Missouri Democrat finds herself paying a political cost for being an outlier within her own caucus. She’s the only one of the Senate’s 16 Democratic women opposing a much more sweeping change that removes the chain of command from prosecuting sexual assault and other major military crimes.

Read more from Politico here.

“Dear @clairecmc Thanks 4 railroading the Military Justice Improvement Act. Is it true that you have never served a day in your life? #MJIA,” Jennifer Norris, a Maine-based Air Force veteran who works with sexual assault victims…tweeted, referring to Gillibrand’s legislative proposal by its official name. -Politico

Editor’s Note: It appears the original tweet has disappeared and it was never deleted by Jennifer Norris. Also the tweet is not on the web version of the article but is still part of the mobile version of the article.

Records agency to ignore Madigan Army Medical Center diagnoses

US Army SealAn Army agency that sets final medical records for disabled soldiers has been ordered to disregard reports from Madigan Army Medical Center doctors under scrutiny last year for their handling of patients with post-traumatic stress disorder.

The new order by an assistant secretary of the Army is meant to clear the way for up to 21 former Madigan patients to receive benefits for mental health conditions. It comes nearly two years after the Army suspended the hospital’s forensic psychiatry team over concerns that its doctors were reversing PTSD diagnoses.

Those former soldiers were among some 400 Madigan patients who were called back to the hospital last year and re-evaluated by Army psychologists. Of that group, 158 left the process with PTSD diagnoses that should have entitled them to better disability benefits.

Some, however, could not persuade the Army to correct their official records. They were blocked by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records, which in some cases upheld the original diagnoses from Madigan’s forensic psychiatrists denying patients benefits for PTSD.

Related Links: 

Records agency to ignore Madigan Army Medical Center diagnoses
Madigan Hospital Psychiatric Team Altered Soldiers’ PTSD Diagnoses
40% of PTSD diagnoses at Madigan were reversed
Army withholding findings of Madigan PTSD probe
Former Soldier Sues Army for Wrongful Mental Health Discharge
70K Vets Still Have Chance to Gain Retiree Status
Army begins correcting medical records for some former Madigan patients

Deadly Women Premiered ‘Souls of Stone’ on ID: Iva Kroeger Strangled Married Couple Because She Wanted What They Had (November 15, 2013)

Selfish women will sometimes sell their souls to the devil to get what they want. A scorned lover weaves a web of lies, a teenage Goth orders a reign of terror, and a gold-digger buries secrets in her basement. -Souls of Stone, Deadly Women (S7, E18)

Naughty by Monte Schulz (Book):

This crime noir novel, set in the 1950s, was inspired by the real life story of Iva Kroeger and her husband, indicted for the murders of Mildred and Jay Arneson in 1962. -Monte Schulz, Mr. Media Interviews By Bob Andelman

Editor’s note: With a cable subscription, you can download the free ID Go app and watch Investigation Discovery programming at your convenience. And for those who do not have cable, you can watch “unlocked” episodes on the ID Go app including the latest premieres. For those who prefer commercial free programming during your binge session, Prime Video has an ID channel: ‘True Crime Files by Investigation Discovery” available for $3.99 a month. It’s a compilation of older seasons but totally worth the cost if you are a true crime addict. Download the ID Go app or purchase ID True Crime Files & binge away.

Related Links:
The Grandma from Hell
17 infamous crimes in Sonoma County history
Monte Schulz retells gruesome story from Santa Rosa’s past
Naughty by nature, Iva Kroeger inspired Monte Schulz! INTERVIEW
Souls of Stone | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (S7, E18)
Souls of Stone | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (website)
Souls of Stone | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (Amazon)
Iva Kroeger Murdered Motel Owners Mildred Arneson and WWI Army Veteran Jay Arneson in California; Sentenced to Life in Prison (August 20, 1962)
Deadly Women: 30 Military and Veteran Homicide Cases Featured on Investigation Discovery

Give Our Troops Constitutional Rights for Veteran’s Day, Pass the Military Justice Improvement Act (MJIA)

MJIA

The Military Justice Improvement Act (MJIA), although not the final answer, is a great first step in our fight for justice for crime victims. Currently, the Department of Defense (DoD) estimates that 26,300 service members are victims of military sexual assault (touching). These numbers do not include other violent crimes, sexual harassment, stalking, bullying, hazing, etc. Of those numbers, the DoD estimates that more then half of them are male victims, which proves that this is not a female issue but instead a repeat offender issue.

The military’s current justice system elevates an individual Commander’s discretion over the rule of law. The MJIA legislation would help us create an impartial system where victims would feel safe to report. They are telling us in their own voices that they do not trust the Chain of Command to handle their cases effectively. Recent DoD studies have shown that 62% of those who reported were in fact retaliated against which reinforces others to remain silent.

The MJIA would not only give them a safe place to report confidentially but would allow a legal professional to determine whether or not a case should be tried in a court of law. The biggest problem with military sexual assault is underreporting. We can’t fix the problem unless the soldiers feel safe enough to report. We can’t rid the military of perpetrators if we do not work together to get a conviction and protect our military and civilians.

Learn more here.

A Comprehensive List Of Obama’s Misbehaving Senior Military Officers

MJIA

A Comprehensive List Of Obama’s Misbehaving Senior Military Officers

Senior military leaders are supposed to behave in a manner that is morally above  reproach. That, unfortunately, is not always the case. -Business Insider (2013)

Click on name for more information.

Air Force Lt. Col. Jeff Krusinski allegedly sexually assaulted a woman.

Retired Army Gen. David Petraeus had an affair.

Army Brig. Gen. Bryan Roberts got into a fight with his mistress.

Army Lt. Gen. David Holmes Huntoon Jr. abused his staff.

Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal trash talked Obama.

Marine Corps Gen. James Cartwright allegedly had an affair.

Army Gen. “Kip” Ward misused thousands in government funds.

Marine Col. Daren Margolin accidentally shot a gun in his office.

Navy Vice Adm. Tim Giardina cheated at poker.

Army Maj. Gen. Ralph Baker was fired over sex and alcohol.

Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Gregg A. Sturdevant failed to secure his base from a Taliban attack in Afghanistan.

Air Force Maj. Gen. Michael Carey misbehaved on an assignment.

Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Charles M.M. Gurganus neglected to implement security  procedures that would have stopped a Taliban attack in Afghanistan.

Navy Rear Adm. Charles Gaouette made poor leadership decisions.

Read more here

Vietnam vet wins discharge upgrade in PTSD lawsuit

Vietnam VeteranVietnam vet wins discharge upgrade in PTSD lawsuit

NEW HAVEN, CONN. — A Vietnam veteran who received the Bronze Star and later was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder will have his discharge status upgraded under a settlement with the U.S. Army, his representatives announced Monday.

John Shepherd Jr., a 66-year-old New Haven resident, said the Army agreed to resolve his lawsuit by upgrading his original other-than-honorable discharge to an honorable discharge. The change will allow Shepherd to receive disability benefits he had been denied, according to Yale Law School students who represented him.

Shepherd has said he battled alcoholism and struggled to stay employed for 40 years, but was not diagnosed with PTSD until 2004.

Read more here.