Army Captain (Dr.) Roselle Hoffmaster, 32, died of injuries sustained from a non-combat related incident on September 20, 2007 in Kirkuk, Iraq. Captain Hoffmaster was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on behalf of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division in Fort Drum, New York. At the time of the Department of Defense press release, the circumstances surrounding her death were under investigation. Media reports indicate the Army ruled Captain Hoffmaster’s death a suicide by self-inflicted gunshot wound but her family questions the cause of death ruling.
“Hoffmaster’s parents, whose names were also redacted, said their daughter had a learning disability that made it difficult for her to do mechanical tasks, despite her high IQ. They and other family members said she gave no hint of being anxious or depressed and that they did not believe she would take her own life…A civilian doctor who had treated Hoffmaster for depression in the U.S. told investigators that she seemed happy in her marriage and her life and never indicated that she had contemplated suicide.” –MassLive.com (January 21, 2009)
Martin MacNeill, a respected physician, calls 911 after finding his wife Michele clinging to life on April 11, 2007. The beauty queen and the doctor had been married for nearly 30 years and had eight children. -True Crime Daily (October 31, 2016)
“Investigators traced Martin [MacNeill’s] first lie back to when he got into the military at age 17. He was put on disability leave two years later when a medical officer deemed him a ‘latent schizophrenic’ with ‘other mental and psychological infirmities,’ according to documents Utah County investigators obtained in their research. Rachel and Alexis never saw signs of schizophrenia in their father and they do not believe he ever had such tendencies. Witney and even U.S. District Judge Dee Benson questioned whether or not Martin’s schizophrenia was real. But Martin had been receiving Veteran’s Administration and Social Security benefits for his alleged disability — even after he became a doctor and a lawyer with a six-figure income. He had been receiving VA benefits up until January 2010, Alexis said.” -Deseret News (December 4, 2010)
Remembering Michele Somers MacNeill:
Michele married Martin MacNeill, who became a doctor, and quickly built a big family with eight children. When he turned 50, he made some big life changes, and convinced his wife to get a facelift. -ABC News (June 15, 2019)
Fort Hood Army Cpl. Christopher Martin Ferguson, 21, died of undetermined causes on March 25, 2007 in Killeen, Texas. Christopher was born and raised in Pataskala, Ohio and enlisted in the U.S. Army in May 2004 after graduating from high school. Cpl. Ferguson worked as a combat infantryman on behalf of the Bravo Company, 3-67 AR Battalion, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division at Fort Hood in Texas. Cpl. Ferguson deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2005; he conducted over 200 combat patrols and participated in over 30 joint operations with Iraqi counter-parts in Baghdad.
Christopher Ferguson was born on April 12, 1985, in Columbus, Ohio, the son of Theophil Ferguson of Florida, and Patty Gibson Ferguson of Pataskala. He attended the Watkins Memorial School system, and graduated from the Criminal Justice program at Licking Co JVS, Class of 2004. He was fascinated by security systems and the military since a small child. He was described as a “peacekeeper.” He entered the U.S. Army in 2004, spent one year in Iraq, and was stationed at Ft. Hood at the time of his death. Cpl. Ferguson was survived by his mother and two sisters of Pataskala, Ohio when he passed.
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July 13, 2020:
“My brother is Corporal Christopher Martin Ferguson…he passed away March 25, 2007 at Scott and White Hospital in Texas…he was stationed at Fort Hood…he had just got back from Iraq and was at a party right off of base with fellow soldiers…story was that he fell from a three-story building on his head (alcohol involved or not, you don’t fall from a balcony to your head and not fracture one other bone, not have anything broken, only have your brain bleeding)…my mom, myself and my sister were flown out to see him and he was never awake…he was on life-support for seven days…everybody that came to the hospital was not allowed to talk to us…they told us that they had been told that they were not allowed to talk about anything that happened that night…we were left with no answers…my brother’s Sergeant brought us his blazer so we had something to drive while there and my sister and myself found a grocery bag in the back of his blazer that had the clothes he was wearing that night…the paramedics had cut them off him…it was just stuffed in the back of his blazer…there was a detectives card in there that was just placed in his shoe so I called and the detective let me know that the army had taken the investigation from Killeen PD…At the same time we found his camera and his blazer, there were fellow soldiers in the pictures with him that night who claimed that they were not there…my brothers death certificate says cause unknown [undetermined]…No one would tell us what happened and it was ruled as an accident years later…One of his fellow soldiers that does surfing for veterans put my brother on national news with his picture, his name along with saying that he committed suicide, but my family was never told that…there’s a lot more to the story…it’s very fishy and there was a lot of no talking or lies and I really want to know what happened to my brother.” -Christina McDonald (sister)
Christopher Ferguson with two Army soldiers. Picture taken on the balcony in question in 2007.
CBS Evening News with Norah O’Donnell:
About 20 veterans die by suicide each day. A hotline launched in 2007 has answered more than 3.5 million calls, sending help to thousands of people. Dean Reynolds got an inside look. -CBS News with Norah O’Donnell (August 26, 2019)
Screenshot of the soldiers Army veteran Danny O’Neel claimed died by suicide. (CBS News)
“This is the national news episode that a fellow soldier of my brothers did! He added my brother to posters and news saying he committed suicide! If this was the case, why weren’t we told this?! The Army took the investigation from Killeen Police Department. If there was a real investigation going on, why did my sister and I find my brothers belongings, clothes, and shoes from that night…there’s blood on them, they stuffed everything in a grocery bag, and had it in the back of his blazer…they treated it like it was trash…wouldn’t you think they would need that as part of their investigation? Cpl. Christopher M. Ferguson deserves justice..please help our family find out what exactly happened to him at Fort Hood.” -Christina McDonald (sister)
Sgt. Denise Lannaman, New York Army National Guard
Army National Guard Sgt. Denise Lannaman, 46, died in a non combat related incident at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait on October 1, 2006. Sgt. Lannaman was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on behalf of the New York Army National Guard’s 1569th Transportation Company in Newburgh, New York. Reports indicate that Lannaman was found dead in a jeep with a gunshot wound. At the time of the press release, the Department of Defense announced that the incident was under investigation. Sgt. Lannaman’s death was ruled a suicide by the Army. She was one of three people in the same logistics group in Kuwait tied to a bribery scheme investigation that allegedly died by suicide. Major Gloria Davis, Army (2006) and Lt. Col. Marshall Gutierrez, Army (2006) deaths were also ruled suicides by the Army.
In the space of three months last year (2006), three members of the U.S. Army who had been part of a logistics group in Kuwait committed suicide. Two of them — a colonel and a major — had power over contract awards and had been accused of taking bribes just before they killed themselves. The third was Sgt. Denise A. Lannaman of Queens. ~New York Times
Army Lt. Col. Marshall Gutierrez died of non combat related injuries in Camp Virginia, Kuwait on September 4, 2006. Lt. Col. Gutierrez was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on behalf of the Area Support Group in Arijan, Kuwait. At the time of the Department of Defense press release, the incident was under investigation. The Army ruled Lt. Col. Gutierrez’ death a suicide by prescription pills and anti-freeze. Lt. Col. Gutierrez was initially a whistleblower in a wide spread bribery scheme in Kuwait but after he reported the illegal activity, he soon found himself accused of bribery by a Kuwaiti contractor. Reports indicate the allegations left his military career and his marriage in ruins. Three soldiers connected to the bribery scheme investigations allegedly committed suicide. Major Gloria Davis was a witness for the prosecution and was found dead of a gunshot wound in Iraq. Sgt. Denise Lannaman was also involved in the investigation and she was found dead of a gunshot wound in her jeep on post at Camp Arijan, Kuwait.
We are not exactly sure when Army Pfc. LaVena Johnson’s CID Report was dumped on-line by the government but it appears to have shown up after the death of Vanessa Guillen. (Source: US Army CID)
Dr. John Johnson clarified in an interview on the Donny Walker Morning Show that wound statin was found on LaVena’s genitals. Listen to the full interview here.
Army Pfc. Tina Priest, 20, died from a non-combat related injury in Taji, Iraq on March 1st, 2006. She was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on behalf of the 4th Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Divison at Fort Hood, Texas. The Army ruled the death an apparent suicide but Tina’s parents dispute that finding based on the evidence and believe that she was raped and murdered; Tina reported a rape two weeks prior to her death.
This case is no longer under investigation by the Army but considered an unsolved cold case because of the concerns the family has with the death investigation and cause of death ruling by the Army. Forty-one (41) female service members died of non combat related injuries while serving in Iraq; and twenty-three (23) were labeled homicide, suicide, or the cause of death is unknown.
Please see the MJFA Investigative Dossier for Tina Priest at the end of the article.
The Silent Truth Documentary:
Ninety-four US military women in the military have died in Iraq or during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). ‘The Silent Truth’ tells the story of one of these women, PFC LaVena Lynn Johnson, who was found dead on Balad Air Force Base in Iraq. The army claimed she shot herself with her own M16 rifle, but forensic evidence, obtained by the Johnson family through the Freedom of Information Act, brings the army’s findings into question. The Army refuses to re-open LaVena Johnson’s case, leaving the family in limbo. ‘The Silent Truth’ follows the Johnson’s pursuit of justice and truth for their daughter. -The Silent Truth Documentary (July 1, 2014)
Update: The Silent Truth is no longer available on YouTube but can be accessed at Fandango at Home.
The Silent Truth Documentary aka The LaVena Johnson Murder Cover-Up (Truthout, November 18, 2010):
“What happened to LaVena Lynn Johnson and so many others speaks to a Pentagon culture which more closely resembles a rogue government–than a legitimate branch serving under civilian control. It is highly telling that this family, along with the Tillman family each had to have a documentary film made JUST TO ALERT THE PUBLIC TO THE TRUTH OF PENTAGON COVER-UPS. I urge everyone to view this important documentary – before the local military recruiter mandated under No Child Left Behind –‘friends’ their child at school. God forbid, they could wind up coming home in a body bag – like LaVena.”
PFC Tina M. Priest, U.S. Army • Operation Iraqi Freedom
Executive Summary
On March 1, 2006, 20-year-old Army PFC Tina M. Priest was found dead in her quarters at Camp Taji, Iraq, from a gunshot wound involving her assigned M16 rifle. She served with the 4th Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, based at Fort Hood, Texas.
Approximately two weeks earlier, Priest had reported that she had been sexually assaulted by another soldier. Following an investigation, the Army concluded there was insufficient evidence to prosecute the allegation. After her death, the Army ruled the manner of death was suicide.
Her mother, Joy Priest, has consistently challenged both the sexual assault investigation and the suicide determination, arguing that important evidence and investigative questions were not adequately addressed. Tina’s case later became part of broader reporting on disputed non-combat deaths of women serving during the Iraq War and contributed to public debate about military sexual assault investigations and institutional accountability.
Personal Information
Name: Tina Marie Priest Age: 20 Branch: United States Army Units
4th Support Battalion
1st Brigade Combat Team
4th Infantry Division
Home Station: Fort Hood, Texas Deployment: Camp Taji, Iraq Date of Death: March 1, 2006 Official Classification: Non-combat death
Chronological Timeline
Late 2005
Priest deploys to Iraq with the 4th Infantry Division.
February 15, 2006
According to Army records discussed in subsequent reporting:
Priest reports that she was sexually assaulted by another soldier.
She undergoes a forensic medical examination.
DNA evidence reportedly confirms sexual contact occurred.
The central investigative question becomes whether the encounter was consensual.
Mid-February 2006
Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID):
interviews witnesses,
investigates the assault allegation,
gathers forensic evidence.
Behavioral health providers evaluate Priest.
Army records later cited in media reports indicate she did not meet criteria for immediate suicide intervention despite emotional distress related to the reported assault.
February 27–28
According to Army records discussed publicly:
Priest reportedly returns to duty.
The sexual assault investigation remains open.
March 1, 2006
Priest is discovered dead in her room at Camp Taji.
The death scene includes:
assigned M16 rifle
single gunshot wound
Initial casualty reports classify the death as a non-combat injury pending investigation.
Spring 2006
CID completes the death investigation.
Official conclusion: Suicide
The sexual assault case is closed without criminal charges.
2007–2009
Joy Priest publicly challenges:
the suicide ruling,
the sexual assault investigation,
Army transparency.
National media revisit the case as part of broader reporting on disputed military deaths involving women serving in Iraq.
Official Army Findings
According to the Army investigation:
Cause of Death: Gunshot wound
Manner of Death: Suicide
Sexual Assault Investigation
Army investigators concluded:
sexual intercourse occurred;
however, they determined there was insufficient evidence to establish beyond the applicable legal standard that the encounter was non-consensual.
No rape charges were filed.
Behavioral Health
Army records referenced in reporting indicate:
Priest experienced emotional distress after reporting the alleged assault.
Evaluators did not classify her as presenting an immediate suicide risk shortly before her death.
Family Concerns
Joy Priest has consistently disputed the Army’s conclusions.
Among the concerns she has publicly raised:
1. Timing
The death occurred roughly two weeks after the reported sexual assault.
The family questioned whether sufficient protection and support had been provided.
2. Suicide Determination
The family has stated they did not believe Tina intended to end her life.
They cited:
future plans,
conversations with family,
and what they viewed as inconsistencies with suicide.
3. Firearm Questions
Joy Priest questioned whether the mechanics of firing an M16 were consistent with Tina’s physical stature and the circumstances documented at the scene.
The Army maintained that its reconstruction supported a self-inflicted gunshot.
4. Investigation Transparency
The family has described delays obtaining:
investigative files,
autopsy information,
photographs,
and other records.
These concerns became part of later media reporting.
5. Sexual Assault Investigation
Joy Priest questioned why no charges resulted despite forensic evidence confirming sexual contact, arguing investigators did not adequately resolve whether the encounter was consensual.
Evidence Known Publicly
Public reporting identifies:
✓ Sexual assault report
✓ Medical forensic examination
✓ DNA evidence confirming sexual contact
✓ CID investigation
✓ Behavioral health evaluations
✓ Death scene investigation
The complete investigative file has not been fully released publicly.
Unanswered Questions
Among the questions raised publicly by family members and journalists:
Was every potential witness interviewed?
Were all forensic findings independently reviewed?
Were suicide-risk assessments sufficient following the reported assault?
Could additional victim advocacy or protective measures have altered the outcome?
Should the assault investigation have remained open longer?
These questions remain subjects of public debate; the Army has not changed its official conclusions.
Broader Context
Tina Priest’s death became part of a wider conversation concerning:
military sexual assault,
behavioral health,
non-combat deaths,
investigative transparency,
institutional accountability.
Her case has frequently been discussed alongside other disputed deaths of women who served during the Iraq War, particularly where families challenged official findings.
Congressional hearings on military sexual assault and investigative practices (110th Congress), which referenced broader concerns about military handling of sexual assault cases.
Public statements by Joy Priest in interviews and media coverage.
Recommended Additional Records to Obtain:
Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) Report of Investigation.
Army Line of Duty (LOD) investigation.
Armed Forces Medical Examiner autopsy report.
Death scene photographs and evidence inventory (where releasable).
Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE) documentation, subject to privacy restrictions.
Behavioral health evaluations created before March 1, 2006.
Casualty Assistance Office records.
FOIA responses from the Army, CID, and the Department of Defense.
Any Inspector General correspondence related to the case.
Editors Note: Need to get up to speed quick with the unsolved case of Fort Campbell Army Pfc. Lavena Johnson, please check out Episode 40 on the Military Murder Podcast.
Army Pfc. LaVena Johnson, 19, died of non combat related injuries in Balad, Iraq on July 19, 2005. Pfc. Johnson was supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom on behalf of the Army’s 129th Corps Support Battalion in Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Unlike most, the Department of Defense did not announce that LaVena’s death was under investigation in their press release. The Army Criminal Investigation Division later determined that Pfc. Johnson’s cause of death was suicide by self inflicted gunshot wound. The Army tried telling the family that LaVena used her own M-16 to commit the suicide. The family immediately suspected foul play and ordered an independent autopsy for LaVena. LaVena was not depressed and showed no signs of suicidal ideation. As a matter of fact, she was happy and bubbly and looking forward to going home for Christmas. After the family saw LaVena’s body and obtained investigative documents from the Army, they quickly realized that LaVena did not die by suicide, she was raped and murdered.
According to the family, the Army never investigated LaVena’s death as a homicide nor did they do a rape kit test or autopsy. The family gleaned from the paperwork that Army investigators first considered LaVena’s death a homicide and recorded that in their paperwork, but within a short window of opportunity were suddenly ordered to cease their investigation and reclassify her death as a suicide. Ten years later, LaVena’s father, Dr. John Johnson, continues to fight for justice for his daughter. And, although he has had struggles getting media coverage, he has forged out on his own to speak the truth for LaVena. Dr. Johnson is featured in a documentary called The Silent Truth which presents the heartbreaking story of his daughter LaVena. Pfc. LaVena Johnson was betrayed by the very people she depended on for her life, and the military industrial complex who would rather silence the truth then harm their reputation.
Nineteen year-old Army PFC LaVena Johnson, was found dead on a military base in Balad, Iraq in 2005. The U.S. Army ruled Lavena’s death a suicide, but an autopsy report and photographs revealed Johnson had a broken nose, black eye, loose teeth, burns from a corrosive chemical on her genitals, and a gunshot wound that seemed inconsistent with suicide. LaVena’s father, John Johnson, shares his family’s fight to get answers from the military about his daughter’s death. -Protect Our Defenders (July 14, 2012)
Pfc. LaVena Johnson died in Iraq on July 19th, 2005 and her family needs your help. -Unsolved Mysteries (September 26, 2014)
Many have heard about the efforts for justice in the case of Army PFC LaVena Johnson. In 2005 after only 6 weeks of her deployment in Iraq, PFC LaVena Johnson was found dead. The Army says suicide, but after close evaluation and discovering a plethora of discrepancies in the Army’s report, LaVena’s father Dr. John H. Johnson began the fight for justice for his daughter. On this episode of The Rock Newman Show our special guest are LaVena’s father, Dr. John H. Johnson and attorney Donald V. Watkins. We warn our viewers that this episode of The Rock Newman Show goes into deep detail concerning the evidence and death of PFC LaVena Johnson. Dr. John H. Johnson and Donald V. Watkins contend that by no means is this case a suicide, and say they even know the name of the culprit. -The Rock Newman Show (February 11, 2016)
“The sergeants and fellow soldiers in A Co., 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, Ft. Wainwright, AK began tormenting and threatening one of their own. A portion of his unit even paid a visit to one of Nick’s friends from college, threatening to beat him up if he did not stop associating with Nick. He was an injured, isolated soldier who wanted to serve his country however he could. He would have done anything in his power to remain one of the elite. But he was no good to his unit and they saw him as an easy target. He feared for his life several times. It became hell for him and Nicholas saw no way to survive other than to leave.”
“Nick went AWOL for the month of February 2005. He was set up by an acquaintance and caught by his company commander and the MP’s. It was reported to me that he was not taken in easily. The MP’s turned their backs while the unit beat him up. It was soon after this that Nicholas attempted suicide. I’ve been told that the mental ward was where my son felt safe. After a couple of weeks he was returned to his unit. In April he left again, this time flying to his home town in West Virginia. He stayed with some friends, got a job and enrolled in college. But Nick was a patriot and knew the commitment he had made. He decided to return to the Army, hoping that he would not be sent back to his unit in Alaska.”
“He was taken to the US Army Personnel Control Facility (PCF), US Army Armor Center, Ft. Knox, KY. The day he arrived. near the end of May, he signed paperwork for a dishonorable discharge in lieu of a court martial. Somehow, the abuse he suffered in Alaska found him at Ft. Knox. On June 15th he was admitted to a hospital in Radcliff, KY for another suicide attempt. Again, he chose the safety of the mental ward. On June 27th his discharge was approved. Nick was released from the hospital on July 12th. He made arrangements to go home on the 14th but he never made it. Nicholas was murdered in the latrine and hung on the back of a latrine door in the 7pm hour of July 13, 2005.”
Hundreds of suspicious deaths occur within our military branches each year. Our military kills their own soldiers to satisfy their needs.
Be careful: if you see too much, they’ll kill you.
If you struggle with something, they will kill you.
If you ask the wrong questions, they’ll kill you.
If you are in the wrong place… even simply by chance… they will kill you.
You are not protected by the government you serve. The people who “stand behind you” are the ones who will stab you in the back. They will give the order to have you killed.
Kim Slapak-Smith
If you have any information about this case, please contact me through this website.
This screenshot of this press release for Patrick Tillman is no longer on the DoD press releases website. They deleted the original site and created a new one that only goes back to 2014.
MILITARY JUSTICE FOR ALL 