Fort Hood’s Toxic Culture? Red Flags Raised Over Mysterious Disappearances, Sexual Assaults | Hollie McKay (January 6, 2021)

Fort Hood’s toxic culture? Red flags raised over mysterious disappearances, sexual assaults | Hollie McKay, Fox News (January 6, 2020):

The sizable military installation has long come under fire over allegations of coverups and abuse

The report also pointed to a lack of experience and high turnover within the ranks of the Criminal Investigation Department, leading to problems with launching sufficient investigations.

As it stands, there are more than 1,000 deserters wanted by the U.S. Army and it remains unclear explicitly what is being done to determine their fates. Ten months before Guillen disappeared, Pvt. Gregory Morales also vanished from Fort Hood. His body was unintentionally recovered a few miles from the base in June, during the search for Guillen. He had been listed as AWOL in August 2019 and later as a deserter.

However, for his mother, Kim Wedel, her life in Oklahoma halted as she pleaded for assistance and answers from Fort Hood’s Army Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

“If any other business had this many glaring problems, leadership would be gone. Why did it take an investigation to see that the CID was understaffed and overwhelmed? There was a lack of response from CID, and they certainly didn’t know what to do with me as a mom calling all the time,” Wedel told Fox News.

The Killeen Police Department is heading the investigation into Morales’ death, in which foul play is suspected, according to local reports. 

“The Army didn’t care enough to see there was a problem,” Wedel asserted. “I still haven’t really heard from anyone down there. My son will never be at the forefront, and it is shocking how many parents like us are out there. People don’t just disappear because they choose to.”

However, many soldiers and families connected to Fort Hood told Fox News that the personnel changes were merely cosmetic, and they feared “business as usual” when the spotlight faded.

Jennifer Norris, an Air Force veteran and military crime analyst who has focused on Fort Hood issues since 2016, said in order to look forward, one also must look back.

“The deaths ruled a suicide – they need to be investigated. Why did they take their lives? Were those deaths properly investigated? Was it really a suicide, or was it a murder? Everything needs to be questioned,” she added. “We can’t just pretend the last 20 years didn’t happen.” 

Read more from Fox News here.

Related Links:
Report of the Fort Hood Independent Review Committee (November 6, 2020)
15 Things Every American Should Know About the Fort Hood Report
Fort Hood’s toxic culture? Red flags raised over mysterious disappearances, sexual assaults
Tragedies At Fort Hood Have Led The Army To Rethink Its Response When Soldiers Go Missing
Army Soldiers at Fort Hood in Texas Are Dying at Alarming Rates Stateside (January 1, 2016 to Present)
Washington D.C. Veteran’s Presentation on the Current Status of the Armed Forces at Fort Hood in Texas (December 12, 2017)
Speier, Mullin Introduce Bipartisan ‘I Am Vanessa Guillén Act’ to Transform the Military’s Response to Sexual Violence & Missing Servicemembers (September 16, 2020)
Unsolved Homicide: Fort Hood Army Pvt. Gregory Wedel-Morales Reported AWOL; Based on Anonymous Tip, Remains Found in Shallow Grave in Killeen 10 Months Later (August 19, 2019)
Timeline: Army Sgt. Kelton Sphaler and Army Vet Scott Weinhold Reported Missing at Belton Lake on Fort Hood; After Search Launched, Both Recovered in Water (January 21, 2019)
Fort Hood Army Cpl. Christopher Ferguson Died of Undetermined Causes; CID Claimed Death Was Accident; CBS News Reported Suicide (March 25, 2007)
Fort Hood Army Staff Sgt. Paul Norris Fatally Shot Spc. Kamisha Block in Murder-Suicide in Iraq; Family Calls for Congressional Hearings & Independent Investigations (August 16, 2007)
Research Reveals Pattern of Violence, Suspicious Deaths, Problematic Death Investigations, and Cover-up at Fort Hood in Texas (September 11, 2020)
Stars and Stripes: Why is Fort Hood the Army’s Most Crime-Ridden Post? (August 21, 2020)
Austin American-Statesman: Vanessa Guillen’s Death Shines Light on More Tragedies at Fort Hood (July 28, 2020)
Open Letter to House of Representatives in Support of an Independent Investigation of the Murder of Vanessa Guillen at Fort Hood (July 7, 2020)
Unsolved Homicide Cases Affiliated with Fort Hood (January 1, 2016 to Present)
Never Forgotten: The Fort Hood Fallen (2016)

Donny Walker Show: Update on Fort Hood Investigations, Federal Government Cold Case Policy, and The Kamisha Block Bill (October 6, 2020)

Please listen to the October 6, 2020 Donny Walker show with Jen Norris here.

Related Links:
Jen Norris | The Donny Walker Show (August 25, 2020)
Army Soldiers at Fort Hood in Texas Are Dying at Alarming Rates Stateside (January 1, 2016 to Present)
HASC Congressional Investigation of Fort Hood: Research Reveals Pattern of Suspicious Deaths and Cover-up (September 11, 2020)
Attorney General William P. Barr Launches National Strategy to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons (November 22, 2019)
Swalwell and McCaul Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Give More Rights to Families of Homicide Victims in Federal Cases (Septemer 30, 2020)
Corruption without justice in the military | Facebook
The WatchMen Texas | Facebook
Vets for the People | Facebook

Active Duty Military Legislation Recommendations:
Rep. Seth Moulton Introduces The Brandon Act to Change DoD Mental Health Policy, Pay Tribute to Fallen Navy Sailor Brandon Caserta (June 25, 2020)
Senators Cruz, Gillibrand, Grassley Offer Bipartisan Military Justice Improvement Act as Amendment to Defense Bill (July 2, 2020)
Chair Jackie Speier NDAA Provisions Address Military Sexual Assault, Intimate Partner Violence, Racial Justice, Ethics, Military Families, and DoD Oversight and Modernization (July 2, 2020)
Speier, Mullin Introduce Bipartisan ‘I Am Vanessa Guillén Act’ to Transform the Military’s Response to Sexual Violence and Missing Servicemembers (September 16, 2020)
Military Policy and Legislation Considerations for the Investigations of Non Combat Death, Homicide, and Suicide of US Service Members

MJFA on Social:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/militaryjusticeforall
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/military_crime
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/@military_crime
Email: militaryjusticeforall@gmail.com

Trends in Active-Duty Military Deaths Since 2006 | Congressional Research Service (July 1, 2020)

Trends in Active-Duty Military Deaths Since 2006

Related Links:
Trends in Active-Duty Military Deaths Since 2006 (July 1, 2020)
Source: Trends in Active-Duty Military Deaths Since 2006 (July 1, 2020)
Non Combat Deaths of Female Service Members in the U.S. Military (Iraq)
Non Combat Deaths of Female Service Members in the U.S. Military (Afghanistan)
Non Combat Deaths of Female Service Members in the U.S. Military (Other Areas)
August: U.S. Department of Defense Casualties Report from Sep. 11, 2001 to 2017
September: U.S. Department of Defense Casualties Report from Sep. 11, 2001 to 2017
Military Policy and Legislation Considerations for the Investigations of Non Combat Death, Homicide, and Suicide of US Service Members

The Generation Why Podcast Featured the Mysterious Death of Air Force Colonel Philip Shue: Accident, Suicide or Murder? (November 4, 2018)

“April 16, 2003. San Antonio, Texas. Colonel Michael Philip Shue said goodbye to his wife and was supposed to drive to Lackland Air Force Base where he worked. But he was seen driving erratically on the highway away from both his work and his home later on. The Colonel’s car then smashed into a tree, killing him. But he sustained injuries prior to the accident that suggested that he may have been the victim of a crime. Some of these injuries included: duct tape on his wrists and ankles, a six inch wound down the center of his chest and his nipples had been cut off. A world renowned medical examiner surprisingly deemed the Colonel’s death a suicide. After Col. Shue’s wife hired two other experts a different picture came into focus. One of abduction and torture. What exactly happened to Col. Shue? Was he suicidal? Or did someone want him dead? Can Justin & Aaron get to the bottom of this mystery?” –Death of Colonel Shue, The Generation Why Podcast (November 4, 2018)

Related Links:
Mishap or Murder?
The Curious Case Of Col. Shue
The Generation Why Podcast (website)
The Generation Why Podcast (Facebook)
The Generation Why Podcast (Twitter)
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast (website)
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | Stitcher
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | Poddmap
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | Podtail
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | PlayerFM
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | Chartable
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | Spreaker
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | Backtracks
Death of Colonel Shue | The Generation Why Podcast | Apple Podcasts
Air Force Col. Philip Shue Died in Apparent Car Accident, But Autopsy Revealed Much More; Texas Judge Ruled Cause of Death as Homicide (April 16, 2003)
Military Policy and Legislation Considerations for the Investigations of Non Combat Death, Homicide, and Suicide of US Service Members
15 Active Duty Cases That Beg for Prevention Efforts, Military Justice Reform, and the End of the Feres Doctrine
Six Intriguing True Crime Podcasts Spotlighting Active Duty Military Suicide, Missing, and Murder Cases
10 Unsolved Military Cases

Fort Hood Army Cpl. Christopher Ferguson Died of Undetermined Causes; CID Claimed Death Was Accident; CBS News Reported Suicide (March 25, 2007)

Christopher Ferguson

Cpl. Christopher Martin Ferguson, U.S. Army

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.

******************************************

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 Balcony

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)

Christopher Ferguson CBS News

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)

Additional Photos:

Related Links:
Obituary: Christopher Martin Ferguson
Suicide Prevention Call Center | CBS News with Norah O’Donnell (Facebook)
Inside a suicide prevention call center responding to thousands of veterans (YouTube)
Army Soldiers at Fort Hood in Texas Are Dying at Alarming Rates Stateside (January 1, 2016 to Present)