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.

Noonie Fortin: Honoring our Female Soldiers

Women WarriorsIN MEMORY — is dedicated to some of the women  and men I have known who have died.

IRAQ — is dedicated to the American women who died while  serving our country in Iraq or near-by countries during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

AFGHANISTAN — is dedicated to the American women who died while  serving our country in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom.

OTHER AREAS — is dedicated to the American women who died while serving our country in  other areas of the world since Desert Storm and 11 September 2001.

THE PENTAGON — is dedicated to all the American women (and one man who I personally knew) who died when a plane hit The Pentagon on 11 September 2001.

OKC — is dedicated to the American women who died when a bomb blew up the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City on 19 April 1995.

DESERT STORM — is dedicated to the American women who died during the Gulf War of 1990-1991.

VIETNAM — is dedicated to the American women who died while  serving our country in Vietnam.

EARLIER WARS —  is dedicated to the American women who died during the Korean War, World War II, World War I, Spanish-American War and Civil War.

Learn more here.

Ashley Ard, US Army, Left Newborn Baby in Park to Die (2013)

Ashley Ard, Army

*Outcome of case is unknown at this time.

Police: Soldier mom left newborn in park to die
Grand jury indicts mother of dead newborn
Alaska soldier charged with murder in newborn’s death
Soldier originally from Portsmouth charged with murder in newborn’s death in Alaska
JBER Soldier Accused in Newborn’s Death Makes 1st Court Appearance
In case of abandoned newborn, mom pleads not guilty to murder
JBER soldier pleads not guilty to 2nd-degree murder
Alaska soldier pleads not guilty in newborn’s death
After abandoned baby’s death, state invests in spreading word about “safe surrender” law

Fort Bragg Army Soldier Sean Wells Gunned Down in Home by Two Masked Men in Fayetteville, Family Asks for Help Solving Case (2013)

Sean Wayne Wells, US Army (2013)
Sean Wells, US Army

Army Special Forces soldier Sean Wayne Wells was shot and killed in his home near Fort Bragg, North Carolina on October 7, 2013. According to the Fayetteville Observer, Sean was shot by two masked men who entered his home through an unlocked door. They forced Sean’s wife and child into another room. They left driving a white 2012 Toyota Camry. Investigators believe this murder was premeditated and not random. This homicide is under investigation by the Fayetteville Police Department. The family pleads for your help to find the two men who murdered Sean in cold blood. They believe this case is solvable. Got a tip? Crime Stoppers

Related Links:
Man Fatally Shot Inside Fayetteville Home was a Soldier
Family of Murdered Fort Bragg Soldier Appeals for Answers
Bragg soldier killed in Fayetteville home invasion; two sought
Fort Bragg soldier killed in shooting, two suspects on the run
Two men wanted for killing Fort Bragg soldier
Body of soldier slain in North Carolina arrives at Las Vegas airport
4 y/o son runs for help when Ft. Bragg Soldier killed in home invasion
Special Forces soldier shot, killed in home
Family of slain Fort Bragg soldier asks for help solving case

CID Special Agent/Sgt. Joseph Peters, US Army, Died from an Improvised Explosive Device in Zhari District, Afghanistan (2013)

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Sgt. Joseph Peters, US Army CID

Army Criminal Investigation Division (CID) Special Agent/Sgt. Joseph Peters, 24, died on October 6, 2013 of injuries sustained when enemy forces attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device (IED) in the Zhari District in Afghanistan. Sgt. Peters of Springfield, Missouri, was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) on behalf of the 5th Military Police Battalion in Vicenza, Italy. Also lost in the blast were 1st Lt. Jennifer M. Moreno, Sgt. Patrick C. Hawkins, and Pfc. Cody J. Patterson. According to the DoD press release, for more information on Sgt. Peters, media should contact the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command public affairs office at 703-409-3168 or 571-305-4041.

Related Links:
DoD Identifies Army Casualties
Obituary: Joseph Michael Peters
Army Sgt. Joseph M. Peters
Fallen CID: Special Agent Joseph M. Peters
Assistance for Peters Family
Fund Burial of Fallen Army CID Agent
In Memoriam – Special Agent Sgt. Joseph Peters
ODMP: Army Special Agent Killed in Afghanistan
Army CID Special Agent Killed in Afghanistan
U.S. Army Special Operations Soldiers killed in combat
Soldiers at Vogelweh remember fallen CID special agent
Army CID agent killed in Afghanistan first to die in combat since 1971
Army special agent killed in Afghanistan
Oregon soldier one of four killed in Afghanistan
New details emerge about how four U.S. military members died in Afghanistan
Soldiers receive Distinguished Service Cross for incredible valor
4 fallen soldiers in benefit fiasco were on Special Ops mission, officials say
Army Rangers get top valor awards for heroism on deadly day in Afghanistan
Shutdown Denies Death and Burial Benefits to Families of 4 Dead Soldiers
Shutdown leaves kin of dead soldiers without money for funerals
Shutdown slows aid to families of U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan
Lawmakers trying ‘rapid’ fix to resume death benefits
Local group sends checks to families of Marine, soldier

Special Agent/Sgt Joseph Peters, US Army Criminal Investigation Command was killed in Afghanistan, October 6, 2013. He leaves behind a wife, and 20 month old son. -Fundrazr

US Army Soldier Jeremiah Hill Convicted in Fatal Stabbing of Fellow Soldier Tevin Geike in 2013, Sentenced to 45 Years in Prison

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Spc. Tevin Geike, US Army

Learn more: Violent Crime at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington

Related Links:
Police release 911 recording of fatal soldier stabbing
JBLM soldier stabbed to death in Lakewood confrontation
3 arrested in deadly stabbing of Lewis-McChord soldier
3 soldiers arrested in JBLM soldier’s stabbing death
3 soldiers arrested in fellow soldier’s stabbing death
Three soldiers arrested in fatal stabbing of JBLM soldier
3 soldiers charged in killing of Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier
Murder charge filed in Washington state soldier-on-soldier stabbing
Three Washington state soldiers charged in stabbing death of fellow soldier
Jeremiah Hill, Tevin Geike Murder Suspect: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
Spc. Tevin A. Geike, Soldier Murdered in Racially Charged Clash: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
Stabbed Soldier ‘Died Like a Dog,’ Friend’s Mom Says
‘He died like a dog’: Friend’s tears as autopsy reveals white soldier ‘killed by black comrade’ was stabbed through the heart
Tevin Geike Murder: Race not main issue in stabbing death of U.S. soldier in Wash., police and prosecutors say
Maine soldier sentenced in connection with Washington murder
Maine soldier gets year in prison for role in Washington state killing
JBLM soldier accused in fatal stabbing appears in military court
Army: JBLM soldier to face court-martial in 2nd soldier’s death
Friends Testify Against JBLM Soldier Accused of Murder
Pvt. Jeremiah Hill takes stand, claims he stabbed Spc. Tevin Geike in self-defense
Army Soldier Sentenced to 45 Yrs Following Murder Conviction Involving Fellow Soldier
JBLM soldier convicted, sentenced to 45 years in peer’s slaying
JBLM soldier convicted in 2013 stabbing death of comrade
Lakewood killings net vastly different sentences for JBLM soldiers from the same unit
2 soldiers get vastly different sentences for deadly crimes

September: U.S. Department of Defense Casualties Report (2013)

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09/27/2013:  DOD Identifies Army Casualty: Thomas Baysore Jr, 31, Afghanistan, Fort Campbell, Kentucky

09/24/2013:  DoD Identifies Navy Casualties: Landon Jones, 35, and Jonathan Gibson, 32, NCD, Central Red Sea, Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, California

09/24/2013:  DoD Identifies Army Casualty: Liam Nevins, 32, Afghanistan, 19th Special Forces Group, Colorado

09/24/2013:  DoD Identifies Army Casualty: Timothy McGill, 30, Afghanistan, 19th Special Forces Group, Rhode Island

09/24/2013:  DoD Identifies Army Casualty: Joshua Strickland, 23, Afghanistan, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington

09/22/2013:  DOD Identifies Army Casualty: James Wickliffchacin, 22, Afghanistan, Fort Stewart, Georgia

09/21/2013:  DOD Identifies Army Casualty: William Brown III, 44, NCD, Afghanistan, Fort Polk, Louisiana

09/19/2013:  Airmen From Vietnam War Identified

09/17/2013:  DoD Identifies Army Casualty: Randall Lane, 43, NCD, Afghanistan, Indiana Army National Guard

09/14/2013:  DoD Identifies Army Casualty: Robert Thomas Jr, 24, NCD, Afghanistan, Fort Bliss, Texas

09/12/2013:  Airmen Missing From WWII Accounted For

09/06/2013:  DoD Identifies Air Force Casualty: Todd Lobraico Jr, 22, Afghanistan, Stewart Air National Guard Base, New York

09/01/2013:  DoD Identifies Army Casualty: Joshua Bowden, 28, Afghanistan, Fort Carson, Colorado

Deadly Affairs Premiered ‘Special Delivery’ on ID: Army Spouse Manipulated Teenagers to Shoot and Kill Kevin Spann (September 28, 2013)

Kevin and Gina Spann know that life in the military is anything but easy. But when Kevin goes away, Gina plays. Adam Kostewicz and Grace Pianka are trying to live the American dream. But when that dream turns into a nightmare, someone ends up dead. -Special Delivery, Deadly Affairs (S2,E9)

Some women can’t resist boy toys. But fur flies when these Deadly Women reveal they’re “Killer Cougars.” -Deadly Women (S10,E1)

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:
Murderpedia: Gina Lynn Spann
The Mother’s Day Murder by Wensley Clarkson
Special Delivery | Deadly Affairs | Investigation Discovery (S2,E9)
Special Delivery | Deadly Affairs | Investigation Discovery (website)
Special Delivery | Deadly Affairs | Investigation Discovery (Amazon)
Killer Cougars | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (S10,E1)
Killer Cougars | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (website)
Killer Cougars | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (Amazon)
Killer Cougars | Deadly Women | Investigation Discovery (Hulu)
Army Soldier Kevin Spann Fatally Shot by Two Teenagers at Front Door of Georgia Home; Wife Gina Spann Sentenced to Life in Prison, No Parole (May 11, 1997)
Deadly Women Premiered ‘Killer Cougars’ on Investigation Discovery: Two Teenagers Promised Money if They Killed Kevin Spann (August 26, 2016)
Deadly Women: 30 Military and Veteran Homicide Cases Featured on Investigation Discovery

Military still secretive on sex crimes

Department of DefenseFor all the public scrutiny of military sexual assault this year — from  hearings to heated Senate debates — congressional efforts are only just  beginning to challenge the Pentagon’s overarching strategy on the issue for the  past 25 years: secrecy.

From tracking the extent of the problem to showing how cases are resolved,  the military has consistently and forcefully resisted fully airing details.

Read more here.

Darron Wright, US Army (2013)

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Col. Darron Wright, US Army

Related Links:
Col. Darron L. Wright Bio (Line of Advance)
Iraq Full Circle: From Shock and Awe to the Last Combat Patrol in Baghdad and Beyond by Darron L. Wright
How a jump turned fatal at Fort Bragg
Iraq veteran, author killed in Bragg training exercise
JBLM officer dies in Fort Bragg parachute accident
Paratrooper Killed During Airborne Training Exercise
Fort Bragg Colonel Killed in Parachute Malfunction Accident
Col. Darron Wright, Mesquite native, career Army officer who served in Iraq, dies at 45
Review of fatal training jump leads to discipline for six
Dedication honors former 7ID leader
Report into 2013 parachute death tackles ‘VIP culture’
Army ‘VIP culture’ led to parachute accident that killed former JBLM officer
Army “VIP culture” led to parachute accident that killed former JBLM officer
Parachute death of former JBLM officer keeps raising questions about “VIP culture”