Remains of soldiers have been turning up around the Texas military base with terrifying frequency. The wave of pain went away as suddenly as it had come on but returned again, and again, and again, over the next hour. That an overwhelming majority of the town's economy comes from Fort Hood makes Killeen a kind of rentier state, in that most of its revenue comes through a foreign entity, which historically has led to the collapse of domestic industries, leading to increased dependence on a single source of income. Hazel Buck Blackwell, whose family lost their farm, homestead, barns, orchards, and adjoining land when the base took over, said the closest thing might be the unexpected death of someone you loved very much. It was a heartrending, searing experience, central Texas historian GraDelle Duncan said, leaving lifetime marks on all, and actually killing some from the psychic devastation that followed. What happened on that base and in the Army to cause this person who is normally very [kind] and responsive to all of a sudden leave and shut down? Eleven of the deaths remain unresolvedsome legally; others for the victims families. Lenz was found dead at Fort Hood on Feb. 1. Fort Hood: What we know about 12 soldiers missing, slain or killed in In other battles, having lost the use of his arm and later a leg, Hood had to be strapped to a horse for combat. Sergeant Brad Reynolds, 37, killed himself on May 16. The plan, Wedel-Morales told anyone who would listen, was to use the G.I. Robinson himself left soon thereafter, he would testify, to spend the night off post with his girlfriend. It installed 35 firing ranges, 18 chapels, three bowling alleys, and 1,384 barracks that would house, at its peak, 95,000 soldiers, the most densely populated military base, at a cost of $35 million. "And how well will that look on your resume? What death row executions may mean for these four soldiers at Leavenworth Army major kills 13 people in Fort Hood shooting spree (He was found a day later.) "As soon as I get out of the hospital, I will call you. All rights reserved. Fort Hood is a United States Army post located near Killeen, . He seemed weird, Rodriguez said. Club Fuego where Gregory Wedel-Morales was last seen, Killeen Tx. Death Notices | kdhnews.com - The Killeen Daily Herald (The police opened an investigation on August 19.) The murder of Vanessa Guilln, a 20-year-old United States Army soldier, took place inside an armory at Fort Hood, Texas, on April 22, 2020, when she was bludgeoned to death by another soldier, Aaron David Robinson. That is the opposite of what hes been consistently saying.. That gun safety is a distant concern in a community where the Second Amendment tops the Maslow charts. Bill to attend technical school in Houston to work on wind turbines or oil rigs off the coast of Louisiana. Inside the Rash of Unexplained Deaths at Fort Hood by May Jeong Fernandes had just been stationed at Fort Hood in January. Had anyone helped Robinson clean up Guillens murder in those 40 minutes? Military bases are the last piece of the homeland that soldiers see before they are deployed to fight and the first glimpse of home when they return. She had also missed her standing noon call with her fianc, Juan Cruz. Before Guillen, there had been Private LaVena Lynn Johnson, who was found dead in a tent in 2005 in Iraq. As publication approached, it stopped responding to emails pertaining to both specific questions about individual cases as well as broader queries about the base.). The numbers are distressing. But as Beyer would soon realize, Finchs past wasnt what she claimedand Beyers own difficult history was up for the taking. Army disciplines 21 at Fort Hood in probe of soldier's death He also wanted an education, and joining the Army he knew he could take care of all of that, his sister Carma Johnson says. This was true of many I met at Fort Hood, including press officer Major Gabriela Thompson, my tour guide on base, who told me she joined to pay off her student loans: "It was my ticket out," she said, echoing other soldiers' sentiments about how the military had rescued them from hardscrabble existences. The deaths of Fort Hood soldiers have gained international attention in recent months after the slaying of Vanessa Guillen, a 20-year-old Army specialist the authorities say was killed on. Army disciplines 21 at Fort Hood in probe of soldier's death - Spokesman Echovita Inc is a registered trademark. Reformers would say that the military had failed its men and women. Last year, at least 39 Fort Hood soldiers died or went missing. The vast emptiness that is most of the state can make you feel inconsequential, as if you could disappear and no one would know you ever lived. The Lovell case was ruled an accident despite the fact that a rival clubs biker vest, or kutte, was found hanging neatly from a tree near the crash site, while his motorcyclemirror, taillightswas found intact. "I am astounded nobody is interested," the Fernandes family lawyer Lenny Kesten told me. I've even lost myself." Their minds both turned to Vanessa, whose hourly texts to family members had gone silent. Yet instead of being taken into custody, Robinson was placed in a conference room on base, initially, it was said, for committing adultery, which is against the Uniform Code of Military Justice. By then, the Army, it seemed, had stopped providing Wedel-Morales with a sense of purpose, and he had turned to alternate sources of meaning, namely car and motorcycle clubs, and life beyond the base. Curiously, a few hours after the officers picked up Casteel, he went silent online. She filled out the paperwork that is the lifeblood of the Army before heading toward the arms room, a few paces away. Stump was going 82 mph in a 30-mph zone, the investigation report said, and had hit a tree on a mound. Most of the groups were aboveboard, even as they were ruled by certain strictures for meeting attendance, dress code, and how to appropriately signal respect. In 2007, also in Iraq, Specialist Kamisha Block's death was ruled an accident by a single shot of friendly fire before the family received the body and saw that she had five gunshot wounds, including one to the head. Red White and Blue via The US Army is licensed with CC BY-ND 2.0. When his parents rushed to the hospital, they saw that Chee, lying unconscious, had bruises and scrapes on his chin and on both sides of his face. But at Fort Hood, it sometimes seemed like mission first, equipment second, he said, highlighting the paradox of the military that in word puts the well-being of soldiers first but in deed must, by design, favor combat readiness over all else. ), Wedel-Moraless death was not the first from the base that may have involved bike gangs. Namely, the military. Thirteen killed themselves. Green Beret NCO dies during physical fitness training at Fort Bragg The area, east of Killeen, was built on 109,000 acres of high bluffs, ridges, sharp slopes, and mesa-like hills covered with mesquite and chaparral. In the same week, Private Edward Casteel, who had been missing from Fort Hood since October 6, was found in a parish jail in Louisiana, arrested after a high-speed chase. Failure to comply could incur fines of hundreds of dollars or other, more severe social censure. Why had it taken forensics 72 days to conduct a search of the arms room? They married in May 2017, and he took her name with hyphenation. When Elisabeth Finch met Jennifer Beyer in 2019, the two women forged a fiercely loyal friendship, and eventually got married. October 13, 2021 04:48 PM. Don't they care as to what happened to Elder Fernandes? "That is the opposite of what he's been consistently saying.". I am astounded nobody is interested, the Fernandes family lawyer Lenny Kesten told me. Linda Schweers, whose specialist son, Justin, died in a car crash in June while suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, wanted me to be careful of cartels, which she said ran the area. Highway renamed & dedicated to late Fort Hood soldier . He died in 1879, leaving a troubled legacy that is only now beginning to be questioned. Guillen's youngest sister, Lupe, made me promise to stay at the Marriott, a hotel she considered safer than the rest. Why had it taken forensics 72 days to conduct a search of the arms room? (Among 1.29 million members of the U.S. military, 65,000 are immigrants, according to The Washington Post.) Yet instead of being taken into custody, Robinson was placed in a conference room on base, initially, it was said, for committing adultery, which is against the Uniform Code of Military Justice. His body was found nearly a month later, two miles from the barracks. During the run, Chee, who had no preexisting health conditions, collapsed. Atop these sedimentary layers of desecration, displacement, and disorientation, the War Department set out to build a base that would go on to serve as a footnote to nearly every war in modern memoryKorea, Vietnam, Bosnia, Iraq, and Afghanistan, but also Grenada, Panama, and the Cuban Missile Crisis. He ultimately murdered her when she was eight months pregnant, then set her on fire before fleeing to Mexico. Nov. 30, 2022. "None of the messages added up, nor were they how he usually speaks to me," Rodriguez told me. Traveling in the time of plague, trying to build rapport with people from six feet away, was enervating. At the Dollhouse, he got to know Penny Morales, a dancer and mother of two. Rosecrans, shot four times, was found three miles from his vehicle. As of October 20, 2022, 70 of 70 Fort Hood Independent Review Committee recommendations have been addressed by the U.S. Army's People First Task Force. Green Beret training death special forces training soldier dies in training army training . Fernandes wouldnt share much, nothing about what had caused him to be hospitalized, and said that he was using an insecure base hospital line. (On July 14, 2020, a federal grand injury indicted Aguilar on one count of conspiracy and two counts of tampering with evidence. And yet: The data is not really out of the ordinary for U.S. military bases. A sergeant from Guillen's division called it "mandatory fun days." After hours, media should call the Emergency Operations Center at (254) 287-2054 and ask for the on-call PAO. He ultimately murdered her when she was eight months pregnant, then set her on fire before fleeing to Mexico. (Fort Hood refused all official interview requests for this story, citing ongoing investigations. It rained that night, and the drive, which should have taken three hours, was slow going. Spc. Memorial that now stands at the site Vanessa Guillen's remains were found in Killen, Texas. UPDATE: Foul play not suspected in death of Fort Hood soldier February 26, 2023 (50 years old) View obituary. They pointed glumly to past cases, some of which there were public records for and others I could find no traces of in the official files. October 14, 2021 Ryan Morgan. I have sponsored a a Change.org listing advocating renaming the post after Oveta . Fort Hood had refused to list him as missing, and it was only after his then fiance, Paradise Rodriguez, posted a video on Facebook that an officer at the parish jail saw it and got into contact. Since being stationed at Fort Hood in November 2016, Wedel-Morales had frequented the Dollhouse, a strip club not far from where his remains would eventually be found. So when, the following spring, Fort Hood offered a $15,000 reward for information about Guillen, then raised it to $25,000 in June, Kim called to demand the same. These figures eclipse American casualties in Afghanistan and Iraq in the same year. They pointed glumly to past cases, some of which there were public records for and others I could find no traces of in the official files. Thirteen killed themselves. He got home around 2 p.m. and told his wife, Gloria, about the unusual aches. If not, what explained the false accounting? That gun safety is a distant concern in a community where the Second Amendment tops the Maslow charts. He wondered if it was something he had eaten and carried on with his shift. (Fort Hood refused all official interview requests for this story, citing ongoing investigations. He died the evening of September 2. The ancient Greeks wrote epic poems on the subject, the most famous of which is the Iliad. Fort Hood concluded Chee had died in training. Fort Hood Weather. First it was a five-mile run, then it was a two-mile run. There were no Black residents in town until the early 1950s. Specialist Justen Ogdens death in July 2017 was ruled a suicide, but the suicide note Fort Hood produced as evidence did not match his handwriting, according to his mother, Toni. Specialist Vanessa Guillen's father, Rogelio, wondered if I shouldn't carry a gun. After the public remonstrations began, Fort Hood launched something it called Operation Phantom Action, a weeklong retreat of sorts that was meant to rebuild trust between soldiers and the leadership. New Market, Alabama. Give me the name and I will report the bastard, Gloria told her daughter, who refused to tell her mother more for fear of worrying her, and also, Gloria later suspected, for fear of reprisal. The small Texas frontier town was also a hotbed of Klan activity, according to Texas historian Gene Preuss of the University of Houston, so much so that when trains stopped in Killeen, Black passengersrelegated to colored carsknew to pull down their window shades to avoid a pelting with rocks by locals. Army Investigating How Fort Hood Soldier Found Unresponsive Behind A young soldier found dead at Fort Hood has been identified, but his cause of death remains hidden. The military, Rodriguez said, had known about this but had refused to treat him. Eleven of the deaths remain unresolvedsome legally; others for the victims' families. Failure to comply could incur fines of hundreds of dollars or other, more severe social censure. March 1, 2023 (94 years old) View obituary. Fort Hood informed Rodriguez that he had asked for this. Thirteen people were determined to have committed suicide. Drugs suspected in case of two Fort Bragg soldiers found dead in barracks Join Vanity Fair to receive full access to VF.com and the complete online archive now. The coming months brought the suicides of Staff Sergeant Richard Harrington, 45, and then Specialist James Green, 23. Here are some of the tragic deaths that have plagued the base in recent months: Pvt. US Army Since then, Vanessa's family and their attorney Natalie Khawam have tried to shine a spotlight on a string of deaths at the central Texas installation. Robinson gave Guillen the serial number for a .50 caliber machine gun that needed servicing. Basic details of the incident kept changing. Fort Hood was founded in January 1942 as a training ground for tank destroyers, selected for its varied terrain. How had he managed to escapeand where had he gotten his gun? Fort Hood soldier found dead behind barracks, investigation underway Officials identified the soldier as 26-year-old Spc. Copyright 2023 Echovita Inc. All rights reserved. Fort Hood - KXXV He refused to send a selfie or get on a video chat and began using a strange and unfamiliar speech pattern. Amid all those other deaths, on June 21, 2020, a search party found the charred lid of a cargo box along the Leon River 20 miles east of Fort Hood. (He was found a day later.) On August 25, a rail worker in Temple, Texas, 26 miles east of Fort Hood, saw a body hanging from a tree across from a burned-out warehouse near the tracks. Thirteen killed themselves. Army investigating after another soldier is found dead at Fort Hood
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