WASHINGTON - The military’s highest court Tuesday hammered attorneys on both sides of a controversial case involving vexing questions about whether commanders should have authority to court-martial troops who try to commit suicide.
“If suicide is indeed the worst enemy the Armed Forces has in 2012 - in terms of killing soldiers, sailors, airman and Marines - then why should we criminalize it when a guy fails? Seems to me like you ...
From the Department of Defense:
The Army released suicide data today for the month of October. During October, among active-duty soldiers, there were 20 potential suicides: five have been confirmed as suicides, and 15 remain under investigation. For September, the Army reported 15 potential suicides among active-duty soldiers: four have been confirmed as suicides, and 11 remain under investigation. For 2012, there have been 166 potential active-duty suicides: 105 have ...
A record 1,062 homeless men, women and children sought help at this year's Stand Down for military veterans. It started in San Diego 25 years ago. Now, more than 200 communities across the country put on a similar event. Organizers say one thing's apparent -- more vets from Iraq and Afghanistan are ending up on the streets.
Arturo, a veteran of the Marine Corps, overcame physical injuries, nightmares ...
Stories like Jim Stanek's are common and quickly multiplying: An Iraqi war veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury, he says his life was saved by a dog that gave him the confidence to do seemingly simple things, like go out to dinner and look his wife in the eye rather than watch his own back.
But the growing list of small nonprofits involved in training affordable ...
A military wife whose husband suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder decided to bring awareness to the cause in an unusual way - by baring her body and writing her feelings about PTSD on her own skin for everyone to see:
"Broken by battle, wounded by war, my love is forever to you this I swore. I will quiet your silent screams, help heal your shattered soul until once again, my love ...
Soldiers who commit suicide are more likely to have low levels of omega-3 fatty acids in their brains, according to a 2011 study by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Now the Veterans Administration wants to know if increasing omega-3 levels with fish oil in veterans could reduce their chances of committing suicide.
The VA is teaming up with the Medical University of South Carolina and the National ...
Home Post brought you the story last month of Sgt. Karl Hofle, veteran who served 20 years in the military, only to be medically discharged with post-traumatic stress disorder.
His service dog, Jake, was helping him heal from PTSD, but then Jake became ill and the cost to heal him was too much for the Hofle family, who had to consider euthanizing Jake.
Well, today we've got an update ...
From 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment:
The day Army Sgt. Sheldon Benjamin’s friend asked him if he wanted his TV, Sheldon knew that something just wasn’t right.
“He was real teary faced -- a way that I just wasn’t used to seeing him,” said Benjamin, an infantryman with Honor Guard Company, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard). “I told him to [unlatch] his door and that ...
A few dozen military veterans from across the country took advantage of the last day of summer in San Diego. They went kayaking on Mission Bay using specially adapted vessels for people with disabilities.
Most of the veterans are from the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. They've come to San Diego for the annual one week Summer Sports clinic put on by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Their ...
Young veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars face increased risk of death when they suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and have substance abuse problems, according to a new study.
Researchers at University of Michigan Health System and the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System looked at veterans of all ages, but found veterans younger than age 45 were more likely to die than older vets when they suffered from both ...
Earlier today I wrote about a new VA policy that refuses coverage for PTSD service dogs. The reality is, most veterans get their service dogs through non-profits and donations. But the problem with not getting the VA to cover the ongoing costs of maintaining PTSD service dogs is brutally illustrated in a story covered by 9News in Colorado.
Sgt. Karl Hofle spent twenty years in the military, and was discharged ...
Sen. Charles Schumer of New York is calling on the Department of Veterans Affairs to change its new policy that denies benefits for veterans who need service dogs to help treat their post-traumatic stress disorder.
As Home Post reported earlier this month, the new VA policy asserts there isn't enough scientific evidence support the medical need for PTSD service dogs:
Although we do not disagree with some... subjective accounts ...
From American Forces Press Service:
Kim Ruocco regularly relives her darkest days – her husband’s suicide and the downward spiral that led to it – to save other military families from the same heartbreak.
Speaking yesterday to standing-room-only audiences at the Natick Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Center here, Ruocco described the chain of events that led to Marine Corps Maj. John Ruocco’s death in February 2005.
Ruocco was a ...
Five U.S. Marines killed themselves in August, according to the Marine and Family Programs Suicide Prevention Program Update. The report finds at least 39 Marines have committed suicide so far in 2012 - seven more than the total number of Marine suicides in 2011.
A breakdown of the statistics finds 38 of the 39 suicides were male, and the majority between the ages of 21 and 25. The marital status ...
A new Department of Veterans Affairs policy denies benefits for veterans who need service dogs to help treat their post-traumatic stress disorder. According to the policy, there isn't enough scientific evidence support the medical need for PTSD service dogs:
Although we do not disagree with some... subjective accounts that mental health service dogs have improved the quality of their lives, VA has not yet been able to determine that ...
