A Unsolved Soldier's Death In Alabama

In a small county outside of Birmingham, Alabama; a soldier died in 2006. There, a family still mourns his death and still has unanswered questions. Meanwhile the common law widow has since moved on evident by having a baby by another man, but continues to receive DIC benefits from the VA for the death of the soldier.

The soldier is buried in a lonely graveyard (orchestrated by the widow) away from the family graveyard where he would have been buried with his ancestor's pre-dating the Civil War. (Military Ancestors) No one visits the soldier with the exception of his mom and his siblings. The cemetery is private, the plot is private, and the headstone is a "child's size." (there are photos to prove it)

Last year there was a restraining order against the mother of the soldier that limited her visitation to the grave to 15 minutes a week or less if the widow showed up. That has since been reversed, but it has taken over a year of court battling to do so.

All the family of the soldier wants is an autopsy of the soldier to determine if what the Coroner concluded within his 20 minute "look around" was true. It is hard to fathom that this brave soldier, a hero to many in his unit and many iraqi civilians, commited suicide. The evidence at the time suggests it can not possibly be. Yet the widow makes sure with her criminal attorneys' assistance, that this soldiers' death may never be fully examined.

As court appeals have heated up, and disclosure forms have been submitted by the soldiers' family, the widow increases her obstinacy towards anyone who doubts her validity on what happened that fateful day. She makes cruel remarks that suggest she is doing oddities unaware to others, and has gone so far as to post a message in French, suggesting she has ordered the soldier exhumed and cremated to dissolve all evidence.

Recently the family spent Independence Day (one of the soldiers' favorite holidays) graveside, and brought his favorite patriot rockets, flags, and flowers to place at his marker. The mom of the soldier noticed that after two years, the grass covering his plot was still not "grown in" and the edges of the plot had a carved outline, as if they had recently been tampered with. So they outlined the plot with the patriot rockets (notice the black markings) and took a photo. The plot next to the soldier had a burial a few months after the soldier's. Notice the ground difference?

Perhaps those idle threats of the widow in French.....but what recourse does the mom have? None according to the Dept of the Army. It is after all, a CIVIL matter.

Have a look for yourself.

In this small county a coroner (who happened to own the mortuary where the soldier was embalmed and prepared and then buried in the cemetery owned by the same mortuary)...pronounced it a suicide after glancing at this hero who served our country for about 20 minutes.

Where is this soldiers justice?

Below is a blog report FROM THE MOTHER OF THE SOLDIER. You decide....

(Everything to follow is under Copyright ©2008 by P.Smith.)

Symptoms of PTSD fall into three main categories:

1. Repeated "reliving" of the event, which disturbs day-to-day activity

Recurrent distressing memories of the event
Repeated dreams of the event
Flashback episodes, where the event seems to be happening again and again
Physical reactions to situations that remind you of the traumatic event

2. Avoidance

Inability to remember important aspects of the trauma
Lack of interest in normal activities
Feelings of detachment
Sense of having no future
Emotional "numbing", or feeling as though you don't care about anything
Less expression of moods
Staying away from places, people, or objects that remind you of the event

3. Arousal

Irritability or outbursts of anger
Sleeping difficulties
Difficulty concentrating
Exaggerated response to things that startle you
Excess awareness (hyper vigilance)
You also might feel a sense of guilt about the event (including "survivor guilt"), and the following symptoms, which are typical of anxiety stress and tension:

Paleness
Feeling your heart beat in your chest (palpitations)
Headache
Fever
Fainting
Dizziness
Agitation, or excitability


When Brian came home from Iraq, he showed no signs of suffering from PTSD. We had, many times, spoken of these things. We spoke about what he was to experience before he went to Iraq, while he was in Iraq, and after he came home from Iraq.

War changes people. We both knew and accepted that. HOW it changed him, and those of us left here at home, was directly affected by the way we prepared for what he was about to experience. Brian came through the very bowels of hell a better man, a stronger man, a more confident man, with hope for the future, and with a closer relationship to God.

For anyone to say that he suffered from PTSD and hung himself, is to dishonor him in the most vile of ways. It is a slanderous lie, and *they should be beheaded in the public square for it.

*THAT...is called "Emotion".

I have earned the right to feel this way. I bled for Brian. I grew up with him. I know every scar, every mole, every broken bone, every heartache, every fear, every desire, every love of that boy...that Man...That "Answer to my Prayers". NO ONE can take that from me.

*THAT is how I feel about the people involved in my son's case. I feel this way, not only because of the dishonor they placed upon my brave Soldiers name, but because of the trauma they have caused to Brian's brother and sisters, and to me.

I have all of the above mentioned symptoms of PTSD. My surviving children have a mix of them. My daughter went from a straight-A student to a drop out in the 12th grade. She's lost interest in the "future". My youngest son went from being a gentle giant to a time bomb just waiting for someone to let him take out his anger on them. Both of them have physical signs of stress. My daughter is having serious "female" problems, her hormonal balance is off the scale. My son has been losing weight at a steady rate and has developed a serious dislike for anyone who isn't in his circle of friends. I believe he could stomp a hatchling chick without remorse.

I do fear what I might do if faced with running into the people who have disgraced my son. I have even gone as far as attempting to file a restraining order ON MYSELF (THAT, Sticky, is why the order still stands). Once I tried that, and the Judge saw the "fifteen minutes" at my own son's grave, he changed it. I can now go and visit my son anytime I want.

I decided to go visit Brian's grave this past July 4th. My youngest son and I went up there and fired off four Patriot Rockets and several other rockets, because Brian loved the 4th of July.

The day after we went there, this is what the "widow" aka "Sticky Rear" posted about it:

http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-ZdzF.SMyeqiGYPveWqpdvmQ3ZwABPzt6?p=247

The only thing I can say to her is:"Got God"?



My focus has now turned towards the people who call themselves "Governors", "Lawmakers", "Detectives", "Coroners" because I have a very, VERY important wake-up call for them as far as their "investigation" and ability to uphold the law goes (in my son's case).

I take issue with a Coroner who can call over 700 deaths in a year and NEVER make a mistake. If this man is God, then why is he working for the poorest County in Alabama? He should be working for Orange County California!

The very first thing that comes to mind is, who made the call on that WEEKEND, that Brian was married? Who was it that looked at the Marriage License and, in their infinite wisdom, declared it to be fact? Didn't they think to check and make SURE the certificate was valid? This is the age of computers. Ten year old's can make one hundred dollar bills that look real.

Secondly, I know for a FACT that there is money set aside to hook every county up in every state, TO EVERY STATE, in regards to Felons, adoptions, marriage/divorce certificates, Gun Permits, Pedophiles, Terrorists, hell, you can even track the location of a DOG! That money comes from the Violence Against Women's Act and was distributed in 1985. In Alabama ALONE the amount of Grant money distributed is astounding.

http://www.adeca.alabama.gov/C1/Recent%20News%20Releases/default.aspx

Why didn't someone take the time to make sure the marriage was legal? We all KNOW it wasn't NOW. THAT certificate is illegal as it clearly proves that a FELONY has been committed. That Felony is "Bigamy". As a matter of FACT, Sticky's Attorney's now claim that she and Brian were married under "Common Law" from the date of the expiration of the 60 day court order attached to her divorce until the date of Brian's death...about 30 days.

WHY, then, has it been two years and 14 days since my son died and no one, other than myself and my Attorneys, has said "Wait a minute. We have a problem here".

For heavens sake, you made a mistake! You're HUMAN...IT HAPPENS! Reopen the case. Oh, but wait...there is something missing, now isn't there...

EVIDENCE:

Evidence Collection Guidelines
http://www.crime-scene-investigator.net/collect.html


This document provides evidence collection guidelines for the following types of evidence. Your agency's policies may vary. Please check with your supervisor if you have any questions.


Contents
Blood Stains
Seminal Stains
Hair
Fibers and Threads
Glass
Paint
Flammable Liquids
Firearms Evidence
Tool Marks
Controlled Substances and Medicinal Preparations
Questioned Documents
Latent Fingerprints


Collection and Preservation
of Evidence
by George Schiro
Forensic Scientist
Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory

Once the crime scene has been thoroughly documented and the locations of the evidence noted, then the collection process can begin. The collection process will usually start with the collection of the most fragile or most easily lost evidence. Special consideration can also be given to any evidence or objects which need to be moved. Collection can then continue along the crime scene trail or in some other logical manner. Photographs should also continue to be taken if the investigator is revealing layers of evidence which were not previously documented because they were hidden from sight.

Most items of evidence will be collected in paper containers such as packets, envelopes, and bags. Liquid items can be transported in non-breakable, leak proof containers. Arson evidence is usually collected in air-tight, clean metal cans. Only large quantities of dry powder should be collected and stored in plastic bags. Moist or wet evidence (blood, plants, etc.) from a crime scene can be collected in plastic containers at the scene and transported back to an evidence receiving area if the storage time in plastic is two hours or less and this is done to prevent contamination of other evidence.

Once in a secure location, wet evidence, whether packaged in plastic or paper, must be removed and allowed to completely air dry. That evidence can then be repackaged in a new, dry paper container. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD EVIDENCE CONTAINING MOISTURE BE PACKAGED IN PLASTIC OR PAPER CONTAINERS FOR MORE THAN TWO HOURS. Moisture allows the growth of microorganisms which can destroy or alter evidence.

Any items which may cross contaminate each other must be packaged separately. The containers should be closed and secured to prevent the mixture of evidence during transportation. Each container should have: the collecting person's initials; the date and time it was collected; a complete description of the evidence and where it was found; and the investigating agency's name and their file number.

Each type of evidence has a specific value in an investigation. The value of evidence should be kept in mind by the investigator when doing a crime scene investigation. For example, when investigating a crime he or she should spend more time on collecting good fingerprints than trying to find fibers left by a suspects clothing. The reason is that fingerprints can positively identify a person as having been at the scene of a crime, whereas fibers could have come from anyone wearing clothes made out of the same material.

Of course if obvious or numerous fibers are found at the point of entry, on a victim's body, etc., then they should be collected in case no fingerprints of value are found. It is also wise to collect more evidence at a crime scene than not to collect enough evidence. An investigator usually only has one shot at a crime scene, so the most should be made of it.

http://www.crime-scene-investigator.net/evidenc3.html


Where is the rope?

Where is the pill bottle?

Where are the beer cans?

Where is the document that you were shown that said they were married?

Where is the evidence list?

Why wasn't the swelling and bruising on Brian's cheek (clearly seen in the Coroner's photographs) noted in the case files?

Why wasn't my son's head and hands bagged before he was moved?

Why weren't his nails scraped?

When you make the words "suicide" and "veteran" synonymous, you create the perfect blueprint for murder.

VA RESEARCH THINKS PTSD LEAVES PHYSICAL FOOTPRINTS ON THE BRAIN

-- San Francisco research center has the urgency of a Manhattan Project site, this time looking to unravel the mysteries of PTSD.

First issue within this article, is that the soldier under the microscope, "with" PTSD is being compared to a soldier who has not been diagnosed with PTSD. The soldier under the microscope was not "scanned" PRIOR to combat and being diagnosed with PTSD, so the FLAW in this is that they do not KNOW for CERTAIN if those highlighted area of his brain were already discolored in the pattern they are "SUGGESTING" might be the "signature" pattern of PTSD.

Remember, the researchers WANT to be able to point and click and say PTSD is a DISEASE--and HERE--with this UBER machine that costs MILLIONS and the scanning of every soldier that costs BILLIONS--we can point and shoot the brain and get THIS pattern--and "ta da" PTSD confirmed. Sign em up boys! Meds meds meds--and Pharma REJOICES!

PTSD is an direct result of EMOTIONAL TRAUMA, STRESS, and STRAIN produced in an environment unknown to a soldier. IT IS A BY-PRODUCT of WAR, NOT a DISEASE, it is a CONDITION of WAR that causes an EMOTIONAL barrier.

The BRAIN say "HOLY CRAP BATMAN!" and starts to rewire and shut down parts it doesn't want to remember, or locks away some parts and stimuli that it considers hazardous. Sometimes those things leak through--so the brain works overtime to lock them down again and again. This internal struggle is a SURVIVAL instinct, that our bodies have. It takes TIME, and patience and the right "tools" (counseling measures without over medicating) to unlock those Pandora's boxes and safely LEARN HOW to LIVE WITH the memories and images of War. THEY WILL NOT GO AWAY--but they can be dealt with and Incorporated into LIFE. This TAKES TIME and there isn't an INSTANT quick cure or FIX for it.

So...the VA continues to plug along and keep PHARMA at the ready with a PILL to cure the ill's of our heroes. And because they are scientists, neurologists, and the "VA" or others; with the studies and "findings" no matter how SKEWED the reports are---if it sounds and reads scientific, society will defend it! The "simplistic" route will be laughed at.

ARTICLE:

PTSD leaves physical footprints on the brain

Justin Berton, Chronicle Staff Writer


At a recent conference for some of the area's leading neurologists, San Francisco physicist Norbert Schuff captured his colleagues' attention when he presented colorful brain images of U.S. soldiers who had returned from Iraq and Afghanistan and were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

The yellow areas, Schuff explained during his presentation at the city's Veterans Affairs Medical Center, showed where the hippocampus, which plays major roles in short-term memory and emotions, had atrophied. The red swatches marked hyper fusion - increased blood flow - in the prefrontal cortex, the region responsible for conflict resolution and decision-making. Compared with a soldier without the affliction, the PTSD brain had lost 5 to 10 percent of its gray matter volume, indicating yet more neuron damage.

Schuff, who was dressed in a Hawaiian shirt just as colorful as the brain images he'd brought, reminded his colleagues that while his findings were preliminary and the trials ongoing, researchers were at least inching closer to finding the biological markers that distinguish a brain affected by PTSD. As the technology of brain imaging improves and the resulting data are refined, doctors believe that one day they will be able to look at a computer screen and see PTSD as clearly as they now see a brain tumor.

"But we're still in the infancy of neuroimaging," Schuff cautioned later in his office. "Do you get PTSD because you have a small hippocampus? Or does a small hippocampus mean you'll develop PTSD? That, we still don't know."

Schuff's research is at the forefront of a bold push by the Department of Defense to address PTSD, the psychological disorder that will haunt an estimated 30 percent of the veterans returning from the current two wars, according to the Pentagon. Forty thousand veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan, Pentagon officials say, have already been diagnosed with PTSD, which is defined as an anxiety disorder triggered by exposure to traumatic events; symptoms can include nightmares, flashbacks and panic attacks.

Left untreated, clinicians say, patients with PTSD are more likely to engage in anti-social behaviors such as alcohol and drug abuse. The disorder, neurologists are now learning, can also lead to long-term maladies, such as Alzheimer's and dementia.

Manhattan Project urgency

The quest is to understand how the disorder begins inside the brain. The Defense Department has invested $78 million in San Francisco's Northern California Institute for Research and Education at the VA center in the past four years, making it the largest VA research institute in the country and the only one that specializes in neuroscience. With 200 researchers on staff, and an estimated 40 ongoing studies that rely on 60 to 80 veterans as research participants, the center has the urgency of a Manhattan Project site, this time searching for a way to end a mental health crisis.

The Department of Defense "has such a compelling need for these answers," said Dr. Thomas Neylan, an associate professor of psychiatry at UCSF and director of the post-traumatic stress disorder program at the VA center. "They want to know these answers now, which is the right approach. We want the answers now; people are still going off to the war, coming back, and a lot of them are suffering for a long time."

The search for PTSD biological markers through brain imagining is the primary concern of five research centers in the country, including teams at Harvard and Emory universities. Researchers believe that once the markers are defined, successful treatments can be developed.

Since 1995, magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI, has been used to explore the brain through mostly black-and-white images with fuzzy resolution. But in the past few years, advances in computer-imaging technology have enabled neurologists to detect the smallest changes in brain activity.

At the San Francisco VA center, thanks to the installment five years ago of a $4 million MRI machine called the 4T - T stands for Tesla, a unit of magnetic field - Schuff and his colleagues are now able to look into the brain at 1 millimeter resolution, in color and in 3-D. By contrast, Schuff said a 1.5T MRI machine could not register atrophy on PTSD brains. But the 7T MRI machine that was installed at the UCSF Mission Bay campus last year can detect microscopic neuron damage that a 4T is incapable of "seeing."

"With each stronger magnet, we get a finer view of what's going on in the brain," Neylan said.

These advances allow neurologists not only to further understand PTSD, but to study its relationship with brain trauma, one of the leading injuries incurred by soldiers in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
The effects of IEDs

At the VA conference, titled "The Brain at War: Neurocognitive Consequences of Combat," Col. Karl Friedl, director of the U.S. Army Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center, explained why brain injuries have become more prevalent. The main cause: the improvised explosive device, or IED, a homemade device that has become the enemy's signature weapon.

While some well-armored soldiers were able to survive the IED blasts, incurring no outward signs of damage, they later complained of dizziness and "having their bell rung," symptoms consistent with the lesser-known mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI).

As many as 150,000 troops have been diagnosed with brain injuries, the Congressional Brain Injury Task Force reported last year, but it's unknown how many suffer from mTBI. Mild brain injuries are less often diagnosed because soldiers often believe getting knocked around is part of the job. But over time, with each successive mild brain injury, the effects can become more severe.

The link between mild brain trauma and PTSD is being studied at the VA center in San Francisco by Dr. Gary Abrams, whose preliminary studies show that the overlap between PTSD patients and sufferers of mild brain trauma injury "is tremendous." Abrams has yet to release definitive numbers.

During the next two years, Neylan expects the center will produce a few major findings in terms of possible treatments and advances in neuroimaging. One of the outcomes of the advanced brain imaging could be a prescreen test for soldiers to detect brains already showing PTSD tendencies. Neylan, who specializes in the role sleep plays in a healthy mind, is working on a study of police officers who are resistant to PTSD.

"We're using this opportunity to also see why some people are able to walk away from these situations and live healthy lives," he said, "and why others are not."

Recent attempts to estimate frequency

Iraq and Afghanistan: The number of post-traumatic stress disorder cases is in dispute. The Pentagon estimates 30 percent of veterans from the Afghanistan and Iraq wars will be diagnosed with PTSD. Vietnam War: In 1988, a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated the rate of Vietnam vets with PTSD at 14.7 percent. But the 1990 National Vietnam Readjustment Study calculated the rate at 30.9 percent. Both relied mainly on self-reporting. In 2006, a paper in the journal Science added to the debate by estimating the rate at 18.7 percent. World War II: Though there was no official PTSD diagnosis until 1980, after World War II the term "shell shock" was reported by veterans troubled by combat experiences. Researchers such as Dr. Charles Marmar at the San Francisco VA center's Northern California Institute for Research and Education estimate the number of WWII vets with PTSD is consistent with the 1-in-5 figures found in Vietnam and the Persian Gulf War. - Justin Berton

Experiments probe further into post-traumatic stress disorder

Four PTSD-related research experiments at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center:

Nasal spray: Scott Panter is developing a battlefield-ready nasal spray for troops who suffer brain trauma. After the trauma occurs, the brain swells, causing tissue damage. Panter's nasal spray, applied within 20 minutes of a trauma, would aim to stop the swelling process. Troops could carry the spray in their packs and self-apply or administer to others.

D-cycloserine: Dr. Charles Marmar is conducting trials on PTSD patients using D-cycloserine. The drug, which was originally used as an antibiotic for tuberculosis, has also proved to help lab animals "unlearn fear responses." Given in small doses 30 minutes before a therapy session, D-cyclo is meant to help PTSD patients open up about their traumatic experiences and become more willing to engage in therapy. The hypothesis is that the group taking D-cyclo will make more and faster progress in therapy.

Blood/gene test: Dr. Lynn Pulliam is trying to establish a blood profile to diagnose PTSD. Using gene array technology, researchers will be able to take an RNA test, much like a DNA test, to determine whether a patient "tests positive" for PTSD.

Sleep experiment: Dr. Thomas Neylan is conducting a study on improving veterans' sleep habits without drugs. Neylan said PTSD patients often feel anxious about sleeping, in part because they anticipate insomnia but also because they worry about nightmares. Subjects are coached to avoid substances that interfere with their sleep. "If we get them to sleep better at night," Neylan said, "they'll have fewer nightmares and feel better during the day."