Soldier’s death at Knox leads to changes

Soldier’s death at Knox leads to changes

The Associated Press
Posted : Monday May 25, 2009 14:21:58 EDT

FORT KNOX, Ky. — Indiana National Guard Sgt. Gerald “G.J.” Cassidy, who served his country in Bosnia and Iraq, died alone and ignored in a barracks at Fort Knox from an accidental drug overdose.

His fate left a legacy that has changed the lives of thousands of wounded soldiers, Army officials say. The Louisville Courier-Journal reported Sunday that his death in September 2007 led to improvements at Fort Knox and all 45 Warrior Transition Units nationwide devoted to healing war wounds and getting soldiers back to military jobs or productive civilian lives.

“Any time you lose a soldier, you have to go back and examine what you’ve done wrong. It’s very apparent that mistakes were made with Sgt. Cassidy,” said Lt. Col. Gary Travis, battalion commander of the Fort Knox unit. “Cassidy’s incident occurred during a time of transition.”

Cassidy began experiencing migraine headaches after a roadside bomb exploded about 11 feet from his Humvee in Iraq in August 2006. With diagnoses of post-traumatic stress disorder and mild traumatic brain injury, Cassidy returned to the U.S. in April 2007 and was sent to Fort Knox, which launched its Warrior Transition Unit that June.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2009/05/ap_SoldierMedical_052509w/