Family grieves after 5 tour veteran son shot by police

Final messages reveal Maryville Marine's battle with PTSD
WBIR.com
Mary Scott
Jun 18, 2013

We may never know exactly what went on inside the mind of Theodore "TJ" Jones IV the night he shot at and was killed by police.

But his family says the last words from the Maryville Marine provide insight into the night. They decided to release text messages sent to them on the night of death to give people an idea of what Post Traumatic Stress Disorder looks like in a combat veteran.

Jones was armed with a gun and barricaded himself in a vacant building in downtown Maryville on March 21. He fired on police and cars driving by. Police returned fire and killed him.

His family says Jones was diagnosed with chronic PTSD and anxiety disorders. They say the night of his death he was having a flashback tied to his military service. TJ had served five tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. But they didn't realize how serious it had become.
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Listen to this Dad say "Families don't know until it is too late" 1:53 into this report. Look at his face. Look at the pain in his eyes. "All we got left is to help somebody else." They don't want another family to feel the pain they feel.