Iraq veteran searched for help then faced off with police

Man arrested for alleged bizarre behavior has PTSD, mother says
LA Times
By TONY PERRY
December 6, 2014

A 33-year-old man whose alleged erratic, combative behavior led to his arrest in Rancho Santa Fe is an Army veteran of Iraq suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health issues, his mother told a San Diego television station.

"He's really not a criminal," Andrea Roper told KUSI-TV. "He's sick .... He needs help."

Roper said her son has sought treatment at the Veterans Affairs hospital and Naval Medical Center San Diego. But he has stopped going to therapy appointments and taking his medication, she said.

Harrington enlisted in the Army in 2001 at age 19, was trained as a medic, and served several tours in Iraq, his mother said. For five years he has sought care at the VA and has been hospitalized in the mental ward, she said.
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