Fort Bragg soldier raced to save buddy but he was too late

Fort Bragg sniper raced to check on his buddy. He broke into the house and found his best friend's body. Overcome with grief, he fired a couple of shots from his own gun at the floor. Now you know what happened a lot better than how this headline reads! *******

Sniper Who Once Held Record in Afghanistan Now Faces Gun Charges

NBC 4 News
By Julie Carey and Christian Paz
Published May 8, 2019

A soldier who once set a record for the longest sniper shot in Afghanistan by an American is now facing gun charges as part of a larger death investigation in Northern Virginia.

Deputies arrested Nicholas Ranstad in Warren County, Virginia, on May 4 after he called sheriff's deputies to a house where a man had allegedly suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

According to the Warran County Sheriff's Office, deputies responded to a house on the 200 block of Doom Peak Rd. in Linden, Virginia, where they met Ranstad and confirmed that the injured man, Sean David Miller, had died.

Deputies said Ranstad told them that he was friends with Miller, a Marine veteran, and had become concerned with his well-being, prompting him to travel from Fort Bragg, North Carolina, to Miller's home to check in on him.

Police said they are still investigating the circumstances of Miller's death, but News4 has learned that the Medical Examiner's Office has ruled the death a suicide.

And Miller's father wrote about his son's death in a social media post, saying Miller "has fallen to PTSD and suicide."
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Courage to speak about seeking help to heal PTSD

There is something that Sgt. 1st. Class James Spraggins understands very well. He understands what his choice of profession caused, but he understands a lot more than that!

It takes a lot of courage to choose a career that could kill you.

It takes a lot of courage to put your life on the line for the sake of others.

It takes a lot of courage to admit that sometimes, you need help too.

What takes even more courage, is to speak out publicly so that others are inspired to ask for help too!

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A Platoon Sergeant receives the gift of hope, strength and life
U.S. Army Warrior Care and Transition
By MaryTherese Griffin
Courtesy Story
07.27.2018

"...this would be the start of my new life; the gift of hope, strength, and most importantly the gift of life.” Sgt. 1st. Class James Spraggins

Courtesy Photo | Sgt. 1st. Class James Spraggins Iraq 2008, (Photo courtesy James Spraggins)

ARLINGTON, Va. - “I was a disaster who was proficient at hiding the fact that I needed help. I was very confused on what was going on with myself and feared for the future.”

Those courageous words are from Sgt. 1st Class James Spraggins. The former Infantryman turned Army Sniper has deployed multiple times over his 15 year Army career and wants to let other Soldiers know a few things about his journey.

The events of September 11th encouraged Spraggins to enlist; he felt like he was honoring his family name by taking it overseas to defend the nation’s freedoms. However, after his last two deployments, Spraggins says he was a different person. “I no longer had the same mentality towards human kind when I returned,” and that included himself Spraggins said.

Spraggins suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder. He was assigned as a Platoon Sergeant to the Warrior Transition Unit at Fort Knox, Kentucky. This was the first time, he says, he was away from his comfort zone. “I can remember feeling on top of the world (before PTSD), but then I lost who I was, I lost all hope. This began the complete spiral and destruction of Sgt. 1st Class Spraggins,” Spraggins recalled. “Those moments were some of the darkest moments of my life. I began neglecting everyone close to me so that I didn’t have to visit them or talk to anyone.”

Spraggins says he even began neglecting his basic human needs, like hygiene, for weeks and would skip meals for days to the point of complete exhaustion and he didn’t sleep. After suffering multiple panic attacks daily for several months he started thinking to himself that living was no longer an option. He sat with a loaded pistol in a church parking lot, thought about it, prayed about it, then he called his sister. “After failing in every direction, I turned for help. I made the choice to walk into Building 1480, the Behavioral Health Clinic on Fort Knox, this would be the start of my new life; the gift of hope, strength, and most importantly the gift of life.”
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"Longest Kill" UK Army's Record Breaking Sniper

Army's record-breaking sniper who killed two Taliban a mile and a half away driven to the brink of suicide by his chilling job 
Daily Mail UK
By TIM MACFARLAN FOR MAILONLINE
10 May 2015

Craig Harrison, 40, killed two militant assassins from range of 2,475 metres Created history with the shots in Musa Qala, Helmand Province, Afghanistan in November 2009 But Corporal of Horse Harrison, from Cheltenham, Gloucs, almost took his own life as he was haunted by dozens of victims and hunted by terrorists

Chilling: A veteran sniper told Craig: 'You make a sniper by taking a human being and re-engineering him. A sniper isn't a man any more. He is a weapon, waiting to be fired'

The British Army's record-breaking sniper who killed two Taliban a mile and a half away has revealed how he was driven to the brink of suicide by his chilling job.

Craig Harrison, 40, killed two militant assassins from a range of 2,475 metres - more than 900 metres beyond his rifle's effective range.

He created history with the shots in Musa Qala, Helmand Province, Afghanistan in November 2009, which remain the longest confirmed kills ever recorded.

But the nightmare that came with being the Army's number one marksmen almost cost Corporal of Horse Harrison his own life as he was haunted by his dozens of victims and hunted by terrorists, according to the Sun.

In his new book 'The Longest Kill', Craig, from Cheltenham, Gloucs, describes the events leading up to the record-breaking kills, and the shots themselves, in harrowing detail.

The soldiers ahead of him were ambushed when he was was part of a three-armoured-vehicle dawn patrol south of Musa Qala escorting Afghan fighters on foot.

The area was full of Taliban and for three hours Craig let rip with his Accuracy International L115A3 rifle.

He said: 'I was sweating, stripped down to a T-shirt under my body armour, even though it was a mild winter's day.

Craig developed post-traumatic stress disorder and was denied the Military Cross for his bravery.

His colonel refused it on his behalf, thinking he would not have been able to handle the pressure. Craig was 'dumbfounded' by the decision.
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Another Family Pushes for PTSD After Another Tragedy

Family of man who shot wife, himself pushes for PTSD awareness 
My Meridian Press
Holly Beech
November 7, 2014

Kevin and Kimberly Smith

“It’s sad, the families have to go through this,” she said. “These issues are real and they need to be addressed so people don’t have tragedies.”

Family members of a 24-year-old Meridian man who shot his wife and then himself said he came back from war a changed man.

According to Meridian Police, Kevin Smith shot his wife, 32-year-old Kimberly Smith, on Sept. 20 in the garage of their home while her five children where in their rooms sleeping. The grandmother to three of the children was also in the home and called the police.

Kevin’s aunt, Diane Delvecchio, told Meridian Press in an email that Kevin suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder and a traumatic brain injury after serving two tours in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army.

“PTSD and TBI are horrific,” she said. “Kevin was a good, kindhearted man that loved his family very much.”

According to a memorial site set up by his family, Kevin was honorably discharged with PTSD after serving for five years, including as a sniper.
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Veteran Iraq sniper targets new enemy

I am glad this veteran came forward for several reasons. Above all, he sought treatment to heal. Other than that, he was a sniper. I know a couple of them and they got help too. These guys are about as trained and tough as they come so when others notice even they need help, it makes it easier for them to come to terms with their own needs.

PTSD in-patient treatment changes life of Denver veteran
FOX31 Denver
by Jeremy Hubbard
January 28, 2013

He was there as a truckload of soldiers from his unit were blown up by an improvised explosive device, and the trauma of that – and other horrors he witnessed in Iraq – have haunted him for years.

But now Army veteran Curtis Bean is getting intensive help for his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD. And it’s been a life changing experience.

In Iraq, Bean was a sniper, one of those guys constantly staring through a scope with an eye out for the enemy. Little did he know, when he got home from war, he’d have a few different enemies to look out for.

“I was drinking heavily. There were times I was drinking so heavily I wouldn’t remember what I did,” Bean said.

He was trying to deal with his PTSD, a condition up to 80 percent of soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan face. He encountered some horrifying things during his two tours in Iraq, including an IED blast that killed four men from his unit.

“Not dealing with it is not the right answer,” Bean said.
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Naples woman killed in Arizona tried to flee domestic violence

Naples woman killed in Arizona tried to flee domestic violence, family says
By VICTORIA MACCHI, AISLING SWIFT
Posted December 15, 2011

Amanda Blaies-Rinaldi's family desperately tried to get her away from her abusive husband.

They encouraged the 28-year-old woman to move from Naples to Arizona, where they lived, to put distance between the couple.

"My mom has told her so many times to get away," said her sister Lea Miller, 35. "She kept on saying 'I love him.'"

On Tuesday night in Phoenix, Anthony Rinaldi, 26, shot his wife in their home, left their two sons alone and turned himself in to police.

"She is definitely dead," Rinaldi told an officer he flagged down, according to an arrest report. "I put two to the chest and one to the head."

The couple met in Naples 2½ years ago, where Blaies-Rinaldi grew up, her mother, Pamela Blaies of Arizona, said Thursday in a phone interview.

Blaies-Rinaldi and her twin brother Jonny Blaies attended Barron Collier High School. They left after their junior year to study cosmetology.

She and Anthony Rinaldi knew each other briefly when she became pregnant in 2009, her mother said. Three months later, they married in Naples while Rinaldi was on military leave from his duties as an Army sniper based in Germany.
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Command Sgt. Major, Walter Reed official accused of falsifying military record

Walter Reed official accused of falsifying military record
From Barbara Starr , CNN Pentagon Correspondent
July 23, 2010 9:17 p.m. EDT


STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Medical brigade's senior enlisted officer claims to have attended several educational courses
Sgt. Maj. Stoney Crump may face court martial
Crump is also charged with wearing as many as 15 service ribbons he isn't entitled to wear

Washington (CNN) -- A top military official at Walter Reed Army Medical Center has been relieved of duty and charged with knowingly falsifying his personnel records.

Command Sgt. Maj. Stoney Crump, the senior enlisted officer for the Medical Center Brigade, had the "intent to deceive" when he submitted a false official record incorrectly stating that he had attended several military educational courses, according to the Army charge sheet.

Among the courses he is alleged to have attended were Reconnaissance School, Sniper School,; Drill Sergeant Course,; U.S. Army Ranger School and several Special Forces schools and courses, the Army charge sheet says.
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Walter Reed official accused of falsifying military record

PTSD follows Army sniper home

Published: August 24, 2008 6:00 a.m.
Battle wounds
Post-traumatic stress follows ex-Army sniper home
Michael Schroeder
The Journal Gazette
Sitting at a table in Starbucks, Antonio Arciga, 29, breaks a big chocolate chip cookie for his 4-year-old daughter, Elizabeth.

She has been waiting for Dad to finish answering questions about his service in Afghanistan and Iraq – tugging his arm now and again. The two are going fishing soon, he says, recognizing her bottled enthusiasm and reminding her in soft ways that she has to wait a little longer.

A reminder from his wife, Elisa, is the only reason Arciga admits he remembered the interview in the first place. A traumatic brain injury suffered in combat – the product of multiple IED blasts – has hampered his short-term memory.

But another battle scar – post-traumatic stress disorder – has had a more profound effect on his life. Though he feels lucky that his injuries – physical and mental – are manageable, he’s still haunted by visions from combat. Two images in particular.

Arciga was an Army sniper and now receives disability compensation. He shared his story in hopes that other veterans would seek help if they need it. He goes to the VA Medical Center in Fort Wayne three times a week for a strained ligament in his right knee, a fractured collar bone, ringing in his ears – related to firing his rifle and close-range blasts – and PTSD. He sees a psychiatrist once a month and a therapist twice monthly.

He also takes medication for anxiety and depression and to control his anger. Admittedly, he’s still irritable. He has difficulty concentrating and has lost sleep to nightmares and jitteriness.

“Things are going all right. I’m getting more adjusted to it now,” he said during a subsequent interview at his home on Fort Wayne’s west side. “I’m back into the groove.”

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