Sending text saved ex-Marine

Young ex-Marine gets within hours of planned suicide, social media helps save him

KATU News 
by Genevieve Reaume 
March 28th 2019

For Austin, the year following his planned attempt would be filled with both hardships and happiness. He says he was diagnosed with PTSD because of the trauma, as well as depression and anxiety. He ended up getting a tattoo of that near-fateful date on his forearm.

KELSO, Wash. — A young ex-Marine came within hours of taking his own life, but a last-minute plea on social media helped save him. 

Austin Kaster is 23 years old. It’s been just over a year since his suicide plan shattered and his life truly changed.

"I'm not going to forget it, but if by the weird chance that I do, I can just look down at my arm and be like, ‘OK, this is what I accomplished. This is what I overcame,’” Austin said, describing the tattoo, which also includes the barcode from the hospital band he got that night. “You’re taught, ‘Hey, just suck it up. Keep going.’ You know, head down, just push on through. But it got to a point where it was like, OK, it’s either this or I’m going to wind up taking my own life,” Austin said, describing the tough moments while serving at Camp Pendleton that led him to reach out for help. read more here

Who Will Speak For Them Now?

The numbers speak for those who cannot speak for themselves anymore.

AFGHANISTAN 

FATALITIES

2010 499

2011 418

2012 310

2013 127

2014 55

2015 22

2016 14

2017 15

2018 1

IRAQ 

FATALITIES

2010 60

2011 54

2012 1

2014 3

2015 6

2016 17

2017 17

2010 Military Suicides

The AFMES indicates that 295 Service Members died by suicide in 2010 

(Air Force = 59, Army = 160, Marine Corps = 37, Navy = 39).

2011 Military Suicides

The AFMES indicates that 301 Service Members died by suicide in 2011 (Air Force = 50, Army = 167, Marine Corps = 32, Navy = 52). This number includes deaths strongly suspected to be suicides that are pending final determination. DoDSER Points of Contact (POCs) submitted reports for 100% of AFMES confirmed 2011 suicides (Air Force = 46, Army = 159, Marine Corps = 31, Navy = 51) as of the data extraction date (26 April 2012). 

A total of 915 Service Members attempted suicide in 2011 (Air Force = 241, Army = 432, Marine Corps = 156, Navy = 86). 

DoDSERs were submitted for 935 suicide attempts (Air Force = 251, Army = 440, Marine Corps = 157, Navy = 87). Of the 915 Service Members who attempted suicide, 896 had one attempt, 18 had two attempts, and 1 had three attempts.

2012 Military Suicides

According to AFMES data as of 31 March 2013, there were 319 suicides among Active component Service members and 203 among Reserve component Services members (Reserve [n = 73]; National Guard [n = 130]. The suicide rate (per 100,000 Service members) for the Active component was 22.7 and for the Reserve component was 24.2 (Reserve – 19.3, National Guard – 28.1). Per policy, the DoDSER system collected data on suicides for all Service members in an Active status at the time of death, including Service members in the Reserve components (i.e., active or activated 2 Reserve/National Guard). The distribution of suicide DoDSERs across the four included Services was as follows: Air Force – 57 (17.9%), Army – 155 (48.7%), Marine Corps – 47 (14.8%), and Navy – 59 (18.6%). 

A total of 841 Service members had one or more attempted suicides reported in DoDSER for CY 2012. Below we provide summary statistics on several variables for all DoD suicide and suicide attempt DoDSERs.

2013 Military Suicides

Number of confirmed and pending suicides for CY 2013, as of June 30, 2014 Active 259  Reserve 220

 

DoDSERs across the four included Services was as follows: Air Force-43 (17.6%), Army-115 (46.9%), Marine Corps-45 (18.4%), and Navy-42 (17.1%). These counts included reports for both confirmed suicides and probable suicides pending a final determination. 

A total of 1,034 SMs had one or more attempted suicides reported in the DoDSER for CY 2013

2014 Military Suicides

Active Component Air Force 60 Army 122  Marine Corps 34  Navy 53  Reserve Component All Reserve 80  All National Guard 89 

A total of 1,126 suicide attempts were reported from the four Services. 

The last quarterly report from the DOD has the charts. Go here to read more of the report, but pretty much this sums it all up.

And for all the suicides, plus attempted suicides, none of the "awareness raisers" ever bother to mention any of this. 

After all, why should they? No one holds them accountable for using a number without reading the reports anyway.

So who will speak for them now? Will you ask reporters to find the facts? Will you ask members of Congress to actually investigate any of this? Will you confront the "awareness raisers" about what they are doing besides just talking about a number?

Will you speak for those we already lost, before more are lost for our silence?

E. Coli Outbreak Sent 69 Marines to Hospital

69 Marines hospitalized in California E. Coli outbreak

Associated Press

November 4, 2017

Overall, about 300 Marines have been affected by a week-old outbreak of the diarrheal illness.

U.S. Marine Corps drill instructors with Receiving Company, Support Battalion, welcome new recruits to the depot as they get off the bus and step onto the yellow footprints during receiving at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, Calif., Jan. 19, 2016.ANGELICA ANNASTAS/U.S. MARINE CORPS 

SAN DIEGO — The Marine Corps says 69 recruits in Southern California are being treated for apparent exposure to E. coli and nine have developed a serious complication.

Those being treated Friday include 14 new cases among some 5,500 recruits at Camp Pendleton and the San Diego recruiting depot. The military says nine developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a problem that can cause anemia and kidney damage.

read more here

Ohio Women Stolen Valor Used Go Fund Me

Mansfield woman claimed she was a military veteran with cancer to solicit GoFundMe donations, prosecutors say
Cleveland.com
By Eric Heisig
June 30, 2016

Donations came from all over the country. The indictment says one person who lived in Adrian, Michigan gave $1,000.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — A Mansfield woman set up a GoFundMe page and claimed that she was a U.S. Marine in need of money for breast cancer treatments, despite the fact that she was never sick and never served in the military, according to a federal indictment.

Joyell "J.D." Riley, 41, was indicted Wednesday by a federal grand jury on a wire-fraud charge. An FBI investigation showed that 32 people sent a total of $3,515 to Riley after she set up the fundraising page in November 2014.

Riley represented herself on the site as a "highly decorated combat veteran" who served as a captain in the U.S. Marine Corps, the indictment says. Prosecutors also say she tried to prove that she was a veteran by using white out to falsify a government form that says she was discharged from active military duty.
read more here

Vietnam Vet talks about tainted water at Camp Lejeune

Marines exposed to tainted water

Copter crash kills 1 Marine, injures 3 off Hawaii

Copter crash kills 1 Marine, injures 3 off Hawaii
Sea Stallion plunges into the ocean; two survivors reported in critical condition


HONOLULU — One Marine was killed and three injured when a helicopter crashed into a bay on the coast of Oahu, a military spokesman said Wednesday.

The CH-53 D Sea Stallion, with four Marines aboard, crashed about 7:20 p.m. Hawaii time Tuesday, Maj. Alan Crouch, with the Marines' public affairs office in Hawaii, told NBC News.
read more here
Copter crash kills 1 Marine, injures 3 off Hawaii

Disabled Marine Vet sues insurance company and wins

Paraplegic Marine Awarded $19 Million in Fight Against Insurance Company
Insurance Company only agreed to pay for 19 of 109 days he spent in the hospital, a lawyer said.
Updated 5:45 PM PDT, Wed, Mar 16, 2011

A paraplegic former Marine from Westminster was awarded more than $19 million in punitive damages in his lawsuit against an insurance company that denied him full coverage while hospitalized after breaking a leg, his attorney said.

A Los Angeles Superior Court jury deliberated less than two hours before finding in favor of 57-year-old Thomas Nickerson, who sued Stonebridge Life Insurance Co. for breach of contract in January 2009.

The same jury previously awarded Nickerson more than $65,000 in compensatory damages, most of it for emotional distress.
read more here
Paraplegic Marine Awarded 19 Million

17 Marines attempted suicide so far this year, CNN, FOX and MSNBC don't care

The headline reads that two Marines committed suicide in February but it is the 17 unsuccessful attempts that should concern us more. 17 attempts in two months from the Marine Corp alone is a very troubling sign considering all the claims of steps being taken to prevent suicides.

MILITARY: Two Marine suicides in February

Two active-duty Marines killed themselves in February, raising to four the number who have committed suicide in 2011.

Another 17 Marines attempted suicide, according to the latest figures from the headquarters of the Marine Corps.
read more here
Two Marine suicides in February

Why does it ever have to get so bad for them that after they survive they lose the will to live? Why aren't all of these programs the military has working after millions being spent? When will there be a program that really works?

When will the 24/7 cable news spend time on this instead of covering every else? While the tsunami hitting Japan is horrible and deserves being reported on, we'll see coverage for a week instead of spending any time covering other news stories. Other news stories from around the world take up all the "news time" with reporters filling air time from Libya but no reporting being done on our troops in Afghanistan or Iraq any more than they are reporting on what happens to them when they come home. Is there anyone in control of these media giants thinking it is their responsibility to inform the public about what is happening to the men and women we send into combat? Do they give a damn about them at all? I wonder if their advertisers care. Maybe we shouldn't care about their products until they demand their money be spent on at least covering what is happening to our veterans.

Do we see reports on CNN, MSNBC or FOX about National Guardsman being foreclosed on while they are deployed? Do we see reports on military families having to go on food stamps? Do we see reports from families after someone they love committed suicide after surviving combat in our name? We don't any more than we see reports from Walter Reed.

The lead up to sending troops was all over the news when they went to Afghanistan and then to Iraq. The invasions were covered but then the reporters went away. We committed young men and women to begin risking their lives going back to 2001 and while they are still risking their lives, the American public doesn't have a clue about any of it.

Marine Corps opens crime-tips website to combat use of Spice

Marine Corps opens crime-tips website to combat use of Spice
By TRAVIS J. TRITTEN
Stars and Stripes
Published: March 10, 2011

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — The Marine Corps on Okinawa has created a crime-tips website to combat the use of designer drugs known as Spice, officials said Thursday.

The site allows servicemembers and others to log on and provide information anonymously about use of synthetic marijuana and other crimes to the Marine Corps Criminal Investigation Division “from the comfort of their home” via an online report form, the service said in a news release.

Various forms of synthetic marijuana, most commonly called Spice, have swept the United States and caused a major crackdown by the military and the Drug Enforcement Administration, which placed an emergency ban on five substances used to make Spice earlier this month.
read more here
Marine Corps opens crime-tips website to combat use of Spice

Marines in deadly Afghan Sangin valley face combat stress

This is a good article. It addresses how mental health professionals have them tell their stories over and over again. Good idea and works for most after traumatic events. It addresses the redeployments, the stress of being away from home on top of the stress of combat. What it does not address is one well kept secret. PTSD does not show up when they are still in a "threat" situation most of the time. Sure, there are nightmares, sadness setting in and a lot of other symptoms they will attribute to just being where they are. It is not until they are out of danger where they are supposed to be safe, like back home, and they still feel it all, they know they have a problem. For so many facing PTSD while deployed, it is a great predictor of how many more will not be able to "just get over it" when they come back home.

The Army released a study a couple of years back stating clearly the risk of PTSD is raised by 50% for each redeployment. With them going back 4, 5, 6 times or more, it would not be a surprise to discover 80% of the troops deployed will face PTSD.

Marines in deadly Afghan valley face combat stress

By SEBASTIAN ABBOT
The Associated Press
Saturday, March 5, 2011

SANGIN, Afghanistan -- When U.S. Marine Lance Cpl. Derek Goins deployed to the most dangerous place in Afghanistan five months ago, he mentally prepared for the risk of getting shot by the Taliban or stepping on bombs buried throughout this southern river valley.

But he wasn't ready for what happened to his two best friends, who were shot to death inside a patrol base by an Afghan army soldier who escaped into the arms of the Taliban.

"I grew up with those guys in the Marine Corps and shared a lot of laughs and tears with them," said Goins, 23, from Trumbull, Texas. "We expected to come here and fight and not just get murdered, and that's what it was."

The Marines who arrived in Sangin district of Helmand province in October have seen the kind of tragedy and combat stress that few can imagine - more than 30 deaths and 175 wounded, with scores losing arms and legs when they stepped on bombs.
read more here
Marines in deadly Afghan valley face combat stress

2 awarded Silver Stars for bravery in Afghanistan

Marine Lt. Col. Fridrik Fridriksson, assisted by Sgt. Maj. Scott Samuels, pins the Silver Star on Petty Officer 3rd Class Peter A. Gould during ceremonies at Camp Pendleton.


Credit: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

2 awarded Silver Stars for bravery in Afghanistan
Tony Perry at Camp Pendleton
March 4, 2011

On two successive mornings in July, Joseph Gould woke up at 3 a.m. with an overwhelming need to pray for his son, a Navy corpsman deployed in Afghanistan. "I awoke and I felt like Peter was in trouble," he said.

On the third morning, also at 3 a.m., Joseph and Malissa Gould got a telephone call from their son, Petty Officer 3rd Class Peter A. Gould. The Marine Corps squad to which he was assigned had been ambushed by the Taliban in the Garmsir district of Helmand province.

Gould, 24, downplayed his injuries. "He said he only had a few cuts and scratches," his father remembers. He made no mention of his actions during the morning-long firefight in which the Marines were attacked from three directions by 35 to 40 Taliban fighters armed with machine guns, improvised explosive devices and other weapons.

The Marines from Weapons Company, 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment who were with Gould during the fight later praised his heroism to the brass. On Friday, at a ceremony at Camp Pendleton, Gould was awarded a Silver Star for bravery as the squad medic on that brutal morning.

Within moments of the patrol being attacked, Gould ran through enemy fire to rescue a wounded Marine. As the battle continued, Gould was severely wounded by a shrapnel blast to his face and neck from a roadside bomb but he continued to administer aid to "my" Marines.
"His inspirational actions and mental toughness under intense enemy fire led directly to saving at least one Marine’s life that day," according to the Silver Star citation read to a gathering of Marines, family members and friends at a parade deck.

A second Silver Star also was awarded Friday to the family of Marine Cpl. Larry Harris Jr.

During the same attack, Harris was attempting to carry a Marine to safety when he stepped on a roadside bomb. Harris, a fire team leader, died instantly but the Marine that he was carrying survived.
read more here
2 awarded Silver Stars for bravery in Afghanistan

Teens found guilty in Christmas attack on Marine and his wife

Teens found guilty in Christmas attack on Marine

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

BRADENTON, Fla. -- Twin 15-year-olds were found guilty of assault charges stemming from a Christmas night attack on a U.S. Marine and his wife outside a Bradenton movie theater.
Circuit Judge Edward Nicholas said Thursday he will review the brothers' background before deciding on a penalty in March.

The incident began during a showing of "Little Fockers." Federico Freire, home on leave from Afghanistan, and his wife, testified they asked the group of unruly teens to be quiet.


Read more:
Teens found guilty in Christmas attack on Marine
also
Marine home on leave, wife attacked by teens after showing of "Little Fockers"

Spice and K2 a problem for the Marines?

Marine Corps bans service members from six businesses
Posted: February 11, 2011 - 9:59am
By Bluffton Today
BEAUFORT - Local Marine Corps and Navy commanders have designated six local businesses off-limits for selling a product that is like synthetic marijuana, the Marine Crops said Friday.

"The substances, known by many different names including Spice and K2, are prohibited due to their ability to induce intoxication, excitement or stupefaction," a release said. "All Marines and sailors are prohibited from possessing, purchasing, using, selling, distributing or introducing onto military installations these same substances."

The fake weed is legal in South Carolina.
read more here
Marine Corps bans service members from six businesses

Young Marine dies of suspected case of meningitis at Parris Island

Parris Island Marine recruit dies of apparent meningitis

By Savannah Morning News
A 19-year-old Marine recruit died Saturday of a suspected case of meningitis at Parris Island, S.C.’s Marine Corps Recruit Depot.
read more here
Parris Island Marine recruit dies of apparent meningitis

Marine from Orlando found dead in snowdrift in Revere Massachusetts

Man found dead on Revere Beach ID’d as Fla. Marine

By Robin Kaminski/The Daily Item

REVERE - A man who was found partially buried in a snowdrift on Revere Beach Boulevard Jan. 19 has been identified as a Marine from Orlando, Fla.

Huang Day Phan, 23, was identified by his family on Friday, according to Jake Wark, spokesman for Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel Conley.
read more here
Man found dead on Revere Beach

Maine's family files suit over 12-13 shots by Baltimore police

Slain Marine's Family Sues Baltimore, Officer

Officer Charged With Killing Tyrone Brown

BALTIMORE -- Relatives of an unarmed man shot to death by a Baltimore police officer last summer have filed a multimillion-dollar wrongful death lawsuit.

Police Officer Gahiji Tshamba has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Tyrone Brown, who was killed outside of the Eden Lounge in Mount Vernon on June 5.

The lawsuit named Tshamba, as well as his supervisors, police Commissioner Fred Bealefeld, Baltimore's mayor and City Council and the state of Maryland.

The lawsuit said Brown, who was with his sister and a friend, touched a female ahead of him in line while waiting to go inside the club. It said the woman expressed her displeasure, and that's when things began to escalate.

"Mr. Brown, who was home from Iraq, was trying to apologize and defuse the situation," said A. Dwight Pettit, the family's attorney. "The officer accosted him, identified himself as a Baltimore police officer, and shot at Mr. Brown approximately 12 or 13 times, killing him."

The lawsuit said Brown, 32, had his hands in the air and backed into an alley before Tshamba shot him at close range. It also said Brown's sister tried to intervene immediately before he was shot.
read more here
Slain Marine's Family Sues Baltimore, Officer

Will new stress hotline work for Marines?

New stress hot line launched for Marines
January 17, 2011 8:35 PM
BY GUNNERY SGT. BILL LISBON - SPECIAL TO YUMA SUN
An anonymous “by Marine/for Marine” hot line was recently launched to help deal with various stress-related issues before they lead to serious Corps-crippling problems such as suicide, substance abuse and domestic violence.

Dubbed “DStress,” the service lets Marines seek assistance from “one of our own” to build skills necessary to cope with the widely varying challenges of life in the Corps and the inevitable stress of combat, according to a Marine Administrative Message released Monday.

Besides a toll-free hot line via telephone and Skype, Dstressline.com allows Marines to help themselves to information and resources. A live online chat feature is also expected to launch by the end of January.

“If this DStress line saves one Marine or one family member, then it is well worth it,” said Sgt. Maj. Michael S. Timmerman with the Marine Corps' Personal and Family Readiness Division.

The counselors on the other end of the line are veteran Marines, Navy corpsmen who've served in the Fleet Marine Force or civilian counselors specifically trained in Marine Corps culture, said Timmerman, who briefed air station leaders here on the program last month.

The hot line won't be a crutch or a way to escape personal responsibility, said Timmerman. Instead, counselors will help callers set goals to deal with the stress, provide resources or referrals and follow up to see how they are doing.

“We want this to be that personal,” said Timmerman.
read more here
New stress hot line launched for Marines

Marine Sergeant Chase Love's Family Mourns After Murdered In Baltimore

Family Mourns Marine Murdered In Baltimore
January 17, 2011 6:31 PM
BALTIMORE (WJZ) — The family of a Marine is still struggling to come to terms with his murder at a club in Baltimore, just days before he was heading to Afghanistan. His sister spoke to Mike Hellgren just days after police arrested a teenager and charged him with the brutal crime.
Marine Sergeant Chase Love worked in some of the most dangerous combat zones in the world in Iraq and Afghanistan. His family never imagined he would die at a hookah lounge during his first visit to Baltimore with friends.
Police say 18-year-old Ronald Johnson shot him over and over again during an argument, before fleeing and leaving Love to die on the sidewalk.
For the first time, Love’s sister is speaking about the crime from her home near New Orleans.
“I think this would have been his third time going to Afghanistan and he always came home scot-free, untouched, never hurt. I just couldn’t even compose myself. I just couldn’t believe it,” said Keoka Love. “I really thought I was living a dream.”
read more here
Family Mourns Marine Murdered In Baltimore

Marine Corps' camp may have cancer link for Bay area vets

Marine Corps' camp may have cancer link for Bay area vets

By HOWARD ALTMAN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 14, 2011
In the beginning of 2007, Andrew Przenkop woke up with "a bit of pain" in his back.

A Polk County detention deputy, he shrugged it off as a byproduct of his job.

"I thought it was fatigue," Przenkop said. "In jail, you get a lot of hands-on with the inmates. They are always acting up."

Przenkop lived with the pain, but one morning in 2009, he began urinating blood. A short while later, he learned the pain had nothing to do with inmates.

"In March 2009, I found out I had kidney cancer," he says.

For the former Marine, who spent 11 months at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, finding out about the cancer was only the opening salvo in a battle for his life. In July, a friend told him about studies that show drinking water at two of the eight wells at Lejeune were contaminated with chemicals like perchloroethylene and trichloroethylene and that some people think those chemicals are linked to his cancer.

Saturday, Przenkop will be joined by scores of other Marines, their spouses and children at a meeting in Tampa of those searching for answers to what caused their health problems and what, if any, compensation is available from the Corps or the Veterans Administration.
read more here
Marine Corps' camp may have cancer link for Bay area vets/

Three tour Marine Sniper dead after standoff

UPDATE

Marine's Wife Gives Birth Day After His Death

Friend: Roxanne Gonzales, Baby Doing Well

POSTED: 11:16 pm MST December 30, 2010
SANTA FE, N.M. -- The pregnant wife of a Marine, who died after a shootout with state police in Santa Fe, gave birth to their second child on Thursday.
Lawrence Lujan said his friend, Roxanne Gonzales, gave birth to a baby boy named Cruz.
“Today was a big day for the Gonzales family,” Lujan said. “The baby and Roxanne are doing well. We are kind of in a mixed state.”
Lujan said Gonzales is also mourning the loss of her husband, Diego Gonzales. State police said they tried pulling Gonzales over after getting reports he kidnapped his wife and their other child, but the Marine shot at them before turning the gun on himself.
read more here
http://www.koat.com/news/26328689/detail.html



TSA officer kills himself during police shoot out
A TSA spokeswoman confirmed that Diego Gonzalez was a TSA behavior detection officer who had been employed at the Albuquerque Sunport for almost four years.
http://www.KOB.com/article/stories/S1900502.shtml?cat=500

Sister: Man Who Shot Himself Troubled By PTSD

Marine, 27, Dies In Shootout With State Police On I-25
http://www.koat.com/news/26317539/detail.html



Three tour Marine Sniper dead after standoff
December 30, 2010 posted by Chaplain Kathie
The police are not sure if is this veteran shot himself or not but all seem to agree PTSD was behind it all.

Man dead after shootout on I-2527-year-old veteran suffering PTSD may have fired fatal bullet himself
Geoff Grammer | The New Mexican
Posted: Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Diego Gonzales wanted help.
It didn’t come in time for the 27-year-old Pecos High School graduate, who was suffering post-traumatic stress disorder after two tours of duty in Iraq and another in Afghanistan as a U.S. Marine Corps sniper. He died late Tuesday in a shootout with police on Interstate 25 south of Santa Fe.
It’s still unclear whether the fatal shot came from state police or from Gonzales’ own gun. That won’t be determined until an autopsy is completed by the state Office of the Medical Investigator in Albuquerque.
“He was owning up to the fact that he had problems he knew he had to fix to be the best dad he could be,” said Lawrence Lujan, a childhood friend who spoke on behalf of the Gonzales family. “He did his thing in Iraq, served this country, and did so honorably. God only knows what he saw. But he was affected deeply, and he was seeking treatment for PTSD.”
read more here
Three tour Marine Sniper dead after standoff