Marine Married for Just 10 Days, Died in Motorcycle Crash

Family Mourns Newlywed US Marine Killed in Motorcycle Crash
NBC Los Angeles
By David Summers and Monica Garske

Lance Corporal Brandon Laughman and his wife had only been married 10 days before he died

An active duty United States Marine who was killed in a motorcycle crash in Mission Valley this week had gotten married to his high school sweetheart just 10 days before the accident.

"He has a big heart and [is] very independent. Love for his family, if he had his mind set on something, he had his mind on it,” said Kaytlin Laughman, wife of Lance Corporal Brandon Laughman, 20, in a phone interview with NBC 7 Friday.

The couple had wed in Urbana, Ohio, where Laughman was born and raised. Days after marrying his bride, Laughman returned to active duty in San Diego.
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Seven Soldiers Wounded By Afghan Soldier

Seven GIs among eight wounded in Afghanistan shooting
Boston Herald
Brian Dowling
Sunday, June 18, 2017

An Afghan soldier turned his weapon on coalition forces at a base in northern Afghanistan, wounding eight people, including seven U.S. soldiers — the second such insider attack in the turbulent Middle Eastern country this month.

The group of 39 nations advising and assisting the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces said seven U.S. soldiers and one Afghan soldier were wounded when the rogue Afghan trooper opened fire.

“We have an enemy who is actively trying to drive a wedge between us,” Operation Resolute Support said in a statement. “We will not be deterred.”
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USS Fitzgerald: Seven sailors remain missing

The stricken destroyer Fitzgerald has returned home, but 7 sailors are still missing 
Navy Times 
By: David B. Larter 
June 17, 2017

Three sailors, including the ship’s commanding officer, Cmdr. Bryce Benson, were medically evacuated from the Fitzgerald by Japanese military aircraft and rushed back to mainland during the ship's long transit home.

Kazuhiro Nogi/ AFP via Getty images

UPDATE: The destroyer Fitzgerald, mangled from a rare, harrowing collision while at sea, returned to its home port of Yokosuka, Japan, at about 6:15 p.m. local time Saturday, capping a 16-hour effort by the crew to prevent an even greater crisis. 

Seven sailors remain missing, and divers were standing by to assess the ship's damage and try to access the spaces that were flooded when Fitzgerald collided with a merchant ship nearly four-times its size in the middle of the night. 

The incident occurred in the Philippine Sea, about 50 nautical miles southwest of Yokosuka. Images show clearly the ship had taken on massive amounts of water during the ordeal. A news release from U.S. 7th Fleet confirmed that two berthing spaces, an auxiliary machine room and the ship’s radio room all flooded. read more here

A stigma for veterans with PTSD

A stigma for veterans with PTSD
AM NEW YORK
By Sol Wachtler
June 16, 2017

Trump has repeated his support of veterans. He should consider the pardon and restoration of the honor of those veterans whose “misbehavior” and “bad paper” were caused by service-related mental disabilities.

Sixty-two percent of the 91,764 service members dismissed by the U.S. military for misconduct between 2011 and 2015 had been diagnosed two years before separation with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury or other conditions that could be associated with misconduct. And more than 13,200 of them received an “other than honorable” characterization of service, referred to as “bad paper,” making them ineligible for health benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The discharges, imposed with little or no due process, carried the stigma of a criminal conviction and the stain of dishonor. They contributed to homelessness, substance abuse and suicide.

Fifty years ago, 550,000 U.S. troops fought in Vietnam. At war’s end, more than half of all veterans diagnosed with PTSD had been arrested — more than one, multiple times, mostly for drug-related crimes. Many suffered from undiagnosed and untreated combat-related PTSD and, tragically, many were issued less-than-honorable discharges from the service. For years, the military underdiagnosed and did not treat the problems and then cursed the sufferers with discharges for misconduct.
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On the Other Side of Broken: One Cop's Battle with the Demons of PTSD

Police officer talks about dealing with PTSD
Brantford Expositor
Friday, June 16, 2017

Gain a new understanding of those who live with either PTSD or deafblindness at upcoming Brantford Public Library programs.

Police officer Brian Knowler will visit the Brantford Public Library on 

June 21 to talk about how PTSD affected his health, career and marriage.

(Postmedia Network)

On June 21, at 6:30 p.m, author and police officer Brian Knowler will visit the main branch to talk about how post-traumatic stress disorder affected his health, career and marriage.

In 2004, Brian Knowler was the first police officer at the scene of a fatal collision involving a close friend. For years he hid the physical and psychological effects, while his personal and professional life started to fall apart. He eventually sought help and was diagnosed with PTSD.

His book, On the Other Side of Broken: One Cop's Battle with the Demons of PTSD, tells the story about his life since being diagnosed and his recovery. It also talks about his wife's experiences; standing by him to help them rebuild their lives even though she watched her husband turn into someone she didn't recognize. Come to this free event to hear first-hand about Knowler's experiences.
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