thedrifter
08-24-07, 07:43 AM
7 suspended after NCO training death at Hood
By Gina Cavallaro - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Aug 23, 2007 22:20:56 EDT
At least seven noncommissioned officers at Fort Hood, Texas, were suspended and given letters of reprimand in the case of a supply sergeant who died during a land-navigation exercise.
Judicial action under the Uniform Code of Military Justice is also possible, said Fort Hood officials, who would not identify the disciplined NCOs, all of whom worked at the post’s NCO Academy.
Sgt. Lawrence Sprader Jr., 24, died after becoming lost and suffering dehydration and hyperthermia during the Warrior Leader Course test in June.
His death and the resulting investigations have rocked the NCO Academy, where the Warrior Leader Course has been temporarily discontinued and its leadership suspended.
An attorney representing the seven NCOs pro bono said he is concerned with the way the investigations were conducted and will request more time to read the 1,900-page report.
“It appears that mass punishment is being undertaken against targeted NCOs in an effort to appease the outspoken concerns of the decedent’s family,” said the attorney, retired Army judge Col. John Galligan.
Regarding the possibility of further action under the UCMJ, he said he had “grave doubts whether a fair procedure could be conducted here at Fort Hood.”
Officials at Fort Hood would not disclose the total number of soldiers disciplined. According to Galligan, the soldiers, who rank from sergeant to sergeant major, were assembled at 5 p.m. Aug. 20 and handed letters of reprimand as a group.
“They were all totally surprised by the action,” Galligan said.
“I love the UCMJ and the military justice system, but I hate to see these soldiers treated unfairly. These are dedicated, highly motivated, well-trained NCOs. They are the cream of the crop.”
During the four separate investigations that began in June, the NCO Academy’s leadership was suspended, but the administrative actions meted out Aug. 20 could not be initiated until the Sprader family was briefed on the results and recommendations.
Sprader’s parents, Lee and Larry Sprader of Prince George County, Va., were briefed on the investigations Aug. 18 by Col. Mack Huey, III Corps rear detachment commander.
“We’re not releasing details of the investigation because we have ongoing administrative actions,” Fort Hood spokeswoman Col. Diane Battaglia said, adding only that it involves “several members of the NCO Academy leadership.”
The only Article 15 letter of reprimand, a nonjudicial punishment, was given to a soldier “for a very specific allegation that took place during the course of the investigation into Sprader’s death,” Battaglia said, confirming that the soldier is in the process of separating from the Army.
Galligan is representing that soldier, who declined to be identified.
The NCO Academy is still operating, but the course has been suspended for now and may not resume for at least 60 days, according to Battaglia, who said about 315 soldiers go through the course there each year.
“The leadership will have to be reinstated. The administrative and possible judicial actions will take about 60 days to resolve,” Battaglia said.
The independent investigations concluded that a combination of factors led to the soldier’s death. Sprader’s parents were provided all the details of the investigations’ findings, Battaglia said.
“I feel angry, but it’s not at the Army. It’s at the individuals they’re going to hold accountable,” Larry Sprader told The Associated Press.
He said Army officials gave him a copy of Fort Hood’s 2,000-page investigative report and discussed it with him over the weekend.
Larry Sprader, a Vietnam veteran with 24 years of military service, said he was satisfied after talking to Army officials and did not plan to file a lawsuit or otherwise pursue the matter further.
“Will there ever be closure? There’s never going to be closure, but at least we have some answers,” Sprader said.
Two parallel 15-6 administrative investigations were ordered by Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Hammond, commanding general of 4th Infantry Division and senior mission commander for III Corps and Fort Hood’s rear echelon.
One was “narrowly focused” on actual training, the conduct of the land navigation course and all the procedures that are in place for it, Battaglia said.
The second 15-6 focused on the circumstances surrounding Sprader’s death.
One investigation each was conducted by the Criminal Investigation Command and the Combat Readiness Center.
Sprader, 24, was a supply sergeant with 11th Military Police Battalion. He went missing June 8.
After a search that included 3,000 soldiers, helicopters, search dogs, mounted personnel and infrared sensors, Sprader’s body was found June 12 under thick brush a mile south of Gray Army Airfield.
Preliminary autopsy findings showed he died from dehydration and hyperthermia.
Sprader had been dropped off at noon in a remote, wooded area on a day when temperatures reached the mid-90s.
According to the Army, he had two water canteens and a water backpack, two compasses, two Meals Ready to Eat, a protractor, a map of Fort Hood and his personal cell phone.
Following the incident, III Corps canceled the academy’s 15-day Warrior Leader Course, which remains shut down while the actions against the school’s leadership are fleshed out and procedures are revised.
Galligan said he will request more time to review the lengthy report, ensure that each soldier has access to Trial Defense Service counsel, request copies of all press releases and e-mails that may have been exchanged among Hammond, his staff and Sprader’s parents, the CID report and the autopsy report.
“Sadly, the command elements at Fort Hood have not been forthcoming with much of the information related to the case and have precipitously initiated adverse administrative action against several senior NCOs with unblemished military records,” Galligan said.
“We operate 26 NCO academies all over the world. We pick these people because we believe as leaders they are the best equipped, the best trained, best motivated to train future leaders for the Army of tomorrow,” he said.
Ellie
By Gina Cavallaro - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday Aug 23, 2007 22:20:56 EDT
At least seven noncommissioned officers at Fort Hood, Texas, were suspended and given letters of reprimand in the case of a supply sergeant who died during a land-navigation exercise.
Judicial action under the Uniform Code of Military Justice is also possible, said Fort Hood officials, who would not identify the disciplined NCOs, all of whom worked at the post’s NCO Academy.
Sgt. Lawrence Sprader Jr., 24, died after becoming lost and suffering dehydration and hyperthermia during the Warrior Leader Course test in June.
His death and the resulting investigations have rocked the NCO Academy, where the Warrior Leader Course has been temporarily discontinued and its leadership suspended.
An attorney representing the seven NCOs pro bono said he is concerned with the way the investigations were conducted and will request more time to read the 1,900-page report.
“It appears that mass punishment is being undertaken against targeted NCOs in an effort to appease the outspoken concerns of the decedent’s family,” said the attorney, retired Army judge Col. John Galligan.
Regarding the possibility of further action under the UCMJ, he said he had “grave doubts whether a fair procedure could be conducted here at Fort Hood.”
Officials at Fort Hood would not disclose the total number of soldiers disciplined. According to Galligan, the soldiers, who rank from sergeant to sergeant major, were assembled at 5 p.m. Aug. 20 and handed letters of reprimand as a group.
“They were all totally surprised by the action,” Galligan said.
“I love the UCMJ and the military justice system, but I hate to see these soldiers treated unfairly. These are dedicated, highly motivated, well-trained NCOs. They are the cream of the crop.”
During the four separate investigations that began in June, the NCO Academy’s leadership was suspended, but the administrative actions meted out Aug. 20 could not be initiated until the Sprader family was briefed on the results and recommendations.
Sprader’s parents, Lee and Larry Sprader of Prince George County, Va., were briefed on the investigations Aug. 18 by Col. Mack Huey, III Corps rear detachment commander.
“We’re not releasing details of the investigation because we have ongoing administrative actions,” Fort Hood spokeswoman Col. Diane Battaglia said, adding only that it involves “several members of the NCO Academy leadership.”
The only Article 15 letter of reprimand, a nonjudicial punishment, was given to a soldier “for a very specific allegation that took place during the course of the investigation into Sprader’s death,” Battaglia said, confirming that the soldier is in the process of separating from the Army.
Galligan is representing that soldier, who declined to be identified.
The NCO Academy is still operating, but the course has been suspended for now and may not resume for at least 60 days, according to Battaglia, who said about 315 soldiers go through the course there each year.
“The leadership will have to be reinstated. The administrative and possible judicial actions will take about 60 days to resolve,” Battaglia said.
The independent investigations concluded that a combination of factors led to the soldier’s death. Sprader’s parents were provided all the details of the investigations’ findings, Battaglia said.
“I feel angry, but it’s not at the Army. It’s at the individuals they’re going to hold accountable,” Larry Sprader told The Associated Press.
He said Army officials gave him a copy of Fort Hood’s 2,000-page investigative report and discussed it with him over the weekend.
Larry Sprader, a Vietnam veteran with 24 years of military service, said he was satisfied after talking to Army officials and did not plan to file a lawsuit or otherwise pursue the matter further.
“Will there ever be closure? There’s never going to be closure, but at least we have some answers,” Sprader said.
Two parallel 15-6 administrative investigations were ordered by Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Hammond, commanding general of 4th Infantry Division and senior mission commander for III Corps and Fort Hood’s rear echelon.
One was “narrowly focused” on actual training, the conduct of the land navigation course and all the procedures that are in place for it, Battaglia said.
The second 15-6 focused on the circumstances surrounding Sprader’s death.
One investigation each was conducted by the Criminal Investigation Command and the Combat Readiness Center.
Sprader, 24, was a supply sergeant with 11th Military Police Battalion. He went missing June 8.
After a search that included 3,000 soldiers, helicopters, search dogs, mounted personnel and infrared sensors, Sprader’s body was found June 12 under thick brush a mile south of Gray Army Airfield.
Preliminary autopsy findings showed he died from dehydration and hyperthermia.
Sprader had been dropped off at noon in a remote, wooded area on a day when temperatures reached the mid-90s.
According to the Army, he had two water canteens and a water backpack, two compasses, two Meals Ready to Eat, a protractor, a map of Fort Hood and his personal cell phone.
Following the incident, III Corps canceled the academy’s 15-day Warrior Leader Course, which remains shut down while the actions against the school’s leadership are fleshed out and procedures are revised.
Galligan said he will request more time to review the lengthy report, ensure that each soldier has access to Trial Defense Service counsel, request copies of all press releases and e-mails that may have been exchanged among Hammond, his staff and Sprader’s parents, the CID report and the autopsy report.
“Sadly, the command elements at Fort Hood have not been forthcoming with much of the information related to the case and have precipitously initiated adverse administrative action against several senior NCOs with unblemished military records,” Galligan said.
“We operate 26 NCO academies all over the world. We pick these people because we believe as leaders they are the best equipped, the best trained, best motivated to train future leaders for the Army of tomorrow,” he said.
Ellie