Vanessa Guillenโs family seeks $35 million in the Army specialistโs 2020 wrongful death at Fort Hood
Armed with a new federal court ruling that allows a former Army colonel to pursue a sexual assault lawsuit, the family of Vanessa Guillรฉn has filed a wrongful death and assault case against the federal government.
A year after Vanessa Guillรฉnโs death, lawmakers and advocates call for Congress to pass military sexual assault reform bill
A federal bill was recently reintroduced, proposing sweeping changes to the way the military investigates sexual assault and harassment allegations. Texas lawmakers are urging Congress to make it law.
Family calls for arrest of Texas officer who fatally shot man during a mental health call
BELTON โ Family members of a Black man fatally shot by a Killeen, Texas, police officer who was responding to a mental health call are calling for the officer to be arrested and charged for the shooting. Patrick Lynn Warren, 52, was shot Sunday by Officer Reynaldo Contreras, who was responding to what has been termed a psychiatric call, police said. โInstead of that same resource officer who had helped before, they sent Reynaldo Contreras,โ Merritt said. โThe officer had a hostile demeanor and was not prepared to deal with a mental health crisis ... (the incident) continued to escalate. โWe expect Officer Reynaldo Contreras to be arrested immediately.
"Significant number" of U.S Army officers and soldiers at Fort Hood expected to be fired, AP reports
A memorial for Specialist Vanessa Guillรฉn outside the Fort Hood U.S. Army post in Killeen. A โsignificant numberโ of U.S Army officers and soldiers at Fort Hood in Texas are expected to be fired in an effort to correct a years-long culture of sexual assault and a pattern of violence at the base, the Associated Press reported. Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy is expected to remove soldiers from their jobs and trigger investigations that could lead to wider punishments, according to the AP. Guillรฉn was the victim of sexual harassment, her sister said, but she didnโt report the sexual harassment out of fear of retaliation. Between 2014 and 2019, an average of 129 felonies were committed annually at Fort Hood, including murder, kidnapping and sexual assault.
Man booked in slaying of 3, including Fort Hood soldier
A suspect in the March shooting deaths of three people, including a Fort Hood soldier, was arrested Friday in Mississippi, according to police in Central Texas. Officers with the U.S .Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force arrested the suspected man, identified as Barnard Lnell Morrow, in Newton, Mississippi, Killeen police said in a statement. Morrow, 21, is being held at the Lauderdale County Jail and is expected to be extradited to Bell County in Texas. Freddy Delacruz Jr. A justice of the peace suggested that, if arrested, Morrow's bond be set at $2 million. Delacruz was stationed at Fort Hood, near Killeen.
Family: Soldier believed dead was happy until recently
Elder Fernandes, 23, was found late Tuesday in Temple, according to local police. Natalie Khawam, who is representing the Fernandes family, said Army police told family members about the discovery late Tuesday night. Fort Hood officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. U.S. Army officials confirmed in a statement that Elder Fernandes reported an incident of abusive sexual contact and that investigation is ongoing. According to Isabel Fernandes, the family was told by Army officials that a different superior signed her nephew's hospital release.
Fort Hood soldier killed assisting at accident site IDโd
KILLEEN, Texas โ The Army has released the identity of a Fort Hood soldier killed while directing traffic at a vehicle accident scene. Cole Jakob Aton, 22, of Science Hill, Kentucky, had been a Patriot missile operator with the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade since August 2018, according to a Fort Hood statement issued Tuesday. Aton had stopped the night of Aug. 12 at a minor traffic accident scene on Interstate 14 in Killeen, near Fort Hood, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. Col. Ethan Hall, commander of the 69th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, offered Aton's family his condolences and paid tribute to the soldier. โHis selfless service and care for others are in keeping with the highest traditions of the โLightning Brigadeโ and our Army,โ he said in a statement.
Man charged in fatal shooting of Fort Hood soldier who was left on secluded road
Fort Hood soldier drowns; 4th from base dead in monthsThe body of Spc. Francisco Gilberto Hernandezvargas, 24, was recovered Sunday after he went underwater while being pulled on an inner tube behind a motorboat on Stillhouse Hollow Lake, according to Fort Hood officials. According to a federal complaint, she was bludgeoned to death at the base by a fellow Fort Hood soldier, Army Spc. Following that case that has received national attention, Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy said Thursday that he ordered an independent review of the command climate at Fort Hood. On June 21, officials authorities discovered skeletal remains in a field in Killeen, near Fort Hood, which were subsequently identified as 24-year-old missing soldier Gregory Morales.
Fort Hood soldiers body found near base; 3rd death in month
AUSTIN, Texas U.S. Army officials on Tuesday said that the body of a Fort Hood soldier was found near the Texas army base, marking the third time in a month that a Fort Hood soldiers body has been discovered. Mejhor Morta, 26, was found unresponsive July 17 in the vicinity of Stillhouse Hollow Lake, according to Fort Hood officials. Morta's awards and decorations include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon. Then on July 1, U.S. Army officials found more human remains, which were later identified as 20-year-old missing Fort Hood soldier Pfc. Vanessa Guillen, near the Leon River in Bell County, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Fort Hood.
Preliminary autopsy report suggests Fort Hood soldier drowned in lake, Bell County Sheriffs Office says
The death of a Fort Hood soldier the third in the span of a month is consistent with a drowning, according to a preliminary autopsy report. The Bell County Sheriffs Office on Wednesday stated a full autopsy report has not been finished or released by the medical examiners office in Dallas, but a preliminary autopsy report suggests Pvt. His awards and decorations include the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal and the Army Service Ribbon. Lawmakers call for military changes after Vanessa Guillens deathThe case of soldier Vanessa Guillen, 20 garnered national attention when she disappeared in April from Fort Hood. Another Fort Hood soldier, 24-year-old Gregory Morales disappeared in August.
Complaint: Missing Texas solider was killed at Fort Hood
Army investigators believe Guillen, a Texas soldier missing since April, was killed by another soldier on the Texas base where they served, the attorney for the missing soldier's family said Thursday. Human remains were found Tuesday near the Leon River in Bell County, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Fort Hood, in the search for Guillen. The criminal complaint released later Thursday said the civilian arrested in connection to the Guillen case is Cecily Aguilar, 22, of Killeen, Texas, near Fort Hood. From their text conversations, Mayra Guillen said she believed her sister was afraid during her time at Fort Hood. Guillen was last seen April 22 in a parking lot at Fort Hood.
Man wanted in connection with Fort Hood criminal investigation fatally shoots self, Killeen police say
SAN ANTONIO โ A person wanted in connection to a Fort Hood criminal investigation has died after he shot himself early Wednesday. Later Wednesday, an attorney for the family of missing Fort Hood soldier Vanessa Guillen said she believes that suspect is tied to Guillenโs disappearance. Body found believed to be Vanessa Guillenโs, suspect killed himself, family attorney saysGuillen, a private first class, was last seen on April 22. Human remains found near Central Texas river during search for Fort Hood soldier Vanessa GuillenLast month, Army officials said they suspect foul play in her disappearance. The Army also said they launched a probe into sexual harassment allegations after Guillenโs family said she was harassed by one of her sergeants.
Reports: Remains found near Fort Hood belong to soldier missing since 2019, mother says
KILLEEN, Texas โ A missing Fort Hood soldierโs mother told a Houston news outlet that the skeletal remains found Friday morning in Killeen are those of her son, who was last seen in August 2019. My missing soldier Greg Wedel,โ his mother, Kim Wedel, wrote in an email Saturday to KTRK, the ABC affiliate in Houston. He was seen driving a 2018 black Kia Rio outside Fort Hood in Killeen on Aug. 19, 2019, officials said. Fort Hood said Morales was last seen Aug. 20, 2019. Investigators said they do not believe Moralesโ case is connected to Private Vanessa Guillen, who was reported missing from Fort Hood in April.
Officials asking for publicโs help in finding missing Fort Hood soldier
KILLEEN, Texas โ Fort Hood officials and Special Agents are asking for the publicโs help in locating a missing soldier that was stationed at Ford Hood in Killeen, Texas. Vanessa Guillen, 20, was last seen at 1 p.m., April 22, in the parking lot of her Regimental Engineer Squadron Headquarters, according to officials. Her car keys, barracks room key, identification card and wallet were found in the armory room where she was working earlier in the day, Fort Hood officials said. Guillen is described as being five feet, two inches tall, has black hair, brown eyes and was last seen wearing a black t-shirt. Publicโs Help Sought in Locating Fort Hood Soldier QUANTICO, VA (April 25, 2020) โ Fort Hood officials and Special... Posted by III Corps and Fort Hood on Saturday, April 25, 2020Fort Hood Military Police issued a Be on the Lookout (BOLO) notice to area law enforcement, civilian and military police to aid in the search.