ABCDE

Democracy Dies in Darkness SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007

THE OTHER WALTER REED Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration At Army’s Top Medical Facility

By Dana Priest and Anne Hull and Afghanistan. Washington Post Staff Writers The common perception of Walter Reed is of a surgical hospital that shines as Behind the door of Army Spec. Jeremy the crown jewel of military medicine. But 5 Duncan’s room, part of the wall is torn and 1/2 years of sustained combat have trans- hangs in the air, weighted down with black formed the venerable 113-acre institution mold. When the wounded combat engi- into something else entirely — a holding neer stands in his shower and looks up, ground for physically and psychologically he can see the bathtub on the floor above damaged outpatients. Almost 700 of them through a rotted hole. The entire build- — the majority soldiers, with some Marines ing, constructed between the world wars, — have been released from hospital beds often smells like greasy carry-out. Signs of but still need treatment or are awaiting neglect are everywhere: mouse droppings, bureaucratic decisions before being dis- belly-up cockroaches, stained carpets, charged or returned to active duty. cheap mattresses. They suffer from brain injuries, sev- This is the world of Building 18, not ered arms and legs, organ and back dam- the kind of place where Duncan expected age, and various degrees of post-trau- to recover when he was evacuated to Wal- matic stress. Their legions have grown so ter Reed Army Medical Center from Iraq exponentially — they outnumber hospi- last February with a broken neck and a tal patients at Walter Reed 17 to 1 — that shredded left ear, nearly dead from blood they take up every available bed on post loss. But the old lodge, just outside the and spill into dozens of nearby hotels and gates of the hospital and five miles up the apartments leased by the Army. The aver- road from the White House, has housed age stay is 10 months, but some have been hundreds of maimed soldiers recuperating stuck there for as long as two years. from injuries suffered in the wars in Iraq Not all of the quarters are as bleak SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon has spent more than two years as a patient at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The former sniper’s skull was shattered in a gun battle in Iraq, and he has post-traumatic stress disorder. With him is his 6-year-old son, Drake.

as Duncan’s, but the despair of Building the outpatient world without the knowl- 18 symbolizes a larger problem in Walter edge or permission of Walter Reed offi- Reed’s treatment of the wounded, accord- cials. Many agreed to be quoted by name; ing to dozens of soldiers, family members, others said they feared Army retribution if veterans aid groups, and current and for- they complained publicly. mer Walter Reed staff members inter- While the hospital is a place of viewed by two Washington Post reporters, scrubbed-down order and daily miracles, who spent more than four months visiting with medical advances saving more sol-

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE | THE WASHINGTON POST SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

The Outpatient World Building 18, left, is just outside the gates of Walter Reed on Georgia Avenue. It is one of fi ve buildings that house more than 700 recuperating soldiers, some of whom report: ª Wounded can wait for weeks with no help from staff to arrange treatment ª Recuperating soldiers are asked to manage and guard other soldiers ª Case workers are untrained, and there are not enough of them ª Lost paperwork and bureaucratic delays are common ª Buildings are overcrowded

diers than ever, the outpatients in the Groves, 26, an amputee who lived at Wal- Other Walter Reed encounter a messy ter Reed for 16 months. “We don’t know bureaucratic battlefield nearly as chaotic what to do. The people who are supposed as the real battlefields they faced overseas. to know don’t have the answers. It’s a non- On the worst days, soldiers say they stop process of stalling.” feel like they are living a chapter of “Catch- Soldiers, family members, volunteers 22.” The wounded manage other wounded. and caregivers who have tried to fix the sys- Soldiers dealing with psychological disor- tem say each mishap seems trivial by itself, ders of their own have been put in charge but the cumulative effect wears down the of others at risk of suicide. spirits of the wounded and can stall their Disengaged clerks, unqualified pla- recovery. toon sergeants and overworked case man- “It creates resentment and disen- agers fumble with simple needs: feeding franchisement,” said Joe Wilson, a clinical soldiers’ families who are close to poverty, social worker at Walter Reed. “These sol- replacing a uniform ripped off by medics diers will withdraw and stay in their rooms. in the desert sand or helping a brain-dam- They will actively avoid the very treatment aged soldier remember his next appoint- and services that are meant to be helpful.” ment. Danny Soto, a national service officer “We’ve done our duty. We fought the for Disabled American Veterans who helps war. We came home wounded. Fine. But dozens of wounded service members each whoever the people are back here who are week at Walter Reed, said soldiers “get supposed to give us the easy transition awesome medical care and their lives are should be doing it,” said Marine Sgt. Ryan being saved,” but, “Then they get into the SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

Some Soldiers Return From War Only to Battle the System at Walter Reed administrative part of it and they are like, they feel alone and frustrated. Seventy- ‘You saved me for what?’ The soldiers feel five percent of the troops polled by Walter like they are not getting proper respect. Reed last March said their experience was This leads to anger.” “stressful.” Suicide attempts and uninten- This world is invisible to outsid- tional overdoses from prescription drugs ers. Walter Reed occasionally showcases and alcohol, which is sold on post, are part the heroism of these wounded soldiers of the narrative here. and emphasizes that all is well under the Vera Heron spent 15 frustrating circumstances. President Bush, former months living on post to help care for her defense secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld son. “It just absolutely took forever to get and members of Congress have promised anything done,” Heron said. “They do the the best care during their regular visits to paperwork, they lose the paperwork. Then the hospital’s spit-polished amputee unit, they have to redo the paperwork. You are Ward 57. talking about guys and girls whose lives “We owe them all we can give them,” are disrupted for the rest of their lives, and Bush said during his last visit, a few days they don’t put any priority on it.” before Christmas. “Not only for when Family members who speak only they’re in harm’s way, but when they come Spanish have had to rely on Salvadoran home to help them adjust if they have housekeepers, a Cuban bus driver, the Pan- wounds, or help them adjust after their amanian bartender and a Mexican floor time in service.” cleaner for help. Walter Reed maintains a Along with the government prom- list of bilingual staffers, but they are rarely ises, the American public, determined not called on, according to soldiers and fami- to repeat the divisive Vietnam experience, lies and Walter Reed staff members. has embraced the soldiers even as the war Evis Morales’s severely wounded son grows more controversial at home. Wal- was transferred to the National Naval Med- ter Reed is awash in the generosity of vol- ical Center in Bethesda for surgery shortly unteers, businesses and celebrities who after she arrived at Walter Reed. She had donate money, plane tickets, telephone checked into her government-paid room cards and steak dinners. on post, but she slept in the lobby of the Yet at a deeper level, the soldiers say Bethesda hospital for two weeks because no SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

InIn hishis room room in Walter in Walter Reed’s BuildingReed’s 18, Building Spec. Jeremy 18, Duncan Spec. lives Jeremy with black Duncan mold, damaged walls and a hole in the Spec. Jeremy Duncan ceiling of his shower. But he says he would rather live there than share a different room with a stranger. Spec. Jeremy Duncan lives with black mold, damaged walls and a hole in the ceiling of his shower. But he says he would rather live there than share a K Service: Combat engineer, 101st Airborne Division, Alpha Company, 3rd Special Troops different room with a stranger. Battalion K Injury: Bomb blast tore off his left ear and a third of his arm muscle, broke his neck and one told her there is a free shuttle between destroyed a retina in Iraq in February 2006 the two facilities. “They just let me off the K Status: Hopes to stay in the Army and return to Fort Cambpell with his unit bus and said ‘Bye-bye,’ “ recalled Morales, a Puerto Rico resident. Morales found help after she ran out of money, when she called a hotline num- ing translators when he’s injured?” Morales ber and a Spanish-speaking operator hap- asked. “It’s so confusing, so disorienting.” pened to answer. Soldiers, wives, mothers, social work- “If they can have Spanish-speaking ers and the heads of volunteer organiza- recruits to convince my son to go into the tions have complained repeatedly to the Army, why can’t they have Spanish-speak- military command about what one called SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 6

“The Handbook No One Gets” that would one manages 30. Platoon sergeants with explain life as an outpatient. Most soldiers psychological problems are more carefully polled in the March survey said they got screened. And officials have increased the their information from friends. Only 12 numbers of case managers and patient percent said any Army literature had been advocates to help with the complex dis- helpful. ability benefit process, which Weightman “They’ve been behind from Day One,” called “one of the biggest sources of delay.” said Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), who And to help steer the wounded and headed the House Government Reform their families through the complicated Committee, which investigated problems bureaucracy, Weightman said, Walter Reed at Walter Reed and other Army facilities. has recently begun holding twice-weekly “Even the stuff they’ve fixed has only been informational meetings. “We felt we were patched.” pushing information out before, but the Among the public, Davis said, “there’s reality is, it was overwhelming,” he said. vast appreciation for soldiers, but there’s “Is it fail-proof? No. But we’ve put more a lack of focus on what happens to them” resources on it.” when they return. “It’s awful.” He said a 21,500-troop increase in Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, Iraq has Walter Reed bracing for “poten- commander at Walter Reed, said in an tially a lot more” casualties. interview last week that a major reason outpatients stay so long, a change from Bureaucratic Battles the days when injured soldiers were dis- The best known of the Army’s medical charged as quickly as possible, is that the centers, Walter Reed opened in 1909 with Army wants to be able to hang on to as 10 patients. It has treated the wounded many soldiers as it can, “because this is the from every war since, and nearly one of first time this country has fought a war for every four service members injured in Iraq so long with an all-volunteer force since and Afghanistan. the Revolution.” The outpatients are assigned to one of Acknowledging the problems with five buildings attached to the post, includ- outpatient care, Weightman said Walter ing Building 18, just across from the front Reed has taken steps over the past year gates on Georgia Avenue. To accommodate to improve conditions for the outpatient the overflow, some are sent to nearby hotels army, which at its peak in summer 2005 and apartments. Living conditions range numbered nearly 900, not to mention the from the disrepair of Building 18 to the rel- hundreds of family members who come to ative elegance of Mologne House, a hotel care for them. One platoon sergeant used that opened on the post in 1998, when the to be in charge of 125 patients; now each typical guest was a visiting family member SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 7

or a retiree on vacation. appointments during his first two weeks as The Pentagon has announced plans to an outpatient, then nothing. close Walter Reed by 2011, but that hasn’t “I thought, ‘Shouldn’t they contact stopped the flow of casualties. Three times me?’ “ he said. “I didn’t understand the a week, school buses painted white and paperwork. I’d start calling phone num- fitted with stretchers and blackened win- bers, asking if I had appointments. I finally dows stream down Georgia Avenue. Sirens ran across someone who said: ‘I’m your blaring, they deliver soldiers groggy from case manager. Where have you been?’ a pain-relief cocktail at the end of their “Well, I’ve been here! Jeez Louise, long trip from Iraq via Landstuhl Regional people, I’m your hospital patient!” Medical Center in Germany and Andrews Like Shannon, many soldiers with Air Force Base. impaired memory from brain injuries sat Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon, 43, for weeks with no appointments and no came in on one of those buses in Novem- help from the staff to arrange them. Many ber 2004 and spent several weeks on the disappeared even longer. Some simply left fifth floor of Walter Reed’s hospital. His for home. eye and skull were shattered by an AK-47 One outpatient, a 57-year-old staff round. His odyssey in the Other Walter sergeant who had a heart attack in Afghan- Reed has lasted more than two years, but it istan, was given 200 rooms to supervise began when someone handed him a map of at the end of 2005. He quickly discov- the grounds and told him to find his room ered that some outpatients had left the across post. post months earlier and would check in by A reconnaissance and land-navigation phone. “We called them ‘call-in patients,’ “ expert, Shannon was so disoriented that he said Staff Sgt. Mike McCauley, whose dor- couldn’t even find north. Holding the map, mant PTSD from Vietnam was triggered he stumbled around outside the hospital, by what he saw on the job: so many young sliding against walls and trying to keep and wounded, and three bodies being car- himself upright, he said. He asked anyone ried from the hospital. he found for directions. Life beyond the hospital bed is a frus- Shannon had led the 2nd Infantry trating mountain of paperwork. The typi- Division’s Ghost Recon Platoon until he cal soldier is required to file 22 documents was felled in a gun battle in Ramadi. He with eight different commands — most of liked the solitary work of a sniper; “Lone them off-post — to enter and exit the medi- Wolf” was his call name. But he did not cal processing world, according to govern- expect to be left alone by the Army after ment investigators. Sixteen different infor- such serious surgery and a diagnosis of mation systems are used to process the post-traumatic stress disorder. He had forms, but few of them can communicate SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 8

Marine Sgt. Ryan Groves, an amputee, was at Walter Reed for 16 months. He expressed frustration with his time there, calling it “a nonstop process of stalling.” Marine Sgt. Ryan Groves, an amputee, was at Walter Reed for 16 Sgt. Ryan Groves months. He expressed frustration with his time there, calling it “a K Service: U.S. Marine Corps infantry squad nonstop process of stalling.” leader, hit by an RPG round in Fallujah in 2004 K Injury: Lost one leg and badly injured the with one another. The Army’s three per- other sonnel databases cannot read each other’s K Status: Retired from the Marines, now a government major at Georgetown files and can’t interact with the separate University pay system or the medical recordkeeping databases. The disappearance of necessary forms and records is the most common reason a visible skull implant, said he had to prove soldiers languish at Walter Reed longer he had served in Iraq when he tried to get than they should, according to soldiers, a free uniform to replace the bloody one family members and staffers. Sometimes left behind on a medic’s stretcher. When the Army has no record that a soldier he finally tracked down the supply clerk, even served in Iraq. A combat medic who he discovered the problem: His name was did three tours had to bring in letters and mistakenly left off the “GWOT list” — the photos of herself in Iraq to show she that list of “Global War on Terrorism” patients had been there, after a clerk couldn’t find a with priority funding from the Defense record of her service. Department. Shannon, who wears an eye patch and He brought his Purple Heart to the SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 9

clerk to prove he was in Iraq. complain that they are poorly trained and Lost paperwork for new uniforms has often do not understand the system. forced some soldiers to attend their own One amputee, a senior enlisted man Purple Heart ceremonies and the official who asked not to be identified because birthday party for the Army in gym clothes, he is back on active duty, said he received only to be chewed out by superiors. orders to report to a base in Germany as The Army has tried to re-create the he sat drooling in his wheelchair in a haze organization of a typical military unit at of medication. “I went to Medhold many Walter Reed. Soldiers are assigned to one times in my wheelchair to fix it, but no one of two companies while they are outpa- there could help me,” he said. tients — the Medical Holding Company Finally, his wife met an aide to then- (Medhold) for active-duty soldiers and the Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfow- Medical Holdover Company for Reserve itz, who got the erroneous paperwork cor- and National Guard soldiers. The compa- rected with one phone call. When the aide nies are broken into platoons that are led called with the news, he told the soldier, by platoon sergeants, the Army equivalent “They don’t even know you exist.” of a parent. “They didn’t know who I was or where Under normal circumstances, good I was,” the soldier said. “And I was in con- sergeants know everything about the sol- tact with my platoon sergeant every day.” diers under their charge: vices and talents, The lack of accountability weighed moods and bad habits, even family stresses. on Shannon. He hated the isolation of At Walter Reed, however, outpa- the younger troops. The Army’s failure to tients have been drafted to serve as pla- account for them each day wore on him. toon sergeants and have struggled with When a 19-year-old soldier down the hall their responsibilities. Sgt. David Thomas, died, Shannon knew he had to take action. a 42-year-old amputee with the Tennessee The soldier, Cpl. Jeremy Harper, National Guard, said his platoon sergeant returned from Iraq with PTSD after seeing couldn’t remember his name. “We won- three buddies die. He kept his room dark, dered if he had mental problems,” Thomas refused his combat medals and always said. “Sometimes I’d wear my leg, other seemed heavily medicated, said people times I’d take my wheelchair. He would who knew him. According to his mother, think I was a different person. We thought, Harper was drunkenly wandering the ‘My God, has this man lost it?’ “ lobby of the Mologne House on New Year’s Civilian care coordinators and case Eve 2004, looking for a ride home to West managers are supposed to track injured Virginia. The next morning he was found soldiers and help them with appointments, dead in his room. An autopsy showed alco- but government investigators and soldiers hol poisoning, she said. SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 10

“I can’t understand how they could have let kids under the age of 21 have liquor,” said Victoria Harper, crying. “He was supposed to be right there at Walter Reed hospital. . . . I feel that they didn’t take care of him or watch him as close as they should have.” The Army posthu- mously awarded Harper a Bronze Star for his actions in Iraq. Shannon viewed Harp- er’s death as symptomatic of a larger tragedy — the Army had broken its covenant with its troops. “Somebody didn’t take care of him,” he would later say. “It makes me want to cry. “ Shannon and another soldier decided to keep tabs on the brain injury ward. BY KATE ROBERTSON FOR THE WASHINGTON POST “I’m a staff sergeant in the Cpl. Jeremy Harper Victoria Harper holds a photo of her son, Cpl. Jeremy Harper, who never met his 10-month-old nephew. U.S. Army, and I take care of K Cpl.Service: FoughtJeremy in Iraq where Harper he watched Victoria Harper holds a people,” he said. The two sol- K Service: Fought in Iraq, where he watched photo of her son, Cpl. three of his friends die Jeremy Harper, who diers walked the ward every K Injury: Treated at Walter Reed for PTSD never met his 10-month- day with a list of names. If a K Status: The 19-year-old from West Virginia old nephew. was found dead in his room at Mologne name dropped off the large House of alcohol poisoning in January 2005 white board at the nurses’ K Awarded the Bronze Star posthumously station, Shannon would hound the nurses to check their files and figure out where the soldier transferred to another hospital. If they had had gone. been released to one of the residences on Sometimes the patients had been post, Shannon and his buddy would pester SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 11

the front desk managers to make sure the had done two tours in Iraq. His head had new charges were indeed there. “But two been crushed between two 2,100-pound out of 10, when I asked where they were, concrete barriers in Ramadi, and now it they’d just say, ‘They’re gone,’ “ Shannon was dented like a tin can. His legs were stiff said. from knee surgery. But here he was, trying Even after Weightman and his com- to take care of business. manders instituted new measures to keep At the platoon office, he scanned the better track of soldiers, two young men white board on the wall. Six soldiers were left post one night in November and died listed as AWOL. The platoon sergeant was in a high-speed car crash in Virginia. The nowhere to be found, leaving several sol- driver was supposed to be restricted to diers stranded with their requests. Walter Reed because he had tested positive Benware walked around the corner for illegal drugs, Weightman said. to arrange a dental appointment — his Part of the tension at Walter Reed teeth were knocked out in the accident. He comes from a setting that is both military was told by a case manager that another and medical. Marine Sgt. Ryan Groves, case worker, not his doctor, would have to the squad leader who lost one leg and the approve the procedure. use of his other in a grenade attack, said “Goddamn it, that’s unbelievable!” his recovery was made more difficult by a snapped his wife, Barb, who accompanied Marine liaison officer who had never seen him because he can no longer remember combat but dogged him about having his all of his appointments. mother in his room on post. The rules Not as unbelievable as the time he allowed her to be there, but the officer said received a manila envelope containing the she was taking up valuable bed space. gynecological report of a young female sol- “When you join the Marine Corps, dier. they tell you, you can forget about your Next came 7 a.m. formation, one way mama. ‘You have no mama. We are your Walter Reed tries to keep track of hun- mama,’ “ Groves said. “That training works dreds of wounded. Formation is also held in combat. It doesn’t work when you are to maintain some discipline. Soldiers limp wounded.” to the old Red Cross building in rain, ice and snow. Army regulations say they can’t Frustration at Every Turn use umbrellas, even here. A triple amputee The frustrations of an outpatient’s day has mastered the art of putting on his uni- begin before dawn. On a dark, rain-soaked form by himself and rolling in just in time. morning this winter, Sgt. Archie Benware, Others are so gorked out on pills that they 53, hobbled over to his National Guard seem on the verge of nodding off. platoon office at Walter Reed. Benware “Fall in!” a platoon sergeant shouted SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 12

at Friday formation. The noisy room of sol- Every formation includes a safety diers turned silent. briefing. Usually it is a warning about mix- An Army chaplain opened with a verse ing alcohol with meds, or driving too fast, or from the Bible. “Why are we here?” she domestic abuse. “Do not beat your spouse asked. She talked about heroes and ser- or children. Do not let your spouse or chil- vice to country. “We were injured in many dren beat you,” a sergeant said, to laughter. ways.” This morning’s briefing included a warn- Someone announced free tickets to ing about black ice, a particular menace to hockey games, a Ravens game, a movie the amputees. screening, a dinner at McCormick and Dress warm, the sergeant said. “I see Schmick’s, all compliments of local busi- some guys rolling around in their wheel- nesses. chairs in 30 degrees in T-shirts.” Soldiers hate formation for its petty condescension. They gutted out a year in Sgt. Archie Benware the desert, and now they are being treated K Service: Vermont National Guard heavy like children. equipment operator in Iraq K Injury: Head was crushed between two “I’m trying to think outside the box 2,100-pound concrete barriers in Ramadi in here, maybe moving formation to Wag- 2005 K Status: Active duty

With his wife, Barb, and son Michael, Sgt. Archie Benware moves into a new apartment provided by Walter Reed. SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 13

ner Gym,” the commander said, addressing Explaining this strange world to fam- concerns that formation was too far from ily members is not easy. At an orientation soldiers’ quarters in the cold weather. “But for new arrivals, a staff sergeant walked guess what? Those are nice wood floors. them through the idiosyncrasies of Army They have to be covered by a tarp. There’s financing. He said one relative could a tarp that’s got to be rolled out over the receive a 15-day advance on the $64 per wooden floors. Then it has to be cleaned, diem either in cash or as an electronic with 400 soldiers stepping all over it. Then transfer: “I highly recommend that you it’s got to be rolled up.” take the cash,” he said. “There’s no guaran- “Now, who thinks Wagner Gym is a tee the transfer will get to your bank.” The good idea?” audience yawned. Actually, he went on, relatives can collect only 80 percent of this advance, Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon which comes to $51.20 a day. “The cashier K Service: Sniper team leader, 2nd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division has no change, so we drop to $50. We give K Injury: Hit by a sniper during a gun battle you the rest” — the $1.20 a day — “when in Ramadi in 2004. Lost his left eye, suffered a frontal lobe brain injury requiring you leave.” a skull implant and has PTSD The crowd was anxious, exhausted. K Status: Will be discharged from the Army but would like to get his last sergeant’s stripe “because I earned it.”

Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon and his wife, Torry, in the home they rent in Gaithersburg. He is still an outpatient. SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 14

A child crawled on the floor. The sergeant aggressive campaign to deal with the mice plowed on. “You need to figure out how infestation” last October and that the prob- long your loved one is going to be an inpa- lem is now at a “manageable level.” They tient,” he said, something even the doc- also say they will “review all outstanding tors can’t accurately predict from day to work orders” in the next 30 days. day. “Because if you sign up for the lodging Soldiers discharged from the psychi- advance,” which is $150 a day, “and they get atric ward are often assigned to Building out the next day, you owe the government 18. Buses and ambulances blare all night. the advance back of $150 a day.” While injured soldiers pull guard duty A case manager took the floor to in the foyer, a broken garage door allows remind everyone that soldiers are required unmonitored entry from the rear. Strug- to be in uniform most of the time, though gling with schizophrenia, PTSD, paranoid some of the wounded are amputees or their delusional disorder and traumatic brain legs are pinned together by bulky braces. injury, soldiers feel especially vulnerable in “We have break-away clothing with Vel- that setting, just outside the post gates, on cro!” she announced with a smile. “Wel- a street where drug dealers work the cor- come to Walter Reed!” ner at night. “I’ve been close to mortars. I’ve held A Bleak Life in Building 18 my own pretty good,” said Spec. George “Building 18! There is a rodent infes- Romero, 25, who came back from Iraq tation issue!” bellowed the commander to with a psychological disorder. “But here . . . his troops one morning at formation. “It I think it has affected my ability to get over doesn’t help when you live like a rodent! it . . . dealing with potential threats every I can’t believe people live like that! I was day.” appalled by some of your rooms!” After Spec. Jeremy Duncan, 30, got out Life in Building 18 is the bleakest of the hospital and was assigned to Build- homecoming for men and women whose ing 18, he had to navigate across the traffic government promised them good care in of Georgia Avenue for appointments. Even return for their sacrifices. after knee surgery, he had to limp back and One case manager was so disgusted, forth on crutches and in pain. Over time, she bought roach bombs for the rooms. black mold invaded his room. Mouse traps are handed out. It doesn’t But Duncan would rather suffer with help that soldiers there subsist on carry- the mold than move to another room and out food because the hospital cafeteria is share his convalescence in tight quarters such a hike on cold nights. They make do with a wounded stranger. “I have mold on with microwaves and hot plates. the walls, a hole in the shower ceiling, but Army officials say they “started an . . . I don’t want someone waking me up SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 15

coming in.” were eventually donated from elsewhere. Wilson, the clinical social worker But Wilson had had enough. Three at Walter Reed, was part of a staff team weeks ago he turned in his resignation. “It’s that recognized Building 18’s toll on the too difficult to get anything done with this wounded. He mapped out a plan and, in broken-down bureaucracy,” he said. September, was given a $30,000 grant At town hall meetings, the soldiers of from the Commander’s Initiative Account Building 18 keep pushing commanders to for improvements. He ordered some improve conditions. But some things have equipment, including a pool table and air gotten worse. In December, a contracting hockey table, which have not yet arrived. dispute held up building repairs. A Psychiatry Department functionary held “I hate it,” said Romero, who stays in up the rest of the money because she feared his room all day. “There are cockroaches. that buying a lot of recreational equipment The elevator doesn’t work. The garage door close to Christmas would trigger an audit, doesn’t work. Sometimes there’s no heat, Wilson said. no water. . . . I told my platoon sergeant I In January, Wilson was told that the want to leave. I told the town hall meeting. funds were no longer available and that he I talked to the doctors and medical staff. would have to submit a new request. “It’s They just said you kind of got to get used to absurd,” he said. “Seven months of work the outside world. . . . My platoon sergeant down the drain. I have nothing to show for said, ‘Suck it up!’ “ this project. It’s a great example of what we’re up against.” Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report. A pool table and two flat-screen TVs

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THE OTHER WALTER REED Iraq Vote Soldiers Face Neglect, Frustration In Senate Blocked At Army’s Top Medical Facility By GOP By Dana Priest and Anne Hull Washington Post Staff Writers

Behind the door of Army Spec. Jeremy 7 Republicans Join Duncan’s room, part of the wall is torn and hangs in the air, weighted down with Democratic Push black mold. When the wounded combat engineer stands in his shower and looks By Shailagh Murray up, he can see the bathtub on the floor Washington Post Staff Writer above through a rotted hole. The entire building, constructed between the world Senate Republicans for a second time wars, often smells like greasy carry-out. blocked a symbolic attempt by Demo- Signs of neglect are everywhere: mouse crats to reject President Bush’s troop in- droppings, belly-up cockroaches, stained crease yesterday, but GOP defections carpets, cheap mattresses. were higher than before, suggesting Re- This is the world of Building 18, not publican cracks as the Iraq war dom- the kind of place where Duncan expected inates Congress’s agenda. to recover when he was evacuated to With the 56 to 34 vote, Democrats fell Walter Reed Army Medical Center from shy of the 60 votes required to kick off Iraq last February with a broken neck debate on a nonbinding resolution and a shredded left ear, nearly dead from passed by the House last week that ex- blood loss. But the old lodge, just outside presses support for the troops but crit- the gates of the hospital and five miles up icizes Bush’s decision to expand combat the road from the White House, has ranks by more than 20,000 troops. Sen- housed hundreds of maimed soldiers re- ate Democrats picked up five new Re- cuperating from injuries suffered in the publican allies in their effort to advance wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. the resolution, bringing the GOP total to The common perception of Walter seven. Reed is of a surgical hospital that shines But the fate of the resolution is now as the crown jewel of military medicine. very much in doubt. Senate Majority 1 Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) an- But 5 ⁄2 years of sustained combat have transformed the venerable 113-acre in- nounced after the vote that he would not stitution into something else entirely — bring up the resolution again. Both sides a holding ground for physically and psy- instead are girding for the next phase, a chologically damaged outpatients. Al- confrontation over war funding, with most 700 of them — the majority sol- some Democrats determined to exercise diers, with some Marines — have been the power of the purse to influence Iraq released from hospital beds but still need strategy. treatment or are awaiting bureaucratic PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST As Congress struggled to find its voice decisions before being discharged or re- Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon has spent more than two years as a patient at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. The former sniper’s in the Iraq debate, the administration in- turned to active duty. skull was shattered in a gun battle in Iraq, and he has post-traumatic stress disorder. With him is his 6-year-old son, Drake. tensified its own campaign to convince They suffer from brain injuries, sev- the American public that the conflict re- ered arms and legs, organ and back dam- mains winnable. Secretary of State Con- age, and various degrees of post-traumat- doleezza Rice paid a surprise visit to ic stress. Their legions have grown so ex- The Outpatient World Baghdad yesterday, announcing that the ponentially — they outnumber hospital Building 18, left, is just outside the patients at Walter Reed 17 to 1 — that gates of Walter Reed on Georgia See SENATE, A6, Col. 1 they take up every available bed on post Avenue. It is one of fi ve buildings that and spill into dozens of nearby hotels and house more than 700 recuperating Doing Little, Looking Dashing apartments leased by the Army. The soldiers, some of whom report: Senators didn’t debate an Iraq average stay is 10 months, but some have ª Wounded can wait for weeks with no resolution, but their chinos made been stuck there for as long as two years. help from staff to arrange treatment statements. WASHINGTON SKETCH, A5 Not all of the quarters are as bleak as Duncan’s, but the despair of Building 18 ª Recuperating soldiers are asked Campaigns on Hold symbolizes a larger problem in Walter to manage and guard other soldiers Reed’s treatment of the wounded, ac- ª Case workers are untrained, and Many Senate presidential candidates cording to dozens of soldiers, family there are not enough of them return to the chamber to deal with an Iraq war resolution. NATION, A6 members, veterans aid groups, and cur- ª Lost paperwork and bureaucratic rent and former Walter Reed staff mem- delays are common bers interviewed by two Washington Rice Meets Leaders in Iraq ª Buildings are overcrowded In Baghdad, the secretary of state See WALTER REED, A12, Col. 1 acknowledged Americans’ frustrations with the Iraq war. WORLD, A21

INSIDE ‘McMissile’ Moment Lands Mom in Jail THE NATION ARTS BUSINESS Driver Gets Felony Conviction Obama’s Southern Tour Handicapping the Oscars Mental Illness at the Office South Carolina greets the Just what do the Academy Fearing stigma and bias, For Tossing Cup of Ice Into Car presidential candidate with voters mean by “Best Picture”? workers with an emotional

enthusiasm and curiosity, and A full section of Oscar illness face a tricky question: By Theresa Vargas

in Virginia, Gov. Timothy M. interviews and analysis. N1 Do I tell my employer? F1 Washington Post Staff Writer

C M Y K C M Y K A9 A13 A12 Kaine endorses him. THE MAGAZINE TRAVEL To the locals, it’s the “McMissile” case. METRO DAILY 02-18-07 MD RE A12 CMYK DAILY 02-18-07 MD SU A13 CMYK China’s New Rich Panama’s Rough-Edge Allure And like the name, the details of it spill forth like a bad Digging Out joke: A woman is driving north on Interstate 95. Three The fruits of capitalism are Even as it struggles to cater to kids squirm in the back seat, and her sister, six months Freeing cars from the ice is still giving entrepreneurs a taste of travelers, the isthmus offers pregnant and having early contractions, sits in the front. no easy task, and now, watch the good life — and the good food, terrific birding and The stress starts to simmer. Traffic slows, then crawls, BY CAROL GUZY — THE WASHINGTON POST out for potholes. C3 stresses that accompany it. — of course — a canal. P1 then creeps. More stress. A car cuts in front of her, then A Stafford County jury convicted Jessica Hall, 25, of A12 Sunday, February 18, 2007 R x The Washington Post scoots away.The A short Washington time later, it Post darts in again. She can maliciouslyx throwing a missile into an occupied vehicle. S Sunday, February 18, 2007 A13 no longer take it. She veers onto the shoulder and speeds up. Wham! She tosses a large McDonald’s cup filled with No one was injured, but the cup launcher, Jessica Hall, ice into the other car. 25, of Jacksonville, N.C., was charged and convicted by a THE OTHER WALTER REED “From my side, I heard a whoomp,” recalled the wom- Stafford County jury of maliciously throwing a missile an’s sister, LaJeanna Porter, 27. “I was like, ‘I know you into an occupied vehicle, a felony in Virginia. The in- didn’t throw that cup.’ She said, ‘Yes I did.’ ” structions given to the jury said that “any physical object Neither woman foresaw the seemingly supersize re- Some Soldiers Return From War Only percussionsto of that misguided Battle moment July 2. See MCMISSILE,theA16, Col. 1System at Walter Reed

WALTER REED, From A1 ArenasThe Army Zeroes has tried to re-create In the on organization NBA of a Stardom on the floor. The sergeant plowed on. “You need to fig- typical military unit at Walter Reed. Soldiers are as- ure out how long your loved one is going to be an in- Post reporters, who spent more than four months vis- Astutesigned Self-Marketing, to one of two companies On-Court while they areHeroics out- Propel Wizards Guard patient,” he said, something even the doctors can’t accu- iting the outpatient world without the knowledge or per- patients — the Medical Holding Company (Medhold) rately predict from day to day. “Because if you sign up mission of Walter Reed officials. Many agreed to be By Michaelfor active-dutyLee soldiers and thewas Medical preparing Holdover for the Com- world cham- Z’s “The Takeover,” Arenas decid- for the lodging advance,” which is $150 a day, “and they quoted by name; others said they feared Army retribu- Washingtonpany Post Stafffor Reserve Writer and Nationalpionships, Guard soldiers. and Arenas The com- was furious ed that he wasn’t going to sit back get out the next day, you owe the government the ad- tion if they complained publicly. panies are broken into platoonsthat that he are was led cut by platoonafter he had al- and wait for it to happen, and he vance back of $150 a day.” While the hospital is a place of scrubbed-down order LAS VEGASsergeants, — The the Armyidea cameequivalenttered of a parent.his game to fit the team’s wasn’t going to blame anyone else A case manager took the floor to remind everyone and daily miracles, with medical advances saving more to WashingtonUnder Wizards normal guard circumstances, Gil- needs. good sergeants know if it didn’t. that soldiers are required to be in uniform most of the soldiers than ever, the outpatients in the Other Walter bert Arenaseverything while he about was thedriving soldiers underDespite their being charge: a vicestwo-time all- “I’m going to will myself,” he re- time, though some of the wounded are amputees or their Reed encounter a messy bureaucratic battlefield nearly his Escaladeand talents, one afternoon moods and badin habits,star, evenArenas family still stresses. felt like only a membered saying. “I’m going to legs are pinned together by bulky braces. “We have as chaotic as the real battlefields they faced overseas. Washington.At Jay-Z’s Walter Reed, words however, and outpatientspseudo-star. have He been wondered draft- what he will my personality on you — like break-away clothing with Velcro!” she announced with a On the worst days, soldiers say they feel like they are BY SARAH L. VOISIN — THE WASHINGTON POST music blared,ed to “Theserve astakeover, platoon sergeantsthe had and to have do struggledto be included with among it or not.” smile. “Welcome to Walter Reed!” living a chapter of “Catch-22.” The wounded manage STYLE break’s overtheir . . responsibilities. .” Sgt. Davidthe Thomas,elite of the a 42-year-old National Basketball Six months later, the success of other wounded. Soldiers dealing with psychological dis- It was amputeeshortly withafter thethe Tennessee U.S. AssociationNational Guard, and becomesaid his a house- “The Takeover” can be spotted all A Bleak Life in Building 18 orders of their own have been put in charge of others at Los Tigres Gets Brassier With Its Music platoon sergeant couldn’t remember his name. “We won- Contents men’s national team had sent him hold name like Kobe Bryant or Le- over Las Vegas. Fans voted Arenas risk of suicide. Fresh off a Grammy win — and a concert in Charlotte last weekend,  2007 home fromdered South if he Korea, had mental where problems,” it Bron Thomas James. Aftersaid. “Some- listening to Jay- a starter in Sunday’s NBA All-Star “Building 18! There is a rodent infestation issue!” bel- The Disengaged clerks, unqualified platoon sergeants and above — the group brings its Mexican sound and increasingly Washington times I’d wear my leg, other times I’d take my wheel- lowed the commander to his troops one morning at for- overworked case managers fumble with simple needs: politicized songs about immigrants to the D.C. Armory tonight. D1 Post 7 K How tochair. tell Heif yourwould thing think isI thewas NBAa different or NASCAR. person. We| E1 mation. “It doesn’t help when you live like a rodent! I See ARENAS, A18, Col. 1 feeding soldiers’ families who are close to poverty, re- thought, ‘My God, has this man lost it?’ ” can’t believe people live like that! I was appalled by some placing a uniform ripped off by medics in the desert sand Civilian care coordinators and case managers are sup- of your rooms!” or helping a brain-damaged soldier remember his next posed to track injured soldiers and help them with ap- Life in Building 18 is the bleakest homecoming for

appointment. pointments, but government investigators and soldiers men and women whose government promised them

“We’ve done our duty. We fought the war. We came complain that they are poorly trained and often do not good care in return for their sacrifices. C M Y K home wounded. Fine. But whoever the people are back A1 understand the system. One case manager was so disgusted, she bought roach here who are supposed to give us the easy transition One amputee, a senior enlisted man who asked not to bombs for the rooms. Mouse traps are handed out. It should be doing it,” said Marine Sgt. Ryan Groves, 26, be identified because he is back on active duty, said he doesn’t help that soldiers there subsist on carry-out food an amputee who lived at Walter Reed for 16 months. received orders to report to a base in Germany as he sat because the hospital cafeteria is such a hike on cold “We don’t know what to do. The people who are sup- drooling in his wheelchair in a haze of medication. “I nights. They make do with microwaves and hot plates. posed to know don’t have the answers. It’s a nonstop went to Medhold many times in my wheelchair to fix it, Army officials say they “started an aggressive cam- process of stalling.” but no one there could help me,” he said. paign to deal with the mice infestation” last October and Soldiers, family members, volunteers and caregivers Finally, his wife met an aide to then-Deputy Defense that the problem is now at a “manageable level.” They who have tried to fix the system say each mishap seems Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz, who got the erroneous pa- also say they will “review all outstanding work orders” trivial by itself, but the cumulative effect wears down the perwork corrected with one phone call. When the aide in the next 30 days. spirits of the wounded and can stall their recovery. called with the news, he told the soldier, “They don’t Soldiers discharged from the psychiatric ward are of- “It creates resentment and disenfranchisement,” said even know you exist.” ten assigned to Building 18. Buses and ambulances blare Joe Wilson, a clinical social worker at Walter Reed. “They didn’t know who I was or where I was,” the sol- all night. While injured soldiers pull guard duty in the “These soldiers will withdraw and stay in their rooms. dier said. “And I was in contact with my platoon ser- foyer, a broken garage door allows unmonitored entry They will actively avoid the very treatment and services geant every day.” from the rear. Struggling with schizophrenia, PTSD, that are meant to be helpful.” The lack of accountability weighed on Shannon. He paranoid delusional disorder and traumatic brain injury, Danny Soto, a national service officer for Disabled hated the isolation of the younger troops. The Army’s soldiers feel especially vulnerable in that setting, just American Veterans who helps dozens of wounded ser- failure to account for them each day wore on him. When outside the post gates, on a street where drug dealers vice members each week at Walter Reed, said soldiers a 19-year-old soldier down the hall died, Shannon knew work the corner at night. “get awesome medical care and their lives are being he had to take action. “I’ve been close to mortars. I’ve held my own pretty saved,” but, “Then they get into the administrative part The soldier, Cpl. Jeremy Harper, returned from Iraq good,” said Spec. George Romero, 25, who came back of it and they are like, ‘You saved me for what?’ The sol- with PTSD after seeing three buddies die. He kept his from Iraq with a psychological disorder. “But here . . . I diers feel like they are not getting proper respect. This room dark, refused his combat medals and always think it has affected my ability to get over it . . . dealing leads to anger.” seemed heavily medicated, said people who knew him. with potential threats every day.” This world is invisible to outsiders. Walter Reed occa- In his room in Walter Reed’s Building 18, Spec. Jeremy Duncan lives with black mold, damaged walls and a hole in the Spec. Jeremy Duncan According to his mother, Harper was drunkenly wander- After Spec. Jeremy Duncan, 30, got out of the hospital sionally showcases the heroism of these wounded sol- ceiling of his shower. But he says he would rather live there than share a different room with a stranger. ing the lobby of the Mologne House on New Year’s Eve and was assigned to Building 18, he had to navigate diers and emphasizes that all is well under the circum- K Service: Combat engineer, 101st Airborne 2004, looking for a ride home to West Virginia. The next across the traffic of Georgia Avenue for appointments. stances. President Bush, former defense secretary Don- to the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda for through the complicated bureaucracy, Weightman said, Division, Alpha Company, 3rd Special Troops morning he was found dead in his room. An autopsy Even after knee surgery, he had to limp back and forth ald H. Rumsfeld and members of Congress have surgery shortly after she arrived at Walter Reed. She had Walter Reed has recently begun holding twice-weekly in- Battalion showed alcohol poisoning, she said. on crutches and in pain. Over time, black mold invaded promised the best care during their regular visits to the checked into her government-paid room on post, but she formational meetings. “We felt we were pushing in- “I can’t understand how they could have let kids un- his room. K Injury: Bomb blast tore off his left ear and hospital’s spit-polished amputee unit, Ward 57. slept in the lobby of the Bethesda hospital for two weeks formation out before, but the reality is, it was over- der the age of 21 have liquor,” said Victoria Harper, cry- But Duncan would rather suffer with the mold than a third of his arm muscle, broke his neck and “We owe them all we can give them,” Bush said during because no one told her there is a free shuttle between whelming,” he said. “Is it fail-proof? No. But we’ve put ing. “He was supposed to be right there at Walter Reed move to another room and share his convalescence in destroyed a retina in Iraq in February 2006 his last visit, a few days before Christmas. “Not only for the two facilities. “They just let me off the bus and said more resources on it.” hospital. . . . I feel that they didn’t take care of him or tight quarters with a wounded stranger. “I have mold on when they’re in harm’s way, but when they come home ‘Bye-bye,’ ” recalled Morales, a Puerto Rico resident. He said a 21,500-troop increase in Iraq has Walter K Status: Hopes to stay in the Army and watch him as close as they should have.” the walls, a hole in the shower ceiling, but . . . I don’t to help them adjust if they have wounds, or help them ad- Morales found help after she ran out of money, when Reed bracing for “potentially a lot more” casualties. return to Fort Cambpell with his unit The Army posthumously awarded Harper a Bronze BY KATE ROBERTSON FOR THE WASHINGTON POST want someone waking me up coming in.” just after their time in service.” she called a hotline number and a Spanish-speaking op- Star for his actions in Iraq. Cpl. Jeremy Harper Victoria Harper holds a photo of her son, Cpl. Jeremy Wilson, the clinical social worker at Walter Reed, was Along with the government promises, the American erator happened to answer. Bureaucratic Battles Shannon viewed Harper’s death as symptomatic of a Harper, who never met his 10-month-old nephew. part of a staff team that recognized Building 18’s toll on public, determined not to repeat the divisive Vietnam ex- “If they can have Spanish-speaking recruits to con- larger tragedy — the Army had broken its covenant with K Service: Fought in Iraq, where he watched the wounded. He mapped out a plan and, in September, perience, has embraced the soldiers even as the war vince my son to go into the Army, why can’t they have The best known of the Army’s medical centers, Wal- of post-traumatic stress disorder. He had appointments its troops. “Somebody didn’t take care of him,” he would three of his friends die “Fall in!” a platoon sergeant shouted at Friday forma- was given a $30,000 grant from the Commander’s Initia- grows more controversial at home. Walter Reed is Spanish-speaking translators when he’s injured?” Mo- ter Reed opened in 1909 with 10 patients. It has treated during his first two weeks as an outpatient, then noth- later say. “It makes me want to cry. “ K Injury: Treated at Walter Reed for PTSD tion. The noisy room of soldiers turned silent. tive Account for improvements. He ordered some equip- awash in the generosity of volunteers, businesses and ce- rales asked. “It’s so confusing, so disorienting.” the wounded from every war since, and nearly one of ev- ing. Shannon and another soldier decided to keep tabs on K Status: The 19-year-old from West Virginia An Army chaplain opened with a verse from the Bible. ment, including a pool table and air hockey table, which lebrities who donate money, plane tickets, telephone Soldiers, wives, mothers, social workers and the ery four service members injured in Iraq and Afghani- “I thought, ‘Shouldn’t they contact me?’ ” he said. “I the brain injury ward. “I’m a staff sergeant in the U.S. was found dead in his room at Mologne “Why are we here?” she asked. She talked about heroes have not yet arrived. A Psychiatry Department function- cards and steak dinners. heads of volunteer organizations have complained re- stan. didn’t understand the paperwork. I’d start calling phone Army, and I take care of people,” he said. The two sol- House of alcohol poisoning in January 2005 and service to country. “We were injured in many ways.” ary held up the rest of the money because she feared that Yet at a deeper level, the soldiers say they feel alone peatedly to the military command about what one called The outpatients are assigned to one of five buildings numbers, asking if I had appointments. I finally ran diers walked the ward every day with a list of names. If a K Awarded the Bronze Star posthumously Someone announced free tickets to hockey games, a buying a lot of recreational equipment close to Christ- and frustrated. Seventy-five percent of the troops polled “The Handbook No One Gets” that would explain life as attached to the post, including Building 18, just across across someone who said: ‘I’m your case manager. name dropped off the large white board at the nurses’ Ravens game, a movie screening, a dinner at McCor- mas would trigger an audit, Wilson said. by Walter Reed last March said their experience was an outpatient. Most soldiers polled in the March survey from the front gates on Georgia Avenue. To accommo- Where have you been?’ station, Shannon would hound the nurses to check their mick and Schmick’s, all compliments of local businesses. In January, Wilson was told that the funds were no “stressful.” Suicide attempts and unintentional overdos- said they got their information from friends. Only 12 date the overflow, some are sent to nearby hotels and “Well, I’ve been here! Jeez Louise, people, I’m your files and figure out where the soldier had gone. Every formation includes a safety briefing. Usually it longer available and that he would have to submit a new es from prescription drugs and alcohol, which is sold on percent said any Army literature had been helpful. apartments. Living conditions range from the disrepair hospital patient!” Sometimes the patients had been transferred to an- Frustration at Every Turn is a warning about mixing alcohol with meds, or driving request. “It’s absurd,” he said. “Seven months of work post, are part of the narrative here. “They’ve been behind from Day One,” said Rep. of Building 18 to the relative elegance of Mologne Like Shannon, many soldiers with impaired memory other hospital. If they had been released to one of the too fast, or domestic abuse. “Do not beat your spouse or down the drain. I have nothing to show for this project. Vera Heron spent 15 frustrating months living on post Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), who headed the House House, a hotel that opened on the post in 1998, when the from brain injuries sat for weeks with no appointments residences on post, Shannon and his buddy would pester The frustrations of an outpatient’s day begin before children. Do not let your spouse or children beat you,” a It’s a great example of what we’re up against.” to help care for her son. “It just absolutely took forever Government Reform Committee, which investigated typical guest was a visiting family member or a retiree and no help from the staff to arrange them. Many dis- the front desk managers to make sure the new charges dawn. On a dark, rain-soaked morning this winter, Sgt. sergeant said, to laughter. This morning’s briefing in- A pool table and two flat-screen TVs were eventually to get anything done,” Heron said. “They do the pa- problems at Walter Reed and other Army facilities. on vacation. appeared even longer. Some simply left for home. were indeed there. “But two out of 10, when I asked Archie Benware, 53, hobbled over to his National Guard cluded a warning about black ice, a particular menace to donated from elsewhere. perwork, they lose the paperwork. Then they have to re- “Even the stuff they’ve fixed has only been patched.” The Pentagon has announced plans to close Walter One outpatient, a 57-year-old staff sergeant who had a where they were, they’d just say, ‘They’re gone,’ ” Shan- platoon office at Walter Reed. Benware had done two the amputees. But Wilson had had enough. Three weeks ago he do the paperwork. You are talking about guys and girls Among the public, Davis said, “there’s vast apprecia- Reed by 2011, but that hasn’t stopped the flow of casu- heart attack in Afghanistan, was given 200 rooms to su- non said. tours in Iraq. His head had been crushed between two Dress warm, the sergeant said. “I see some guys roll- turned in his resignation. “It’s too difficult to get any- whose lives are disrupted for the rest of their lives, and tion for soldiers, but there’s a lack of focus on what hap- alties. Three times a week, school buses painted white pervise at the end of 2005. He quickly discovered that Even after Weightman and his commanders instituted 2,100-pound concrete barriers in Ramadi, and now it ing around in their wheelchairs in 30 degrees in T- thing done with this broken-down bureaucracy,” he said. they don’t put any priority on it.” pens to them” when they return. “It’s awful.” and fitted with stretchers and blackened windows some outpatients had left the post months earlier and new measures to keep better track of soldiers, two was dented like a tin can. His legs were stiff from knee shirts.” At town hall meetings, the soldiers of Building 18 Family members who speak only Spanish have had to Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, commander at Wal- stream down Georgia Avenue. Sirens blaring, they deliv- would check in by phone. “We called them ‘call-in pa- young men left post one night in November and died in a surgery. But here he was, trying to take care of business. Soldiers hate formation for its petty condescension. keep pushing commanders to improve conditions. But rely on Salvadoran housekeepers, a Cuban bus driver, ter Reed, said in an interview last week that a major rea- er soldiers groggy from a pain-relief cocktail at the end tients,’ ” said Staff Sgt. Mike McCauley, whose dormant high-speed car crash in Virginia. The driver was sup- At the platoon office, he scanned the white board on They gutted out a year in the desert, and now they are some things have gotten worse. In December, a contract- the Panamanian bartender and a Mexican floor cleaner son outpatients stay so long, a change from the days of their long trip from Iraq via Landstuhl Regional Med- PTSD from Vietnam was triggered by what he saw on posed to be restricted to Walter Reed because he had the wall. Six soldiers were listed as AWOL. The platoon being treated like children. ing dispute held up building repairs. for help. Walter Reed maintains a list of bilingual staff- when injured soldiers were discharged as quickly as pos- ical Center in Germany and Andrews Air Force Base. the job: so many young and wounded, and three bodies tested positive for illegal drugs, Weightman said. sergeant was nowhere to be found, leaving several sol- “I’m trying to think outside the box here, maybe mov- “I hate it,” said Romero, who stays in his room all day. ers, but they are rarely called on, according to soldiers sible, is that the Army wants to be able to hang on to as Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon, 43, came in on one of being carried from the hospital. Part of the tension at Walter Reed comes from a set- diers stranded with their requests. ing formation to Wagner Gym,” the commander said, ad- “There are cockroaches. The elevator doesn’t work. The and families and Walter Reed staff members. many soldiers as it can, “because this is the first time this those buses in November 2004 and spent several weeks Life beyond the hospital bed is a frustrating mountain ting that is both military and medical. Marine Sgt. Ryan Benware walked around the corner to arrange a den- dressing concerns that formation was too far from sol- garage door doesn’t work. Sometimes there’s no heat, Evis Morales’s severely wounded son was transferred country has fought a war for so long with an all- on the fifth floor of Walter Reed’s hospital. His eye and of paperwork. The typical soldier is required to file 22 Groves, the squad leader who lost one leg and the use of tal appointment — his teeth were knocked out in the ac- diers’ quarters in the cold weather. “But guess what? no water. . . . I told my platoon sergeant I want to leave. I volunteer force since the Revolution.” skull were shattered by an AK-47 round. His odyssey in documents with eight different commands — most of his other in a grenade attack, said his recovery was made cident. He was told by a case manager that another case Those are nice wood floors. They have to be covered by told the town hall meeting. I talked to the doctors and Acknowledging the problems with outpatient care, the Other Walter Reed has lasted more than two years, them off-post — to enter and exit the medical processing more difficult by a Marine liaison officer who had never worker, not his doctor, would have to approve the proce- a tarp. There’s a tarp that’s got to be rolled out over the medical staff. They just said you kind of got to get used Weightman said Walter Reed has taken steps over the but it began when someone handed him a map of the world, according to government investigators. Sixteen seen combat but dogged him about having his mother in dure. wooden floors. Then it has to be cleaned, with 400 sol- to the outside world. . . . My platoon sergeant said, ‘Suck Sgt. Ryan Groves past year to improve conditions for the outpatient army, grounds and told him to find his room across post. different information systems are used to process the his room on post. The rules allowed her to be there, but “Goddamn it, that’s unbelievable!” snapped his wife, diers stepping all over it. Then it’s got to be rolled up.” it up!’ ” which at its peak in summer 2005 numbered nearly 900, A reconnaissance and land-navigation expert, Shan- forms, but few of them can communicate with one an- the officer said she was taking up valuable bed space. Barb, who accompanied him because he can no longer “Now, who thinks Wagner Gym is a good idea?” K Service: U.S. Marine Corps infantry squad not to mention the hundreds of family members who non was so disoriented that he couldn’t even find north. other. The Army’s three personnel databases cannot “When you join the Marine Corps, they tell you, you remember all of his appointments. Explaining this strange world to family members is Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report. leader, hit by an RPG round in Fallujah in come to care for them. One platoon sergeant used to be Holding the map, he stumbled around outside the hospi- read each other’s files and can’t interact with the sep- can forget about your mama. ‘You have no mama. We are Not as unbelievable as the time he received a manila not easy. At an orientation for new arrivals, a staff ser- 2004 in charge of 125 patients; now each one manages 30. Pla- tal, sliding against walls and trying to keep himself up- arate pay system or the medical recordkeeping data- your mama,’ ” Groves said. “That training works in com- envelope containing the gynecological report of a young geant walked them through the idiosyncrasies of Army toon sergeants with psychological problems are more right, he said. He asked anyone he found for directions. bases. bat. It doesn’t work when you are wounded.” female soldier. financing. He said one relative could receive a 15-day ad- K Injury: Lost one leg and badly injured the carefully screened. And officials have increased the num- Shannon had led the 2nd Infantry Division’s Ghost The disappearance of necessary forms and records is Next came 7 a.m. formation, one way Walter Reed vance on the $64 per diem either in cash or as an elec- Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon other bers of case managers and patient advocates to help with Recon Platoon until he was felled in a gun battle in Ra- the most common reason soldiers languish at Walter tries to keep track of hundreds of wounded. Formation is tronic transfer: “I highly recommend that you take the K Service: Sniper team leader, 2nd Brigade, K Status: Retired from the Marines, now a the complex disability benefit process, which Weight- madi. He liked the solitary work of a sniper; “Lone Wolf” Reed longer than they should, according to soldiers, Sgt. Archie Benware also held to maintain some discipline. Soldiers limp to cash,” he said. “There’s no guarantee the transfer will 2nd Infantry Division government major at Georgetown man called “one of the biggest sources of delay.” was his call name. But he did not expect to be left alone family members and staffers. Sometimes the Army has the old Red Cross building in rain, ice and snow. Army get to your bank.” The audience yawned. K Injury: Hit by a sniper during a gun battle University And to help steer the wounded and their families by the Army after such serious surgery and a diagnosis no record that a soldier even served in Iraq. A combat K Service: Vermont National Guard heavy regulations say they can’t use umbrellas, even here. A Actually, he went on, relatives can collect only 80 per- in Ramadi in 2004. Lost his left eye, medic who did three tours had to bring in letters and equipment operator in Iraq triple amputee has mastered the art of putting on his uni- cent of this advance, which comes to $51.20 a day. “The suffered a frontal lobe brain injury requiring photos of herself in Iraq to show she that had been there, K Injury: Head was crushed between two form by himself and rolling in just in time. Others are so cashier has no change, so we drop to $50. We give you a skull implant and has PTSD after a clerk couldn’t find a record of her service. 2,100-pound concrete barriers in Ramadi in gorked out on pills that they seem on the verge of nod- the rest” — the $1.20 a day — “when you leave.” K Status: Will be discharged from the Army Shannon, who wears an eye patch and a visible skull 2005 ding off. The crowd was anxious, exhausted. A child crawled but would like to get his last sergeant’s implant, said he had to prove he had served in Iraq when K Status: Active duty stripe “because I earned it.” he tried to get a free uniform to replace the bloody one left behind on a medic’s stretcher. When he finally tracked down the supply clerk, he discovered the prob- lem: His name was mistakenly left off the “GWOT list” — the list of “Global War on Terrorism” patients with priority funding from the Defense Department. He brought his Purple Heart to the clerk to prove he was in Iraq. Lost paperwork for new uniforms has forced some soldiers to attend their own Purple Heart ceremonies and the official birthday party for the Army in gym clothes, only to be chewed out by superiors.

ABOUT THE SERIES Today’s story is one of two parts. Coming tomorrow: The ornate Mologne House looks like a luxury hotel, but the wounded soldiers living there are fighting a daily battle against desperation and dysfunction. ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM Chat: Staff writers Dana Priest and Anne Hull will be online Tuesday at noon to answer questions about this story at www.washingtonpost.com/liveonline. Photo Gallery: A collection of photographs of With his wife, Barb, and son Michael, Sgt. Archie Benware moves into a new apartment provided by Walter Reed. Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon and his wife, Torry, in the home they rent in Gaithersburg. He is still an outpatient. the patients and conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, narrated by Priest, can be found at www.washingtonpost.com/nation.

Marine Sgt. Ryan Groves, an amputee, was at Walter Reed for 16 months. He expressed frustration with his time there, calling it “a nonstop process of stalling.” PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE | THE WASHINGTON POST

C M Y K C M Y K A13 A12 ABCDE

Democracy Dies in Darkness MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007

THE OTHER WALTER REED The Hotel Aftermath Inside Mologne House, the Survivors of War Wrestle With Military Bureaucracy and Personal Demons

By Anne Hull and Dana Priest Washington Post Staff Writers ing they must rise at dawn for formation, though many are half-snowed on pain The guests of Mologne House have meds and sleeping pills. been blown up, shot, crushed and shaken, In Room 323 the alarm goes off at 5 and now their convalescence takes place a.m., but Cpl. Dell McLeod slumbers on. among the chandeliers and wingback chairs His wife, Annette, gets up and fixes him a of the 200-room hotel on the grounds of bowl of instant oatmeal before going over Walter Reed Army Medical Center. to the massive figure curled in the bed. An Oil paintings hang in the lobby of this Army counselor taught her that a soldier strange outpost in the war on terrorism, back from war can wake up swinging, so where combat’s urgency has been replaced she approaches from behind. by a trickling fountain in the garden court- “Dell,” Annette says, tapping her hus- yard. The maimed and the newly legless band. “Dell, get in the shower.” sit in wheelchairs next to a pond, watching “Dell!” she shouts. goldfish turn lazily through the water. Finally, the yawning hulk sits up in But the wounded of Mologne House bed. “Okay, baby,” he says. An American are still soldiers — Hooah! — so their lives flag T-shirt is stretched over his chest. He are ruled by platoon sergeants. Each morn- reaches for his dog tags, still the devoted MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST Cpl. Dell McLeod injured his head and spine in an accident on the Iraqi border and was sent to Walter Reed Army Medical Center for treatment. He and his wife, Annette, lived in Mologne House for more than a year, waiting for an Army decision about his future.

At Mologne House, Soldiers Wounded in War Say They’re Fighting the Army for Their Due

soldier of 19 years, though his life as a war- House for a year while the Army figures rior has become a paradox. One day he’s out what to do with him. He worked in tex- led on stage at a Toby Keith concert with tile and steel mills in rural South Carolina dozens of other wounded Operation Iraqi before deploying. Now he takes 23 pills a Freedom troops from Mologne House, and day, prescribed by various doctors at Wal- the next he’s sitting in a cluttered cubby- ter Reed. Crowds frighten him. He is too hole at Walter Reed, fighting the Army for anxious to drive. When panic strikes, a every penny of his disability. soldier friend named Oscar takes him to McLeod, 41, has lived at Mologne Baskin-Robbins for vanilla ice cream. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST Annette and Dell McLeod on an outing in Silver Spring; watching the fountains calms his anxiety, as do trips to bookstores and Baskin-Robbins for vanilla ice cream. “I’m worried about how he’s gonna fit into society,” Annette said of her husband. She quit her job and stays by his side 24 hours a day. The South Carolina National Guardsman was hurt on the Iraqi border, and now he is nervous in crowds, cannot drive and shows other signs of mental stress.

“They find ways to soothe each other,” years in random buildings and barracks in Annette says. and around this military post. Mostly what the soldiers do together is The luckiest stay at Mologne House, wait: for appointments, evaluations, signa- a four-story hotel on a grassy slope behind tures and lost paperwork to be found. It’s the hospital. Mologne House opened 10 like another wife told Annette McLeod: “If years ago as a short-term lodging facility Iraq don’t kill you, Walter Reed will.” for military personnel, retirees and their family members. Then came Sept. 11 and After Iraq, a New Struggle five years of sustained warfare. Now, the The conflict in Iraq has hatched a vir- silver walkers of retired generals convalesc- tual town of desperation and dysfunction, ing from hip surgery have been replaced by clinging to the pilings of Walter Reed. The prosthetics propped against Xbox games wounded are socked away for months and and Jessica Simpson posters smiling down MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

on brain-rattled grunts. lobby that opens every afternoon. Two Washington Post reporters spent But at this bar, the soldier who orders hundreds of hours in Mologne House doc- a vodka tonic one night says to the bar- umenting the intimate struggles of the tender, “If I had two hands, I’d order two.” wounded who live there. The reporting The customers sitting around the tables was done without the knowledge or per- are missing limbs, their ears are melted mission of Walter Reed officials, but all off, and their faces are tattooed purple by those directly quoted in this article agreed shrapnel patterns. to be interviewed. Most everyone has a story about the The hotel is built in the Georgian day they blew up: the sucking silence revival style, and inside it offers the usual before immolation, how the mouth filled amenities: daily maid service, front-desk with tar, the lungs with gas. clerks in formal vests and a bar off the “First thing I said was, ‘[Expletive],

After the Army finally discharged Dell McLeod, he and Annette packed up. For Dell, the small room at Mologne House had become home. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

that was my good eye,’ ” a sol- MONT. Outpatients’ Rounds CO. dier with an eye patch tells an Walter Reed stretches across 113 acres. VA. Detail MD. amputee in the bar. Soldiers recovering from war injuries D.C. — some in wheelchairs and others using ARL. The amputee peels his FFX. CO. crutches and canes — often travel a mile CO. P.G. beer label. “I was awake a day to reach their various appointments. ALEX. CO. through the whole thing,” he Walter Reed Army Medical Center FERN ST. says. “It was my first patrol. 0 500 NORTH DR. D.C. FEET

The second [expletive] day in RD. SERVICE Iraq and I get blown up.” Shepherd Main Park Hospital When a smooth-cheeked and ALASKA AVE. Cafeteria GEORGIA AVE. Social soldier with no legs orders a DAHLIA ST. Morning Workers, DAHLIA ST. Formation Site fried chicken dinner and two Post Office Medical 15TH ST. bottles of grape soda to go, 14TH ST. Holdover Takoma a kitchen worker comes out Mologne Psychiatry House IN DR. Services 29 to his wheelchair and gently MA MAIN DR. BUTTERNUT ST. places the Styrofoam container 16TH ST. Veterans Affairs Office 12TH ST. Building 18 on his lap. ASPEN ST. A scrawny young soldier ASPEN ST. Finance sits alone in his wheelchair at BY NATHANIEL VAUGHN KELSO — THE WASHINGTON POST a nearby table, his eyes closed and his chin dropped to his chest, an empty Corona bottle in front of burned crispy like campfire marshmal- him. lows.” Those who aren’t old enough to buy Mologne House is afloat on a river of a drink at the bar huddle outside near a painkillers and antipsychotic drugs. One magnolia tree and smoke cigarettes. Wear- night, a strapping young infantryman loses ing hoodies and furry bedroom slippers, it with a woman who is high on her son’s they look like kids at summer camp who’ve painkillers. “Quit taking all the soldier crept out of their rooms, except some have medicine!” he screams. empty pants legs or limbs pinned by medi- Pill bottles clutter the nightstands: eval-looking hardware. Medication is a pills for depression or insomnia, to stop favorite topic. nightmares and pain, to calm the nerves. “Dude, [expletive] Paxil saved my life.” Here at Hotel Aftermath, a crash of “I been on methadone for a year, I’m dishes in the cafeteria can induce seizures tryin’ to get off it.” in the combat-addled. If a taxi arrives and “I didn’t take my Seroquel last night the driver looks Middle Eastern, soldiers and I had nightmares of charred bodies, refuse to get in. Even among the gazebos MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 6

and tranquility of the Walter Reed campus assigned there to assist soldiers and fami- in upper Northwest Washington, manhole lies in crisis — an idea proposed by Wal- covers are sidestepped for fear of bombs ter Reed social workers but rejected by the and rooftops are scanned for snipers. military command that runs the post. Bomb blasts are the most common After a while, the bizarre becomes cause of injury in Iraq, and nearly 60 per- routine. On Friday nights, antiwar protest- cent of the blast victims also suffer from ers stand outside the gates of Walter Reed traumatic brain injury, according to Walter holding signs that say “Love Troops, Hate Reed’s studies, which explains why some at War, Bring them Home Now.” Inside the Mologne House wander the hallways try- gates, doctors in white coats wait at the ing to remember their room numbers. hospital entrance for the incoming bus Some soldiers and Marines have been full of newly wounded soldiers who’ve just here for 18 months or longer. Doctor’s landed at Andrews Air Force Base. appointments and evaluations are rou- And set back from the gate, up on a tinely dragged out and difficult to get. A hill, Mologne House, with a bowl of red board of physicians must review hundreds apples on the front desk. of pages of medical records to determine whether a soldier is fit to return to duty. If Into the Twilight Zone not, the Physical Evaluation Board must Dell McLeod’s injury was utterly decide whether to assign a rating for dis- banal. He was in his 10th month of deploy- ability compensation. For many, this is the ment with the 178th Field Artillery Regi- start of a new and bitter battle. ment of the South Carolina National Months roll by and life becomes a blue- Guard near the Iraqi border when he was and-gold hotel room where the bathroom smashed in the head by a steel cargo door mirror shows the naked disfigurement of of an 18-wheeler. The hinges of the door war’s ravages. There are toys in the lobby of had been tied together with a plastic ham- Mologne House because children live here. burger-bun bag. Dell was knocked out cold Domestic disputes occur because wives and cracked several vertebrae. or girlfriends have moved here. Financial When Annette learned that he was tensions are palpable. After her husband’s being shipped to Walter Reed, she took traumatic injury insurance policy came in, a leave from her job on the assembly line one wife cleared out with the money. Older at Stanley Tools and packed the car. The National Guard members worry about Army would pay her $64 a day to help care the jobs they can no longer perform back for her husband and would let her live with home. him at Mologne House until he recovered. While Mologne House has a full bar, A year later, they are still camped out there is not one counselor or psychologist in the twilight zone. Dogs are periodi- MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 7

BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST On Friday nights, demonstrators are regulars outside the gates of Walter Reed near the Mologne House. A bus full of soldiers drives past on the way to a field trip in Washington.

cally brought in by the Army to search the row’s veterans, always heroes.” rooms for contraband or weapons. When Dell and Annette’s weekdays are spent the fire alarm goes off, the amputees who making the rounds of medical appoint- live on the upper floors are scooped up and ments, physical therapy sessions and eval- carried down the stairwell, while a brigade uations for Dell’s discharge from the Army. of mothers passes down the wheelchairs. After 19 years, he is no longer fit for ser- One morning Annette opens her door and vice. He uses a cane to walk. He is unable is told to stay in the room because a soldier to count out change in the hospital cafete- down the hall has overdosed. ria. He takes four Percocets a day for pain In between, there are picnics at the and has gained 40 pounds from medica- home of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs tion and inactivity. Lumbering and blue- of Staff and a charity-funded dinner cruise eyed, Dell is a big ox baby. on the Potomac for “Today’s troops, tomor- Annette puts on makeup every morn- MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 8

ing and does her hair, some semblance of retarded, and I’m not mentally retarded, normalcy, but her new job in life is watch- right, babe?” he asks Annette. “I gradu- ing Dell. ated from high school. I did some college. I “I’m worried about how he’s gonna worked in a steel mill.” fit into society,” she says one night, as Dell It’s after 9 one night and Dell and wanders down the hall to the laundry room. Annette are both exhausted, but Dell still The more immediate worry concerns needs to practice using voice-recognition his disability rating. Army doctors are dis- software. Reluctantly, he mutes “The Ulti- puting that Dell’s head injury was the cause mate Fighting Challenge” on TV and sits of his mental impairment. One report says next to Annette in bed with a laptop. that he was slow in high school and that his “My name is Wendell,” he says. “Wen- cognitive problems could be linked to his dell Woodward McLeod Jr.” native intelligence rather than to his injury. Annette tells him to sit up. “Spell “They said, ‘Well, he was in Title I ‘dog,’ ” she says, softly. math,’ like he was retarded,” Annette says. “Spell ‘dog,’ ” he repeats. “Well, y’all took him, didn’t you?” “Listen to me,” she says. The same fight is being waged by their “Listen to me.” He slumps on the pil- friends, who aren’t the young warriors in low. His eyes drift toward the wrestlers on Army posters but middle-age men who left TV. factory jobs to deploy to Iraq with their “You are not working hard enough, Guard units. They were fit enough for war, Dell,” Annette says, pleading. “Wake up.” but now they are facing teams of Army “Wake up,” he says. doctors scrutinizing their injuries for signs “Dell, come on now!” of preexisting conditions, lessening their chance for disability benefits. For Some, a Grim Kind of Fame Dell and Annette’s closest friend at No one questions Sgt. Bryan Ander- Mologne House is a 47-year-old Guard son’s sacrifice. One floor above Dell and member who was driving an Army vehicle Annette’s room at Mologne House, he through the Iraqi night when a flash of holds the gruesome honor of being one of light blinded him and he crashed into a the war’s five triple amputees. Bryan, 25, ditch with an eight-foot drop. Among his lost both legs and his left arm when a road- many injuries was a broken foot that didn’t side bomb exploded next to the Humvee he heal properly. Army doctors decided that was driving with the 411th Military Police “late life atrophy” was responsible for the Company. Modern medicine saved him and foot, not the truck wreck in Iraq. now he’s the pride of the prosthetics team When Dell sees his medical records, at Walter Reed. Tenacious and wisecrack- he explodes. “Special ed is for the mentally ing, he wrote “[Expletive] Iraq” on his left MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 9

leg socket. help. “T Amputees are the first to receive to ha vers celebrity visitors, job offers and extrav- say. agant trips, but Bryan is in a league of D tien his own. Johnny Depp’s people want to bon hook up in London or Paris. The actor like hai Gary Sinise, who played an angry Viet- wit shi nam amputee in “Forrest Gump,” sends mo his regards. And Esquire magazine is De setting up a photo shoot. lik m Bryan’s room at Mologne House is co stuffed with gifts from corporate Amer- w ti ica and private citizens: $350 Bose noise-canceling headphones, nearly a t t thousand DVDs sent by well-wishers n and quilts made by church grannies. The door prizes of war. Two flesh-col- ored legs are stacked on the floor. A computerized hand sprouting blond hair is on the table. Sgt. Bryan Anderson, 25, one of five triple amputees from One Saturday afternoon, Bryan is the war, was featured in January’s Esquire. He sometimes tires of being the face of the war’s wounded. on his bed downloading music. Without his prosthetics, he weighs less than 100 pounds. “Mom, what time is our plane?” he had cut off his uniform. Heavily drugged, asks his mother, Janet Waswo, who lives missing one leg and suffering from trau- in the room with him. A movie company is matic brain injury, David, 42, was finally flying them to Boston for the premiere of a told by a physical therapist to go to the Red documentary about amputee hand-cyclers Cross office, where he was given a T-shirt in which Bryan appears. and sweat pants. He was awarded a Purple Representing the indomitable spirit of Heart but had no underwear. the American warrior sometimes becomes David tangled with Walter Reed’s too much, and Bryan turns off his phone. image machine when he wanted to attend a Perks and stardom do not come to ceremony for a fellow amputee, a Mexican every amputee. Sgt. David Thomas, a gun- national who was being granted U.S. citi- ner with the Tennessee National Guard, zenship by President Bush. A case worker spent his first three months at Walter Reed quizzed him about what he would wear. It with no decent clothes; medics in Samarra was summer, so David said shorts. The case MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 10

manager said the media would be there Suddenly, the thunder of cannons and shorts were not advisable because the shakes the sky. The last time Bryan heard amputees would be seated in the front row. this sound, his legs were severed and he was “ ‘Are you telling me that I can’t go to nearly bleeding to death in a fiery Humvee. the ceremony ‘cause I’m an amputee?’ ” Boom. Boom. Boom. Bryan pushes his David recalled asking. “She said, ‘No, I’m wheelchair harder, trying to get away from saying you need to wear pants.’ ” the noise. “Damn it,” he says, “when are David told the case worker, “I’m not they gonna stop?” ashamed of what I did, and y’all shouldn’t Bryan’s friend walks off by herself and be neither.” When the guest list came out holds her head. The cannon thunder has for the ceremony, his name was not on it. unglued her, too, and she is crying. Still, for all its careful choreography of the amputees, Walter Reed offers protec- Friends From Ward 54 tion from a staring world. On warm nights An old friend comes to visit Dell and at the picnic tables behind Mologne House, Annette. Sgt. Oscar Fernandez spent 14 someone fires up the barbecue grill and months at Walter Reed after having a heart someone else makes a beer run to Georgia attack in Afghanistan. Oscar also had post- Avenue. traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, a con- Bryan Anderson is out here one Friday. dition that worsened at Walter Reed and “Hey, Bry, what time should we leave in the landed the 45-year-old soldier in the hos- morning?” asks his best friend, a female pital’s psychiatric unit, Ward 54. soldier also injured in Iraq. The next day Oscar belonged to a tight-knit group is Veterans Day, and Bryan wants to go to of soldiers who were dealing with com- Arlington National Cemetery. His pal Gary bat stress and other psychological issues. Sinise will be there, and Bryan wants to They would hang out in each other’s rooms give him a signed photo. at night, venting their fury at the Army’s Thousands of spectators are already Cuckoo’s Nest. On weekends they escaped at Arlington the next morning when Bryan Walter Reed to a Chinese buffet or went and his friend join the surge toward the shopping for bootleg Spanish DVDs in ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns. nearby Takoma Park. They once made a The sunshine dazzles. Bryan is in his wheel- road trip to a casino near the New Jersey chair. If loss and sacrifice are theoretical border. to some on this day, here is living proof — They abided each other’s frailties. Sgt. three stumps and a crooked boyish smile. Steve Justi would get the slightest cut on Even the acres of tombstones can’t com- his skin and drop to his knees, his face full pete. Spectators cut their eyes toward him of anguish, apologizing over and over. For and look away. what, Oscar did not know. Steve was the MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 11

college boy who went to Iraq, and Oscar charged from the Army and given a zero figured something terrible had happened percent disability rating for his mental over there. condition. Sgt. Mike Smith was the insomniac. Oscar is visibly angry. “They gave him He’d stay up till 2 or 3 in the morning, nothing,” he says. “They said his bipolar smoking on the back porch by himself. was preexisting.” Doctors had put steel rods in his neck after Annette is quiet. “Poor Steve,” she says. a truck accident in Iraq. To turn his head, After dinner, they return through the 41-year-old Guard member from Iowa the gates of Walter Reed in Annette’s car, had to rotate his entire body. He was fight- a John 3:16 decal on the bumper and the ing with the Army over his disability rating, Dixie Chicks in the CD player. Annette too, and in frustration had recently called a sees a flier in the lobby of Mologne House congressional investigator for help. announcing a free trip to see Toby Keith in “They try in all their power to have you concert. get well, but it reverses itself,” Oscar liked A week later, it is a wonderful night to say. at the Nissan Pavilion. About 70 wounded Dell was not a psych patient, but he soldiers from Walter Reed attend the show. and Oscar bonded. They were an unlikely Toby invites them up on stage and brings pair — the dark-haired Cuban American the house down when he sings his monster with a penchant for polo shirts and salsa, wartime hit “American Soldier.” Dell stands and the molasses earnestness of Dell. on stage in his uniform while Annette Oscar would say things like “I’m trying snaps pictures. to better myself through my own recogni- “Give a hand clap for the soldiers,” zance,” and Dell would nod in appreciation. Annette hears Toby tell the audience, “then To celebrate Oscar’s return visit to give a hand for the U.S.A.” Walter Reed, they decide to have dinner in Silver Spring. A Soldier Snaps Annette tells Oscar that a soldier was Deep into deer-hunting country and arrested at Walter Reed for waving a gun fields of withered corn, past the Pennsylva- around. nia Turnpike in the rural town of Ellwood “A soldier, coming from war?” Oscar City, Steve Justi sits in his parents’ living asks. room, fighting off the afternoon’s lethargy. Annette doesn’t know. She mentions A photo on a shelf shows a chis- that another soldier was kicked out of eled soldier, but the one in the chair is 35 Mologne House for selling his painkillers. pounds heavier. Antipsychotic drugs give The talk turns to their friend Steve him tremors and cloud his mind. Still, he Justi. A few days earlier, Steve was dis- is deliberate and thoughtful as he explains MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 12

his path from soldier to psychiatric patient going back and forth between there and in the war on terrorism. a room at Mologne House. He was diag- After receiving a history degree from nosed with bipolar disorder. He denied to Mercyhurst College, Steve was motivated doctors that he was suffering from PTSD, by the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, to join the yet he called home once from Ward 54 and National Guard. He landed in Iraq in 2003 shouted into the phone, “Mom, can’t you with the First Battalion, 107th Field Artil- hear all the shooting in the background?” lery, helping the Marines in Fallujah. He was on the ward for the sixth time “It was just the normal stuff,” Steve when he was notified that he was being says, describing the violence he witnessed discharged from the Army, with only a few in Iraq. His voice is oddly flat as he recalls days to clear out and a disability rating of the day his friend died in a Humvee acci- zero percent. dent. The friend was driving with another On some level, Steve expected the zero soldier when they flipped off the road into rating. During his senior year of college, he a swamp. They were trapped upside down suffered a nervous breakdown and for sev- and submerged. Steve helped pull them eral months was treated with antidepres- out and gave CPR, but it was too late. The sants. He disclosed this to the National swamp water kept pushing back into his Guard recruiter, who said it was a nonissue. own mouth. He rode in the helicopter with It became an issue when he told doctors at the wet bodies. Walter Reed. The Army decided that his After he finished his tour, everything condition was not aggravated by his time was fine back home in Pennsylvania for in Iraq. The only help he would get would about 10 months, and then a strange bout come from Veterans Affairs. of insomnia started. After four days with- “We have no idea if what he endured out sleep, he burst into full-out mania and over there had a worsening effect on him,” was hospitalized in restraints. says his mother. Did anything trigger the insomnia? His father gets home from the office. “Not really,” Steve says calmly, sitting in his Ron Justi sits on the couch across from his chair. son. “He was okay to sacrifice his body, but His mother overhears this from the now that it’s time he needs some help, they kitchen and comes into the living room. are not here,” Ron says. “His sergeant had called saying that the unit was looking for volunteers to go back Outside the Gates to Iraq,” Cindy Justi says. “This is what The Army gives Dell McLeod a dis- triggered his snap.” charge date. His days at Mologne House Steve woke up in the psychiatric unit at are numbered. The cramped hotel room Walter Reed and spent the next six months has become home, and now he is afraid to MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 13

leave it. His anxiety worsens. “Shut up!” he leaves Mologne House. When the triple screams at Annette one night, his face red amputee gets off the plane in Chicago, with rage, when she tells him to stop fid- American Airlines greets him on the tar- dling with his wedding ring. mac with hoses spraying arches of water, Later, Annette says: “I am exhausted. and cheering citizens line the roads that He doesn’t understand that I’ve been fight- lead to his home town, Rolling Meadows. ing the Army.” Bryan makes the January cover of Doctors have concluded that Dell was Esquire. He is wearing his beat-up cargo slow as a child and that his head injury on shorts and an Army T-shirt, legless and the Iraqi border did not cause brain dam- holding his Purple Heart in his robot hand. age. “It is possible that pre-morbid emo- The headline says “The Meaning of Life.” tional difficulties and/or pre-morbid intel- A month after Bryan leaves, Mike lectual functioning may be contributing Smith, the insomniac soldier, is found factors to his reported symptoms,” a doc- dead in his room. Mike had just received tor wrote, withholding a diagnosis of trau- the good news that the Army was raising matic brain injury. his disability rating after a congressional Annette pushes for more brain test- staff member intervened on his behalf. It ing and gets nowhere until someone gives was the week before Christmas, and he was her the name of a staffer for the House set to leave Walter Reed to go home to his Committee on Oversight and Government wife and kids in Iowa when his body was Reform. A few days later, Annette is called found. The Army told his wife that he died to a meeting with the command at Wal- of an apparent heart attack, according to ter Reed. Dell is given a higher disability her father. rating than expected — 50 percent, which Distraught, Oscar Fernandez calls means he will receive half of his base pay Dell and Annette in South Carolina with until he is evaluated again in 18 months. the news. “It’s the constant assault of the He signs the papers. Army,” he says. Dell wears his uniform for the last Life with Dell is worsening. He can’t time, somber and careful as he dresses be left alone. The closest VA hospital is two for formation. Annette packs up the room hours away. Doctors say he has liver prob- and loads their Chevy Cavalier to the brim. lems because of all the medications. He Finally the gates of Walter Reed are behind is also being examined for PTSD. “I don’t them. They are southbound on I-95 just even know this man anymore,” Annette past the Virginia line when Dell begins to says. cry, Annette would later recall. She pulls At Mologne House, the rooms empty over and they both weep. and fill, empty and fill. The lobby chande- Not long after, Bryan Anderson also lier glows and the bowl of red apples waits MONDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 14

on the front desk. An announcement goes shows up at the front desk and says, “I am up for Texas Hold ‘Em poker in the bar. here for my son.” And so it begins. One cold night an exhausted mother with two suitcases tied together with rope Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report.

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A1 DAILY 02-19-07 VA M2 A1 CMYK

Harvick Edges Martin to Win Daytona 500 by a Nose SPORTS, E1

Weather Today: Partly sunny. High 36. Low 32. NORTHERN Tuesday: Cloudy. VIRGINIA High 48. Low 36. FINAL Details, B8 ABCDE 35¢ Prices may vary in areas outside metropolitan 130th Year No. 76 M2 VA Monday, February 19, 2007 M1 M2 M3 M4 V1 V2 V3 V4 Washington. (See box on A2) SE Woman Bombings Is Struck, THE OTHER WALTER REED End Lull Killed by In Iraqi Metrobus The Hotel Capital Crash Comes 3 Days Dozens Killed After 2 Other Deaths Aftermath By Attacks in By Theola Labbé and Ann E. Marimow Commercial Area Washington Post Staff Writers Inside Mologne House, the Survivors of War By Ernesto Londoño A Metrobus struck and killed a 21-year-old Wrestle With Military Bureaucracy and Personal Demons and Naseer Mehdawi mother and nursing student Saturday night, Washington Post Staff Writers just three days after another bus ran over two women, prompting Metro officials to re- BAGHDAD, Feb. 18 — After a peat their intentions to make all drivers un- brief respite from carnage in Bagh- dergo safety training. dad, the city’s skyline on Sunday After a day of shop- once again featured a robust, gray ping and dinner with cloud billowing slowly from a dev- friends, Angel Walters astated commercial area that had was hit about 11:10 p.m. been bombed numerous times be- as she got out of the rear fore. seat of a vehicle parked in Two car bombs, placed a few the 1300 block of Con- blocks apart in the New Baghdad gress Street SE, accord- neighborhood of the capital, ex- ing to D.C. police. Her ploded in quick succession at friends said she was 3:30 p.m. An Iraqi official put the Angel Walters, struck so suddenly that preliminary death toll at 40. Other 21, was they did not see it hap- officials quoted by Iraqi television studying to pen. and news services said that at least become a nurse. “I looked and saw her 60 people were killed and more get out of the car. She than 100 injured. was right by the side of the car,” said her “It was complete devastation,” friend Garnisha Valentine, 23, during a visit said Abu Noor, 40, a calligrapher to console Walters’s mother. “Then the next who was in his third-story apart- thing I knew, the bus came past — I could ment in the commercial district feel the wind. And then she was gone.” when he heard the blasts. “You The empty W2 bus that hit Walters was could see people melting in their heading northeast on the narrow two-lane cars.” residential street with cars parked on both Some residents wondered sides, police said. Walters and three friends whether the latest bombings were were unloading shopping bags and boxes a response from insurgents to re- from a sport-utility vehicle parked on the ports from Iraqi officials that a street across from her apartment complex in newly launched Baghdad security Congress Heights. PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST plan had gained a foothold in this The driver of bus No. 3941 was traveling Cpl. Dell McLeod injured his head and spine in an accident on the Iraqi border and was sent to Walter Reed Army Medical Center for battered city. at or near the speed limit, said Metro spokes- treatment. He and his wife, Annette, lived in Mologne House for more than a year, waiting for an Army decision about his future. “Those people might be chal- woman Lisa Farbstein. Investigators esti- lenging the security plan,” said mated its speed at 23 to 27 mph, based on By Anne Hull and Dana Priest ure curled in the bed. An Army counselor taught her that a sol- Faris Salman, 30, a mechanic who skid marks on the road, which measured 87 Washington Post Staff Writers dier back from war can wake up swinging, so she approaches works at one of the many spare- feet, officials said. Friends said they per- from behind. parts shops in the targeted area. formed CPR on Walters at the scene, and res- The guests of Mologne House have been blown up, shot, “Dell,” Annette says, tapping her husband. “Dell, get in the “They are showing that they have crushed and shaken, and now their convalescence takes place shower.” the strength, that they are able to See CRASH, A6, Col. 1 among the chandeliers and wingback chairs of the 200-room “Dell!” she shouts. target innocent and poor people. hotel on the grounds of Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Finally, the yawning hulk sits up in bed. “Okay, baby,” he As long as you say we are suc- Oil paintings hang in the lobby of this strange outpost in the says. An American flag T-shirt is stretched over his chest. He cessful with the security plan, we war on terrorism, where combat’s urgency has been replaced reaches for his dog tags, still the devoted soldier of 19 years, are also showing we are successful by a trickling fountain in the garden courtyard. The maimed though his life as a warrior has become a paradox. One day he’s in killing innocent people.” Convention and the newly legless sit in wheelchairs next to a pond, watch- led on stage at a Toby Keith concert with dozens of other The bombing was the most ing goldfish turn lazily through the water. wounded Operation Iraqi Freedom troops from Mologne lethal attack in the country since But the wounded of Mologne House are still soldiers — House, and the next he’s sitting in a cluttered cubbyhole at the security plan was officially Hooah! — so their lives are ruled by platoon sergeants. Each Walter Reed, fighting the Army for every penny of his disabili- launched Wednesday, and it came Center Not morning they must rise at dawn for formation, though many ty. as thousands of troops, including are half-snowed on pain meds and sleeping pills. McLeod, 41, has lived at Mologne House for a year while the many American soldiers, are being In Room 323 the alarm goes off at 5 a.m., but Cpl. Dell Army figures out what to do with him. He worked in textile and deployed to inner-city security sta- Living Up to McLeod slumbers on. His wife, Annette, gets up and fixes him tions. The plan, designed by Iraqi a bowl of instant oatmeal before going over to the massive fig- See WALTER REED, A8, Col. 1 Lofty Goals See BAGHDAD, A12, Col. 1 Declining Attendance Limits Economic Impact INSIDE Maryland to Unveil the Page By Dana Hedgpeth That Began a New Chapter Washington Post Staff Writer

Nearly four years ago, city officials George Washington’s Resignation Speech opened the $850 million Washington Con-

vention Center with a string of superla- Left the U.S. Military in Civilians’ Hands

tives. The largest publicly financed project

C M Y K C M Y K A9 A8 ever built in the city, they said, would at- By William Wan tract more thanDAILY a million visitors 02-19-07 a year, fill MD SU A8 CMYK Washington Post Staff Writer INSIDE DAILY 02-19-07 MD SU A9 CMYK hotels and set off an economic boom. Instead, convention attendance is drop- It was a speech so moving the See the manuscript that ping, the surrounding neighborhood is yet crowd wept. It was a speech so per- took two years and to be transformed by the promised new de- sonally important George Washing- $1 million to get. A10 velopment, and conventioneers are filling ton’s hand shook as he read it until fewer hotel rooms than expected. he had to hold the paper still with S x x S A9 A8 Monday, February 19, 2007 The number of hotel rooms booked is The Washington Post The Washington Post both hands. After the ceremony, he Monday, February 19, 2007 especially significant because it is the most handed the thing to a friend and accurate measure of performance, and last sped out the door of the State year hotel convention bookings missed House in Annapolis, riding off by THE OTHER WALTER REED projections by 13 percent. Bookings are horse. likely to fall short of projections by 24 per- For centuries, his words have down, some wanted to make Wash- cent this year and 29 percent next year. resonated in American democracy ington king. Some whispered con- To pay for the center, the city raised its even as the speech itself — the spiracy, trying to seduce him with tax rate for all hotel rooms and restaurant BY KATHERINE FREY — THE WASHINGTON POST small piece of paper that shook in the trappings of power. But Wash- At Mologne House, Soldiersmeals. It is hard Wounded to measure how much of METRO in War Say They’rehis hands that day — wasFighting quietly ington renounced them all. the Army for Their Due the promised $1.4 billion boost to the local put away, out of the public eye and By resigning his commission as economy has occurred, and convention Welcoming the Chinese Lunar New Year largely forgotten. commander in chief to the Conti- center supporters no longer cite the re- Hundreds of people brave snowflakes and frigid weather in Washington’sdoctors Chinatown scrutinizing to celebrate their injuriesToday, for however, amid festivities nental Congress — then housed at gional economic impact figure because the start of Lunar New Year 4705. Dragons danced, bands marched andsigns children of preexisting played, to the conditions, lesseningcelebrating his birthday, Maryland the Annapolis capitol — Washing- they admit it is nearly impossible to track. delight of crowds who packed the sidewalks five-deep to see the annual parade.their chance for disabilityB1 benefits.officials plan to unveil the original ton laid the cornerstone for an One underlying reason for the record so Dell and Annette’s closest frienddocument at Mo- — worth $1.5 million — American principle that persists to- far: When making their predictions, offi- logne House is a 47-year-old Guardafter mem- acquiring it in a private sale day: Civilians, not generals, are ulti- cials figured Washington’s hotels would THE NATION THE WORLD SPORTSber who was driving an Army fromvehicle a family in Maryland who had mately in charge of military power. through the Iraqi night when a keptflash itof all these years. It took two A little more than 223 years later, See CONVENTION, A6, Col. 1 The Two John McCains 65 Killed in India Rail Fire Westlight Topsblinded East, him 153-132 and he crashedyears into to a negotiate the deal and raise the manuscript at the heart of this In Washington, the Arizona Investigators find what Kobeditch Bryant with an has eight-foot 31 points drop. Amongmoney his for the speech, which ex- ideal has faded into a brownish- K Center’s neighbors perplexed Republican is subdued by appear to be explosive andmany six injuriesassists and was is a broken footperts that consider the most significant beige tinge. The page is lighter didn’t heal properly. Army doctors decid- by area’s slow takeoff. the war debate. But on the devices on the train and named MVP of the NBA Washington document to change along its borders, where it was held | B1 presidential campaign trail track near the Pakistani All-Stared that Game.“late life The atrophy” was responsiblehands in the past 50 years. in a frame and hung on a family’s for the foot, not the truck wreck in Iraq. K Plans for a convention hotel in Iowa, he finds his old border. Officials blame Wizards’ Gilbert Arenas The speech, scholars say, was a wall for generations. voice and humor. A4 Muslim extremists. A16 scoresWhen just Dell 8 points. sees his medicalE1 records,turning he point in U.S. history. As the have been beset by snags. | D1 explodes. “Special ed is for the mentallyRevolutionary War was winding See WASHINGTON, A10, Col. 1 retarded, and I’m not mentally retarded, right, babe?” he asks Annette. “I graduat- Contents INSIDE SECTIONS» METRO • STYLE • WASHINGTON BUSINESS • SPORTS On Radio: 107.7ed FM from • 1500 high AM school. I did some college.Online: I  2007 The Science...... A7 Letters ...... A18 Lotteries...... B4 Weather ...... B8 Movies...... C9worked in a steel mill.”KidsPost...... C14 TV Sports ...... E5 Washington It’s after 9 one night and Dell and An- 1 Post World News ...... A11 Editorials ...... A18 Obituaries ...... B5-7 Television ...... C6 Comics ...... C11-13 Local Stocks ...... D6 Classifieds...... E9 nette are both exhausted, but Dell still needs to practice using voice-recognition

software. Reluctantly, he mutes “The Ulti-

mate Fighting Challenge” on TV and sits

C M Y K A1 next to Annette in bed with a laptop. “My name is Wendell,” he says. “Wen- dell Woodward McLeod Jr.” Annette tells him to sit up. “Spell ‘dog,’ ” she says, softly. “Spell ‘dog,’ ” he repeats. “Listen to me,” she says. “Listen to me.” He slumps on the pillow. His eyes drift toward the wrestlers on TV. “You are not working hard enough, Dell,” Annette says, pleading. “Wake up.” “Wake up,” he says. “Dell, come on now!” For Some, a Grim Kind of Fame

No one questions Sgt. Bryan Ander- son’s sacrifice. One floor above Dell and Annette’s room at Mologne House, he holds the gruesome honor of being one of the war’s five triple amputees. Bryan, 25, lost both legs and his left arm when a road- side bomb exploded next to the Humvee he was driving with the 411th Military Po- lice Company. Modern medicine saved him and now he’s the pride of the pros- BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST thetics team at Walter Reed. Tenacious On Friday nights, demonstrators are regulars outside the gates of Walter Reed near the Mologne House. A bus full of soldiers drives past on the way to a field trip in Washington. and wisecracking, he wrote “[Expletive] Iraq” on his left leg socket. Amputees are the first to receive celeb- help. the day his friend died in a Humvee acci- ing than expected — 50 percent, which rity visitors, job offers and extravagant “They try in all their power dent. The friend was driving with another means he will receive half of his base pay PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST trips, but Bryan is in a league of his own. to have you get well, but it re- soldier when they flipped off the road into until he is evaluated again in 18 months. Johnny Depp’s people want to hook up in verses itself,” Oscar liked to a swamp. They were trapped upside down He signs the papers. Annette and Dell McLeod on an outing in Silver Spring; watching the fountains calms his anxiety, as do trips to bookstores and Baskin-Robbins for vanilla ice cream. “I’m worried about how he’s gonna fit into society,” Annette said of her London or Paris. The actor Gary Sinise, say. and submerged. Steve helped pull them Dell wears his uniform for the last time, husband. She quit her job and stays by his side 24 hours a day. The South Carolina National Guardsman was hurt on the Iraqi border, and now he is nervous in crowds, cannot drive and shows other signs of mental stress. who played an angry Vietnam amputee in Dell was not a psych pa- out and gave CPR, but it was too late. The somber and careful as he dresses for for- “Forrest Gump,” sends his regards. And tient, but he and Oscar swamp water kept pushing back into his mation. Annette packs up the room and WALTER REED, From A1 gates, doctors in white coats wait at the Esquire magazine is setting up a photo bonded. They were an un- own mouth. He rode in the helicopter with loads their Chevy Cavalier to the brim. Fi- hospital entrance for the incoming bus full shoot. likely pair — the dark- the wet bodies. nally the gates of Walter Reed are behind steel mills in rural South Carolina before of newly wounded soldiers who’ve just Bryan’s room at Mologne House is haired Cuban American After he finished his tour, everything them. They are southbound on I-95 just deploying. Now he takes 23 pills a day, landed at Andrews Air Force Base. stuffed with gifts from corporate America with a penchant for polo was fine back home in Pennsylvania for past the Virginia line when Dell begins to prescribed by various doctors at Walter And set back from the gate, up on a hill, and private citizens: $350 Bose noise- shirts and salsa, and the about 10 months, and then a strange bout cry, Annette would later recall. She pulls Reed. Crowds frighten him. He is too anx- Mologne House, with a bowl of red apples canceling headphones, nearly a thousand molasses earnestness of of insomnia started. After four days with- over and they both weep. ious to drive. When panic strikes, a soldier on the front desk. DVDs sent by well-wishers and quilts Dell. out sleep, he burst into full-out mania and Not long after, Bryan Anderson also friend named Oscar takes him to Baskin- made by church grannies. The door prizes Oscar would say things was hospitalized in restraints. leaves Mologne House. When the triple Robbins for vanilla ice cream. Into the Twilight Zone of war. Two flesh-colored legs are stacked like “I’m trying to better Did anything trigger the insomnia? amputee gets off the plane in Chicago, “They find ways to soothe each other,” on the floor. A computerized hand sprout- myself through my own re- “Not really,” Steve says calmly, sitting in American Airlines greets him on the tar- Annette says. Dell McLeod’s injury was utterly banal. ing blond hair is on the table. cognizance,” and Dell his chair. mac with hoses spraying arches of water, Mostly what the soldiers do together is He was in his 10th month of deployment One Saturday afternoon, Bryan is on his would nod in apprecia- His mother overhears this from the and cheering citizens line the roads that wait: for appointments, evaluations, signa- with the 178th Field Artillery Regiment of bed downloading music. Without his pros- tion. kitchen and comes into the living room. lead to his home town, Rolling Meadows. tures and lost paperwork to be found. It’s the South Carolina National Guard near thetics, he weighs less than 100 pounds. To celebrate Oscar’s re- “His sergeant had called saying that the Bryan makes the January cover of Es- like another wife told Annette McLeod: “If the Iraqi border when he was smashed in “Mom, what time is our plane?” he asks turn visit to Walter Reed, unit was looking for volunteers to go back quire. He is wearing his beat-up cargo Iraq don’t kill you, Walter Reed will.” the head by a steel cargo door of an 18- his mother, Janet Waswo, who lives in the they decide to have din- to Iraq,” Cindy Justi says. “This is what shorts and an Army T-shirt, legless and wheeler. The hinges of the door had been room with him. A movie company is flying ner in Silver Spring. triggered his snap.” holding his Purple Heart in his robot After Iraq, a New Struggle tied together with a plastic hamburger- them to Boston for the premiere of a docu- Annette tells Oscar Steve woke up in the psychiatric unit at hand. The headline says “The Meaning of bun bag. Dell was knocked out cold and mentary about amputee hand-cyclers in that a soldier was arrest- Walter Reed and spent the next six Life.” The conflict in Iraq has hatched a virtu- cracked several vertebrae. which Bryan appears. ed at Walter Reed for months going back and forth between A month after Bryan leaves, Mike al town of desperation and dysfunction, When Annette learned that he was be- Representing the indomitable spirit of waving a gun around. there and a room at Mologne House. He Smith, the insomniac soldier, is found clinging to the pilings of Walter Reed. The ing shipped to Walter Reed, she took a the American warrior sometimes becomes “A soldier, coming was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. He dead in his room. Mike had just received wounded are socked away for months and leave from her job on the assembly line at too much, and Bryan turns off his phone. from war?” Oscar asks. denied to doctors that he was suffering the good news that the Army was raising years in random buildings and barracks in Stanley Tools and packed the car. The Perks and stardom do not come to ev- Annette doesn’t know. from PTSD, yet he called home once from his disability rating after a congressional and around this military post. Army would pay her $64 a day to help care ery amputee. Sgt. David Thomas, a gun- Sgt. Bryan Anderson, 25, one of five triple amputees from She mentions that an- Ward 54 and shouted into the phone, staff member intervened on his behalf. It The luckiest stay at Mologne House, a for her husband and would let her live ner with the Tennessee National Guard, the war, was featured in January’s Esquire. He sometimes other soldier was kicked “Mom, can’t you hear all the shooting in was the week before Christmas, and he four-story hotel on a grassy slope behind with him at Mologne House until he re- spent his first three months at Walter tires of being the face of the war’s wounded. out of Mologne House the background?” was set to leave Walter Reed to go home to the hospital. Mologne House opened 10 covered. Reed with no decent clothes; medics in Sa- for selling his painkill- He was on the ward for the sixth time his wife and kids in Iowa when his body years ago as a short-term lodging facility A year later, they are still camped out in marra had cut off his uniform. Heavily ers. when he was notified that he was being was found. The Army told his wife that he for military personnel, retirees and their the twilight zone. Dogs are periodically drugged, missing one leg and suffering Suddenly, the thunder of cannons The talk turns to their friend Steve Jus- discharged from the Army, with only a few died of an apparent heart attack, accord- family members. Then came Sept. 11 and brought in by the Army to search the from traumatic brain injury, David, 42, shakes the sky. The last time Bryan heard ti. A few days earlier, Steve was dis- days to clear out and a disability rating of ing to her father. five years of sustained warfare. Now, the rooms for contraband or weapons. When was finally told by a physical therapist to this sound, his legs were severed and he charged from the Army and given a zero zero percent. Distraught, Oscar Fernandez calls Dell silver walkers of retired generals conva- the fire alarm goes off, the amputees who go to the Red Cross office, where he was was nearly bleeding to death in a fiery percent disability rating for his mental On some level, Steve expected the zero and Annette in South Carolina with the lescing from hip surgery have been re- live on the upper floors are scooped up given a T-shirt and sweat pants. He was Humvee. condition. rating. During his senior year of college, news. “It’s the constant assault of the placed by prosthetics propped against and carried down the stairwell, while a awarded a Purple Heart but had no un- Boom. Boom. Boom. Bryan pushes his Oscar is visibly angry. “They gave him he suffered a nervous breakdown and for Army,” he says. Xbox games and Jessica Simpson posters brigade of mothers passes down the derwear. wheelchair harder, trying to get away nothing,” he says. “They said his bipolar several months was treated with anti- Life with Dell is worsening. He can’t be smiling down on brain-rattled grunts. After the Army finally discharged Dell McLeod, he and Annette packed up. For Dell, the small room at Mologne House had become home. wheelchairs. One morning Annette opens David tangled with Walter Reed’s im- from the noise. “Damn it,” he says, “when was preexisting.” depressants. He disclosed this to the Na- left alone. The closest VA hospital is two Two Washington Post reporters spent her door and is told to stay in the room be- age machine when he wanted to attend a are they gonna stop?” Annette is quiet. “Poor Steve,” she says. tional Guard recruiter, who said it was a hours away. Doctors say he has liver prob- hundreds of hours in Mologne House ing hoodies and furry bed- of medical records to de- cause a soldier down the hall has over- ceremony for a fellow amputee, a Mexican Bryan’s friend walks off by herself and After dinner, they return through the nonissue. It became an issue when he told lems because of all the medications. He is MONT. documenting the intimate struggles of the room slippers, they look Outpatients’ Rounds CO. termine whether a soldier dosed. national who was being granted U.S. citi- holds her head. The cannon thunder has gates of Walter Reed in Annette’s car, a doctors at Walter Reed. The Army decid- also being examined for PTSD. “I don’t wounded who live there. The reporting like kids at summer camp Walter Reed stretches across 113 acres. VA. Detail MD. is fit to return to duty. If In between, there are picnics at the zenship by President Bush. A case worker unglued her, too, and she is crying. John 3:16 decal on the bumper and the ed that his condition was not aggravated even know this man anymore,” Annette was done without the knowledge or per- who’ve crept out of their Soldiers recovering from war injuries not, the Physical Evalua- home of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs quizzed him about what he would wear. It Dixie Chicks in the CD player. Annette by his time in Iraq. The only help he would says. mission of Walter Reed officials, but all rooms, except some have D.C. tion Board must decide of Staff and a charity-funded dinner cruise was summer, so David said shorts. The Friends From Ward 54 sees a flier in the lobby of Mologne House get would come from Veterans Affairs. At Mologne House, the rooms empty those directly quoted in this article agreed empty pants legs or limbs — some in wheelchairs and others using ARL. whether to assign a rating on the Potomac for “Today’s troops, to- case manager said the media would be announcing a free trip to see Toby Keith in “We have no idea if what he endured and fill, empty and fill. The lobby chande- FFX. CO. to be interviewed. pinned by medieval-look- crutches and canes — often travel a mile CO. for disability compensa- morrow’s veterans, always heroes.” there and shorts were not advisable be- An old friend comes to visit Dell and concert. over there had a worsening effect on him,” lier glows and the bowl of red apples waits P.G. The hotel is built in the Georgian reviv- ing hardware. Medication a day to reach their various appointments. ALEX. CO. tion. For many, this is the Dell and Annette’s weekdays are spent cause the amputees would be seated in the Annette. Sgt. Oscar Fernandez spent 14 A week later, it is a wonderful night at says his mother. on the front desk. An announcement goes al style, and inside it offers the usual ame- is a favorite topic. start of a new and bitter making the rounds of medical appoint- front row. months at Walter Reed after having a the Nissan Pavilion. About 70 wounded His father gets home from the office. up for Texas Hold ’Em poker in the bar. nities: daily maid service, front-desk “Dude, [expletive] Paxil Walter Reed Army Medical Center battle. ments, physical therapy sessions and eval- “ ‘Are you telling me that I can’t go to heart attack in Afghanistan. Oscar also soldiers from Walter Reed attend the Ron Justi sits on the couch across from his One cold night an exhausted mother FERN ST. clerks in formal vests and a bar off the lob- saved my life.” Months roll by and life uations for Dell’s discharge from the the ceremony ’cause I’m an amputee?’ ” had post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, show. Toby invites them up on stage and son. “He was okay to sacrifice his body, with two suitcases tied together with rope 0 500 NORTH DR. D.C. by that opens every afternoon. “I been on methadone FEET becomes a blue-and-gold Army. After 19 years, he is no longer fit for David recalled asking. “She said, ‘No, I’m a condition that worsened at Walter Reed brings the house down when he sings his but now that it’s time he needs some help, shows up at the front desk and says, “I am But at this bar, the soldier who orders a for a year, I’m tryin’ to get RD. SERVICE hotel room where the bath- service. He uses a cane to walk. He is un- saying you need to wear pants.’ ” and landed the 45-year-old soldier in the monster wartime hit “American Soldier.” they are not here,” Ron says. here for my son.” And so it begins. vodka tonic one night says to the bartend- off it.” Shepherd Main room mirror shows the na- able to count out change in the hospital David told the case worker, “I’m not hospital’s psychiatric unit, Ward 54. Dell stands on stage in his uniform while er, “If I had two hands, I’d order two.” The “I didn’t take my Sero- Park Hospital ked disfigurement of war’s cafeteria. He takes four Percocets a day for ashamed of what I did, and y’all shouldn’t Oscar belonged to a tight-knit group of Annette snaps pictures. Outside the Gates Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to customers sitting around the tables are quel last night and I had and ravages. There are toys in pain and has gained 40 pounds from medi- be neither.” When the guest list came out soldiers who were dealing with combat “Give a hand clap for the soldiers,” An- this report. ALASKA AVE. Cafeteria GEORGIA AVE. missing limbs, their ears are melted off, nightmares of charred Social the lobby of Mologne cation and inactivity. Lumbering and blue- for the ceremony, his name was not on it. stress and other psychological issues. nette hears Toby tell the audience, “then The Army gives Dell McLeod a dis- Morning and their faces are tattooed purple by bodies, burned crispy like DAHLIA ST. Workers, DAHLIA ST. House because children eyed, Dell is a big ox baby. Still, for all its careful choreography of They would hang out in each other’s give a hand for the U.S.A.” charge date. His days at Mologne House Formation Site Post Office shrapnel patterns. campfire marshmallows.” live here. Domestic dis- Annette puts on makeup every morning the amputees, Walter Reed offers protec- rooms at night, venting their fury at the are numbered. The cramped hotel room ABOUT THE SERIES Most everyone has a story about the Mologne House is afloat Medical putes occur because wives and does her hair, some semblance of nor- tion from a staring world. On warm nights Army’s Cuckoo’s Nest. On weekends they A Soldier Snaps has become home, and now he is afraid to 15TH ST. day they blew up: the sucking silence be- on a river of painkillers 14TH ST. Holdover or girlfriends have moved malcy, but her new job in life is watching at the picnic tables behind Mologne escaped Walter Reed to a Chinese buffet leave it. His anxiety worsens. “Shut up!” Today’s story is the second of a Mologne Takoma fore immolation, how the mouth filled and antipsychotic drugs. Psychiatry here. Financial tensions Dell. House, someone fires up the barbecue or went shopping for bootleg Spanish Deep into deer-hunting country and he screams at Annette one night, his face two-part series on outpatients at with tar, the lungs with gas. One night, a strapping House IN DR. Services 29 are palpable. After her hus- “I’m worried about how he’s gonna fit grill and someone else makes a beer run to DVDs in nearby Takoma Park. They once fields of withered corn, past the Penn- red with rage, when she tells him to stop MA Walter Reed Army Medical Center. “First thing I said was, ‘[Expletive], young infantryman loses it MAIN DR. into society,” she says one night, as Dell Georgia Avenue. made a road trip to a casino near the New sylvania Turnpike in the rural town of Ell- fiddling with his wedding ring. BUTTERNUT ST. band’s traumatic injury in- Sunday’s story and a collection of that was my good eye,’ ” a soldier with an with a woman who is high 16TH ST. surance policy came in, wanders down the hall to the laundry Bryan Anderson is out here one Friday. Jersey border. wood City, Steve Justi sits in his parents’ Later, Annette says: “I am exhausted. Veterans Affairs Office photographs of Cpl. Dell McLeod and 12TH ST. eye patch tells an amputee in the bar. on her son’s painkillers. Building 18 one wife cleared out with room. “Hey, Bry, what time should we leave in They abided each other’s frailties. Sgt. living room, fighting off the afternoon’s He doesn’t understand that I’ve been his wife, Annette, who lived at a The amputee peels his beer label. “I was “Quit taking all the soldier the money. Older National The more immediate worry concerns the morning?” asks his best friend, a Steve Justi would get the slightest cut on lethargy. fighting the Army.” short-term facility for outpatients female soldier also injured in Iraq. The his skin and drop to his knees, his face full A photo on a shelf shows a chiseled sol- Doctors have concluded that Dell was awake through the whole thing,” he says. medicine!” he screams. ASPEN ST. Guard members worry his disability rating. Army doctors are dis- for 14 months, can be found at ASPEN ST. “It was my first patrol. The second [exple- Pill bottles clutter the Finance about the jobs they can no puting that Dell’s head injury was the next day is Veterans Day, and Bryan wants of anguish, apologizing over and over. For dier, but the one in the chair is 35 pounds slow as a child and that his head injury on www.washingtonpost.com/nation. tive] day in Iraq and I get blown up.” nightstands: pills for de- BY NATHANIEL VAUGHN KELSO — THE WASHINGTON POST longer perform back cause of his mental impairment. One re- to go to Arlington National Cemetery. His what, Oscar did not know. Steve was the heavier. Antipsychotic drugs give him the Iraqi border did not cause brain dam- When a smooth-cheeked soldier with pression or insomnia, to home. port says that he was slow in high school pal Gary Sinise will be there, and Bryan college boy who went to Iraq, and Oscar tremors and cloud his mind. Still, he is de- age. “It is possible that pre-morbid emo- Chat: Staff writers Dana Priest and no legs orders a fried chicken dinner and stop nightmares and pain, cause of injury in Iraq, and nearly 60 per- While Mologne House and that his cognitive problems could be wants to give him a signed photo. figured something terrible had happened liberate and thoughtful as he explains his tional difficulties and/or pre-morbid intel- Anne Hull will be online two bottles of grape soda to go, a kitchen to calm the nerves. cent of the blast victims also suffer from has a full bar, there is not one counselor or linked to his native intelligence rather Thousands of spectators are already at over there. path from soldier to psychiatric patient in lectual functioning may be contributing Tuesday at noon . to answer worker comes out to his wheelchair and Here at Hotel Aftermath, a crash of traumatic brain injury, according to Wal- psychologist assigned there to assist sol- than to his injury. Arlington the next morning when Bryan Sgt. Mike Smith was the insomniac. the war on terrorism. factors to his reported symptoms,” a doc- questions about the series at gently places the Styrofoam container on dishes in the cafeteria can induce seizures ter Reed’s studies, which explains why diers and families in crisis — an idea pro- “They said, ‘Well, he was in Title I and his friend join the surge toward the He’d stay up till 2 or 3 in the morning, After receiving a history degree from tor wrote, withholding a diagnosis of trau- www.washingtonpost.com/ his lap. in the combat-addled. If a taxi arrives and some at Mologne House wander the hall- posed by Walter Reed social workers but math,’ like he was retarded,” Annette says. ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns. smoking on the back porch by himself. Mercyhurst College, Steve was motivated matic brain injury. liveonline. A scrawny young soldier sits alone in the driver looks Middle Eastern, soldiers ways trying to remember their room num- rejected by the military command that “Well, y’all took him, didn’t you?” The sunshine dazzles. Bryan is in his Doctors had put steel rods in his neck af- by the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, to join the Annette pushes for more brain testing his wheelchair at a nearby table, his eyes refuse to get in. Even among the gazebos bers. runs the post. The same fight is being waged by their wheelchair. If loss and sacrifice are theo- ter a truck accident in Iraq. To turn his National Guard. He landed in Iraq in 2003 and gets nowhere until someone gives her WASHINGTON POST RADIO closed and his chin dropped to his chest, and tranquility of the Walter Reed campus Some soldiers and Marines have been After a while, the bizarre becomes rou- friends, who aren’t the young warriors in retical to some on this day, here is living head, the 41-year-old Guard member from with the First Battalion, 107th Field Artil- the name of a staffer for the House Com- Priest and Hull will also discuss an empty Corona bottle in front of him. in upper Northwest Washington, manhole here for 18 months or longer. Doctor’s ap- tine. On Friday nights, antiwar protesters Army posters but middle-age men who left proof — three stumps and a crooked boy- Iowa had to rotate his entire body. He was lery, helping the Marines in Fallujah. mittee on Oversight and Government Re- the series at 7:30 a.m. today. Those who aren’t old enough to buy a covers are sidestepped for fear of bombs pointments and evaluations are routinely stand outside the gates of Walter Reed factory jobs to deploy to Iraq with their ish smile. Even the acres of tombstones fighting with the Army over his disability “It was just the normal stuff,” Steve form. A few days later, Annette is called to Tune in to 1500 AM, 107.7 FM drink at the bar huddle outside near a and rooftops are scanned for snipers. dragged out and difficult to get. A board of holding signs that say “Love Troops, Hate Guard units. They were fit enough for war, can’t compete. Spectators cut their eyes rating, too, and in frustration had recently says, describing the violence he witnessed a meeting with the command at Walter magnolia tree and smoke cigarettes. Wear- Bomb blasts are the most common physicians must review hundreds of pages War, Bring them Home Now.” Inside the but now they are facing teams of Army toward him and look away. called a congressional investigator for in Iraq. His voice is oddly flat as he recalls Reed. Dell is given a higher disability rat-

C M Y K C M Y K A9 A8 ABCDE

Democracy Dies in Darkness TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 Hospital Investigates Former Aid Chief Walter Reed Official Had Own Charity

By Dana Priest and Anne Hull activities while he ran the Army’s Medi- Washington Post Staff Writers cal Family Assistance Center, a position he left several weeks ago. Maj. Gen. George For the past three years, Michael J. W. Weightman, the commander at Wal- Wagner directed the Army’s largest effort ter Reed, said the probe by the Criminal to help the most vulnerable soldiers at Wal- Investigation Command (CID) “reflects ter Reed Army Medical Center. His office the seriousness with which we take these in Room 3E01 of the world-renowned hos- allegations.” pital was supposed to match big-hearted Weightman’s legal adviser, Col. Sam- donors with thousands of wounded sol- uel Smith, said that “it would clearly be a diers who could not afford to feed their conflict of interest” prohibited by federal children, pay mortgages, buy plane tickets law, Army regulations and Defense Depart- or put up visiting families in nearby hotels. ment ethics rules if Wagner used his posi- But while he was being paid to provide tion to solicit funds for his own organiza- this vital service to patients, outpatients tion. and their relations, Wagner was also seek- The saga of the Medical Family Assis- ing funders and soliciting donations for his tance Center is just one example of the own new charity, based in Texas, according problems at Walter Reed, where nearly to documents and interviews with current 700 soldiers and Marines from the wars and former staff members. Some families in Iraq and Afghanistan live as outpa- also said Wagner treated them callously tients while recuperating. Some families and made it hard for them to receive assis- are happy with the help they received from tance. Wagner and his office, and many soldiers Last week, Walter Reed launched a and their families applauded the dedica- criminal investigation of Wagner after The tion of workers there. Others said that they Washington Post sought a response to his had problems with Wagner and that the TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST Maria Mendez wheels her nephew, Spec. Roberto Reyes Jr., 25, into a VA hospital’s chapel in New York. Reyes was severely wounded by a mine in Iraq. center seemed chaotic and disorganized. tion is supported by several corporations, “We had many family members who other foundations and individuals. came to me because they couldn’t get a In a phone interview, Wagner denied respectful and compassionate response he had solicited funds or made contact from Dr. Wagner,” said Peggy Baker, direc- with donors during office hours. “It’s just tor of a charity that helps wounded sol- not true,” he said. “I intentionally stayed diers, Operation First Response. out of that. I couldn’t do that. I couldn’t do Wagner, who has a doctorate in edu- both.” He said he is not paid by the founda- cation, resigned his position last month tion. The documents that would verify that to work full time on his Military, Veteran have not yet been filed with the Internal and Family Assistance Foundation, based Revenue Service. in Dallas. The foundation includes the Wagner said his superiors “knew of Phoenix Project, which runs marriage my involvement right from the beginning.” retreats for soldiers returning from com- Weightman said the command had been bat. According to its Web site, the founda- unaware of Wagner’s Texas charity until TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

recently. Wagner defended his work at the center. “My only purpose and my priority 12 to 19 hours a day was to assist the families of the wounded,” he said. “I saw 6,000 people coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan. I did my best, but I’m not God. What I did there was a job that was super- human.” Wagner said that the char- ity was founded by his brother and that he did not officially become its executive director until he left Wal- Michael J. Wagner, center, ran the Medical Family Assistance Center at Walter Reed until resigning last month. He has been criticized as ter Reed. But fundraising docu- uncaring by some soldiers’ family members, including Mendez. ments from early January, before he resigned, list him as the director, and the organization’s Web site called him Military, Veteran and Family Assistance its executive director months before he Foundation to do just this, to do what I am resigned. able to help our soldiers reenter their home In a fundraising letter he signed and local community.” shortly before he quit the Medical Family Wagner included an ambitious busi- Assistance Center, Wagner referred to his ness plan to take the charity from a work at Walter Reed. As head of the center, $237,000 pilot project in the first year, he wrote, “I have had over a thousand citi- which ended in August 2006 — while he zens in this great country asking what they was working at Walter Reed — to a $145 might be able to do at Walter Reed for our million foundation by 2011. He signed the wounded troops and their families. I found letter “Executive Director and Founder.” myself telling them that Walter Reed was Leita Sosin, an 11-year Army veteran blessed with the outpouring of the good- who worked in Wagner’s office for two ness and generosity of the American pub- years, said she complained to him and to lic and that if they were really interested co-workers about his involvement with the in assisting, they should look within their charity. “It really broke me to see what he own communities.” was doing,” said Sosin, 29, a former Army But, his letter continued, “I realized operating-room technician. “Instead of they were not working with their local working with the families at Walter Reed communities so . . . I decided to found the and with us, he spent all his time putting TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

together the Phoenix Proj- ect.” Moscow Spencer, a case manager fired by Wagner in October, also complained to her co-workers. “All day long he’d work on his pro- gram,” she said. “If someone came in to donate money, he would talk to them about his project.” Sosin said the office was overwhelmed by the number of families who Reyes is tucked into bed at the VA hospital by his mother, Aida Rivera, right, and Mendez as his 12-year-old cousin looks on. Mendez called the Walter Reed needed assistance and who administration “unprofessional, discourteous and uncompassionate all in one.” were confused by the com- plex bureaucracy. “Every- one needed help, but you couldn’t get some experience a substantial decrease in them the help as fast as they needed it,” she pay when combat pay or hazard pay disap- said. “Someone like me could scream all pears. day about how it was broken, but no one Some Army families breach the pov- wanted to take the time to fix it.” erty line when a spouse quits a job to help She also said Wagner was arrogant the soldier recuperate; mortgage payments toward some staff members and families. don’t stop, and they still need to feed their “People got hurt in the process, whether it children. Many turn to the generosity of be financially or because he promised a lot Americans eager to prove they have not of things he never followed up on,” she said. forgotten the troops’ sacrifices. While staff In April, Sosin said, she laid out her members and soldiers acknowledge that concerns in a three-page letter to her some families take advantage of the plen- superiors. She received no response and tiful freebies at Walter Reed, many others resigned. Wagner said that Sosin never ask for help only as a last resort. complained to him and that he had no idea The assistance center is supposed to why she quit. be the connection between a soldier’s fam- Poverty among soldiers returning ily and private donors. Until recently, it did from war is not uncommon. While they not accept cash contributions but instead continue to live on the Army payroll until matched families’ needs — for bus or plane they return to active duty or are discharged, tickets, clothing, emergency food vouchers, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

grants for mortgages or living expenses — But they are leaving their homes across the with organizations set up to help. country. . . . Every day I came home angry.” According to Walter Reed, 14 families Some families were also angered by on average seek assistance from the center the way Wagner treated them. each day. Although it is difficult to quantify “The patient care was absolutely won- the value of donations, the center received derful, but the administration was horrible, $4,500 worth of phone cards in 2006 and especially Dr. Wagner,” said Maria Mendez, handled $1.9 million worth of donated whose 25-year-old nephew, Spec. Roberto plane tickets. Weightman said the center’s Reyes Jr., suffered severe brain and limb staff was recently increased from five to damage when a mine exploded near him nine employees, with two people assigned outside Baghdad. “It was like running to keeping track of the donations, and around in circles. He was never around.” training has been improved. “They were unprofessional, discourte- The system for receiving donations is ous and uncompassionate all in one,” Men- often confusing, even for the staff, Weight- dez said. “I was very surprised. You figure man said. “There’s too much for any one any family who’s gone through such devas- person to know, but depending on the tation, then faces this, to be treated with question, they may know [the answer] or such unprofessionalism . . . it’s like you’re direct you to the person who does know it.” putting salt on the wounds.” Some soldiers go directly to the many Frustrated, Mendez set up an account volunteer organizations set up to help for her sister, Aida Rivera, Reyes’s mother, the wounded. Last year, Wagner began to pay for her stay at Walter Reed. Rivera an effort to funnel all requests and dona- eventually got financial assistance from the tions through the family assistance center. Army and outside organizations, but she It was a good idea, said Sosin and others, also received a $3,519 bill from Mologne but because Wagner seemed preoccupied, House, a hotel at Walter Reed, for her stay a bottleneck of requests resulted. as her son’s nonmedical attendant. “It was really all at the expense of the Staff members from other offices also service member,” said Sandra Butterfield, complained to the command about Wag- who worked at Walter Reed as an ombuds- ner, according to memos obtained by The man for a Defense Department-funded Post. In one, an employee, who asked not relief organization. “He decreed that every- to be named, questioned why a soldier’s thing had to go through him,” and it didn’t mother “who had subsisted on dried soups seem to matter if that slowed the process. . . . due to her lack of funds” could not get Officials, she said, “don’t understand what help. Four months after approaching the it meant to have no money. Family mem- center, the memo said, the mother had bers changed the sheets, empty the bedpan. not received the per diem owed her as her TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 6

child’s nonmedical attendant “and has no Wagner said families were often angry cash for essentials nor emergencies.” at his office, not because it failed them but A wife who accompanied her wounded because they were distraught over their husband, who was based in Germany, said situation. “Their true need is an emotional Wagner asked her repeatedly why she did one. They’re going to be angry at somebody. not return to Germany so she could con- . . . I did my best; no, more than my best.” tinue working. The woman “reported she felt harassed and bullied but that she held Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report. her ground,” the employee’s memo states.

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A1 DAILY 02-20-07 VA M2 A1 CMYK

Weather Today: Mostly cloudy. High 50. Low 36. NORTHERN Wednesday: Partly sunny. VIRGINIA High 48. Low 33. FINAL Details, B8 ABCDE 35¢ Prices may vary in areas outside metropolitan 130th Year No. 77 M2 VA K Tuesday, February 20, 2007 M1 M2 M3 M4 V1 V2 V3 V4 Washington. (See box on A2) Satellite Army Radio Fixing Firms Plan To Merge Patients’ XM, Sirius Face Housing Antitrust Hurdles Changes Underway By Charles Babington At Walter Reed and Thomas Heath Washington Post Staff Writers By Dana Priest and Anne Hull XM and Sirius, the two satellite Washington Post Staff Writers radio companies that have spent mil- lions of dollars trying to woo pay-for- Walter Reed Army Medical Cen- service customers, yesterday an- ter began repairs yesterday on nounced plans to merge in hopes of Building 18, a former hotel that is stemming losses and offering an used to house outpatients recuper- even larger smorgasbord of music, ating from injuries suffered in Iraq talk and sports. and Afghanistan and that has been If approved by federal regulators, plagued with mold, leaky plumbing the merger would give all satellite and a broken elevator. subscribers access to Sirius’s How- The facility’s commander, Maj. ard Stern, pro football games and Gen. George W. Weightman, said NASCAR races, as well as XM’s Army staff members inspected Oprah Winfrey, Major League Base- each of the 54 rooms at the build- ball and Bob Dylan. ing and discovered that outstand- Before XM Satellite Radio Hold- ing repair orders for half the rooms ings of the District and Sirius Satel- PHOTOS BY TRACY A. WOODWARD — THE WASHINGTON POST had not been completed. He said lite Radio of New York can combine, About 15 African American families belong to Club 2012 in Ashburn in Loudoun County. While parents meet upstairs to discuss ways to keep their sons that mold removal had begun on however, the companies must per- academically engaged, the boys play video games downstairs. The group also holds homework sessions and field trips. several rooms and that holes in ceil- suade the Justice Department and ings, stained carpets and leaking Federal Communications Commis- faucets were being fixed. sion that they are complying with Walter Reed, the Army’s premier antitrust laws, a claim that land- Black Parents Seek to Raise Ambitions medical facility, has turned into a based broadcasters and consumer holding ground for wounded sol- 1 groups are likely to dispute. XM and diers during 5 ⁄2 years of sustained Sirius contend that customers have Loudoun Group Works to Keep Sons Interested in Academics and Achievement combat. Almost 700 outpatients ample audio choices through devices suffering from physical injuries and such as iPods and cellphones. By Michael Alison Chandler psychological problems live on the The FCC bars a single company Washington Post Staff Writer 113-acre military post or in nearby from controlling the satellite radio quarters. Many linger there for 18 market, but FCC Chairman Kevin J. Twelve-year-old Alex Carter is an A student who months or longer as they move Martin recently noted that such loves science and reads a book a week. So it surprised through the Army’s numbing bu- rules can be changed. Martin said his father when he announced last year that he didn’t reaucracy. yesterday that the hurdle “would be want to enroll in an honors class that his teacher rec- A Washington Post series over high. . . . The companies would need ommended for the following term. the weekend described “The Other to demonstrate that consumers “That class is for the smart people, the nerds,” Walter Reed,” where overdoses, would clearly be better off with both Alex told him. His father replied, “Well, who are suicide attempts and depression more choice and affordable prices.” you?” among outpatients are the parallel Officials said the new company’s Alex is a junior league football player, an avid golfer narrative to the spit-polish hall- name and headquarters would be de- and a lifelong suburbanite. He’s also one of only a ways of the renowned hospital. termined later. Customers, who now handful of African American students in his seventh- Building 18, in particular, sym- pay $12.95 per month for each com- grade class at Eagle Ridge Middle School in Ashburn. bolizes the indifference and neglect pany’s service, would be able to He dreams of becoming a professional athlete like his that many of the wounded say they choose a cafeteria-style range of dad, Tom, who played cornerback for the Washington experience at Walter Reed. channels. Redskins. But as he nears his teenage years in a pre-

“In fact, it will become a company dominantly white school in Loudoun County, his par- See REPAIRS, A6, Col. 3 C M Y K with greater consumer choice,” said ents are concerned that he could abandon academic A6 Gary M. Parsons, chairman of XM. pursuits because he thinks they are better left to his DAILY 02-20-07 MD M2 A6 CMYK “Certainly, two companies com- white classmates. bined would be a much stronger pro- That’s why Tom and Renee Carter joined last year gramming lineup.” with about 15 families, including the parents of near- Hospital The merger would be a milestone ly every black male sixth-grader, to push their sons to in the evolution of commercial radio. graduate on time in 2012 with options for the future Parent Brian Carpenter talks to Stephen Cobbs, left, and Chris Holoman, both 12 and students at Eagle Ridge Middle School, in a father-son rap session held after the monthly Investigates A6 Tuesday, February 20, 2007 M2 THE REGION The Washington Post See RADIO, A4, Col. 5 See ACHIEVEMENT, A4, Col. 1 Club 2012 parents’ meeting. Some of the boys now boast about their good grades. Former Terrorist Networks Lure Young Moroccans to War in Far-Off Iraq Aid Chief Walter Reed Investigating Former Aid Director affiliated with al-Qaeda that have deepened Spain. Walter Reed Official Conflict Is Recruiting Tool for Al-Qaeda Affiliates their roots in North Africa since the in- One of them, Abdelmonaim el-Amrani, a HOSPITAL, From A1 $4,500 worth of phone cards in vasion of Iraq four years ago. 22-year-old laborer, abandoned his wife and Had Own Charity 2006 and handled $1.9 million By Craig Whitlock across the 3,000-mile divide. To stanch the flow, U.S. intelligence and infant child in Tetouan to go to Iraq. On Samuel Smith, said that “it would worth of donated plane tickets. Washington Post Foreign Service About two dozen men from Tetouan and military officials have tried to trace the March 6, 2006, just before sunset, he drove By Dana Priest clearly be a conflict of interest” pro- Weightman said the center’s staff nearby towns in the Rif Mountains have fighters’ steps. On the basis of DNA evi- a red Volkswagen Passat stuffed with explo- and Anne Hull hibited by federal law, Army reg- was recently increased from five to TETOUAN, Morocco — In the Arab traveled to Iraq in the past 18 months to dence recovered from the scenes of suicide sives into a funeral tent in a village near Ba- Washington Post Staff Writers ulations and Defense Department nine employees, with two people world, this hilly North African city is about volunteer as fighters or suicide bombers, attacks, as well as other clues, officials have qubah, Iraq, according to witnesses. Six ethics rules if Wagner used his posi- assigned to keeping track of the do- as far as you can get from Iraq. But for according to local residents and officials. confirmed that at least two bombers came people were reported killed and 27 injured. For the past three years, Michael tion to solicit funds for his own or- nations, and training has been im- many young men here, the call to join what Moroccan authorities said the men were re- from Tetouan, a city of more than 320,000 J. Wagner directed the Army’s larg- ganization. proved. they view as a holy war resonates loudly cruited by international terrorist networks across the Strait of Gibraltar from southern See MOROCCO, A10, Col. 1 est effort to help the most vulner- The saga of the Medical Family The system for receiving dona- able soldiers at Walter Reed Army Assistance Center is just one exam- tions is often confusing, even for Medical Center. His office in Room ple of the problems at Walter Reed, the staff, Weightman said. “There’s 3E01 of the world-renowned hospi- where nearly 700 soldiers and Ma- too much for any one person to tal was supposed to match big- rines from the wars in Iraq and Af- know, but depending on the ques- INSIDE hearted donors with thousands of ghanistan live as outpatients while tion, they may know [the answer] That Little Voice Telling You wounded soldiers who could not recuperating. Some families are or direct you to the person who THE NATION afford to feed their children, pay happy with the help they received does know it.” To Skip I-95? It’s Your Car mortgages, buy plane tickets or put from Wagner and his office, and Some soldiers go directly to the A Supreme Court Hearing up visiting families in nearby many soldiers and their families ap- many volunteer organizations set Without Being Heard hotels. plauded the dedication of workers up to help the wounded. Last year, On-the-Button Navigation Devices a Goal At the legal system’s summit, But while he was being paid to there. Others said that they had Wagner began an effort to funnel all a plaintiff finds her case has provide this vital service to pa- problems with Wagner and that the requests and donations through Of Grants Proposed in Va. to Ease Traffic little to do with her. A3 tients, outpatients and their rela- center seemed chaotic and disorga- the family assistance center. It was tions, Wagner was also seeking fun- nized. a good idea, said Sosin and others, By Eric M. Weiss technology “challenge grants” to THE WORLD ders and soliciting donations for “We had many family members but because Wagner seemed pre- Washington Post Staff Writer generate ideas about reducing con- his own new charity, based in who came to me because they occupied, a bottleneck of requests gestion. Homer said the ideas could Suicide Blasts, Gun Battle Texas, according to documents and couldn’t get a respectful and com- resulted. It’s cold, it’s dark, you’re tired, include ways to clear accidents At U.S. Outpost in Iraq interviews with current and former passionate response from Dr. Wag- “It was really all at the expense and the last thing you want to face is more quickly or encourage tele- The attack kills three U.S. staff members. Some families also ner,” said Peggy Baker, director of a of the service member,” said San- one more backup on Interstate 66. commuting. soldiers and wounds 17 at the said Wagner treated them callously charity that helps wounded sol- dra Butterfield, who worked at Imagine if your cellphone or vehicle But the holy grail of the effort is facility north of Baghdad. A8 and made it hard for them to re- diers, Operation First Response. Walter Reed as an ombudsman for navigation system knew about one providing an accurate, real-time pic- ceive assistance. Wagner, who has a doctorate in a Defense Department-funded re- and directed you to Route 50 be- ture of traffic conditions on all roads METRO Last week, Walter Reed education, resigned his position lief organization. “He decreed that last month to work full time on his everything had to go through him,” cause it would shave 11 minutes off — technology that could start ap- New Mayor’s Office Reflects launched a criminal investigation your ride. pearing in this area by the end of the of Wagner after The Washington Military, Veteran and Family Assis- and it didn’t seem to matter if that As regional transportation plan- year. Commitment to Efficiency Post sought a response to his activ- tance Foundation, based in Dallas. slowed the process. Officials, she ners seek to widen highways and Some companies are using in- Welcome to the “bullpen,” ities while he ran the Army’s Med- The foundation includes the Phoe- said, “don’t understand what it build Metro lines to increase op- formation from cellphones and Adrian Fenty’s monument to BY LEE CELANO — REUTERS ical Family Assistance Center, a po- nix Project, which runs marriage meant to have no money. Family accountable government. B1 PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST tions for commuters, leaders in Vir- E-ZPass transponders to fine-tune STYLE » HEALTH sition he left several weeks ago. retreats for soldiers returning from members changed the sheets, emp- ginia are trying to get that kind of technology that could give drivers Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, combat. According to its Web site, Maria Mendez wheels her nephew, Spec. Roberto Reyes Jr., 25, into a VA hospital’s chapel in New York. Reyes was severely wounded by a mine in Iraq. ty the bedpan. But they are leaving please-say-it’s-so technology into information so precise they would BUSINESS The Mardi Gras Measure Goodbye to Girlhood the commander at Walter Reed, the foundation is supported by sev- their homes across the country. . . . the hands of drivers to get more out know the best exit to take and JetBlue Struggles With Amid the beads and the As pop culture bombards ever said the probe by the Criminal In- eral corporations, other founda- Every day I came home angry.” younger girls, psychologists tions and individuals. Some families were also angered of the roads they have. where to find alternate roads with Winter Storm’s Aftermath booze, post-Katrina New vestigation Command (CID) “re- “We need help,” said Pierce R. favorable traffic lights. When driv- Orleans attempts to divine its worry about the effects of a flects the seriousness with which In a phone interview, Wagner de- by the way Wagner treated them. Homer, Virginia’s transportation ers are backed up on the Dulles Toll A reluctance to inconvenience future by the success of its premature focus on sex and we take these allegations.” nied he had solicited funds or made “The patient care was absolutely secretary. To that end, the budget Road, they would know whether passengers backfired. D1 biggest party. C1 appearance. F1 Weightman’s legal adviser, Col. contact with donors during office wonderful, but the administration proposed by Gov. Timothy M. hours. “It’s just not true,” he said. was horrible, especially Dr. Wag- Kaine (D) includes $20 million for See TECHNOLOGY, A6, Col. 1 See HOSPITAL, A6, Col. 1 “I intentionally stayed out of that. I ner,” said Maria Mendez, whose couldn’t do that. I couldn’t do 25-year-old nephew, Spec. Roberto Contents both.” He said he is not paid by the Reyes Jr., suffered severe brain and INSIDE SECTIONS» METRO • STYLE • BUSINESS • SPORTS • HEALTH On Radio: 107.7 FM • 1500 AM Online:  2007 The foundation. The documents that limb damage when a mine explod- Washington would verify that have not yet been ed near him outside Baghdad. “It World News...... A7 In the Loop ...... A11 Editorials ...... A12 Obituaries ...... B6-7 Television ...... C6 Comics...... C9-11 TV Sports ...... E2 Post 1 filed with the Internal Revenue Ser- was like running around in circles. Corrections...... A2 Letters ...... A12 Lotteries...... B4 Weather ...... B8 Movies...... C4 KidsPost...... C12 Classifieds ...... G1 vice. He was never around.” Wagner said his superiors “knew “They were unprofessional, dis-

of my involvement right from the courteous and uncompassionate all

beginning.” Weightman said the in one,” Mendez said. “I was very

C M Y K A1 command had been unaware of surprised. You figure any family Wagner’s Texas charity until re- who’s gone through such devasta- cently. tion, then faces this, to be treated Wagner defended his work at the with such unprofessionalism . . . center. “My only purpose and my it’s like you’re putting salt on the priority 12 to 19 hours a day was to Michael J. Wagner, center, ran the Medical Family Assistance Center Reyes is tucked into bed at the VA hospital by his mother, Aida Rivera, right, and wounds.” assist the families of the wounded,” at Walter Reed until resigning last month. He has been criticized as Mendez as his 12-year-old cousin looks on. Mendez called the Walter Reed Frustrated, Mendez set up an he said. “I saw 6,000 people coming uncaring by some soldiers’ family members, including Mendez. administration “unprofessional, discourteous and uncompassionate all in one.” account for her sister, Aida Rivera, back from Iraq and Afghanistan. I Reyes’s mother, to pay for her stay did my best, but I’m not God. What at Walter Reed. Rivera eventually I did there was a job that was su- 2006 — while he was working at things he never followed up on,” her concerns in a three-page letter said that Sosin never complained to got financial assistance from the perhuman.” Walter Reed — to a $145 million she said. to her superiors. She received no him and that he had no idea why Army and outside organizations, Wagner said that the charity was foundation by 2011. He signed the In April, Sosin said, she laid out response and resigned. Wagner she quit. but she also received a $3,519 bill founded by his brother and that he letter “Executive Director and Poverty among soldiers return- from Mologne House, a hotel at did not officially become its exec- Founder.” ing from war is not uncommon. Walter Reed, for her stay as her utive director until he left Walter Leita Sosin, an 11-year Army vet- While they continue to live on the son’s nonmedical attendant. Reed. But fundraising documents eran who worked in Wagner’s of- Army payroll until they return to Staff members from other offices from early January, before he re- fice for two years, said she com- Repairs Underway at Building 18 active duty or are discharged, some also complained to the command signed, list him as the director, and plained to him and to co-workers experience a substantial decrease about Wagner, according to memos the organization’s Web site called about his involvement with the REPAIRS, From A1 in pay when combat pay or hazard obtained by The Post. In one, an him its executive director months charity. “It really broke me to see pay disappears. employee, who asked not to be before he resigned. what he was doing,” said Sosin, 29, Yesterday, Weightman said a broken elevator in the building had Some Army families breach the named, questioned why a soldier’s In a fundraising letter he signed a former Army operating-room been repaired and soldiers were working to improve the outside of poverty line when a spouse quits a mother “who had subsisted on shortly before he quit the Medical technician. “Instead of working the building, including removing ice and snow. The slippery condi- job to help the soldier recuperate; dried soups . . . due to her lack of Family Assistance Center, Wagner with the families at Walter Reed tions have kept some soldiers in their rooms. A garage door that mortgage payments don’t stop, and funds” could not get help. Four referred to his work at Walter and with us, he spent all his time has been broken for months will soon be repaired as well. they still need to feed their chil- months after approaching the cen- Reed. As head of the center, he putting together the Phoenix Proj- Spec. Jeremy Duncan, whose room has a moldy wall that was fea- dren. Many turn to the generosity ter, the memo said, the mother had wrote, “I have had over a thousand ect.” tured in one photograph in the Post series, has been moved to an- of Americans eager to prove they not received the per diem owed her citizens in this great country ask- Moscow Spencer, a case manag- other room while workers make repairs. Duncan will be able to re- have not forgotten the troops’ sac- as her child’s nonmedical attendant ing what they might be able to do at er fired by Wagner in October, also turn to his room when the work is completed, Weightman said. rifices. While staff members and “and has no cash for essentials nor Walter Reed for our wounded complained to her co-workers. “All Walter Reed and Army officials have been “meeting continuously soldiers acknowledge that some emergencies.” troops and their families. I found day long he’d work on his pro- for three days” since the articles began appearing, Weightman said. families take advantage of the plen- A wife who accompanied her myself telling them that Walter gram,” she said. “If someone came A large roundtable meeting with Army and Defense Department of- tiful freebies at Walter Reed, many wounded husband, who was based Reed was blessed with the out- in to donate money, he would talk ficials will take place at the Pentagon early this morning to contin- others ask for help only as a last re- in Germany, said Wagner asked her pouring of the goodness and gener- to them about his project.” ue talks about improvements in the outpatient system, he added. sort. repeatedly why she did not return osity of the American public and Sosin said the office was over- Weightman said the medical center has received an outpouring The assistance center is sup- to Germany so she could continue that if they were really interested in whelmed by the number of families of concern about conditions and procedures since the articles ap- posed to be the connection be- working. The woman “reported assisting, they should look within who needed assistance and who peared and has taken steps to improve what soldiers and their fami- tween a soldier’s family and private she felt harassed and bullied but their own communities.” were confused by the complex bu- lies describe as a messy battlefield of bureaucratic problems and donors. Until recently, it did not that she held her ground,” the em- But, his letter continued, “I real- reaucracy. “Everyone needed help, mistreatment. accept cash contributions but in- ployee’s memo states. ized they were not working with but you couldn’t get them the help “We’re starting to attack how we’ll fix and mitigate” some of the stead matched families’ needs — Wagner said families were often their local communities so . . . I de- as fast as they needed it,” she said. problems, he said. for bus or plane tickets, clothing, angry at his office, not because it cided to found the Military, Veteran “Someone like me could scream all Social workers will now be stationed around the clock at Mo- emergency food vouchers, grants failed them but because they were and Family Assistance Foundation day about how it was broken, but logne House, the 200-room hotel on the post where many of the for mortgages or living expenses distraught over their situation. to do just this, to do what I am able no one wanted to take the time to outpatients live. Plans are being developed to better train other — with organizations set up to “Their true need is an emotional to help our soldiers reenter their fix it.” staff members who deal with outpatient needs. help. one. They’re going to be angry at home and local community.” She also said Wagner was arro- The Army will also consider moving some outpatients to its oth- According to Walter Reed, 14 somebody. . . . I did my best; no, Wagner included an ambitious gant toward some staff members er medical centers throughout the United States and will deter- families on average seek assistance more than my best.” business plan to take the charity and families. “People got hurt in mine over the next weeks whether more workers are needed at from the center each day. Although from a $237,000 pilot project in the the process, whether it be financial- Walter Reed. it is difficult to quantify the value of Staff researcher Julie Tate first year, which ended in August ly or because he promised a lot of donations, the center received contributed to this report.

Firms Try to Meld Popular Technology to Improve Traffic Data TECHNOLOGY, From A1 as they travel — or sit in traffic. vice, and Virginia uses the com- readers to track car speeds is anoth- muters’ options, having real-time in- proach could leave hundreds of driv- Instead of the thousands of road pany’s data in its 511 traffic in- er promising approach. Additional formation could also help govern- ers waiting on on-ramps for long Route 7, for example, would be bet- sensors on major highways, there formation system. tag readers placed over highways ment traffic planners tweak road- stretches. ter. could be millions of cellphone sig- Mistele predicted that in five would read E-ZPass transponders ways and signals to pack more McGhee said real-time informa- Managers could use the same in- nals painting a detailed portrait of years, “everybody will have ubiqui- without deducting a toll. Tracking vehicles on each mile of highway. tion could also be used to adjust formation to better time cars merg- the region’s comings and goings, on tous access to this information and the time it took a tag to travel be- “It all goes back to the data. You speed limits to create “artificial ing onto roads and to create a Interstate 270 or in a suburban cul- will know the best time to leave in tween two readers would help deter- need to know quantitatively what is slowdowns” that, counterintuitive- steady traffic flow, eliminating the de-sac. the morning and the best route to mine cars’ speeds. Sixty mph, no going on out there,” said Catherine ly, would keep traffic moving faster. typical bottlenecks. “The melding is happening now,” take home.” problem. Ten mph, time to find a dif- McGhee, co-director of the Smart Traffic moving constantly at 45 mph Traffic data are limited to road- said Bryan Mistele, president and IntelliOne, an Atlanta-based com- ferent route. Travel Laboratory at the University is better than that speeding along side cameras and sensors buried in chief executive of Inrix, a Microsoft pany, has been operating a cell- Part of the Kaine program’s mis- of Virginia. stretches of open road, then ending the pavement. These are expensive spinoff based in Kirkland, Wash., phone-based test in Tampa for 18 sion is to learn how to make the “We can’t tell you to take Route in bottlenecks. Once traffic stops, it to install and maintain and are gen- that develops real-time traffic in- months and hopes to launch its ser- Washington area’s traffic quagmire 50 because I-66 is blocked, because takes a lot longer to get going again. erally limited to interstates and formation. Inrix takes data from vice in other markets — including a laboratory for new technology and we’re not confident of our data on Because 50 to 60 percent of con- major highways. And the informa- government road sensors, adds it to Washington — by year’s end. And, get local companies involved. 50,” McGhee said. “Our goal is to gestion is caused by accidents and tion they provide — it is 6 p.m. and GPS readings from commercial ve- yes, the company is interested in A recent summit in Northern Vir- tell you there’s a problem and here’s other incidents, being able to quick- the Capital Beltway is jammed — is hicles and taxis and combines it taking up Kaine’s challenge. ginia called by Homer and Aneesh what to do about it — like take Met- ly find out where and when traffic is hardly a revelation. Radio, tele- with other information that might Chief Executive Ronald Herman P. Chopra, the state’s technology ro, or bus number 37, and your trav- stopped would make quicker re- vision and Internet reports, which affect traffic, such as sports, concert said national package delivery com- secretary, tried to bring private- el time will be this. Or go to the tele- sponses possible. rely on much of the same informa- and school schedules, construction panies searching for ways to save sector and government officials to- commuting place at the intersection Better information can also help tion, are not much better. projects and weather reports. fuel and cut time stuck in traffic are gether. The $20 million, which faces of X and Y.” planners time traffic signals on To make the leap forward, compa- The goal is not just to show real accelerating its research. an uphill battle in the General As- She said traffic data could be used arterial roads and respond to chang- nies are trying to tap into widely conditions but also to predict what “Because the system would know sembly, would be a small induce- to better control highway ramp ing conditions, such as keeping used technology, such as cellphones, will be, say, the best route to Dulles your destination, it could tell you ment. The money would be split be- merges, a major cause of jams. By shoulder lanes open later during Global Positioning System units and International Airport at 7 p.m. on a that taking an early exit onto an al- tween Northern Virginia and Hamp- using sensors monitoring highway days of heavy traffic. E-ZPass transponders. Cellphones Friday or around Redskins traffic on ternative road with four lights will ton Roads, and regional technology flow, ramp signals could be timed to “Flipping the switch once you constantly emit signals in search of a Sunday afternoon, Mistele said. actually save 15 minutes,” he said. groups would determine which send the maximum number of vehi- have the data is the easy part,” Cho-

transmission towers, and those sig- Anyone buying a new BMW with “That is where the level of data is.” firms got it. cles onto highways without stop- pra said. “Getting the info is the

nals could be used to track drivers a navigational system gets Inrix ser- Still others say using toll-tag In addition to improving com- ping traffic — although that ap- hard part.”

C M Y K A6 ABCDE

Democracy Dies in Darkness TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 Army Fixing Patients’ Housing Changes Underway At Walter Reed

By Dana Priest and Anne Hull A Washington Post series over the Washington Post Staff Writers weekend described “The Other Walter Reed,” where overdoses, suicide attempts Walter Reed Army Medical Center and depression among outpatients are the began repairs yesterday on Building 18, a parallel narrative to the spit-polish hall- former hotel that is used to house outpa- ways of the renowned hospital. tients recuperating from injuries suffered Building 18, in particular, symbolizes in Iraq and Afghanistan and that has been the indifference and neglect that many of plagued with mold, leaky plumbing and a the wounded say they experience at Walter broken elevator. Reed. The facility’s commander, Maj. Gen. Yesterday, Weightman said a broken George W. Weightman, said Army staff elevator in the building had been repaired members inspected each of the 54 rooms and soldiers were working to improve the at the building and discovered that out- outside of the building, including removing standing repair orders for half the rooms ice and snow. The slippery conditions have had not been completed. He said that mold kept some soldiers in their rooms. A garage removal had begun on several rooms and door that has been broken for months will that holes in ceilings, stained carpets and soon be repaired as well. leaking faucets were being fixed. Spec. Jeremy Duncan, whose room Walter Reed, the Army’s premier has a moldy wall that was featured in one medical facility, has turned into a hold- photograph in the Post series, has been ing ground for wounded soldiers during moved to another room while workers 51/2 years of sustained combat. Almost make repairs. Duncan will be able to return 700 outpatients suffering from physical to his room when the work is completed, injuries and psychological problems live Weightman said. on the 113-acre military post or in nearby Walter Reed and Army officials have quarters. Many linger there for 18 months been “meeting continuously for three days” or longer as they move through the Army’s since the articles began appearing, Weight- numbing bureaucracy. man said. A large roundtable meeting with TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

Army and Defense Department officials said. will take place at the Pentagon early this Social workers will now be stationed morning to continue talks about improve- around the clock at Mologne House, the ments in the outpatient system, he added. 200-room hotel on the post where many of Weightman said the medical center the outpatients live. Plans are being devel- has received an outpouring of concern oped to better train other staff members about conditions and procedures since the who deal with outpatient needs. articles appeared and has taken steps to The Army will also consider moving improve what soldiers and their families some outpatients to its other medical cen- describe as a messy battlefield of bureau- ters throughout the United States and will cratic problems and mistreatment. determine over the next weeks whether “We’re starting to attack how we’ll fix more workers are needed at Walter Reed. and mitigate” some of the problems, he

C M Y K

A1 DAILY 02-20-07 VA M2 A1 CMYK

Weather Today: Mostly cloudy. High 50. Low 36. NORTHERN Wednesday: Partly sunny. VIRGINIA High 48. Low 33. FINAL Details, B8 ABCDE 35¢ Prices may vary in areas outside metropolitan 130th Year No. 77 M2 VA K Tuesday, February 20, 2007 M1 M2 M3 M4 V1 V2 V3 V4 Washington. (See box on A2) Satellite Army Radio Fixing Firms Plan To Merge Patients’ XM, Sirius Face Housing Antitrust Hurdles Changes Underway By Charles Babington At Walter Reed and Thomas Heath Washington Post Staff Writers By Dana Priest and Anne Hull XM and Sirius, the two satellite Washington Post Staff Writers radio companies that have spent mil- lions of dollars trying to woo pay-for- Walter Reed Army Medical Cen- service customers, yesterday an- ter began repairs yesterday on nounced plans to merge in hopes of Building 18, a former hotel that is stemming losses and offering an used to house outpatients recuper- even larger smorgasbord of music, ating from injuries suffered in Iraq talk and sports. and Afghanistan and that has been If approved by federal regulators, plagued with mold, leaky plumbing the merger would give all satellite and a broken elevator. subscribers access to Sirius’s How- The facility’s commander, Maj. ard Stern, pro football games and Gen. George W. Weightman, said NASCAR races, as well as XM’s Army staff members inspected Oprah Winfrey, Major League Base- each of the 54 rooms at the build- ball and Bob Dylan. ing and discovered that outstand- Before XM Satellite Radio Hold- ing repair orders for half the rooms ings of the District and Sirius Satel- PHOTOS BY TRACY A. WOODWARD — THE WASHINGTON POST had not been completed. He said lite Radio of New York can combine, About 15 African American families belong to Club 2012 in Ashburn in Loudoun County. While parents meet upstairs to discuss ways to keep their sons that mold removal had begun on however, the companies must per- academically engaged, the boys play video games downstairs. The group also holds homework sessions and field trips. several rooms and that holes in ceil- suade the Justice Department and ings, stained carpets and leaking Federal Communications Commis- faucets were being fixed. sion that they are complying with Walter Reed, the Army’s premier antitrust laws, a claim that land- Black Parents Seek to Raise Ambitions medical facility, has turned into a based broadcasters and consumer holding ground for wounded sol- 1 groups are likely to dispute. XM and diers during 5 ⁄2 years of sustained Sirius contend that customers have Loudoun Group Works to Keep Sons Interested in Academics and Achievement combat. Almost 700 outpatients ample audio choices through devices suffering from physical injuries and such as iPods and cellphones. By Michael Alison Chandler psychological problems live on the The FCC bars a single company Washington Post Staff Writer 113-acre military post or in nearby from controlling the satellite radio quarters. Many linger there for 18 market, but FCC Chairman Kevin J. Twelve-year-old Alex Carter is an A student who months or longer as they move Martin recently noted that such loves science and reads a book a week. So it surprised through the Army’s numbing bu- rules can be changed. Martin said his father when he announced last year that he didn’t reaucracy. yesterday that the hurdle “would be want to enroll in an honors class that his teacher rec- A Washington Post series over high. . . . The companies would need ommended for the following term. the weekend described “The Other to demonstrate that consumers “That class is for the smart people, the nerds,” Walter Reed,” where overdoses, would clearly be better off with both Alex told him. His father replied, “Well, who are suicide attempts and depression more choice and affordable prices.” you?” among outpatients are the parallel Officials said the new company’s Alex is a junior league football player, an avid golfer narrative to the spit-polish hall- name and headquarters would be de- and a lifelong suburbanite. He’s also one of only a ways of the renowned hospital. termined later. Customers, who now handful of African American students in his seventh- Building 18, in particular, sym- pay $12.95 per month for each com- grade class at Eagle Ridge Middle School in Ashburn. bolizes the indifference and neglect pany’s service, would be able to He dreams of becoming a professional athlete like his that many of the wounded say they choose a cafeteria-style range of dad, Tom, who played cornerback for the Washington experience at Walter Reed.

channels. Redskins. But as he nears his teenage years in a pre-

C M Y K “In fact, it will become a company dominantly white school in Loudoun County, his par- See REPAIRS, A6, Col. 3 A6 with greater consumer choice,” said ents are concerned that he could abandon academic Gary M. Parsons, chairman of XM. pursuits because he thinks they are better left to his DAILY 02-20-07 MD M2 A6 CMYK “Certainly, two companies com- white classmates. bined would be a much stronger pro- That’s why Tom and Renee Carter joined last year gramming lineup.” with about 15 families, including the parents of near- Hospital The merger would be a milestone ly every black male sixth-grader, to push their sons to in the evolution of commercial radio. graduate on time in 2012 with options for the future Parent Brian Carpenter talks to Stephen Cobbs, left, and Chris Holoman, both 12 and students at Eagle Ridge Middle School, in a father-son rap session held after the monthly Investigates A6 Tuesday, February 20, 2007 M2 THE REGION The Washington Post See RADIO, A4, Col. 5 See ACHIEVEMENT, A4, Col. 1 Club 2012 parents’ meeting. Some of the boys now boast about their good grades. Former Terrorist Networks Lure Young Moroccans to War in Far-Off Iraq Aid Chief Walter Reed Investigating Former Aid Director affiliated with al-Qaeda that have deepened Spain. Walter Reed Official HOSPITAL, From A1 $4,500 worth of phone cards in Conflict Is Recruiting Tool for Al-Qaeda Affiliates their roots in North Africa since the in- One of them, Abdelmonaim el-Amrani, a 2006 and handled $1.9 million vasion of Iraq four years ago. 22-year-old laborer, abandoned his wife and Had Own Charity Samuel Smith, said that “it would worth of donated plane tickets. By Craig Whitlock across the 3,000-mile divide. To stanch the flow, U.S. intelligence and infant child in Tetouan to go to Iraq. On clearly be a conflict of interest” pro- Weightman said the center’s staff Washington Post Foreign Service About two dozen men from Tetouan and military officials have tried to trace the March 6, 2006, just before sunset, he drove By Dana Priest hibited by federal law, Army reg- was recently increased from five to nearby towns in the Rif Mountains have fighters’ steps. On the basis of DNA evi- a red Volkswagen Passat stuffed with explo- and Anne Hull ulations and Defense Department nine employees, with two people TETOUAN, Morocco — In the Arab traveled to Iraq in the past 18 months to dence recovered from the scenes of suicide sives into a funeral tent in a village near Ba- Washington Post Staff Writers ethics rules if Wagner used his posi- assigned to keeping track of the do- world, this hilly North African city is about volunteer as fighters or suicide bombers, attacks, as well as other clues, officials have qubah, Iraq, according to witnesses. Six tion to solicit funds for his own or- nations, and training has been im- as far as you can get from Iraq. But for according to local residents and officials. confirmed that at least two bombers came people were reported killed and 27 injured. For the past three years, Michael ganization. proved. many young men here, the call to join what Moroccan authorities said the men were re- from Tetouan, a city of more than 320,000 J. Wagner directed the Army’s larg- The saga of the Medical Family The system for receiving dona- they view as a holy war resonates loudly cruited by international terrorist networks across the Strait of Gibraltar from southern See MOROCCO, A10, Col. 1 est effort to help the most vulner- Assistance Center is just one exam- tions is often confusing, even for able soldiers at Walter Reed Army ple of the problems at Walter Reed, the staff, Weightman said. “There’s Medical Center. His office in Room where nearly 700 soldiers and Ma- too much for any one person to 3E01 of the world-renowned hospi- rines from the wars in Iraq and Af- know, but depending on the ques- INSIDE tal was supposed to match big- ghanistan live as outpatients while tion, they may know [the answer] That Little Voice Telling You hearted donors with thousands of recuperating. Some families are or direct you to the person who wounded soldiers who could not happy with the help they received does know it.” THE NATION afford to feed their children, pay from Wagner and his office, and Some soldiers go directly to the mortgages, buy plane tickets or put To Skip I-95? It’s Your Car A Supreme Court Hearing many soldiers and their families ap- many volunteer organizations set up visiting families in nearby plauded the dedication of workers up to help the wounded. Last year, Without Being Heard hotels. there. Others said that they had Wagner began an effort to funnel all On-the-Button Navigation Devices a Goal At the legal system’s summit, But while he was being paid to problems with Wagner and that the requests and donations through a plaintiff finds her case has provide this vital service to pa- center seemed chaotic and disorga- the family assistance center. It was Of Grants Proposed in Va. to Ease Traffic little to do with her. A3 tients, outpatients and their rela- nized. a good idea, said Sosin and others, tions, Wagner was also seeking fun- “We had many family members but because Wagner seemed pre- By Eric M. Weiss technology “challenge grants” to THE WORLD ders and soliciting donations for who came to me because they occupied, a bottleneck of requests Washington Post Staff Writer generate ideas about reducing con- his own new charity, based in couldn’t get a respectful and com- resulted. gestion. Homer said the ideas could Suicide Blasts, Gun Battle Texas, according to documents and At U.S. Outpost in Iraq passionate response from Dr. Wag- “It was really all at the expense It’s cold, it’s dark, you’re tired, include ways to clear accidents interviews with current and former ner,” said Peggy Baker, director of a of the service member,” said San- and the last thing you want to face is more quickly or encourage tele- The attack kills three U.S. staff members. Some families also charity that helps wounded sol- dra Butterfield, who worked at one more backup on Interstate 66. commuting. soldiers and wounds 17 at the said Wagner treated them callously diers, Operation First Response. Walter Reed as an ombudsman for Imagine if your cellphone or vehicle But the holy grail of the effort is facility north of Baghdad. A8 and made it hard for them to re- Wagner, who has a doctorate in a Defense Department-funded re- navigation system knew about one providing an accurate, real-time pic- ceive assistance. education, resigned his position lief organization. “He decreed that and directed you to Route 50 be- ture of traffic conditions on all roads METRO Last week, Walter Reed last month to work full time on his everything had to go through him,” cause it would shave 11 minutes off — technology that could start ap- New Mayor’s Office Reflects launched a criminal investigation Military, Veteran and Family Assis- and it didn’t seem to matter if that your ride. pearing in this area by the end of the of Wagner after The Washington Commitment to Efficiency tance Foundation, based in Dallas. slowed the process. Officials, she As regional transportation plan- year. Post sought a response to his activ- The foundation includes the Phoe- said, “don’t understand what it ners seek to widen highways and Some companies are using in- Welcome to the “bullpen,” ities while he ran the Army’s Med- nix Project, which runs marriage meant to have no money. Family build Metro lines to increase op- formation from cellphones and Adrian Fenty’s monument to BY LEE CELANO — REUTERS ical Family Assistance Center, a po- retreats for soldiers returning from PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST members changed the sheets, emp- accountable government. B1 tions for commuters, leaders in Vir- E-ZPass transponders to fine-tune STYLE » HEALTH sition he left several weeks ago. combat. According to its Web site, Maria Mendez wheels her nephew, Spec. Roberto Reyes Jr., 25, into a VA hospital’s chapel in New York. Reyes was severely wounded by a mine in Iraq. ty the bedpan. But they are leaving ginia are trying to get that kind of technology that could give drivers Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, the foundation is supported by sev- their homes across the country. . . . BUSINESS The Mardi Gras Measure Goodbye to Girlhood please-say-it’s-so technology into information so precise they would the commander at Walter Reed, eral corporations, other founda- Every day I came home angry.” the hands of drivers to get more out know the best exit to take and JetBlue Struggles With Amid the beads and the As pop culture bombards ever said the probe by the Criminal In- tions and individuals. Some families were also angered younger girls, psychologists of the roads they have. where to find alternate roads with Winter Storm’s Aftermath booze, post-Katrina New vestigation Command (CID) “re- In a phone interview, Wagner de- by the way Wagner treated them. “We need help,” said Pierce R. favorable traffic lights. When driv- Orleans attempts to divine its worry about the effects of a flects the seriousness with which nied he had solicited funds or made “The patient care was absolutely A reluctance to inconvenience Homer, Virginia’s transportation ers are backed up on the Dulles Toll future by the success of its premature focus on sex and we take these allegations.” contact with donors during office wonderful, but the administration passengers backfired. D1 secretary. To that end, the budget Road, they would know whether biggest party. C1 appearance. F1 Weightman’s legal adviser, Col. hours. “It’s just not true,” he said. was horrible, especially Dr. Wag- proposed by Gov. Timothy M. “I intentionally stayed out of that. I ner,” said Maria Mendez, whose Kaine (D) includes $20 million for See TECHNOLOGY, A6, Col. 1 See HOSPITAL, A6, Col. 1 couldn’t do that. I couldn’t do 25-year-old nephew, Spec. Roberto both.” He said he is not paid by the Reyes Jr., suffered severe brain and Contents foundation. The documents that limb damage when a mine explod- INSIDE SECTIONS» METRO • STYLE • BUSINESS • SPORTS • HEALTH On Radio: 107.7 FM • 1500 AM Online:  2007 The would verify that have not yet been ed near him outside Baghdad. “It World News...... A7 In the Loop ...... A11 Editorials ...... A12 Obituaries ...... B6-7 Television ...... C6 Comics...... C9-11 TV Sports ...... E2 Washington 1 Post filed with the Internal Revenue Ser- was like running around in circles. Corrections...... A2 Letters ...... A12 Lotteries...... B4 Weather ...... B8 Movies...... C4 KidsPost...... C12 Classifieds ...... G1 vice. He was never around.” Wagner said his superiors “knew “They were unprofessional, dis- of my involvement right from the courteous and uncompassionate all

beginning.” Weightman said the in one,” Mendez said. “I was very

command had been unaware of surprised. You figure any family

C M Y K A1 Wagner’s Texas charity until re- who’s gone through such devasta- cently. tion, then faces this, to be treated Wagner defended his work at the with such unprofessionalism . . . center. “My only purpose and my it’s like you’re putting salt on the priority 12 to 19 hours a day was to Michael J. Wagner, center, ran the Medical Family Assistance Center Reyes is tucked into bed at the VA hospital by his mother, Aida Rivera, right, and wounds.” assist the families of the wounded,” at Walter Reed until resigning last month. He has been criticized as Mendez as his 12-year-old cousin looks on. Mendez called the Walter Reed Frustrated, Mendez set up an he said. “I saw 6,000 people coming uncaring by some soldiers’ family members, including Mendez. administration “unprofessional, discourteous and uncompassionate all in one.” account for her sister, Aida Rivera, back from Iraq and Afghanistan. I Reyes’s mother, to pay for her stay did my best, but I’m not God. What at Walter Reed. Rivera eventually I did there was a job that was su- 2006 — while he was working at things he never followed up on,” her concerns in a three-page letter said that Sosin never complained to got financial assistance from the perhuman.” Walter Reed — to a $145 million she said. to her superiors. She received no him and that he had no idea why Army and outside organizations, Wagner said that the charity was foundation by 2011. He signed the In April, Sosin said, she laid out response and resigned. Wagner she quit. but she also received a $3,519 bill founded by his brother and that he letter “Executive Director and Poverty among soldiers return- from Mologne House, a hotel at did not officially become its exec- Founder.” ing from war is not uncommon. Walter Reed, for her stay as her utive director until he left Walter Leita Sosin, an 11-year Army vet- While they continue to live on the son’s nonmedical attendant. Reed. But fundraising documents eran who worked in Wagner’s of- Army payroll until they return to Staff members from other offices from early January, before he re- fice for two years, said she com- Repairs Underway at Building 18 active duty or are discharged, some also complained to the command signed, list him as the director, and plained to him and to co-workers experience a substantial decrease about Wagner, according to memos the organization’s Web site called about his involvement with the REPAIRS, From A1 in pay when combat pay or hazard obtained by The Post. In one, an him its executive director months charity. “It really broke me to see pay disappears. employee, who asked not to be before he resigned. what he was doing,” said Sosin, 29, Yesterday, Weightman said a broken elevator in the building had Some Army families breach the named, questioned why a soldier’s In a fundraising letter he signed a former Army operating-room been repaired and soldiers were working to improve the outside of poverty line when a spouse quits a mother “who had subsisted on shortly before he quit the Medical technician. “Instead of working the building, including removing ice and snow. The slippery condi- job to help the soldier recuperate; dried soups . . . due to her lack of Family Assistance Center, Wagner with the families at Walter Reed tions have kept some soldiers in their rooms. A garage door that mortgage payments don’t stop, and funds” could not get help. Four referred to his work at Walter and with us, he spent all his time has been broken for months will soon be repaired as well. they still need to feed their chil- months after approaching the cen- Reed. As head of the center, he putting together the Phoenix Proj- Spec. Jeremy Duncan, whose room has a moldy wall that was fea- dren. Many turn to the generosity ter, the memo said, the mother had wrote, “I have had over a thousand ect.” tured in one photograph in the Post series, has been moved to an- of Americans eager to prove they not received the per diem owed her citizens in this great country ask- Moscow Spencer, a case manag- other room while workers make repairs. Duncan will be able to re- have not forgotten the troops’ sac- as her child’s nonmedical attendant ing what they might be able to do at er fired by Wagner in October, also turn to his room when the work is completed, Weightman said. rifices. While staff members and “and has no cash for essentials nor Walter Reed for our wounded complained to her co-workers. “All Walter Reed and Army officials have been “meeting continuously soldiers acknowledge that some emergencies.” troops and their families. I found day long he’d work on his pro- for three days” since the articles began appearing, Weightman said. families take advantage of the plen- A wife who accompanied her myself telling them that Walter gram,” she said. “If someone came A large roundtable meeting with Army and Defense Department of- tiful freebies at Walter Reed, many wounded husband, who was based Reed was blessed with the out- in to donate money, he would talk ficials will take place at the Pentagon early this morning to contin- others ask for help only as a last re- in Germany, said Wagner asked her pouring of the goodness and gener- to them about his project.” ue talks about improvements in the outpatient system, he added. sort. repeatedly why she did not return osity of the American public and Sosin said the office was over- Weightman said the medical center has received an outpouring The assistance center is sup- to Germany so she could continue that if they were really interested in whelmed by the number of families of concern about conditions and procedures since the articles ap- posed to be the connection be- working. The woman “reported assisting, they should look within who needed assistance and who peared and has taken steps to improve what soldiers and their fami- tween a soldier’s family and private she felt harassed and bullied but their own communities.” were confused by the complex bu- lies describe as a messy battlefield of bureaucratic problems and donors. Until recently, it did not that she held her ground,” the em- But, his letter continued, “I real- reaucracy. “Everyone needed help, mistreatment. accept cash contributions but in- ployee’s memo states. ized they were not working with but you couldn’t get them the help “We’re starting to attack how we’ll fix and mitigate” some of the stead matched families’ needs — Wagner said families were often their local communities so . . . I de- as fast as they needed it,” she said. problems, he said. for bus or plane tickets, clothing, angry at his office, not because it cided to found the Military, Veteran “Someone like me could scream all Social workers will now be stationed around the clock at Mo- emergency food vouchers, grants failed them but because they were and Family Assistance Foundation day about how it was broken, but logne House, the 200-room hotel on the post where many of the for mortgages or living expenses distraught over their situation. to do just this, to do what I am able no one wanted to take the time to outpatients live. Plans are being developed to better train other — with organizations set up to “Their true need is an emotional to help our soldiers reenter their fix it.” staff members who deal with outpatient needs. help. one. They’re going to be angry at home and local community.” She also said Wagner was arro- The Army will also consider moving some outpatients to its oth- According to Walter Reed, 14 somebody. . . . I did my best; no, Wagner included an ambitious gant toward some staff members er medical centers throughout the United States and will deter- families on average seek assistance more than my best.” business plan to take the charity and families. “People got hurt in mine over the next weeks whether more workers are needed at from the center each day. Although from a $237,000 pilot project in the the process, whether it be financial- Walter Reed. it is difficult to quantify the value of Staff researcher Julie Tate first year, which ended in August ly or because he promised a lot of donations, the center received contributed to this report.

Firms Try to Meld Popular Technology to Improve Traffic Data TECHNOLOGY, From A1 as they travel — or sit in traffic. vice, and Virginia uses the com- readers to track car speeds is anoth- muters’ options, having real-time in- proach could leave hundreds of driv- Instead of the thousands of road pany’s data in its 511 traffic in- er promising approach. Additional formation could also help govern- ers waiting on on-ramps for long Route 7, for example, would be bet- sensors on major highways, there formation system. tag readers placed over highways ment traffic planners tweak road- stretches. ter. could be millions of cellphone sig- Mistele predicted that in five would read E-ZPass transponders ways and signals to pack more McGhee said real-time informa- Managers could use the same in- nals painting a detailed portrait of years, “everybody will have ubiqui- without deducting a toll. Tracking vehicles on each mile of highway. tion could also be used to adjust formation to better time cars merg- the region’s comings and goings, on tous access to this information and the time it took a tag to travel be- “It all goes back to the data. You speed limits to create “artificial ing onto roads and to create a Interstate 270 or in a suburban cul- will know the best time to leave in tween two readers would help deter- need to know quantitatively what is slowdowns” that, counterintuitive- steady traffic flow, eliminating the de-sac. the morning and the best route to mine cars’ speeds. Sixty mph, no going on out there,” said Catherine ly, would keep traffic moving faster. typical bottlenecks. “The melding is happening now,” take home.” problem. Ten mph, time to find a dif- McGhee, co-director of the Smart Traffic moving constantly at 45 mph Traffic data are limited to road- said Bryan Mistele, president and IntelliOne, an Atlanta-based com- ferent route. Travel Laboratory at the University is better than that speeding along side cameras and sensors buried in chief executive of Inrix, a Microsoft pany, has been operating a cell- Part of the Kaine program’s mis- of Virginia. stretches of open road, then ending the pavement. These are expensive spinoff based in Kirkland, Wash., phone-based test in Tampa for 18 sion is to learn how to make the “We can’t tell you to take Route in bottlenecks. Once traffic stops, it to install and maintain and are gen- that develops real-time traffic in- months and hopes to launch its ser- Washington area’s traffic quagmire 50 because I-66 is blocked, because takes a lot longer to get going again. erally limited to interstates and formation. Inrix takes data from vice in other markets — including a laboratory for new technology and we’re not confident of our data on Because 50 to 60 percent of con- major highways. And the informa- government road sensors, adds it to Washington — by year’s end. And, get local companies involved. 50,” McGhee said. “Our goal is to gestion is caused by accidents and tion they provide — it is 6 p.m. and GPS readings from commercial ve- yes, the company is interested in A recent summit in Northern Vir- tell you there’s a problem and here’s other incidents, being able to quick- the Capital Beltway is jammed — is hicles and taxis and combines it taking up Kaine’s challenge. ginia called by Homer and Aneesh what to do about it — like take Met- ly find out where and when traffic is hardly a revelation. Radio, tele- with other information that might Chief Executive Ronald Herman P. Chopra, the state’s technology ro, or bus number 37, and your trav- stopped would make quicker re- vision and Internet reports, which affect traffic, such as sports, concert said national package delivery com- secretary, tried to bring private- el time will be this. Or go to the tele- sponses possible. rely on much of the same informa- and school schedules, construction panies searching for ways to save sector and government officials to- commuting place at the intersection Better information can also help tion, are not much better. projects and weather reports. fuel and cut time stuck in traffic are gether. The $20 million, which faces of X and Y.” planners time traffic signals on To make the leap forward, compa- The goal is not just to show real accelerating its research. an uphill battle in the General As- She said traffic data could be used arterial roads and respond to chang- nies are trying to tap into widely conditions but also to predict what “Because the system would know sembly, would be a small induce- to better control highway ramp ing conditions, such as keeping used technology, such as cellphones, will be, say, the best route to Dulles your destination, it could tell you ment. The money would be split be- merges, a major cause of jams. By shoulder lanes open later during Global Positioning System units and International Airport at 7 p.m. on a that taking an early exit onto an al- tween Northern Virginia and Hamp- using sensors monitoring highway days of heavy traffic. E-ZPass transponders. Cellphones Friday or around Redskins traffic on ternative road with four lights will ton Roads, and regional technology flow, ramp signals could be timed to “Flipping the switch once you constantly emit signals in search of a Sunday afternoon, Mistele said. actually save 15 minutes,” he said. groups would determine which send the maximum number of vehi- have the data is the easy part,” Cho-

transmission towers, and those sig- Anyone buying a new BMW with “That is where the level of data is.” firms got it. cles onto highways without stop- pra said. “Getting the info is the

nals could be used to track drivers a navigational system gets Inrix ser- Still others say using toll-tag In addition to improving com- ping traffic — although that ap- hard part.”

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Democracy Dies in Darkness WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2007

PHOTOS BY NIKKI KAHN — THE WASHINGTON POST William Morton Jr. enters a veteran’s room at Walter Reed’s Building 18 as fellow worker Gregory Steven Smith removes moldy wallpaper. Army Launches Cleanup In Walter Reed Housing Noncommissioned officers moved from room to room of Building 18 of Walter Reed Army Medical Center yesterday with clipboards noting necessary repairs, while workers in protective masks began peeling moldy wallpaper and pulling up old carpet. Elsewhere in the decrepit former hotel that houses recovering wounded soldiers, an elevator was re- paired and outside sidewalks were cleared of ice. The activity came amid a storm of outrage from veterans groups and politicians after a series of arti- cles last weekend in The Washington Post. The mold was one of many problems that have drawn complaints. Story, A8. WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

Swift Action Promised at Walter Reed Investigations Urged as Army Moves to Make Repairs, Improve Staffing

By Dana Priest and Anne Hull Washington Post Staff Writers

The White House and congressional leaders called yesterday for swift investiga- tion and repair of the problems plaguing BY NIKKI KAHN — THE WASHINGTON POST outpatient care at Walter Reed Army Med- Building 18, a former hotel across Georgia Avenue from Walter Reed, now serves as ical Center, as veterans groups and mem- overflow housing for the medical center. bers of Congress in both parties expressed outrage over substandard housing and the slow, dysfunctional bureaucracy there. Top Army officials yesterday visited Building 18, the decrepit former hotel hous- ing more than 80 recovering soldiers, out- side the gates of the medical center. Army Secretary Francis Harvey and Vice Chief of Staff Richard Cody toured the building and BY PAUL MORSE — WHITE HOUSE VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS President Bush and first lady Laura Bush spoke to soldiers as workers in protective talked to Sgt. Patrick Hagood of Anderson, masks stripped mold from the walls and S.C., during a visit to Walter Reed in 2005. tore up soiled carpets. At the White House, press secretary ited the facility many times in the past five Tony Snow said that he spoke with Presi- years, had not heard about these problems dent Bush yesterday about Walter Reed before. and that the president told him: “Find out Walter Reed’s commander, Maj. Gen. what the problem is and fix it.” George W. Weightman, said in an interview Snow said Bush “first learned of the that the Army leadership had assured him troubling allegations regarding Walter that all the staff increases he had requested Reed from the stories this weekend in would be met. “This is not an issue,” he The Washington Post. He is deeply con- said. “This is their number one priority.” cerned and wants any problems identi- He said the Army has agreed to fund fied and fixed.” The spokesman said he did what he called a “surge plan” that has not know why the president, who has vis- been designed for the likelihood that the WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

21,500-person troop increase underway in Iraq will result in more casualties. Weightman said case managers have been ordered to call each of the 700 outpa- tients to ask about problems they may be encountering. He has also put half a dozen senior enlisted officers from the hos- pital in charge of the outpa- tients’ companies normally in the hands of lower-level pla- toon sergeants. Also, a medic will be stationed 24 hours a day at the Mologne House, the largest residence on the 113- acre post, to help soldiers with medical or psychological prob- lems. Harvey said he was sur- prised and disappointed by the conditions and the bureau- cratic delays. “In the warrior ethos, the last line says you should never leave a fallen comrade, and from that facil- ity point of view we didn’t live BY NIKKI KAHN BY— NIKKI THE KAHN WASHINGTON — THE WASHINGTON POST POST up to it . . . and it looks to me WilliamWilliam MortonMorton Jr., Jr., from from the thefederal federal contractor contractor IAP Worldwide IAP Worldwide Services, removesServices, moldy removes we may have not lived up to it moldywallpaper wallpaper from a room from at aBuilding room at18. Building More than 18. 80 More soldiers than are 80recovering soldiers in the building. from a process side,” he said, are recovering in the building. adding that conditions at the building are “inexcusable.” “It’s a failure . . . in the garrison leader- “We had some NCOs [noncommis- ship . . . that should have never happened, sioned officers] who weren’t doing their and we are quickly going to rectify that sit- job, period,” Harvey said. He said he and uation,” he said. Cody will report regularly to Defense Sec- WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

retary Robert M. Gates on a plan to fix the investigate outpatient care at Walter Reed. conditions. “The treatment reported in The Post of The Post series documented tattered our troops and our veterans is disgraceful,” conditions at Building 18, including mold, Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly said. rot, mice and cockroaches, but also a larger Several senators, including presi- bureaucratic indifference that has impeded dential candidate Barack Obama (D-Ill.) some soldiers’ recovery. and former presidential candidate John At Building 18 yesterday, platoon ser- F. Kerry (D-Mass.), announced they are geants with clipboards went from room to co-sponsoring legislation to simplify the room inspecting for mold, leaks and other paperwork process for recovering soldiers problems. A broken elevator was repaired, and increase case managers and psycholog- and snow and ice were cleared from the ical counselors. The bill would also require sidewalks. the Army to report more regularly to Con- The secretaries of the Army and Navy gress and the inspector general about the announced that they had begun a broader living conditions of injured soldiers. review of Walter Reed and the National Jeff Miller (Fla.), the ranking Repub- Naval Medical Center and that an indepen- lican on the House Veterans’ Affairs sub- dent review group will be formed to inves- committee on health, said: “The neglect tigate outpatient care and administrative being experienced by some wounded ser- processes. Walter Reed is set to close in vice members is outrageous. The Defense 2011, and the naval facility in Bethesda Department is never shy about asking for will be expanded to handle the additional supplemental funds for operations and wounded. equipment; I cannot imagine why housing Walter Reed’s fixes are unlikely to for recuperating wounded would not be a immediately quiet the criticism from mem- similarly high priority.” bers of Congress, who received a flood of Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), for- calls from the public and veterans groups mer chairman of what was then known as asking how the problems could have been the House Government Reform Commit- unknown to officials — some of whom reg- tee, urged the committee to hold a hearing ularly visit Walter Reed. at Walter Reed to give members an “invalu- “We need to bring the Army people in able firsthand look” at how the Army is pro- and say, ‘What the hell is going on?’ “ said cessing the wounded. “Improvements to Rep. Bob Filner (D-Calif.), chairman of the date have been episodic, and in some case, House Veterans Affairs Committee. short-lived,” Davis said in a statement. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) asked the House Armed Services Committee to Staff writer Ann Scott Tyson contributed to this report.

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A1 DAILY 02-21-07 VA M2 A1 CMYK

Weather Today: Mostly sunny. High 50. Low 33. Thursday: Partly sunny. NORTHERN High 52. Low 30. VIRGINIA FINAL Details, B10 ABCDE 35¢ Prices may vary in areas outside metropolitan 130th Year No. 78 M2 VA Wednesday, February 21, 2007 M1 M2 M3 M4 V1 V2 V3 V4 Washington. (See box on A2)

TAKEOVER The Left’s New Hit List Justices The Woman in the Middle Overturn Moderate Democrat Is New Target of Liberal Bloggers By Juliet Eilperin Progressive blogs — including lawmaker’s district director, played Tobacco and Michael Grunwald two new ones, Ellen Tauscher Week- them a DVD of Tauscher blasting Washington Post Staff Writers ly and Dump Ellen Tauscher — the increase as an awful idea in a were bashing her as a traitor to her floor speech eight days earlier. The Democratic majority was party. A new liberal political action “The words are fine and good, but only three weeks old, but by Jan. 26, committee had just named her its we are looking for leadership,” Award the grass-roots and Net-roots activ- “Worst Offender.” And in Tauscher’s scoffed Susan Schaller, one of the ac- ists of the party’s left wing had al- East Bay district office that day in tivists. ready settled on their new enemy: January, eight MoveOn.org activists Leadership? Barton showed them $80 Million Penalty Rep. Ellen O. Tauscher (D-Calif.), were accusing her of helping Presi- the eight golden shovels Tauscher BY LUCIAN PERKINS — THE WASHINGTON POST the outspoken chair of the centrist dent Bush send more troops to Iraq. Rep. Ellen Tauscher (D-Calif.) says she takes seriously the Is Called Excessive New Democrat Coalition. Helping? Jennifer Barton, the See TAKEOVER, A5, Col. 1 threat against her from the Democratic Party’s liberal base. By Robert Barnes Washington Post Staff Writer

The Supreme Court yesterday overturned a nearly $80 million verdict intended to pun- ish the Philip Morris tobacco company for en- Va. Senate dangering the lives of smokers, and the jus- tices set limits on how jurors can decide to make big business pay for wrongdoing. Approves The court’s narrowly written 5 to 4 deci- sion said that an Oregon court had improper- ly let jurors calculate the harm done to many in deciding damages paid to an individual. Red-Light The court ruled that the Constitution’s due-process clause forbids a state to use puni- tive damages to punish a company for injury Cameras it inflicts upon others who are “essentially, strangers to the litigation,” according to the majority opinion, written by Justice Stephen House Blocks Boost G. Breyer. The case was seen at the beginning of the Of Minimum Wage term as one of the most important business decisions that the court would make under By Amy Gardner new Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., and it and Tim Craig was clearly a victory for Philip Morris and Washington Post Staff Writers other big companies. It continues the reason- ing in the court’s recent rulings that punitive RICHMOND, Feb. 20 — The damages — aimed at punishing a company Virginia General Assembly will al- and deterring more wrongdoing — must be low local governments to set up proportionate to the wrong committed. cameras to catch drivers who run But in sending the case back to Oregon red lights, renewing a program courts for further litigation, the justices side- that safety advocates say reduces accidents and aggressive driving. See COURT, A6, Col. 3 The Senate voted 30 to 10 Tues- day to approve a bill that would let towns, cities and counties with populations of 10,000 or more in- stall photo-monitoring systems at intersections with traffic signals. PHOTOS BY NIKKI KAHN — THE WASHINGTON POST The House has already approved William Morton Jr. enters a veteran’s room at Walter Reed’s Building 18 as fellow worker Gregory Steven Smith removes moldy wallpaper. Guantanamo the measure, and Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) has said he will sign it. Nearing the close of their 45-day Detainees session, lawmakers also voted Army Launches Cleanup

Tuesday to phase out touch-screen

M Y K voting machines because of con- C In Walter Reed Housing A8 cerns about their accuracy. And Lose Appeal House Republicans blocked an ef- Noncommissioned officers moved from room to DAILY 02-21-07 MD SU A8 CMYK fort to raise the state’s minimum room of Building 18 of Walter Reed Army Medical wage to $6.50 an hour. The session Center yesterday with clipboards noting necessary Habeas Corpus Case ends Saturday. repairs, while workers in protective masks began The red-light camera program peeling moldy wallpaper and pulling up old carpet. May Go to High Court would replace an experiment that Elsewhere in the decrepit former hotel that houses expired in 2005 in Alexandria, Fair- recovering wounded soldiers, an elevator was re- By Josh White A8 Wednesday, February 21, 2007 S NATIONAL NEWS The Washington Post fax City, Falls Church, Vienna, Vir- paired and outside sidewalks were cleared of ice. Washington Post Staff Writer ginia Beach and Arlington and The activity came amid a storm of outrage from Fairfax counties. In addition to the veterans groups and politicians after a series of arti- A federal appeals court ruled yesterday cles last weekend in The Washington Post. that hundreds of detainees in U.S. custody Swift Action Promised at Walter Reed See CAMERAS, A7, Col. 1 The mold was one of many problems that have drawn complaints. Story, A8. at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, do not have the right to challenge their imprisonment in fed- eral courts, a victory for the Bush adminis- Investigations Urged as Army Moves to Make Repairs, Improve Staffing tration that could lead to the Supreme Court again addressing the issue. By Dana Priest and Anne Hull largest residence on the 113-acre post, to In its 2 to 1 decision, the U.S. Court of Ap- Washington Post Staff Writers help soldiers with medical or psychological In Haiti, Abductions Hold Nation Hostage peals for the District of Columbia Circuit problems. upheld one of the central components of the The White House and congressional Harvey said he was surprised and dis- Military Commissions Act, the law enacted leaders called yesterday for swift investiga- appointed by the conditions and the bu- Despite U.N. Troop Presence, Much of Capital Controlled by Gangs last year by a then-Republican-controlled tion and repair of the problems plaguing reaucratic delays. “In the warrior ethos, Congress that stripped Guantanamo detain- outpatient care at Walter Reed Army Med- the last line says you should never leave a ees of their right to such habeas corpus peti- ical Center, as veterans groups and mem- fallen comrade, and from that facility point By Manuel Roig-Franzia ing to steady his trembling hands. ward spiral that severed his tenuous tions. Lawyers have filed the petitions on be- bers of Congress in both parties expressed of view we didn’t live up to it . . . and it BY NIKKI KAHN — THE WASHINGTON POST Washington Post Foreign Service Two young men, their faces hard hold on a working-class lifestyle, leav- half of virtually all of the nearly 400 detain- outrage over substandard housing and the looks to me we may have not lived up to it Building 18, a former hotel across Georgia but calm, flashed pistols at him. When ing him poor and depressed more ees still at Guantanamo, challenging slow, dysfunctional bureaucracy there. from a process side,” he said, adding that Avenue from Walter Reed, now serves as PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Kid- he turned, he saw four more gun bar- than four months after his captors re- President Bush’s right to hold them indefi- Top Army officials yesterday visited conditions at the building are “inexcus- overflow housing for the medical center. nappers came for Petit-Frère Desilus rels behind him. Pedestrians did noth- leased him. His troubles have become nitely without charges. Yesterday’s ruling Building 18, the decrepit former hotel able.” in the early afternoon, as he was driv- ing, merely swerving around the un- commonplace here. One year after a effectively dismisses the cases. housing more than 80 recovering soldiers, “It’s a failure . . . in the garrison leader- ing away from his office. folding scene, he said. presidential election that generated Attorneys for the detainees vowed to outside the gates of the medical center. ship . . . that should have never happened, The street was busy and he was just “Lie down, shut up,” Desilus re- optimism and marked only the second quickly petition the Supreme Court to hear BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST Army Secretary Francis Harvey and Vice and we are quickly going to rectify that sit- 10 feet outside the gated compound members being told. “Today you’re peaceful handover of power in Haitian the case. Chief of Staff Richard Cody toured the uation,” he said. where he worked as a billing clerk. going to get yours.” history, Port-au-Prince is a city of fear. A music vender known as “Peaceful Michel” said he Judge A. Raymond Randolph wrote in the building and spoke to soldiers as workers “We had some NCOs [noncommissioned But they got him anyway, Desilus re- Pressed flat against the back seat, was kidnapped in December in front of a police in protective masks stripped mold from the officers] who weren’t doing their job, peri- called recently in a hushed voice, try- Desilus was about to begin a down- See HAITI, A10, Col. 1 station and is certain officers witnessed it. See DETAINEES, A8, Col. 5 walls and tore up soiled carpets. od,” Harvey said. He said he and Cody will At the White House, press secretary report regularly to Defense Secretary Rob- Tony Snow said that he spoke with Presi- ert M. Gates on a plan to fix the conditions. dent Bush yesterday about Walter Reed The Post series documented tattered INSIDE and that the president told him: “Find out conditions at Building 18, including mold, what the problem is and fix it.” rot, mice and cockroaches, but also a larger Pr. George’s Official Opened Fire Snow said Bush “first learned of the bureaucratic indifference that has impeded BY PAUL MORSE — WHITE HOUSE VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS THE NATION « SPORTS METRO troubling allegations regarding Walter some soldiers’ recovery. President Bush and first lady Laura Bush Closing Arguments Spring Hopes Eternal Bill Would Provide Reed from the stories this weekend in The At Building 18 yesterday, platoon ser- talked to Sgt. Patrick Hagood of Anderson, Washington Post. He is deeply concerned geants with clipboards went from room to S.C., during a visit to Walter Reed in 2005. In Libby Trial Larry Broadway, 26, $50 Million for Pollin Unprovoked, Deliveryman Says and wants any problems identified and room inspecting for mold, leaks and other faces competition in Prosecutors say I. The Wizards owner By Eric Rich heard gunshots,” White said in the statement. fixed.” The spokesman said he did not problems. A broken elevator was repaired, investigate outpatient care at Walter Reed. his dream of a Nats Lewis “Scooter” would get public funds Washington Post Staff Writer Later, White said, he listened as he lay know why the president, who has visited and snow and ice were cleared from the “The treatment reported in The Post of our rookie season. E1 Libby lied to keep his to upgrade Verizon bleeding while Washington falsely reported the facility many times in the past five sidewalks. troops and our veterans is disgraceful,” Pe- job, while the defense Center; the city would A senior Prince George’s County homeland that the men he shot had attacked him with a BUSINESS years, had not heard about these problems The secretaries of the Army and Navy losi spokesman Brendan Daly said. says he was merely get a luxury suite. B1 security official who last month shot two un- pipe. “I remember sitting there on the ground before. announced that they had begun a broader Several senators, including presidential overworked and Fannie Mae Bonuses armed furniture deliverymen opened fire thinking to myself, I can’t believe this is how it Walter Reed’s commander, Maj. Gen. review of Walter Reed and the National Na- candidate Barack Obama (D-Ill.) and for- forgetful. A4 Loudoun Campaigns: without provocation after angrily ordering the is going to be,” said White, 36, who dictated George W. Weightman, said in an inter- val Medical Center and that an independ- mer presidential candidate John F. Kerry It withholds up to The board moves to men to leave his home, the surviving mover the statement from his hospital bed to his at- $44.4 million in view that the Army leadership had assured ent review group will be formed to in- (D-Mass.), announced they are co-sponsor- Washington Sketch: forbid contributions said in a statement provided last night to law torney. His co-worker, Brandon Clark, 22, him that all the staff increases he had re- vestigate outpatient care and administra- ing legislation to simplify the paperwork Libby’s lawyer offers incentives for some of from anyone with a enforcement authorities. died of his wounds Feb. 2 without giving a the years its earnings quested would be met. “This is not an is- tive processes. Walter Reed is set to close process for recovering soldiers and in- an unusually land-use application. B1 Keith A. Washington, who is also a county statement. sue,” he said. “This is their number one pri- in 2011, and the naval facility in Bethesda crease case managers and psychological emotional defense. A2 were misstated. D1 police officer, was combative almost from the Washington has not spoken publicly since FOOD ority.” will be expanded to handle the additional counselors. The bill would also require the moment the movers arrived at his Accokeek the shooting. A source familiar with the in- He said the Army has agreed to fund wounded. Army to report more regularly to Congress For the Defense: JetBlue ranked among home, said Robert White, who worked for a vestigation has told The Post that, in a brief BY JONATHAN NEWTON — THE WASHINGTON POST the worst airlines in Stir-Fry Strategy what he called a “surge plan” that has been Walter Reed’s fixes are unlikely to imme- and the inspector general about the living Ted Wells has argued contractor delivering for Marlo Furniture. “As report filed immediately after the incident, designed for the likelihood that the 21,500- diately quiet the criticism from members of conditions of injured soldiers. his cases since his Andrew Carbone, 10, waits for an long waits on tarmacs Delivering us from bad we were leaving we reached the top of the Washington alleged that the movers were in a in 2006. D1 Chinese food. F1 person troop increase underway in Iraq Congress, who received a flood of calls Jeff Miller (Fla.), the ranking Repub- D.C. school days. C1 autograph from the Nationals’ Tony Blanco. steps, and the customer said, ‘I know how to will result in more casualties. from the public and veterans groups asking lican on the House Veterans’ Affairs sub- BY NIKKI KAHN — THE WASHINGTON POST get you the [expletive] out of my house’ and I See DELIVERYMAN, A6, Col. 1 Weightman said case managers have how the problems could have been un- committee on health, said: “The neglect be- William Morton Jr., from the federal contractor IAP Worldwide Services, removes moldy been ordered to call each of the 700 out- known to officials — some of whom reg- ing experienced by some wounded service wallpaper from a room at Building 18. More than 80 soldiers are recovering in the building. Contents INSIDE SECTIONS» METRO • STYLE • BUSINESS • SPORTS • FOOD On Radio: 107.7 FM • 1500 AM Online:  2007 patients to ask about problems they may be ularly visit Walter Reed. members is outrageous. The Defense De- The encountering. He has also put half a dozen “We need to bring the Army people in partment is never shy about asking for sup- mer chairman of what was then known as to date have been episodic, and in some World News...... A9 Letters ...... A14 Lotteries...... B4 Weather ...... B10 Movies...... C9 KidsPost...... C14 TV Sports ...... E2 Washington 1 Post senior enlisted officers from the hospital in and say, ‘What the hell is going on?’ ” said plemental funds for operations and equip- the House Government Reform Commit- case, short-lived,” Davis said in a state- Corrections...... A2 Editorials ...... A14 Obituaries ...... B6-9 Television ...... C6 Comics ...... C11-13 Stocks ...... D5-7 Classifieds ...... G1 charge of the outpatients’ companies nor- Rep. Bob Filner (D-Calif.), chairman of the ment; I cannot imagine why housing for re- tee, urged the committee to hold a hearing ment. mally in the hands of lower-level platoon House Veterans Affairs Committee. cuperating wounded would not be a at Walter Reed to give members an “invalu-

sergeants. Also, a medic will be stationed Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) asked similarly high priority.” able firsthand look” at how the Army is Staff writer Ann Scott Tyson contributed

24 hours a day at the Mologne House, the the House Armed Services Committee to Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), for- processing the wounded. “Improvements to this report.

C M Y K A1

Justice Dept. Statistics Inflated Figures Foreign Detainees’ Officials at the Executive Office of U.S. Attorneys overstated On Terrorism Faulted their successes in prosecuting terrorism suspects, according to Right to Challenge the Justice Department’s inspector general. Most Numbers Inaccurate, Audit Shows FISCAL 2004 Terrorism 118 Reported Imprisonment Rejected FIGURES convictions 97 Supported By Dan Eggen and haphazard.” DETAINEES, From A1 “This decision allows the Washington Post Staff Writer The Justice Department said in Terrorism-related 379 president to basically do what he a statement that it has already convictions 240 majority opinion that to overrule wants to prisoners without any Most of the Justice Depart- made most of the improvements the new law, which Bush signed legal limitation as long as he ment’s major statistics on terror- suggested by Fine’s office and that Terrorism suspects 256 in October, would “defy the will does it offshore,” Kadidal said. ism cases are highly inaccurate, the U.S. attorneys’ office would sentenced to prison 193 of Congress.” He and Judge Da- He said that his clients at Guan- and federal prosecutors routinely rename its “anti-terrorism” cat- vid B. Sentelle also found that tanamo have experienced “dis- count cases involving drug traf- egory to remove the implication SOURCE: Justice Department Office of the Inspector General historical interpretations of ha- gust and exasperation at the ficking, marriage fraud and other that every case involves terrorism. beas corpus do not apply to for- American legal system” and that BY SETH HAMBLIN — THE WASHINGTON POST unrelated crimes as part of anti- The analysis is the latest to find eign nationals not on U.S. soil, their “feelings of desperation” terrorism efforts, according to an serious faults with the Justice De- determining that the U.S. mili- now will only grow. audit released yesterday. partment’s terrorism statistics, data as part of its analysis but, un- Much of the report’s criticisms tary prison at Guantanamo Bay Washington lawyer David Inspector General Glenn A. some of which have been featured like The Post, it accepted at face centered on the U.S. attorneys’ of- is a leased property that falls un- Remes, who also represents Fine found that only two of the 26 prominently in statements by value any claims of a terrorism fice at Justice headquarters, der Cuban sovereignty. Guantanamo detainees, said he sets of important statistics on do- President Bush or the attorney link by the government. Under which compiles statistics from 93 “Federal courts have no juris- is disappointed by the decision mestic counterterrorism efforts general as evidence of the terror- those conditions, the report said, federal prosecutors nationwide diction in these cases,” Randolph but not completely surprised. He compiled by Justice and the FBI ist threat and the department’s the Criminal Division actually un- and in U.S. territories. The office wrote in the combined cases of expects the Supreme Court to from 2001 to 2005 were accurate, successful efforts to combat it. derstated the number of cases that dramatically over- or understated Al Odah v. USA and Boume- hear the case. according to a 140-page report. The data are used to justify ex- would qualify as related to terror- the number of terrorism-related diene v. Bush. “Our only re- In two decisions, the Supreme The numbers were both inflated penditures and explain to Con- ism. cases during a four-year period, course is to vacate the district Court has upheld Guantanamo and understated, depending on gress and to the public how the Justice Department spokesman due in large part to the way offi- courts’ decisions and dismiss the detainees’ rights to contest their the data cited and which part of Justice Department is using its re- Dean Boyd said “the notion that cials defined “anti-terrorism” cases for lack of jurisdiction.” incarceration in federal courts. the Justice Department was doing sources to protect the country the Justice Department inflated cases, the report said. In a lengthy dissent, Judge Ju- But the court also made it clear the counting, the report said. against terrorist attacks, officials its statistics is false and flatly con- A prime example was a massive dith W. Rogers raised two cen- that Congress could weigh in on The biggest problems were in said. tradicted by the [inspector gener- operation to crack down on secu- tral questions of constitutional the issue, which it did by approv- numbers compiled by the Exec- “Congress, department manag- al’s] report itself, which found rity problems at airports, which law that could form the basis of ing the Military Commissions utive Office of U.S. Attorneys, ers and the public need accurate that the Criminal Division either yielded dozens of arrests for im- arguments before the Supreme Act. That law mandated special which counted hundreds of terror- statistics in order to fully assess accurately stated or understated migration charges and other Court, if it chooses to hear the military trials for the detainees. ism cases that did not qualify for the department’s anti-terrorism the department’s terrorism statis- crimes but none related to terror- case. She wrote that the writ of Douglas W. Kmiec, a profes- the designation because they in- efforts,” Fine said in a statement. tics in nearly all categories.” ism. Even so, Fine’s report said, habeas corpus can apply to for- sor of constitutional law at Pep- volved minor crimes with no con- A 2005 Washington Post analy- Fine’s report was careful to all of the cases were counted as eign nationals outside the United perdine University, said it ap- nection to terrorist activity, the sis of terrorism cases tallied by stress that the inaccuracies did anti-terrorism efforts. States and that Congress has not pears that Congress clearly in- report said. the Justice Department’s Crimi- not appear to have been intention- The only two sets of accurate properly suspended habeas cor- tended to remove the court’s In short, the report concluded, nal Division showed that most de- al but instead were the result of statistics were compiled by the pus, something it has done only jurisdiction. He said, however, “The collection and reporting of fendants were charged with minor shoddy recordkeeping, disagree- FBI, which nonetheless provided four times, including during the that questions remain about the terrorism-related statistics within crimes unrelated to terrorism. ments over definitions and other inaccurate data in eight other cat- Civil War. application of habeas rights and the department is decentralized Fine’s office examined similar problems. egories, the report said. Rogers wrote that Congress their evolution since the late may suspend that right “when in 1700s. cases of rebellion or invasion the “We’re dealing with an area public safety may require it” but that has been subject to some dif- that Congress has not invoked ficult and subtle rulings from the that power now, adding that its beginning of the foundation of actions “exceed the powers of our country,” Kmiec said. “The Retired Admiral Sworn In Congress.” law has been a moving target.” Justice Department lawyers Democrats, who now hold the As Director of Intelligence have argued for years that for- majority in both houses, have eign detainees should not enjoy vowed to quickly amend the Mili- By Walter Pincus “one of the most difficult and impor- constitutional rights when they tary Commissions Act with pro- Washington Post Staff Writer tant positions in our government in are detained in other countries visions that would restore habe- this time of war — and we are a na- amid accusations of terrorism as rights for detainees. Retired Vice Adm. John M. tion at war.” And although the presi- against the United States and its Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), McConnell, sworn in yesterday as dent and his advisers have been crit- allies. chairman of the Senate Judiciary the second director of national intel- icized for ignoring prewar intelli- “We are pleased with the deci- Committee, and the committee’s ligence, said new technologies and gence about the dangers in Iraq, sion of the U.S. Court of Appeals ranking Republican, Arlen Spec- capabilities are needed to collect and Bush said yesterday: “He’ll find that for the D.C. Circuit upholding ter (Pa.), have introduced a bill analyze intelligence “because to- I value the intelligence product. . . . the constitutionality of the Mili- that would restore habeas corpus day’s threats move at increasing He’s going to find that the intelli- tary Commissions Act (MCA) rights. Specter urged congres- speeds.” gence product is an important part and dismissing the consolidated sional action because the Su- “The time needed to develop a of my strategic thought.” Guantanamo detainee cases for preme Court could take months terrorist plot, communicate it Bush also paid tribute to McCon- lack of jurisdiction,” Erik Ablin, to hear the case. around the globe and put it into mo- nell’s predecessor, Ambassador a department spokesman, said in Sen. Christopher J. Dodd tion has been drastically reduced,” John D. Negroponte, who has a statement. (Conn.), a candidate for the he told the audience of 300 at his moved back to the State Depart- BY JIM YOUNG — REUTERS Shayana Kadidal, a lawyer Democratic presidential nomina- swearing-in ceremony, which includ- ment as deputy secretary, saying he President Bush, congratulating Director of National Intelligence John M. with the Center for Constitution- tion, introduced a bill last week ed President Bush and the leaders of served with “talent and distinction.” McConnell, said the admiral’s new job is one of the government’s hardest. al Rights, which represents hun- that would return habeas corpus the nation’s intelligence agencies. Nevertheless, Bush said that many dreds of Guantanamo detainees, rights to detainees while clarify- “The timeline is no longer a calendar elements of improving the intelli- curity rules to make it easier for in- been vacant since Gen. Michael V. said defense attorneys will peti- ing other parts of the law. Dodd — it is a watch.” gence community remain, including telligence agencies to hire first- and Hayden moved to the CIA last year. tion the Supreme Court “as said yesterday his legislation is McConnell becomes the presi- information sharing and the hiring second-generation Arabic-speaking He told the Senate Select Commit- quickly as possible.” He said the now “even more critical.” dent’s chief intelligence adviser and of employees with the right lan- Americans for very sensitive jobs. tee on Intelligence that his prefer- decision grants government offi- It is unclear whether Bush manager of the 16 agencies and guage and cultural skills. McConnell Although it was not mentioned ence would be someone from within cials broad latitude in its treat- would veto such legislation, about 100,000 people making up the repeated yesterday a plan he dis- yesterday, another of McConnell’s the community on the civilian side ment of detainees and gives de- which would challenge a central

U.S. intelligence community. closed to Congress at his confirma- highest priorities will be in propos- who is working on terrorism-related tainees no legal way to address element of his anti-terrorism

Bush described McConnell’s job tion hearing: that he will change se- ing a deputy DNI, a position that has issues. it. platform.

C M Y K A8 ABCDE

Democracy Dies in Darkness SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007

WALTER REED AND BEYOND

The War Inside Troops Are Returning From the Battlefield With Psychological Wounds, But the Mental-Health System That Serves Them Makes Healing Difficult

Story by Dana Priest and Anne Hull |Photos by Michel du Cille | The Washington Post SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

Army Spec. Jeans and chronic.” In a letter supporting his Cruz helped capture request for PTSD-related disability pay, Saddam Hussein. When the psychologist wrote that Cruz was “in he came home to the need of major help” and that he had pro- Bronx, important people vided “more than enough evidence” to back called him a war hero up his PTSD claim. His combat experi- and promised to help ences, the letter said, “have been well docu- him start a new life. The mented.” mayor of New York, offi- None of that seemed to matter when Cruz was hailed as a hero when he cials of his parents’ home his case reached VA disability evaluators. returned home. town in Puerto Rico, They turned him down flat, ruling that the borough president he deserved no compensation because his and other local dignitaries honored him psychological problems existed before he with plaques and silk parade sashes. They joined the Army. They also said that Cruz handed him their business cards and urged had not proved he was ever in combat. “The him to phone. available evidence is insufficient to confirm But a “black shadow” had followed that you actually engaged in combat,” his Cruz home from Iraq, he confided to an rejection letter stated. Army counselor. He was hounded by recur- Yet abundant evidence of his year ring images of how war really was for him: in combat with the 4th Infantry Division not the triumphant scene of Hussein in covers his family’s living-room wall. The handcuffs, but visions of dead Iraqi chil- Army Commendation Medal With Valor dren. for “meritorious actions . . . during stra- In public, the former Army scout tegic combat operations” to capture Hus- stood tall for the cameras and marched in sein hangs not far from the combat spurs the parades. In private, he slashed his fore- awarded for his work with the 10th Cavalry arms to provoke the pain and adrenaline of “Eye Deep” scouts, attached to an elite unit combat. He heard voices and smelled stale that caught the Iraqi leader on Dec. 13, blood. Soon the offers of help evaporated 2003, at Ad Dawr. and he found himself estranged and alone, Veterans Affairs will spend $2.8 billion struggling with financial collapse and a this year on mental health. But the best it darkening depression. could offer Cruz was group therapy at the At a low point, he went to the local Bronx VA medical center. Not a single ses- Department of Veterans Affairs medical sion is held on the weekends or late enough center for help. One VA psychologist diag- at night for him to attend. At age 25, Cruz nosed Cruz with post-traumatic stress dis- is barely keeping his life together. He sup- order. His condition was labeled “severe ports his disabled parents and 4-year-old SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

WALTER REED AND BEYOND Troops Haunted by War Struggle to Get Care

son and cannot afford to take time off from his job repairing boilers. The rough, dirty work, with its heat and loud noises, gives him panic attacks and flesh burns but puts $96 in his pocket each day. Once celebrated by his gov- ernment, Cruz feels defeated by its bureaucracy. He no longer has the stamina to appeal the VA decision, or to make the Army correct the sloppy errors in his medical records or amend his personnel file so it actually lists his combat awards. “I’m pushing the mental limits as it is,” Cruz said, standing outside the bullet-pocked steel door of the New York City housing project on Webster Avenue where he grew up and still lives with his family. “My experience so far is, you ask for something and they deny, deny, deny. After a while you just give up.”

An Old and Growing Problem Jeans Cruz and his contem- poraries in the military were never Jeans Cruz lives with his family in a Bronx housing project, where a supposed to suffer in the shadows shooting left a door perforated with bullet holes, above. the way veterans of the last long, controversial war did. One of the bitter disorders in silence, and too many ended legacies of Vietnam was the inadequate up homeless, alcoholic, drug-addicted, treatment of troops when they came back. imprisoned or dead before the government Tens of thousands endured psychological acknowledged their conditions and in SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

Among the family photographs on their living-room wall, below, hang plaques honoring Cruz for his service and his role in helping capture Saddam Hussein. What the former soldier remembers most about the war, however, is death; he recalls moving the bodies of Iraqi children.

1980 officially recognized PTSD as a medi- Afghanistan and Iraq who had sought help cal diagnosis. for post-traumatic stress would fill four Yet nearly three decades later, the gov- Army divisions, some 45,000 in all. ernment still has not mastered the basics: They occupy every rank, uniform and how best to detect the disorder, the most corner of the country. People such as Army effective ways to treat it, and the fair- Lt. Sylvia Blackwood, who was admitted to est means of compensating young men a locked-down psychiatric ward in Wash- and women who served their country and ington after trying to hide her distress for a returned unable to lead normal lives. year and a half [story, A13]; and Army Pfc. Cruz’s case illustrates these broader Joshua Calloway, who spent eight months problems at a time when the number of at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and suffering veterans is the largest and fast- left barely changed from when he arrived est-growing in decades, and when many of from Iraq in handcuffs; and retired Marine them are back at home with no monitor- Lance Cpl. Jim Roberts, who struggles ing or care. Between 1999 and 2004, VA to keep his sanity in suburban New York disability pay for PTSD among veterans with the help of once-a-week therapy and a jumped 150 percent, to $4.2 billion. medicine cabinet full of prescription drugs; By this spring, the number of vets from and the scores of Marines in California who SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

were denied treatment for PTSD because tal health questioned whether the single- the head psychiatrist on their base thought event standard is a valid way to measure the diagnosis was overused. PTSD. “One of the things I puzzle about is, They represent the first wave in what what if someone hasn’t been exposed to an experts say is a coming deluge. IED but lives in dread of exposure to one As many as one-quarter of all sol- for a month?” said Ira R. Katz, a psychia- diers and Marines returning from Iraq are trist. “According to the formal definition, psychologically wounded, according to a they don’t qualify.” recent American Psychological Association The military is also battling a crisis in report. Twenty percent of the soldiers in mental-health care. Licensed psychologists Iraq screened positive for anxiety, depres- are leaving at a far faster rate than they are sion and acute stress, an Army study found. being replaced. Their ranks have dwindled But numbers are only part of the prob- from 450 to 350 in recent years. Many said lem. The Institute of Medicine reported they left because they could not handle the last month that Veterans Affairs’ methods stress of facing such pained soldiers. Inex- for deciding compensation for PTSD and perienced counselors muddle through, other emotional disorders had little basis using therapies better suited for alcoholics in science and that the evaluation process or marriage counseling. varied greatly. And as they try to work their A new report by the Defense Depart- way through a confounding disability pro- ment’s Mental Health Task Force says the cess, already-troubled vets enter a VA sys- problems are even deeper. Providers of tem that chronically loses records and sags mental-health care are “not sufficiently with a backlog of 400,000 claims of all accessible” to service members and are kinds. inadequately trained, it says, and evidence- The disability process has come to based treatments are not used. The task symbolize the bureaucratic confusion force recommends an overhaul of the mili- over PTSD. To qualify for compensation, tary’s mental-health system, according to a troops and veterans are required to prove draft of the report. that they witnessed at least one traumatic Another report, commissioned by event, such as the death of a fellow soldier Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates in the or an attack from a roadside bomb, or IED. wake of the Walter Reed outpatient scan- That standard has been used to deny thou- dal, found similar problems: “There is not sands of claims. But many experts now a coordinated effort to provide the training say that debilitating stress can result from required to identify and treat these non- accumulated trauma as well as from one visible injuries, nor adequate research in significant event. order to develop the required training and In an interview, even VA’s chief of men- refine the treatment plans.” SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 6

WALTER REED AND BEYOND For Vets With Mental Scars, Healing Can Be Hard to Find

But the Army is unlikely to do more 60 percent of soldiers said they would significant research anytime soon. “We not seek help for mental-health problems are at war, and to do good research takes because they felt their unit leaders would writing up grants, it takes placebo control treat them differently; 55 percent thought trials, it takes control groups,” said Col. they would be seen as weak, and the same Elspeth Ritchie, the Army’s top psychia- percentage believed that soldiers in their trist. “I don’t think that that’s our primary units would have less confidence in them. mission.” Lt. Gen. John Vines, who led the 18th In attempting to deal with increasing Airborne Corps in Iraq and Afghanistan, mental-health needs, the military regularly said countless officers keep quiet out of fear launches Web sites and promotes self-help of being mislabeled. “All of us who were in guides for soldiers. Maj. Gen. Gale S. Pol- command of soldiers killed or wounded lock, the Army’s acting surgeon general, in combat have emotional scars from it,” believes that doubling the number of men- said Vines, who recently retired. “No one tal-health professionals and boosting the I know has sought out care from mental- pay of psychiatrists would help. health specialists, and part of that is a lack But there is another obstacle that of confidence that the system would recog- those steps could not overcome. “One of my nize it as ‘normal’ in a time of war. This is a great concerns is the stigma” of mental ill- systemic problem.” ness, Pollock said. “That, to me, is an even Officers and senior enlisted troops, bigger challenge. I think that in the Army, Vines added, were concerned that they and in the nation, we have a long way to would have trouble getting security clear- go.” The task force found that stigma in the ances if they sought psychological help. military remains “pervasive” and is a “sig- They did not trust, he said, that “a faceless, nificant barrier to care.” nameless agency or process, that doesn’t Surveys underline the problem. Only know them personally, won’t penalize them 40 percent of the troops who screened pos- for a perceived lack of mental or emotional itive for serious emotional problems sought toughness.” help, a recent Army survey found. Nearly SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 7

Jim Roberts, a former Marine and Vietnam War veteran, facing away, had emotional problems for three decades before his post- traumatic stress disorder was diagnosed. He recently hosted a support group for fellow veterans, including, from left, Herb O’Neill, Ray D’Alesandro and John Preiss, at his house in Yonkers, N.Y. They say veterans of today’s wars who feel distressed should not be ignored. “It’s all about the forgotten vets, then and now,” Roberts said.

Overdiagnosed or Overlooked? there’s no such thing as PTSD,” said David For the past 2 1/2 years, the counsel- Roman, who was a substance abuse coun- ing center at the Marine Corps Air Ground selor at Twentynine Palms until he quit six Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, Calif., months ago. was a difficult place for Marines seeking “We were all appalled,” said Mary Jo help for post-traumatic stress. Navy Cmdr. Thornton, another counselor who left last Louis Valbracht, head of mental health year. at the center’s outpatient hospital, often A third counselor estimated that per- refused to accept counselors’ views that haps half of the 3,000 Marines he has some Marines who were drinking heav- counseled in the past five years showed ily or using drugs had PTSD, according to symptoms of post-traumatic stress. “They three counselors and another staff member would change the diagnosis right in front who worked with him. of you, put a line through it,” said the coun- “Valbracht didn’t believe in it. He’d say selor, who spoke on the condition of ano- SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 8

nymity because he still works there. Former Lance Cpl. Jim Roberts’s “I want to see my Marines being underlying mental condition was over- taken care of,” said Roman, who is now a looked by the Marine Corps and successive substance-abuse counselor at the Marine health-care professionals for more than Corps Air Station in Cherry Point, N.C. 30 years, as his temper and alcohol use In an interview, Valbracht denied he plunged him into deeper trouble. Only in ever told counselors that PTSD does not May 2005 did VA begin treating the Viet- exist. But he did say “it is overused” as a nam vet for PTSD. Three out of 10 of his diagnosis these days, just as “everyone on compatriots from Vietnam have received the East Coast now has a bipolar disor- diagnoses of PTSD. Half of those have been der.” He said this “devalues the severity of arrested at least once. Veterans groups say someone who actually has PTSD,” adding: thousands have killed themselves. “Nowadays it’s like you have a hangnail. To control his emotions now, Rob- Someone comes in and says ‘I have PTSD,’ ” erts attends group therapy once a week and counselors want to give them that and swallows a handful of pills from his diagnosis without specific symptoms. VA doctors: Zoloft, Neurontin, Lisinopril, Valbracht, an aerospace medicine spe- Seroquel, Ambien, hydroxyzine, “enough cialist, reviewed and signed off on cases medicine to kill a mule,” he said. at the counseling center. He said some Roberts desperately wants to persuade counselors diagnosed Marines with PTSD Iraq veterans not to take the route he trav- before determining whether the symptoms eled. “The Iraq guys, it’s going to take them persisted for 30 days, the military recom- five to 10 years to become one of us,” he mendation. Valbracht often talked to the said, seated at his kitchen table in Yonkers counselors about his father, a Marine on with his vet friends Nicky, Lenny, Frenchie, Iwo Jima who overcame the stress of that Ray and John nodding in agreement. “It’s battle and wrote an article called “They all about the forgotten vets, then and now. Even Laughed on Iwo.” Counselors found The guys from Iraq and Afghanistan, we it outdated and offensive. Valbracht said it need to get these guys in here with us.” showed the resilience of the mind. “In here” can mean different things. Valbracht retired recently because, he It can mean a 1960s-style vet center such said, he “was burned out” after working as the one where Roberts hangs out, with seven days a week as the only psychiatrist faded photographs of Huey helicopters available to about 10,000 Marines in his and paintings of soldiers skulking through 180-mile territory. “We could have used shoulder-high elephant grass. It can mean two or three more psychiatrists,” he said, group therapy at a VA outpatient clinic to ease the caseload and ensure that people during work hours, or more comprehen- were not being overlooked. sive treatment at a residential clinic. In a SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 9

crisis, it can mean the locked-down psych ward at the local VA hospital. “Out there,” with no care at all, is a lonesome hell.

Losing a Bureaucratic Battle Not long after Jeans Cruz returned from Iraq to Fort Hood, Tex., in 2004, his counselor, a low- ranking specialist, suggested that someone should “explore symptoms of PTSD.” But there is no indication in Cruz’s medical files, which he gave to The Washington Post, that anyone ever responded to that early sugges- tion. When he met with counselors while he was on active duty, Cruz recalled, they would take notes about his troubled past, including that he had been treated for depression before he entered the Army. But they did not seem interested in his battle- field experiences. “I’ve shot kids. I’ve had to kill kids. Sometimes I look at my son and like, I’ve killed a kid his age,” Cruz said. “At times we had to drop a shell into somebody’s house. Spec. Jeans Cruz has received little help for his PTSD since leaving When you go clean up the mess, you the Army. His job and family responsibilities leave him no time for the therapy sessions offered during work hours at the VA hospital. “Why had three, four, five, six different kids can’t I have a counselor with a phone number?” he asks. in there. You had to move their bod- ies.” When he tried to talk about the war, he said, his counselors “would just sit back and say, ‘Uh-huh, uh-huh.’ When I told them about the unit I was PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE with and Saddam Hussein, they’d just SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 10

say, ‘Oh, yeah, right.’ ” work hours.” He occasionally saw a psychiatrist, Seven months after his reenlistment who described him as depressed and anx- ceremony, the Army gave him an honor- ious. He talked about burning himself with able discharge, asserting that he had a cigarettes and exhibited “anger from Iraq, “personality disorder” that made him unfit nightmares, flashbacks,” one counselor for military service. This determination wrote in his file. “Watched friend die in implied that all his psychological problems Iraq. Cuts, bruises himself to relieve anger existed before his first enlistment. It also and frustration.” They prescribed Zoloft disqualified him from receiving combat- and trazodone to control his depression related disability pay. and ease his nightmares. They gave him There was little attempt to tie his con- Ambien for sleep, which he declined for a dition to his experience in Iraq. Nor did while for fear of missing morning forma- the Army see an obvious contradiction in tion. its handling of him: He was encouraged Counselors at Fort Hood grew con- to reenlist even though his psychological cerned enough about Cruz to have him problems had already been documented. sign what is known as a Life Maintenance Cruz’s records are riddled with obvi- Agreement. It stated: “I, Jeans Cruz, agree ous errors, including a psychological rat- not to harm myself or anyone else. I will ing of “normal” on the same physical exam first contact either a member of my direct the Army used to discharge him for a psy- Chain of Command . . . or immediately chological disorder. His record omits his go to the emergency room.” That was in combat spurs award and his Army Com- October 2004. The next month he signed mendation Medal With Valor. These omis- another one. sions contributed to the VA decision that Two weeks later, Cruz reenlisted. He he had not proved he had been in combat. says the Army gave him a $10,000 bonus. To straighten out those errors, Cruz would His problems worsened. Three months have had to deal with a chaotic and con- after he reenlisted, a counselor wrote in his tradictory paper trail and bureaucracy — medical file: “MAJOR depression.” After a daunting task for an expert lawyer, let that: “He sees himself in his dreams kill- alone a stressed-out young veteran. ing or strangling people. . . . He is worried In the Aug. 16, 2006, VA letter deny- about controlling his stress level. Stated ing Cruz disability pay because he had not that he is starting to drink earlier in the provided evidence of combat, evaluators day.” A division psychologist, noting Cruz’s directed him to the U.S. Armed Services depression, said that he “did improve Center for Research of Unit Records. But when taking medication but has degener- such a place no longer exists. It changed ated since stopping medication due to long its name to the U.S. Army and Joint Ser- SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 11

vices Records Research Center and moved slow I didn’t want to do nothing with my from one Virginia suburb, Springfield, to son or manage my family,” he said. After another, Alexandria, three years ago. It a few months, he stopped taking them, a has a 10-month waiting list for processing dangerous step for someone so severely requests. depressed. His drinking became heavier. To speed things up, staff members To calm himself now, he goes outside often advise troops to write to the National and hits a handball against the wall of the Archives and Records Administration in housing project. “My son’s out of control. Maryland. But that agency has no records There are family problems,” he said, shak- from the Iraq war, a spokeswoman said. ing his head. “I start seeing these faces. It That would send Cruz back to Fort Hood, goes back to flashbacks, anxiety. Some- whose soldiers have deployed to Iraq twice, times I’ve got to leave my house because leaving few staff members to hunt down I’m afraid I’m going to hit my son or some- records. body else.” But Cruz has given up on the records. Because of his family responsibilities, Life at the Daniel Webster Houses is tough he does not want to be hospitalized. He enough. doesn’t think a residential program would After he left the Army and came home work, either, for the same reason. to the Bronx, he rode a bus and the sub- His needs are more basic. “Why can’t I way 45 minutes after work to attend group have a counselor with a phone number? I’d sessions at the local VA facility. He always like someone to call.” arrived late and left frustrated. Listening Or some help from all those people to the traumas of other veterans only made who stuck their business cards in his palm him feel worse, he said: “It made me more during the glory days of his return from aggravated. I had to get up and leave.” Iraq. “I have plaques on my wall — but Experts say people such as Cruz need indi- nothing more than that.” vidual and occupational therapy. Medications were easy to come by, but Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this report. some made him sick. “They made me so

C M Y K

A1 DAILY 06-17-07 MD M2 A1 CMYK

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WALTER REED AND BEYOND FDA Scrutiny Scant In India, China as Drugs Pour Into U.S. Broad Overseas Checks Called Too Costly

By Marc Kaufman Filings to the FDA to sell active Washington Post Staff Writer pharmaceutical ingredients India and China, countries where 350 the Food and Drug Administration India: rarely conducts quality-control in- 319 spections, have become major sup- 300 pliers of low-cost drugs and drug in- 250 gredients to American consumers. Analysts say their products are be- 200 coming pervasive in the generic and China: over-the-counter marketplace. 150 Over the past seven years, amid 104 explosive growth in imports from In- 100 dia and China, the FDA conducted only about 200 inspections of plants 50 in those countries, and a few were the kind that U.S. firms face regular- 0 ly to ensure that the drugs they ’97 ’98 ’99 ’00 ’01 ’02 ’03 ’04 ’05 ’06 make are of high quality. SOURCE: Newport Strategies Horizon Global The agency, which is responsible THE WASHINGTON POST for ensuring the safety of drugs for Americans wherever they are manu- drugs and drug ingredients for factured, made 1,222 of these qual- American consumers than any other ity-assurance inspections in the foreign nation, it conducted a hand- United States last year. In India, which has more plants making See MEDICINES, A8, Col. 2

“I’m pushing the mental limits,” says Jeans Cruz, a former Army specialist who saw combat in Iraq. He cares for his parents and 4-year-old son, Jeans Jr., in the Bronx while struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder. Veterans Affairs has denied his request for disability compensation. FBI Name Check Cited In Naturalization Delays The War Inside Official Calls Backlog ‘Unacceptable’ By Spencer S. Hsu security check of her name against Troops Are Returning From the Battlefield With Psychological Wounds, and N.C. Aizenman its more than 86 million investiga- Washington Post Staff Writers tive files. Neither the bureau nor But the Mental-Health System That Serves Them Makes Healing Difficult the U.S. Citizenship and Immigra- Jin Ju Yoo, a stay-at-home moth- tion Services agency will say why. er who immigrated from South Ko- Since 2005, the backlog of legal Story by Dana Priest and Anne Hull |Photos by Michel du Cille | The Washington Post rea in 1990 and applied for U.S. citi- U.S. immigrants whose applica- zenship in 2002, would seem a mini- tions for naturalization and other Army Spec. Jeans Cruz helped capture Saddam Soon the offers of help evaporated and he found himself mal security risk. So say friends in benefits are stuck on hold awaiting Hussein. When he came home to the Bronx, important estranged and alone, struggling with financial collapse Clarksburg, Md., where Yoo, 36, FBI name checks has doubled to people called him a war hero and promised to help him and a darkening depression. plays drums at a Presbyterian 329,160, prompting a flood of law- start a new life. The mayor of New York, officials of his At a low point, he went to the local Department of church and raises three children suits in federal courts, bureaucratic parents’ home town in Puerto Rico, the borough Veterans Affairs medical center for help. One VA with her husband, a flooring con- finger-pointing in Washington and president and other local dignitaries honored him with psychologist diagnosed Cruz with post-traumatic stress tractor. Her husband and children tough scrutiny by 2008 presidential plaques and silk parade sashes. They handed him their disorder. His condition was labeled “severe and are citizens. candidates. business cards and urged him to phone. chronic.” In a letter supporting his request for The would-be American is still At a time when Congress is in- But a “black shadow” had followed Cruz home from PTSD-related disability pay, the psychologist wrote waiting for approval, however, be- Iraq, he confided to an Army counselor. He was that Cruz was “in need of major help” and that he had cause the FBI has not completed a See IMMIGRATION, A6, Col.1 hounded by recurring images of how war really was for provided “more than enough evidence” to back up his him: not the triumphant scene of Hussein in handcuffs, PTSD claim. His combat experiences, the letter said, but visions of dead Iraqi children. “have been well documented.” In public, the former Army scout stood tall for the None of that seemed to matter when his case reached Cruz was hailed cameras and marched in the parades. In private, he VA disability evaluators. They turned him down flat, INSIDE as a hero when he slashed his forearms to provoke the pain and adrenaline » returned home. of combat. He heard voices and smelled stale blood. See PTSD, A11, Col. 1 You’ve Got SUMMERTIME Getting Away From It All If you’re planning quiet time ABOUT THIS SERIES A SOLDIER’S STORY Mail . . . a or a family vacation, we have Thoughts of suicide and ideas in the Magazine, Today and tomorrow, The Washington Post continues an Travel and Sunday Source. examination of the treatment of men and women post-traumatic stress led Lt. Block Away returning home from war with physical and mental Sylvia Blackwood, a veteran of wounds. The first stories, “The Other Walter Reed,” the Iraq war, to a harrowing appeared earlier this year. Those articles, along with psych ward in a VA hospital and New Homeowners audio, video and photo slide shows with today’s stories, then to a VA residential clinic, can be found at www.washingtonpost.com/walterreed. where she finally found Decry Cluster Boxes comfort. A13 By Philip Rucker Washington Post Staff Writer

The personal mailbox is the lat-

est casualty of suburban sprawl.

C M Y K A12 C M Y K A11 Across the nation, the U.S. Post- Stay-at-Home Dads Forge New Identities, Roles al Service increasingly is delivering DAILY 06-17-07 MD SU A12 CMYK DAILY 06-17-07 MD SU A11 CMYK mail to communal cluster boxes as a way to keep pace with booming More Fathers Than Ever residential growth while control- ling labor costs. The new strategy, Are Primary Caregivers aimed at new developments in fast- THE NATION growing areas such as Clarksburg, The Washington Post x By Katherine Shaver S Sunday, June 17, 2007 A11 A12 Sunday, June 17, 2007Leesburg andS Waldorf, savesx the Prosecutor in Duke Case The Washington Post Washington Post Staff Writer postal service time and money. Disbarred for Misconduct “Instead of going from door to Michael Nifong says he It could have been any play group in the Washington door, from lawn to lawn, from won’t appeal the decision WALTER REED AND BEYOND area, except for the diaper bags. No Vera Bradley flow- WALTER REED ANDdriveway BEYOND to driveway, we have a after being found guilty of ers, no pastel polka dots. The bags lying around Matt central location,” said Luvenia Hy- ethics violations. A3 Vossler’s Rockville living room Tuesday afternoon were son, a postal service regional dark Eddie Bauer canvas. One was red but, as its owner spokeswoman. THE WORLD quickly pointed out, “very metrosexual.” But many residents and devel- India’s Imperiled Ganges Troops Haunted by War Struggle“Potty training was a lot of angstto for me,” Get Vossler, 43, Care opers say cluster boxes — tradi- The Himalayan source of a onetime paralegal, told the group. tionally reserved for apartments Hinduism’s holiest river is “Bottle feeding was my angst,” said Matt Trebon, 36, and townhouses, not single-family drying up because of global PTSD, From A1 a former Capitol Hill staffer, as his 3-year-old daughter have less confidence in them. homes — are impersonal, incon- warming, scientists say. A14 nuzzled his side. Lt. Gen. John Vines, who led the 18th venient and downright ugly. ruling that he deserved no compensation “And trying to get them to eat well,” Vossler contin- Airborne Corps in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mia Hall just moved into her STYLE because his psychological problems existed ued, bringing up his 6-year-old. “Martin is all carbs.” said countless officers keep quiet out of fear dream house, a five-bedroom Co- The Tale of Johnny R before he joined the Army. They also said “Eight days — no diapers!” Trebon suddenly an- of being mislabeled. “All of us who were in lonial in Southern Maryland featur- As governor of Connecticut that Cruz had not proved he was ever in nounced, thrusting his fists into the air. command of soldiers killed or wounded in ing a gourmet kitchen with a center for 10 years, John Rowland combat. “The available evidence is insuffi- With their wives as breadwinners, the fathers are part combat have emotional scars from it,” said island and a double oven, twin fire- was living large, before cient to confirm that you actually engaged of a small but growing group of men who are quitting or Vines, who recently retired. “No one I know places and a finished basement, as corruption led to prison. D1 in combat,” his rejection letter stated. has sought out care from mental-health spe- BY BILL O’LEARY — THE WASHINGTON POST Yet abundant evidence of his year in com- See FATHERS, A10, Col. 3 Bridgetcialists, Trebon, and 3, partand Martinof that Vossler, is a lack 6, watchof confi- a video at a play group for stay-at-home fathers. See MAILBOX, A10, Col. 1 bat with the 4th Infantry Division covers his dence that the system would recognize it as family’s living-room wall. The Army Com- ‘normal’ in a time of war. This is a systemic INSIDE OUTLOOK • METRO • STYLE • SPORTS • BUSINESS • SUNDAY SOURCE • ARTS • TRAVEL • BOOKWORLD • COMICS • TVWEEK • THE MAGAZINE Online: mendation Medal With Valor for “meritori- » problem.” ous actions . . . during strategic combat op- Arts Listings ...... N7 Editorials, Letters ...... B6 KidsPostOfficers ...... D8 and senior enlistedMovie troops, Directory Vines ..N9-10 Ombudsman...... B6 TV Sports ...... E3 DAILY CODE 4397 Contents  2007 erations” to capture Hussein hangs not far Crossword ...... Magazine Horoscopes ...... D5 Lotteries...... C4added, were concerned thatObituaries...... B7-10 they would Stocks...... F8 World News ...... A14 The Washington from the combat spurs awarded for his have trouble getting security clearances if PAGE C5 Post CLASSIFIED SECTIONS: Apartments/Rentals ...... H2 Automotive .....G1 Jobs ...... K1 Merchandise ....J1 Personals...... D6 Real Estate sales ....H6 7 work with the 10th Cavalry “Eye Deep” they sought psychological help. They did scouts, attached to an elite unit that caught not trust, he said, that “a faceless, nameless the Iraqi leader on Dec. 13, 2003, at Ad agency or process, that doesn’t know them

Dawr. personally, won’t penalize them for a per-

Veterans Affairs will spend $2.8 billion ceived lack of mental or emotional tough- C M Y K this year on mental health. But the best it ness.” A1 could offer Cruz was group therapy at the Bronx VA medical center. Not a single ses- Overdiagnosed or Overlooked? sion is held on the weekends or late enough 1 at night for him to attend. At age 25, Cruz is For the past 2 ⁄2 years, the counseling cen- barely keeping his life together. He supports ter at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat his disabled parents and 4-year-old son and Center in Twentynine Palms, Calif., was a cannot afford to take time off from his job difficult place for Marines seeking help for repairing boilers. The rough, dirty work, post-traumatic stress. Navy Cmdr. Louis with its heat and loud noises, gives him pan- Valbracht, head of mental health at the cen- ic attacks and flesh burns but puts $96 in his ter’s outpatient hospital, often refused to ac- pocket each day. cept counselors’ views that some Marines Once celebrated by his government, Cruz who were drinking heavily or using drugs feels defeated by its bureaucracy. He no lon- had PTSD, according to three counselors ger has the stamina to appeal the VA deci- and another staff member who worked with sion, or to make the Army correct the slop- him. py errors in his medical records or amend “Valbracht didn’t believe in it. He’d say his personnel file so it actually lists his com- there’s no such thing as PTSD,” said David bat awards. Roman, who was a substance abuse coun- “I’m pushing the mental limits as it is,” selor at Twentynine Palms until he quit six Cruz said, standing outside the bullet- months ago. pocked steel door of the New York City “We were all appalled,” said Mary Jo housing project on Webster Avenue where Thornton, another counselor who left last he grew up and still lives with his family. year. “My experience so far is, you ask for some- A third counselor estimated that perhaps thing and they deny, deny, deny. After a half of the 3,000 Marines he has counseled while you just give up.” in the past five years showed symptoms of post-traumatic stress. “They would change An Old and Growing Problem the diagnosis right in front of you, put a line through it,” said the counselor, who spoke Jim Roberts, a former Marine and Vietnam War veteran, facing away, had emotional problems for three decades before his post-traumatic stress disorder was diagnosed. He recently hosted a support group for fellow veterans, including, Jeans Cruz and his contemporaries in the on the condition of anonymity because he from left, Herb O’Neill, Ray D’Alesandro and John Preiss, at his house in Yonkers, N.Y. They say veterans of today’s wars who feel distressed should not be ignored. “It’s all about the forgotten vets, then and now,” Roberts said. military were never supposed to suffer in still works there. the shadows the way veterans of the last “I want to see my Marines being taken long, controversial war did. One of the bit- care of,” said Roman, who is now a sub- ter legacies of Vietnam was the inadequate stance-abuse counselor at the Marine Corps treatment of troops when they came back. Air Station in Cherry Point, N.C. Tens of thousands endured psychological In an interview, Valbracht denied he ever For Vets With Mental Scars, disorders in silence, and too many ended up told counselors that PTSD does not exist. homeless, alcoholic, drug-addicted, impris- But he did say “it is overused” as a diagnosis oned or dead before the government ac- these days, just as “everyone on the East knowledged their conditions and in 1980 of- Coast now has a bipolar disorder.” He said ficially recognized PTSD as a medical diag- this “devalues the severity of someone who Healing Can Be Hard to Find nosis. actually has PTSD,” adding: “Nowadays it’s Yet nearly three decades later, the gov- like you have a hangnail. Someone comes in ernment still has not mastered the basics: and says ‘I have PTSD,’ ” and counselors PTSD, From A11 medical file: “MAJOR depression.” After advise troops to write to the National Ar- how best to detect the disorder, the most ef- want to give them that diagnosis without that: “He sees himself in his dreams killing chives and Records Administration in fective ways to treat it, and the fairest specific symptoms. selor, a low-ranking specialist, suggested or strangling people. . . . He is worried Maryland. But that agency has no records means of compensating young men and Valbracht, an aerospace medicine special- that someone should “explore symptoms of about controlling his stress level. Stated from the Iraq war, a spokeswoman said. women who served their country and re- ist, reviewed and signed off on cases at the PTSD.” But there is no indication in Cruz’s that he is starting to drink earlier in the That would send Cruz back to Fort Hood, turned unable to lead normal lives. counseling center. He said some counselors medical files, which he gave to The Wash- day.” A division psychologist, noting Cruz’s whose soldiers have deployed to Iraq twice, Cruz’s case illustrates these broader diagnosed Marines with PTSD before de- ington Post, that anyone ever responded to depression, said that he “did improve when leaving few staff members to hunt down rec- problems at a time when the number of suf- termining whether the symptoms persisted that early suggestion. taking medication but has degenerated ords. fering veterans is the largest and fastest- for 30 days, the military recommendation. When he met with counselors while he since stopping medication due to long work But Cruz has given up on the records. growing in decades, and when many of Valbracht often talked to the counselors was on active duty, Cruz recalled, they hours.” Life at the Daniel Webster Houses is tough them are back at home with no monitoring about his father, a Marine on Iwo Jima who would take notes about his troubled past, in- Seven months after his reenlistment cere- enough. or care. Between 1999 and 2004, VA disabil- overcame the stress of that battle and wrote cluding that he had been treated for depres- mony, the Army gave him an honorable dis- After he left the Army and came home to ity pay for PTSD among veterans jumped an article called “They Even Laughed on sion before he entered the Army. But they charge, asserting that he had a “personality the Bronx, he rode a bus and the subway 45 150 percent, to $4.2 billion. Iwo.” Counselors found it outdated and of- did not seem interested in his battlefield ex- disorder” that made him unfit for military minutes after work to attend group sessions By this spring, the number of vets from fensive. Valbracht said it showed the resil- periences. “I’ve shot kids. I’ve had to kill service. This determination implied that all at the local VA facility. He always arrived Afghanistan and Iraq who had sought help ience of the mind. kids. Sometimes I look at my son and like, his psychological problems existed before late and left frustrated. Listening to the for post-traumatic stress would fill four Valbracht retired recently because, he I’ve killed a kid his age,” Cruz said. “At his first enlistment. It also disqualified him traumas of other veterans only made him Army divisions, some 45,000 in all. Jeans Cruz lives with his family in a Bronx housing project, where a shooting left a door perforated with bullet holes, above. Among the family said, he “was burned out” after working sev- times we had to drop a shell into some- from receiving combat-related disability feel worse, he said: “It made me more aggra- They occupy every rank, uniform and photographs on their living-room wall, below, hang plaques honoring Cruz for his service and his role in helping capture Saddam Hussein. en days a week as the only psychiatrist avail- body’s house. When you go clean up the pay. vated. I had to get up and leave.” Experts corner of the country. People such as Army What the former soldier remembers most about the war, however, is death; he recalls moving the bodies of Iraqi children. able to about 10,000 Marines in his 180- mess, you had three, four, five, six different There was little attempt to tie his condi- say people such as Cruz need individual and Lt. Sylvia Blackwood, who was admitted to mile territory. “We could have used two or kids in there. You had to move their bodies.” tion to his experience in Iraq. Nor did the occupational therapy. a locked-down psychiatric ward in Washing- three more psychiatrists,” he said, to ease When he tried to talk about the war, he Army see an obvious contradiction in its Medications were easy to come by, but ton after trying to hide her distress for a the caseload and ensure that people were said, his counselors “would just sit back and handling of him: He was encouraged to re- some made him sick. “They made me so year and a half [story, A13]; and Army Pfc. not being overlooked. say, ‘Uh-huh, uh-huh.’ When I told them enlist even though his psychological prob- slow I didn’t want to do nothing with my Joshua Calloway, who spent eight months Former Lance Cpl. Jim Roberts’s un- about the unit I was with and Saddam Hus- lems had already been documented. son or manage my family,” he said. After a at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and derlying mental condition was overlooked sein, they’d just say, ‘Oh, yeah, right.’ ” Cruz’s records are riddled with obvious few months, he stopped taking them, a dan- left barely changed from when he arrived by the Marine Corps and successive health- He occasionally saw a psychiatrist, who errors, including a psychological rating of gerous step for someone so severely de- from Iraq in handcuffs; and retired Marine care professionals for more than 30 years, described him as depressed and anxious. “normal” on the same physical exam the pressed. His drinking became heavier. Lance Cpl. Jim Roberts, who struggles to as his temper and alcohol use plunged him He talked about burning himself with ciga- Army used to discharge him for a psycho- To calm himself now, he goes outside and keep his sanity in suburban New York with into deeper trouble. Only in May 2005 did rettes and exhibited “anger from Iraq, logical disorder. His record omits his com- hits a handball against the wall of the hous- the help of once-a-week therapy and a medi- VA begin treating the Vietnam vet for nightmares, flashbacks,” one counselor bat spurs award and his Army Commenda- ing project. “My son’s out of control. There cine cabinet full of prescription drugs; and PTSD. Three out of 10 of his compatriots wrote in his file. “Watched friend die in Iraq. tion Medal With Valor. These omissions are family problems,” he said, shaking his the scores of Marines in California who from Vietnam have received diagnoses of Cuts, bruises himself to relieve anger and contributed to the VA decision that he had head. “I start seeing these faces. It goes were denied treatment for PTSD because PTSD. Half of those have been arrested at frustration.” They prescribed Zoloft and not proved he had been in combat. To back to flashbacks, anxiety. Sometimes I’ve the head psychiatrist on their base thought least once. Veterans groups say thousands trazodone to control his depression and straighten out those errors, Cruz would got to leave my house because I’m afraid I’m the diagnosis was overused. have killed themselves. ease his nightmares. They gave him Am- have had to deal with a chaotic and contra- going to hit my son or somebody else.” They represent the first wave in what ex- To control his emotions now, Roberts at- bien for sleep, which he declined for a while dictory paper trail and bureaucracy — a Because of his family responsibilities, he perts say is a coming deluge. tends group therapy once a week and swal- for fear of missing morning formation. daunting task for an expert lawyer, let alone does not want to be hospitalized. He doesn’t As many as one-quarter of all soldiers and lows a handful of pills from his VA doctors: Counselors at Fort Hood grew concerned a stressed-out young veteran. think a residential program would work, ei- Marines returning from Iraq are psycholog- Zoloft, Neurontin, Lisinopril, Seroquel, enough about Cruz to have him sign what is In the Aug. 16, 2006, VA letter denying ther, for the same reason. ically wounded, according to a recent Amer- Ambien, hydroxyzine, “enough medicine to known as a Life Maintenance Agreement. It Cruz disability pay because he had not pro- His needs are more basic. “Why can’t I ican Psychological Association report. kill a mule,” he said. stated: “I, Jeans Cruz, agree not to harm vided evidence of combat, evaluators direct- have a counselor with a phone number? I’d Twenty percent of the soldiers in Iraq Roberts desperately wants to persuade myself or anyone else. I will first contact ei- ed him to the U.S. Armed Services Center like someone to call.” screened positive for anxiety, depression Iraq veterans not to take the route he trav- ther a member of my direct Chain of Com- for Research of Unit Records. But such a Or some help from all those people who and acute stress, an Army study found. eled. “The Iraq guys, it’s going to take them mand . . . or immediately go to the emer- place no longer exists. It changed its name stuck their business cards in his palm dur- But numbers are only part of the prob- five to 10 years to become one of us,” he gency room.” That was in October 2004. to the U.S. Army and Joint Services Rec- ing the glory days of his return from Iraq. “I lem. The Institute of Medicine reported last said, seated at his kitchen table in Yonkers The next month he signed another one. ords Research Center and moved from one have plaques on my wall — but nothing month that Veterans Affairs’ methods for with his vet friends Nicky, Lenny, Frenchie, Two weeks later, Cruz reenlisted. He says Virginia suburb, Springfield, to another, Al- more than that.” deciding compensation for PTSD and other Ray and John nodding in agreement. “It’s the Army gave him a $10,000 bonus. exandria, three years ago. It has a 10-month Spec. Jeans Cruz has received little help for his PTSD since leaving the Army. His job and emotional disorders had little basis in sci- someone hasn’t been exposed to an IED but tal-health system, according to a draft of the lock, the Army’s acting surgeon general, be- all about the forgotten vets, then and now. His problems worsened. Three months waiting list for processing requests. Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to family responsibilities leave him no time for the therapy sessions offered during work hours ence and that the evaluation process varied lives in dread of exposure to one for a report. lieves that doubling the number of mental- The guys from Iraq and Afghanistan, we after he reenlisted, a counselor wrote in his To speed things up, staff members often this report. at the VA hospital. “Why can’t I have a counselor with a phone number?” he asks. greatly. And as they try to work their way month?” said Ira R. Katz, a psychiatrist. Another report, commissioned by De- health professionals and boosting the pay of need to get these guys in here with us.” through a confounding disability process, “According to the formal definition, they fense Secretary Robert M. Gates in the psychiatrists would help. “In here” can mean different things. It already-troubled vets enter a VA system don’t qualify.” wake of the Walter Reed outpatient scandal, But there is another obstacle that those can mean a 1960s-style vet center such as that chronically loses records and sags with The military is also battling a crisis in found similar problems: “There is not a co- steps could not overcome. “One of my great the one where Roberts hangs out, with fad- a backlog of 400,000 claims of all kinds. mental-health care. Licensed psychologists ordinated effort to provide the training re- concerns is the stigma” of mental illness, ed photographs of Huey helicopters and ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM IN THEIR OWN WORDS | WAR VETERANS DISCUSS THEIR BATTLES WITH POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER The disability process has come to sym- are leaving at a far faster rate than they are quired to identify and treat these non- Pollock said. “That, to me, is an even bigger paintings of soldiers skulking through bolize the bureaucratic confusion over being replaced. Their ranks have dwindled visible injuries, nor adequate research in or- challenge. I think that in the Army, and in shoulder-high elephant grass. It can mean “I try to help these kids coming “I’ve shot kids. I’ve had to kill PTSD. To qualify for compensation, troops from 450 to 350 in recent years. Many said der to develop the required training and re- the nation, we have a long way to go.” The group therapy at a VA outpatient clinic dur- and veterans are required to prove that they they left because they could not handle the fine the treatment plans.” task force found that stigma in the military ing work hours, or more comprehensive home, you know, in letting kids. Sometimes I look at my witnessed at least one traumatic event, such stress of facing such pained soldiers. Inex- But the Army is unlikely to do more sig- remains “pervasive” and is a “significant treatment at a residential clinic. In a crisis, them know that they got to get son and like, I’ve killed a kid as the death of a fellow soldier or an attack perienced counselors muddle through, us- nificant research anytime soon. “We are at barrier to care.” it can mean the locked-down psych ward at from a roadside bomb, or IED. That stan- ing therapies better suited for alcoholics or war, and to do good research takes writing Surveys underline the problem. Only 40 the local VA hospital. help. I pray for them. ” his age.” dard has been used to deny thousands of marriage counseling. up grants, it takes placebo control trials, it percent of the troops who screened positive “Out there,” with no care at all, is a lone- — Vietnam veteran Jim Roberts. The De- — Jeans Cruz, a former Army specialist claims. But many experts now say that de- A new report by the Defense Depart- takes control groups,” said Col. Elspeth for serious emotional problems sought help, some hell. partment of Veterans Affairs finally be- who served in Iraq. He is dealing with bilitating stress can result from accumulat- ment’s Mental Health Task Force says the Ritchie, the Army’s top psychiatrist. “I a recent Army survey found. Nearly 60 per- gan treating the former Marine lance PTSD while raising his 4-year-old son. corporal for post-traumatic stress dis- ed trauma as well as from one significant problems are even deeper. Providers of don’t think that that’s our primary mis- cent of soldiers said they would not seek Losing a Bureaucratic Battle order in May 2005. event. mental-health care are “not sufficiently ac- sion.” help for mental-health problems because Find these audio slide shows In an interview, even VA’s chief of mental cessible” to service members and are inade- In attempting to deal with increasing they felt their unit leaders would treat them Not long after Jeans Cruz returned from and previous articles at www.washingtonpost.com/walterreed health questioned whether the single-event quately trained, it says, and evidence-based mental-health needs, the military regularly differently; 55 percent thought they would Iraq to Fort Hood, Tex., in 2004, his coun- standard is a valid way to measure PTSD. treatments are not used. The task force rec- launches Web sites and promotes self-help be seen as weak, and the same percentage “One of the things I puzzle about is, what if ommends an overhaul of the military’s men- guides for soldiers. Maj. Gen. Gale S. Pol- believed that soldiers in their units would » See PTSD, A12, Col. 1

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE

C M Y K A12 C M Y K A11 SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 1

WALTER REED AND BEYOND Soldier Finds Comfort at Dark Journey’s End

By Dana Priest and Anne Hull don’t have one event. I have a gazillion Washington Post Staff Writers events. I have Iraqis pleading with me to get them out of the country. I have friends Everything in Ward 3D East is locked, who turned up dead.” even the windows. Located inside the Dis- She made it out of Iraq unharmed trict of Columbia VA Medical Center, only physically, but as a psychological casualty three miles from the Veterans Affairs head- who would not acknowledge it to herself. quarters where national health policies are Even as she slipped deeper into paranoia, made, the psychiatric ward is a refuge for panic and mental paralysis, she tried to mentally ill homeless veterans and those keep up her exuberant bearing. Her plan plagued by drug and alcohol addictions. was to heal herself. She feared that any This is where Lt. Sylvia Blackwood drove sign of weakness would harm her career. herself before the sun came up one April “If I’m a second lieutenant and I admit morning and stayed for seven grim days. I have a problem, maybe they’ll take that Blackwood, a reservist with the 356th away,” Blackwood said she thought. “I’d Broadcast Operations Detachment, sur- say, ‘No, I’m okay, I’m fine.’ Meanwhile I’m vived two tours in Iraq, first as a military circling the drain and getting worse and journalist, then as a State Department worse.” spokeswoman. “The possibility of death At the start of this year, Blackwood, was so ever-present and terrifying that you 41, took on a new job as the chief of media just couldn’t think about it. Everyone was relations for the Special Inspector General dying. It was a constant barrage,” she said. for Iraq Reconstruction, based in Crystal She saw a severed arm and a stab- City. No one knew that loud noises would bing victim. She survived an attack from a trigger a panic attack for her, that she was makeshift bomb and a bombing near her barely sleeping or eating, or that she was quarters. But Blackwood is not a typical clawing her forearms so fiercely the blood example of a soldier who flips out after wit- sometimes soaked through her sleeves. nessing one gruesome event. One day in April, she got lost on “I don’t have the gore,” she said. “I the Metro after work. She panicked and SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

Lt. Sylvia Blackwood, an Army reservist, served two tours in Iraq; when she returned, paranoia and panic set in. For months she sought no help, but after she contemplated suicide she went to Veterans Affairs. She spent a harrowing week in a psychological ward in Washington, then ended up at a VA clinic in Kentucky, above, with individual and group therapy, below.

decided not to go to her job ever again. Her mind raced: “I’ll be fired,” she thought. “I won’t be able to work again. I won’t be able to support my son. Then I’ll start scream- ing because I’ve let him down. I won’t be able to stop. Maybe they will send me back to Iraq! How can I make this stop?” When she finally got home, Black- wood went to her bedroom and took out her Leatherman knife. With almost clini- PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE cal detachment, she debated how to slash her wrists. “If I cut this way, I’ll survive and be embarrassed,” she remembers thinking. find me for a couple of days. It will be icky. “If I cut that way, there’ll be a lot of blood. Maybe I’ll have a blanket to cover up my If I do it in the back yard, they might not body.” SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

At 4 in the morning she was sitting on the floor with the knife, a piece of card- board and a blanket. But an image sud- denly stopped her. “I saw my son’s face, and I couldn’t leave him,” she recalled. She rushed out of the house and walked around until dawn. By 7 a.m. she was walking into the VA Medical Center on Irving Street NW, crying so hard that her shoulders shook and mumbling to the guard about killing herself. He pointed. “You go that way,” he said. The mental-health unit didn’t open for an hour. In her suicidal state, Black- wood was told to wait. When she at last got to see a counselor, they agreed that she should be admitted. Blackwood shared Ward 3D East with 26 men and three other women; mixed- Blackwood said her post-traumatic stress disorder was triggered by the day-to-day gender wards are common in VA psychi- tension of Iraq. “Everyone was dying. It was atric units. There was no exercise equip- a constant barrage,” she said. ment. No outdoor courtyard. No treatment either, other than prescription medication. The linoleum corridor was 39 paces long, show Blackwood the knife he hid in his and Blackwood walked it many times a day. sock. One day she took a poll. Of the 17 “There’s nothing to do all day. Noth- patients in attendance, seven had been to ing,” Blackwood whispered to a visitor. war, 16 to jail. Everyone except her. “And there’s no air.” The Iraq war vets found one another Every day the patients met for quickly on Ward 3D East. An ashen young announcements. At one meeting, a staff man in gray socks popped into the visitors member scolded them: “Did you all take room where Blackwood was sitting one showers today? The smell on the floor is evening. He told her that his best friend not good. Take a shower. Keep yourself had died in Iraq. “He took the gun, put it clean.” in his mouth and fired,” he said without Pacing the floor, a man sang: “It’s not a emotion. “Blew his brains out.” He held his va-ca-tion! It’s med-i-ca-tion!” friend’s head until he was dead. He showed Another patient lifted his pant leg to Blackwood how, cradling his hands just so. SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

The next day, a Marine veteran burst wood’s who is a military and VA surgeon, into the visitors room. He wore a red was shocked on his visit to see a staff so Marine Corps T-shirt. His tan combat unfamiliar with post-traumatic stress dis- boots flopped open, shoelaces removed. order, given the hospital’s proximity to sev- “I’m goin’ crazy in here,” he said, as he eral military posts. “We’ve got to get you chomped furiously on nicotine gum. out of here,” Bowersox told her. Blackwood and the Marine bantered With her influential friends, including in abbreviations. Bowersox, a lawyer and a diplomat, Black- “One fifty-fives!” he laughed. wood was better connected than most VA “Incoming!” she laughed back. patients. That week, they formed a tag “Allah Akbar!” he shouted. team to spring her from the bleak world They talked about the calls to prayer of 3D East. When they got her out, they they had heard every day and the voices moved her first to New York and then to of the muezzins. One sounded as if he had the Fort Thomas residential women’s clinic just woken up, the Marine said. He tried to imitate him. “Allah Akbar!” he shouted, his voice Invisible Wounds echoing on the linoleum. Every war has wrought hell on those left alive. World War I had “shell shock”; “Allah Akbar!” she shouted, laughing World War II left “battle fatigue.” In Iraq and Afghanistan, it’s known simply as and swinging her arms in the air. “Allah PTSD. Akbar!” K Post-traumatic stress disorder is an anxiety disorder that springs from Outside the door, a patient paced the traumatic events such as combat, a serious accident, or physical or sexual 39 steps, her threadbare hospital gown assault. Most survivors return to flowing like an Arab robe over her dirty normal, but in others, the brain has carved a survival pattern too deep to gym clothes. erase on its own and its automatic In her first few days on the ward, reactions to stress only worsen over time. Blackwood told her story to five different K Symptoms include reliving the trauma involuntarily, avoiding places psychologists. None of them offered ther- reminiscent of the event, feeling apy or relief. Instead, the medical students emotionally numb and wanting to be alone. People with PTSD usually act wanted to “present her” to the staff as an overly guarded, are irritable and startle interesting case. She declined. VA officials easily. K PTSD often coincides with say that in-depth therapy is not the goal of depression, substance abuse, and memory and cognitive problems. In acute psychiatric care in a ward such as 3D combat veterans, symptoms sometimes East but that the focus is instead on sta- do not show up for months or longer, when the euphoria of coming home bilizing patients, assessing their condition wears off. In the worst cases, sufferers and creating a safe environment. are unable to have intimate relationships or to function in daily life and work. Jon Bowersox, a good friend of Black- SUNDAY, JUNE 17, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

in Kentucky, one of six in the huge VA sys- In her individual therapy sessions, tem. Blackwood was admitted so quickly Blackwood was asked to relive her Iraq because Bowersox knows the director. experience, in detail, until she could under- When he called, there happened to be a stand her fears and her instinctual reac- vacancy. tions to them. This is called exposure ther- “I don’t know whether I could do this apy. She learned to recognize that when without my friends helping me,” Black- she heard a loud noise, it didn’t mean that wood said. a bomb was exploding. Her reaction was Fort Thomas offers intense, highly based on memory, not reality. In another personalized care, and its program has form of therapy, cognitive processing, she proved to be one of the most effective in learned to discard the irrational thoughts the country, the other side of the spec- imprinted on her brain by her traumatic trum from what Blackwood experienced experience in Iraq. in Washington. The grounds hug the Ohio Looking back, Blackwood credits River and are surrounded by hiking trails. Ward 3D East, even in its bleakness, with Only 10 patients are admitted every seven giving her safety, and a place to scream, weeks. They attend 25 hours of group ses- cry and express her pain for the first time. sions and two to four hours of individual Chard’s clinic taught her to leave the war in therapy each week. The program’s direc- Iraq and allowed her to live without para- tor, Kathleen Chard, is considered to be in lyzing fear. “It saved my life,” she said. the vanguard of PTSD treatment and will A few days ago she walked under an be training mental-health clinicians across umbrella in a heavy storm. When the thun- the country for VA over the next 15 months. der pounded, she didn’t flinch.

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The Washington Post x R Sunday, June 17, 2007 A13

WALTER REED AND BEYOND Soldier Finds Comfort at Dark Journey’s End By Dana Priest and Anne Hull Washington Post Staff Writers

Everything in Ward 3D East is locked, even the windows. Located inside the Dis- trict of Columbia VA Medical Center, only three miles from the Veterans Affairs head- quarters where national health policies are made, the psychiatric ward is a refuge for mentally ill homeless veterans and those plagued by drug and alcohol addictions. This is where Lt. Sylvia Blackwood drove herself before the sun came up one April morning and stayed for seven grim days. Blackwood, a reservist with the 356th Broadcast Operations Detachment, sur- vived two tours in Iraq, first as a military journalist, then as a State Department spokeswoman. “The possibility of death was so ever-present and terrifying that you just couldn’t think about it. Everyone was dying. It was a constant barrage,” she said. She saw a severed arm and a stabbing victim. She survived an attack from a make- shift bomb and a bombing near her quar- ters. But Blackwood is not a typical exam- ple of a soldier who flips out after witness- ing one gruesome event. “I don’t have the gore,” she said. “I don’t have one event. I have a gazillion events. I have Iraqis pleading with me to get them out of the country. I have friends who turned up dead.” She made it out of Iraq unharmed phys- ically, but as a psychological casualty who would not acknowledge it to herself. Even as she slipped deeper into paranoia, panic and mental paralysis, she tried to keep up her exuberant bearing. Her plan was to heal herself. She feared that any sign of weak- ness would harm her career. “If I’m a second lieutenant and I admit I Lt. Sylvia Blackwood, an Army reservist, served two tours in Iraq; when she returned, paranoia and panic set in. For months she sought no help, but after she contemplated suicide she have a problem, maybe they’ll take that went to Veterans Affairs. She spent a harrowing week in a psychological ward in Washington, then ended up at a VA clinic in Kentucky, above, with individual and group therapy, below. away,” Blackwood said she thought. “I’d say, ‘No, I’m okay, I’m fine.’ Meanwhile I’m circling the drain and getting worse and worse.” At the start of this year, Blackwood, 41, took on a new job as the chief of media rela- tions for the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, based in Crystal City. No one knew that loud noises would trigger a panic attack for her, that she was barely sleeping or eating, or that she was clawing her forearms so fiercely the blood some- times soaked through her sleeves. One day in April, she got lost on the Metro after work. She panicked and decid- ed not to go to her job ever again. Her mind raced: “I’ll be fired,” she thought. “I won’t be able to work again. I won’t be able to sup- port my son. Then I’ll start screaming be- cause I’ve let him down. I won’t be able to stop. Maybe they will send me back to Iraq! How can I make this stop?” When she finally got home, Blackwood went to her bedroom and took out her Leatherman knife. With almost clinical de- tachment, she debated how to slash her wrists. “If I cut this way, I’ll survive and be embarrassed,” she remembers thinking. “If I cut that way, there’ll be a lot of blood. If I do it in the back yard, they might not find me for a couple of days. It will be icky. May- Blackwood said her post-traumatic stress be I’ll have a blanket to cover up my body.” disorder was triggered by the day-to-day At 4 in the morning she was sitting on tension of Iraq. “Everyone was dying. It the floor with the knife, a piece of cardboard was a constant barrage,” she said. and a blanket. But an image suddenly stopped her. “I saw my son’s face, and I couldn’t leave him,” she recalled. She 16 to jail. Everyone except her. In her first few days on the ward, Black- to be one of the most effective in the coun- rushed out of the house and walked around The Iraq war vets found one another wood told her story to five different psychol- try, the other side of the spectrum from until dawn. By 7 a.m. she was walking into quickly on Ward 3D East. An ashen young ogists. None of them offered therapy or re- what Blackwood experienced in Washing- Invisible Wounds the VA Medical Center on Irving Street man in gray socks popped into the visitors lief. Instead, the medical students wanted to ton. The grounds hug the Ohio River and Every war has wrought hell on those left NW, crying so hard that her shoulders room where Blackwood was sitting one eve- “present her” to the staff as an interesting are surrounded by hiking trails. Only 10 pa- alive. World War I had “shell shock”; shook and mumbling to the guard about ning. He told her that his best friend had case. She declined. VA officials say that in- tients are admitted every seven weeks. World War II left “battle fatigue.” In Iraq killing herself. died in Iraq. “He took the gun, put it in his depth therapy is not the goal of acute psy- They attend 25 hours of group sessions and and Afghanistan, it’s known simply as He pointed. “You go that way,” he said. mouth and fired,” he said without emotion. chiatric care in a ward such as 3D East but two to four hours of individual therapy each PTSD. The mental-health unit didn’t open for an “Blew his brains out.” He held his friend’s that the focus is instead on stabilizing pa- week. The program’s director, Kathleen K Post-traumatic stress disorder is hour. In her suicidal state, Blackwood was head until he was dead. He showed Black- tients, assessing their condition and creat- Chard, is considered to be in the vanguard an anxiety disorder that springs from told to wait. wood how, cradling his hands just so. ing a safe environment. of PTSD treatment and will be training traumatic events such as combat, a When she at last got to see a counselor, The next day, a Marine veteran burst Jon Bowersox, a good friend of Black- mental-health clinicians across the country serious accident, or physical or sexual they agreed that she should be admitted. into the visitors room. He wore a red Ma- wood’s who is a military and VA surgeon, for VA over the next 15 months. assault. Most survivors return to Blackwood shared Ward 3D East with 26 rine Corps T-shirt. His tan combat boots was shocked on his visit to see a staff so un- In her individual therapy sessions, Black- normal, but in others, the brain has men and three other women; mixed-gender flopped open, shoelaces removed. “I’m goin’ familiar with post-traumatic stress disorder, wood was asked to relive her Iraq experi- carved a survival pattern too deep to wards are common in VA psychiatric units. crazy in here,” he said, as he chomped furi- given the hospital’s proximity to several ence, in detail, until she could understand erase on its own and its automatic There was no exercise equipment. No out- ously on nicotine gum. military posts. “We’ve got to get you out of her fears and her instinctual reactions to reactions to stress only worsen over door courtyard. No treatment either, other Blackwood and the Marine bantered in here,” Bowersox told her. them. This is called exposure therapy. She time. than prescription medication. The linoleum abbreviations. With her influential friends, including Bo- learned to recognize that when she heard a K Symptoms include reliving the corridor was 39 paces long, and Blackwood “One fifty-fives!” he laughed. wersox, a lawyer and a diplomat, Black- loud noise, it didn’t mean that a bomb was trauma involuntarily, avoiding places walked it many times a day. “Incoming!” she laughed back. wood was better connected than most VA exploding. Her reaction was based on mem- reminiscent of the event, feeling “There’s nothing to do all day. Nothing,” “Allah Akbar!” he shouted. patients. That week, they formed a tag team ory, not reality. In another form of therapy, emotionally numb and wanting to be Blackwood whispered to a visitor. “And They talked about the calls to prayer they to spring her from the bleak world of 3D cognitive processing, she learned to discard alone. People with PTSD usually act there’s no air.” had heard every day and the voices of the East. When they got her out, they moved the irrational thoughts imprinted on her overly guarded, are irritable and startle Every day the patients met for announce- muezzins. One sounded as if he had just wo- her first to New York and then to the Fort brain by her traumatic experience in Iraq. easily. ments. At one meeting, a staff member ken up, the Marine said. He tried to imitate Thomas residential women’s clinic in Ken- Looking back, Blackwood credits Ward K PTSD often coincides with scolded them: “Did you all take showers to- him. tucky, one of six in the huge VA system. 3D East, even in its bleakness, with giving depression, substance abuse, and day? The smell on the floor is not good. “Allah Akbar!” he shouted, his voice Blackwood was admitted so quickly be- her safety, and a place to scream, cry and ex- memory and cognitive problems. In Take a shower. Keep yourself clean.” echoing on the linoleum. cause Bowersox knows the director. When press her pain for the first time. Chard’s combat veterans, symptoms sometimes Pacing the floor, a man sang: “It’s not a “Allah Akbar!” she shouted, laughing and he called, there happened to be a vacancy. clinic taught her to leave the war in Iraq and do not show up for months or longer, va-ca-tion! It’s med-i-ca-tion!” swinging her arms in the air. “Allah Akbar!” “I don’t know whether I could do this allowed her to live without paralyzing fear. when the euphoria of coming home Another patient lifted his pant leg to Outside the door, a patient paced the 39 without my friends helping me,” Blackwood “It saved my life,” she said. wears off. In the worst cases, sufferers show Blackwood the knife he hid in his steps, her threadbare hospital gown flowing said. A few days ago she walked under an um- are unable to have intimate relationships sock. One day she took a poll. Of the 17 pa- like an Arab robe over her dirty gym Fort Thomas offers intense, highly per- brella in a heavy storm. When the thunder or to function in daily life and work. tients in attendance, seven had been to war, clothes. sonalized care, and its program has proved pounded, she didn’t flinch.

“To have experienced what I COMING TOMORROW experienced in Iraq and get up Pfc. Joshua Calloway reached in the morning and think the his breaking point when he world is going to be a good watched his sergeant step on a place . . . after Iraq, it is very bomb. The Army decided that difficult to know that I didn’t Calloway’s war was over and bring the war home with me.” shipped him to Walter Reed — Reservist Sylvia Blackwood served two tours in Iraq. She is receiving treat- Army Medical Center for psy- ment for PTSD at a VA facility in Ken- tucky. chological treatment.

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE

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Democracy Dies in Darkness MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007

WALTER REED AND BEYOND

After he saw his sergeant die in Iraq, Pfc. Joshua Calloway was sent to Walter Reed Army Medical Center for psychiatric care. There, he divided his time between his darkened room at Mologne House, above, and therapy sessions on Ward 53. Eight months later, recovery was still distant. Little Relief on Ward 53 At Walter Reed, Care for Soldiers Struggling With War’s Mental Trauma Is Undermined by Doctor Shortages and Unfocused Methods

Story By AnneS Hulltory by Anneand Hull Dana and PriestDana Priest | |PPhotoshotos by by Michel Michel du Cille Du| TheCille Washington | The Post Washington Post

On the military plane that crossed sound of moaning. Sedated and sleeping, the ocean at night, the wounded lay in Pfc. Joshua Calloway was at the top of one stretchers stacked three high. The drone stack last September. Unlike the others of engines was broken by the occasional around him, Calloway was handcuffed to MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

his stretcher. When the 20-year-old infantry soldier woke up, he was on the locked-down psy- chiatric ward at Walter Reed Army Medi- cal Center. A nurse handed him pajamas and a robe, but they reminded him of the flowing clothes worn by Iraqi men. He told the nurse, “I don’t want to look like a frea- kin’ Haj.” He wanted his uniform. Request BY JOSH CALLOWAY Calloway served nine months in Iraq as an denied. Shoelaces and belts were prohib- infantryman. “I can’t remember who I was ited. before I went into the Army,” he said. Calloway felt naked without his M-4, his constant companion during his tour south of Baghdad with the 101st Air- center. borne Division. The year-long deployment Nothing so gleaming exists for sol- claimed the lives of 50 soldiers in his bri- diers with diagnoses of post-traumatic gade. Two committed suicide. Calloway, stress disorder, who in the Army alone out- blue-eyed and lantern-jawed, lasted nine number all of the war’s amputees by 43 to months — until the afternoon he watched 1. The Army has no PTSD center at Walter his sergeant step on a pressure-plate bomb Reed, and its psychiatric treatment is weak in the road. The young soldier’s knees compared with the best PTSD programs buckled and he vomited in the reeds before the government offers. Instead of receiving he was ordered to help collect body parts. focused attention, soldiers with combat- A few days later he was sent to the combat- stress disorders are mixed in with psych stress trailers, where he was given anti- patients who have issues ranging from depressants and rest, but after a week he schizophrenia to marital strife. was still twitching and sleepless. The Army Even though Walter Reed maintains decided that his war was over. the largest psychiatric department in the Every month, 20 to 40 soldiers are Army, it lacks enough psychiatrists and evacuated from Iraq because of mental clinicians to properly treat the growing problems, according to the Army. Most are number of soldiers returning with combat sent to Walter Reed along with other war- stress. Earlier this year, the head of psychi- wounded. For amputees, the nation’s top atry sent out an “SOS” memo desperately Army hospital offers state-of-the-art pros- seeking more clinical help. thetics and physical rehab programs, and Individual therapy with a trained cli- soon, a new $10 million amputee center nician, a key element in recovery from with a rappelling wall and virtual reality PTSD, is infrequent, and targeted group MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

WALTER REED AND BEYOND Walter Reed Patients Say Mental Care Falls Short therapy is offered only twice a week. Inside Walter Reed Young Pfc. Calloway was put in robes The Washington Post began following that first night. His dreams were infected Calloway after he was brought to Walter by corpses. He tasted blood in his mouth. Reed last fall with an initial diagnosis of He was paranoid and jumpy. He couldn’t acute stress disorder. He had all the signs stop the movie inside his head of Sgt. Mat- of PTSD, but it would be the hospital’s job thew Vosbein stepping on the bomb. His to treat him and then decide whether he memory was shot. His insides burned. met the Army’s strict guidelines for a PTSD Calloway’s mother came to Walter diagnosis — which required a certain level Reed from Ohio and told the psychiatrist of chronic impairment — and whether he everything she knew about her son. Sit- could ever return to duty. ting in the office for the interview, Callo- Calloway’s physical metamorphosis way jiggled his leg and put his head in his was rapid. The burnished soldier turned hands as he described his tour in Iraq. His soft and fat, gaining 20 pounds the first mental history was probed and more notes month from tranquilizers and microwaved were taken. The trivia of his life — a bea- Chef Boyardee. He lived at Mologne House, gle named Zoe, a job during high school at a hotel on the grounds of Walter Reed that a Meijer superstore, a love of World War was overtaken by wounded troops. His II history — competed with what he had roommate was another soldier from Iraq become. with psych problems who kept the curtains “I can’t remember who I was before drawn and played Saints Row video games I went into the Army,” he said later. “Put all day until one day he vanished — poof, me in a war for a year, my brain becomes a AWOL, leaving nothing behind but empty certain way. My brain is a big, black ball of bottles of lithium and Seroquel. crap with this brick wall in front of it.” For the first time in almost a year, Cal- After a week in the lockdown unit, Cal- loway had a plush bed and a hot shower, loway was stabilized. They gave him back but he was too angry to appreciate the sim- his shoelaces and belt. On the 10th day, he ple comforts. On an early venture outside was released and turned over to outpatient Walter Reed, he went to downtown Sil- psychiatry for treatment. And Calloway, a ver Spring and became enraged by young casualty without a scratch, began the lon- people laughing at Starbucks. “Don’t they gest season of his young life. know there is a war going on?” he said. MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

“He’s a grenade with the pin half-out,” said Joshua Calloway’s step-grandfather, Greg Albright. Even after Calloway spent months at Walter Reed, his anger was astonishing, Albright said.

Wearing a rock band T-shirt, Callo- sand ways. When he cut himself shaving, way looked like any other 20-year-old on the iron smell of blood on his fingertips the sidewalk, but an unspeakable compul- gave a slight euphoria. But it was the dis- sion tore through him. He said he wanted tinct horror of his sergeant’s death that was to hatchet someone in the back of the neck. encoded in his brain. The memory made “I want to see people that I hate die,” him physically sick. He would sweat and he said. “I want to blow their heads off. I shake as if having a seizure, and sometimes wish I didn’t, but I do.” He made similar he felt as if he were back in the heat and statements to his psychiatry team at Wal- sand of Iraq. ter Reed. The recognized treatment for PTSD Violence seeped into his life in a thou- is cognitive behavioral therapy, in which MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

Calloway grimaces under the tattoo needle at a shop near Walter Reed. One of the pictures on his skin honors his dead sergeant; under a soldier’s silhouette are the words: “Lay down your armor. And have no fear. I’ll be home soon.”

patients are encouraged to face their feared of Veterans Affairs to train 250 therapists memories or situations and to change their who treat PTSD. negative perceptions. A key technique is But Calloway and a dozen other sol- known as prolonged exposure therapy. It diers from Iraq and Afghanistan inter- involves revisiting a traumatic memory in viewed by The Post described a vague regi- order to process it. The idea is not to erase men at Walter Reed’s outpatient psychiatric the memory but to prevent it from being unit, Ward 53. They get a heavy dose of disabling. Highly structured, one-on-one group sessions such as “Reflecting with sessions over a limited time period have Music,” “Decisions,” “Feelings Exploration” proved most effective, according to Edna and “Art Expressions.” Calloway reported B. Foa, a professor of psychology in psychi- to his “Reel Reflections” class one morning atry at the University of Pennsylvania, who for a screening of “The Devil Wears Prada.” has been contracted by the Department Only two hours a week are devoted to a MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 6

post-traumatic recovery group, according track” and are given at least an hour of to a copy of their schedule. individual therapy a week and a full range These soldiers said they are over-med- of classes to help them cope with their icated and treated with none of the urgency symptoms. Exposure therapy is as effective given the physically wounded. One desper- in group settings as in individual sessions, ate patient, a combat medic who broke he maintained — a belief that runs counter down after her third tour in Iraq, said she to the latest clinical research. begged her psychiatrist: “We are handi- Bradley acknowledged staff short- capped patients, too. Cut off both my legs, ages and said vacancies in his department but give me my sanity. You can’t get a pros- go unfilled for as long as a year because of thesis for that.” the Army pay scale and the high cost of liv- In an interview this month, Col. John ing in the Washington area. He recently C. Bradley, head of psychiatry at Walter asked to increase his staff by 20 percent, Reed, said soldiers with combat-stress and last month he brought on a reservist disorders receive the accepted psycho- to help doctors with the time-consuming therapeutic treatment there. He said they duties of preparing reports for the soldiers’ are placed in a specially designed “trauma medical evaluation board process. “We are

BY JOSH CALLOWAY Sgt. Matthew Vosbein, left, was like a big brother to Calloway. He was killed when he stepped on a roadside bomb while on patrol. Calloway was ordered to help pick up his body parts. MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 7

constantly looking for innovative ways to soldiers who had bombed out of boot camp provide service and outreach and support or never deployed. He participated in pro- to soldiers,” said Bradley, who deployed to cessing exercises using work sheets to help Iraq last year with a combat-stress unit. him manage his fears. (“For example, origi- One of the country’s best PTSD pro- nal thought: ‘I’m in a crowd, they’re look- grams is located at Walter Reed, but ing at me, they’re all going to jump me, the because of a bureaucratic divide it is not enemy looked at me in Iraq and shot me, I accessible to most patients. The Deploy- leave.’ Feelings: Anxious. Behavior: Leave ment Health Clinical Center, run by the situation.”) Department of Defense and separate from With the exception of the post-trau- the Army’s services, offers a three-week matic stress group run by Joshua Fried- program of customized treatment. Indi- lander, a clinical psychologist and former vidual exposure therapy and fewer medica- Army captain who had served in Iraq, most tions are favored. Deployment Health can of the classes felt like B.S. sessions to Cal- see only about 65 patients a year but is the loway. “Civilians reading from a booklet,” envy of many in the Army. “They need to he said. clone that program,” said Col. Charles W. Ultimately, his treatment was in the Hoge, chief of psychiatry and behavior ser- hands of a civilian psychiatrist. Before tak- vices at the Walter Reed Army Institute of ing a contract job at Walter Reed in 2005, Research. the doctor had worked at Washington’s Instead, Deployment Health was St. Elizabeths Hospital and specialized in forced to give up its newly renovated quar- addictions and pedophilia. On Ward 53, ters in March and was placed in temporary he was responsible for about 30 soldiers, space one-third the size to make room for many back from Iraq. Calloway felt little a soldier and family assistance center. The validation from the psychiatrist. Some- move came after a series of articles in The times the doctor typed on his computer Post detailed the neglect of wounded out- while Calloway talked. patients at Walter Reed. Therapy sessions There was another, more delicate, are now being held in Building T-2, a run- problem. The psychiatrist was Indian. down former computer center, until new Calloway had a gut reaction to anyone he space becomes available. thought looked Iraqi, a paranoia shared by Joshua Calloway reported to Ward 53 many of Walter Reed’s wounded. five mornings a week in his uniform. He “You are seeing a [expletive] Paki- was a tough patient from the start, anger- stani?” asked Spec. Isaac Serna, a fellow ing easily and impatient with anyone who war-wounded soldier in the 101st Airborne. had not experienced combat. He was irri- “I’d freak, dude.” tated that he had to attend groups with Calloway confessed his bias to the doc- MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 8

tor. “I want to kill Arabs,” he said. Page 172 about trying to fit back in after war. “Does that include me?” the Hindu I spent most of my time watching the doctor asked, according to Calloway. “You rooftops and side roads, looking into my can say it.” rearview mirror to make sure no one was Antidepressants are most commonly creeping up on my car from behind. . . . used to treat PTSD, and Calloway was on Every time I saw someone sitting contently a total of seven medications by Christmas, inside a coffee shop or restaurant, I wanted including lithium, used to treat bipolar dis- to yell at them, wake them up. order. He had now gained 30 pounds and A social worker with a clipboard came was too lethargic to exercise. Bored one to his room the next afternoon. “The sur- night, he took out the sweat-stained spiral geon general is concerned about all the sol- notebook he had carried in Iraq. Grains of diers coming home with smoking habits,” sand were still between the pages scribbled he said. with Arabic commands. He repeated the Calloway said he never smoked before phrases that loosely translated to “don’t Iraq but smoked three packs a day in the- speak” and “shut up.” ater. “Balla hashee!” he said. “In chep!” “Have you ever considered a patch?” He spent the holidays reading “The the man asked. PTSD Workbook” and eating Starbursts in By his fourth month as an outpatient a room piled high with goody boxes from on Ward 53, Calloway had learned breath- his church back home. ing techniques to ease his panic. He had “You are in our prayers, Josh,” one been asked to recite statements of self- card read. “We are so proud of your service love in group therapy. He had learned to to your country.” cook in occupational therapy. But his core anger was as high as ever, made worse by Unabating Anger the relationship with his psychiatrist. They In Iraq he was infected with MRSA, met once or twice a week, mostly to dis- a microbe that makes the skin boil, and at cuss meds and argue. “Why don’t you ever Walter Reed he suffered a painful outbreak come in here and smile?” the doctor asked, that landed him in the hospital. Festering according to Calloway. “Why don’t you ever sores brought a respite from Ward 53. In come in here and think today will be a good the hospital, he got Percocet and “The Daily day?” Show,” and late at night he read a memoir Walter Reed officials refused to dis- by a soldier who served in Iraq called “The cuss individual patients for this story, cit- Last True Story I’ll Ever Tell.” A friend in ing privacy concerns. the 101st lent it to him with underlined pas- Calloway wanted to scream. Disillu- sages, and Calloway read aloud the one on sioned, he stopped faithfully attending the MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 9

Joshua Calloway, left, visits his friend Denver Rearick, who served with him in Iraq. Rearick was on his second tour when he met Calloway. Since returning, Rearick has struggled with anxiety and still sleeps with a loaded gun.

combat-stress group he first found help- eration of warriors. One Sunday, he was ful. In the cold of winter he went down to accompanied by a girl from Ohio who’d Capitol Tattoo on Georgia Avenue, where come to visit him at Walter Reed. She wore the milky skin of his arms became a canvas his dog tags, and his eyes were full of light. of colors and death poetry. In honor of Vos- “Thank you, ma’am,” he told the waitress bein, he had a silhouette of a soldier drawn who brought his biscuits and gravy. on, with the words: “Lay down your armor. But the girl went back to Ohio and And have no fear. I’ll be home soon.” Calloway came to the next brunch alone, Even with his nihilistic markings, secretly terrified that in 30 years he’d be Calloway still saw himself as a soldier. sitting in a support group like the Vietnam On Sunday mornings he attended a VFW guys. With his nightmares and balled-up brunch in Arlington, feeling at home with fists, what woman would want him? the snowy-haired veterans who sipped cof- “I’m not getting any better,” he told his fee under an American flag. As an Iraq vet, mother on the phone. he was treated as part of the newest gen- His step-grandfather in Ohio spent a MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 10

Rearick leads a horse at his home in Kentucky as Calloway watches. Rearick says the pastures are one of the only places he feels safe. He avoids crowds and can become violent when startled; his father throws a boot into his room to wake him up. “All the banners said ‘Welcome Home Heroes,’ ” he said. “But the moment we start falling apart it’s like, ‘Never mind.’ ” morning making calls, trying unsuccess- fear as they unloaded from the boats and fully to reach anyone at Walter Reed. “He’s faced a rain of German bullets. Limbs sev- meeting with people 15 minutes a day, he’s ered, necks punctured, foreheads blown been written off,” said Greg Albright. “Josh open, but the grunts kept charging. has not been cooperative, he’s been insult- “See why I picked infantry?” Calloway ing to the doctor. But that’s a function of said, his leg furiously twitching. “There’s the place he’s been.” Albright met with an no other place in the world where you can aide from the district office of Rep. John have a job like that. It’s a brotherhood that’s A. Boehner (R) in Ohio. He wanted help deeper than your own family.” bringing Josh home for treatment, and the His romanticized ideals clashed with family was willing to pay for it. But Callo- reality. His anti-nightmare medication way was still in the Army. made him a zombie in the morning, and One night in his room, Calloway put in he slept through his alarm. After missing a DVD and watched the opening scene of morning formation, he was ordered by “Saving Private Ryan,” the American G.I.s his platoon sergeant to pick up trash, but coming onto Omaha Beach, retching in in the middle of his work duty he had an MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 11

anxiety attack; shaking and unable to focus The pressure and dread and exhaus- his eyes, he was taken to the ER, where he tion began to smother Calloway. He sur- overheard his sergeant tell the doctor that vived several bomb blasts. Some soldiers it seemed to be a big coincidence that Cal- were sucking on aerosol cans of Dust-Off loway had an attack while doing work. to get high, and one accidentally died. Sleep deprivation mixed with the random ‘I Can’t Handle Another Day’ violence scrambled Calloway. He wore it on He often wondered why he snapped. his face. One of the sergeants asked him, Several factors make PTSD more likely — “Are you gonna kill yourself, Calloway?” youth, a history of depression or trauma, Music was his escape. On rare nights multiple deployments, and relentless expo- on base, Calloway, Rearick and Vosbein sure to violence. Calloway hit most of the would strip off their armor and climb up criteria. He had been depressed in high to the roof to play guitars and harmonica. school, and four months out of basic train- Vosbein loved Johnny Cash. He was from ing he was in one of the most dangerous Louisiana, free and easy with his affec- sectors of Baghdad. tions, and at 30 he treated Calloway like a Alpha Company, 2nd Battalion, 502nd kid brother. Infantry Regiment got to Baghdad in the The day Vosbein died was sunny and fall of 2005. The roads around Yusufiyah, hot. A convoy patrol in three Humvees where they patrolled, were littered with pulled over to check a crater in the road. bombs. A first sergeant was lost right away, As Calloway was opening his door, Vosbein and the casualties never stopped. Living was already moving toward the crater. The in abandoned Iraqi houses, Calloway went force of the explosion rattled Calloway’s weeks without bathing and days without teeth and knocked two other soldiers to sleep. He went on raids at night, kicking in the ground. Vosbein — whistling, happy doors and searching houses to the sound of Vos — was eviscerated. Parts of him were gunfire and screams. everywhere. Calloway had never felt such excite- Calloway buckled and puked. Then ment or sense of belonging. His best friend rage. He wanted to shoot the first Iraqi he was Spec. Denver Rearick, a grizzled saw, but his legs weren’t working. He was 23-year-old on his second tour. In his Ken- useless to help clean up the scene. Later tucky cowboy wisdom, Rearick warned that night as the chaplain gathered the pla- Calloway: “Your entire body is a puzzle toon to talk, Calloway stood off to the side before you go to war. You go to war and with two sergeants, crying. They confis- every little piece of that puzzle gets twisted cated his weapon. Rearick sat up with him and turned. And then you are supposed to in his room until he fell asleep. His com- come back home again.” manders watched him closely. “We want to MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 12

Rearick, who retired from the Army earlier this year, holds a plaque he received commemorating his service. He had taken it outside and shot it twice with his revolver. do what’s best for you,” the company com- the furniture pushed in front of the win- mander told him with compassion. “You dow. He was so anxious in crowds that he no need to tell me what you need.” longer went to bars or restaurants, order- “I can’t handle another day of this ing his meals at the drive-through window. place,” Calloway answered. He was sent to To rouse him in the morning, his father the combat-stress control trailers, where tossed a boot from the doorway because he the decision was made to ship him to Wal- startled so violently when touched. ter Reed. Rearick had sought help after com- In his room at Mologne House, Callo- ing home from his first tour in Iraq. While way kept photos from Iraq on his computer: asleep one night, he knocked his girlfriend Vosbein grilling steaks at their patrol base. to the floor. “I damn near broke her nose,” Calloway’s gang piled on a tank with their he said. Without telling his commanders at guitars. Driving through a blinding orange Fort Campbell, he went to the VA hospi- sandstorm. Rearick, wiry and invincible, tal in Lexington, where he was prescribed smiling in a dirty cowboy hat. antidepressants. He didn’t like the pills, so “He was able to handle it,” Calloway he drank himself to sleep, while gearing up said. for his second tour. But Rearick was in bad shape. While “All the banners said ‘Welcome Home Calloway was at Walter Reed, Rearick was Heroes,’ ” Rearick said. “But the moment home in Waco, Ky., sleeping with a .45 and we start falling apart it’s like, ‘Never mind.’ MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 13

For us, it was the beginning of the dark appointments. He blamed his meds and ages. It was the dreams. It was going to the memory problems. He had been exposed store and buying bottles of Tylenol PM and to multiple bomb blasts in Iraq, but after bottles of Jack.” seven months at Walter Reed he had not Rearick retired from the Army earlier been tested for traumatic brain injury, this year. In the bucolic green of Kentucky, which affects memory. Instead he was he threw himself into the physical work of given a Dell PDA to help him remember breaking horses and moving cattle. The appointments. only places he feels safe are the pastures The relationship with his psychia- and his barricaded room. trist was barely tolerable. The frustration “At least Calloway doesn’t try to sugar- seemed mutual. “He complained about coat it,” he said. “He’s like, ‘I’m [expletive] his problems but did not seem eager to up and I’m pissed off.’ ” listen to any suggestions I provided him,” Rearick knows his outlaw paradise of the doctor noted in Calloway’s records. He guitars, guns and Willie Nelson is just a added that Calloway showed up to Ward 53 cover. not in uniform but in cutoff shorts with his “Everyone thinks you are a badass,” he tattoos showing. said. “But you are scared of the dark.” Even on high doses of sedating drugs, Calloway’s rage crackled, and one night he Going Home, Far From Cured started breaking things outside Mologne Calloway put a Johnny Cash song on House. He was again taken to the ER, his cellphone to describe his sixth month where he screamed that he wanted to kill on Ward 53. his psychiatrist. I’m stuck at Folsom Prison Finally, Calloway got what he wanted And time keeps dragging on — a new doctor. Lt. Col. Robert Forsten One night he mixed Monster energy had served in Iraq and had published stud- drink and Crown Royal and got so drunk ies on combat stress. Right away, Callo- he was taken to the ER at Walter Reed, way noticed Forsten’s combat badge and which landed him in the Army’s alcohol his listening skills. Forsten agreed that the counseling program. He had to submit to a violence of Iraq was transforming and har- breathalyzer test at 7 each morning. “I am rowing but said it should not define the rest losing my mind more and more while I’m of Calloway’s life. The doctor also tried to here,” he said. reframe the experience. “You’re a soldier,” His psychiatrist had referred him to he said, according to Calloway. “You went the Deployment Health Clinical Center, to Iraq. You did your job.’ ” but Calloway blew his chance at getting Something clicked for Calloway. But it into the coveted program when he missed was so late in the game. His physical evalu- MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 14

Joshua Calloway sleeps in while visiting Denver Rearick. “You’re a soldier,” one of his psychiatrists at Walter Reed told him. “You went to Iraq. You did your job.”

ation board process was nearly complete, shells. The detonation killed SGT Vosbein and he would be going home soon. His and knocked the remaining soldiers to the worries turned to what diagnosis the Army ground. PFC Calloway came to the site and would give him and how he would be rated saw his team leader blown apart into sev- for disability pay. His case worker had eral pieces.” told him that she could not locate anyone Forsten would soon get another at Fort Campbell to provide written proof assignment and leave Walter Reed. that he had witnessed a traumatic event in The evaluation board diagnosed combat. Forsten picked up the phone and depression and chronic PTSD in Callo- within days had an official statement: way, and ruled that his conditions had a “During a routine route clearance in “definite impact” on his work and social August 2006, PFC Calloway’s team leader capabilities. He was given a temporary dis- (SGT Vosbein) was clearing a suspected ability rating of 30 percent, which meant IED crater while PFC Calloway was inside he would get $815 a month. He would be his M1114. SGT Vosbein stepped on a crush reevaluated in 2008. He would report to wire that detonated 2X155 mm artillery the VA hospital in Cincinnati for treatment MONDAY, JUNE 18, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 15

when he got home. avoided the open grassy spaces in front of After eight months at Walter Reed, Mologne House. He chain-smoked under Calloway showed “some improvement of the awning. He wondered what home his symptoms,” according to his medical would be like. records. But his step-grandfather, Greg At dawn the next morning, he set out Albright, who came from Ohio to help him for Ohio, a combat infantry sticker on the pack, was astounded at his volatility. “He’s bumper of his car. a grenade with the pin half-out,” Albright said. Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to this article. Even on his last night, Calloway

C M Y K A1 C M Y K

DAILY 06-18-07 MD M2 A1 CMYK A6 DAILY 06-18-07 MD M2 A6 CMYK

A6 Monday, June 18, 2007 M2 x The Washington Post Weather Today: Mostly sunny, hot. WALTER REED AND BEYOND High 94. Low 72. DISTRICT & Tuesday: Partly sunny, MARYLAND humid. High 94. Low 70. FINAL Details, B8 ABCDE 35¢ Prices may vary in areas outside metropolitan Walter Reed Patients Say Mental Care Falls Short 130th Year No. 195 M2 DC MD Monday, June 18, 2007 M1 M2 M3 M4 V1 V2 V3 V4 Washington. (See box on A2) WALTER REED, From A1

a key element in recovery from PTSD, is in- WALTER REED AND BEYOND frequent, and targeted group therapy is of- Maverick Abbas fered only twice a week. Young Pfc. Calloway was put in robes that first night. His dreams were infected by corpses. He tasted blood in his mouth. He Teachers’ Appoints was paranoid and jumpy. He couldn’t stop the movie inside his head of Sgt. Matthew Vosbein stepping on the bomb. His memory was shot. His insides burned. Key D.C. Crisis Calloway’s mother came to Walter Reed from Ohio and told the psychiatrist every- thing she knew about her son. Sitting in the office for the interview, Calloway jiggled his Moment Cabinet leg and put his head in his hands as he de- scribed his tour in Iraq. His mental history Program Behind was probed and more notes were taken. The Palestinian Leader trivia of his life — a beagle named Zoe, a job Fenty’s School Pick during high school at a Meijer superstore, a Meets Resistance love of World War II history — competed Finds Fame, Clout with what he had become. From Rival Hamas “I can’t remember who I was before I went By Jay Mathews into the Army,” he said later. “Put me in a war Washington Post Staff Writer By Scott Wilson for a year, my brain becomes a certain way. Washington Post Foreign Service My brain is a big, black ball of crap with this To many D.C. parents and edu- brick wall in front of it.” cators accustomed to failed promis- JERUSALEM, June 17 — Pales- After a week in the lockdown unit, Callo- es, the incoming schools chancellor tinian Authority President Mah- way was stabilized. They gave him back his is just another, albeit the youngest, moud Abbas swore in an emergency shoelaces and belt. On the 10th day, he was in a long line of leaders for the trou- cabinet Sunday and officially out- released and turned over to outpatient psy- bled school system. lawed the armed wing and paramil- chiatry for treatment. And Calloway, a casu- But to thousands of teachers and itary security branch of the Hamas alty without a scratch, began the longest sea- school leaders in their 20s and 30s movement, saying it had carried out son of his young life. on a mission to remake U.S. public a “military coup against the Palestin- schools, 37-year-old Michelle Rhee ian legitimacy and its government.” Inside Walter Reed has become an instant celebrity. Hamas officials immediately con- She is the first of their generation demned the move as illegal, further The Washington Post began following Cal- of educational innovators named to After he saw his sergeant die in Iraq, Pfc. Joshua Calloway was sent to Walter Reed Army Medical Center for psychiatric care. There, he divided deepening the divide between what loway after he was brought to Walter Reed head a major school system and a his time between his darkened room at Mologne House, above, and therapy sessions on Ward 53. Eight months later, recovery was still distant. had been envisioned as the future last fall with an initial diagnosis of acute symbol of their efforts to help in- parts of a Palestinian state. The stress disorder. He had all the signs of PTSD, ner-city children and challenge the United States and other foreign do- but it would be the hospital’s job to treat him power of education schools, teach- nors supported Abbas’s decision on and then decide whether he met the Army’s ers unions and the many layers of the eve of the Israeli prime min- strict guidelines for a PTSD diagnosis — central offices that often smother Little Relief on Ward 53 ister’s visit to Washington to discuss which required a certain level of chronic im- creativity. how best to engage the Palestinians. pairment — and whether he could ever re- It might be called the Teach for Hours later, two rockets fired turn to duty. America insurgency. The program, At Walter Reed, Care for Soldiers Struggling With War’s Mental Trauma from Lebanon fell in northern Israel, Calloway’s physical metamorphosis was begun in 1990, recruits graduates damaging a car in the city of Kiryat rapid. The burnished soldier turned soft and from top colleges to teach in some Is Undermined by Doctor Shortages and Unfocused Methods Shemona. The rocket attack, con- fat, gaining 20 pounds the first month from of the nation’s lowest-performing firmed by Israeli military officials, tranquilizers and microwaved Chef Boyar- schools. Rhee, whom Mayor Adri- was the first from Lebanon since Au- dee. He lived at Mologne House, a hotel on an M. Fenty (D) named as chancel- Story by Anne Hull and Dana Priest |Photos by Michel du Cille | The Washington Post gust, when a cease-fire ended Israel’s the grounds of Walter Reed that was overtak- lor last week and who awaits con- 33-day war against the Shiite Mus- en by wounded troops. His roommate was “He’s a grenade with the pin half-out,” said Joshua Calloway’s step-grandfather, Greg Albright. Even after Calloway spent months at Walter Reed, his anger was astonishing, Albright said. firmation by the D.C. Council, and lim movement Hezbollah. another soldier from Iraq with psych prob- some other veterans of Teach for On the military plane that crossed the Reed along with other war-wounded. For am- Israeli military officials said they lems who kept the curtains drawn and played The Post described a vague regimen at Wal- America are pushing into educa- ocean at night, the wounded lay in stretchers putees, the nation’s top Army hospital offers were investigating whether Hezbol- Saints Row video games all day until one day ter Reed’s outpatient psychiatric unit, Ward tion leadership and policymaking stacked three high. The drone of engines was state-of-the-art prosthetics and physical rehab lah or Palestinians living in refugee he vanished — poof, AWOL, leaving nothing 53. They get a heavy dose of group sessions roles. broken by the occasional sound of moaning. programs, and soon, a new $10 million ampu- camps in Lebanon fired the 107mm behind but empty bottles of lithium and Sero- such as “Reflecting with Music,” “Deci- “Sometimes I kid them about Sedated and sleeping, Pfc. Joshua Calloway tee center with a rappelling wall and virtual re- rockets, which some officials said ap- quel. sions,” “Feelings Exploration” and “Art Ex- their apparent plans for world dom- was at the top of one stack last September. Un- ality center. peared to be cruder than the thou- For the first time in almost a year, Callo- pressions.” Calloway reported to his “Reel ination,” said Kevin Carey, 36, re- like the others around him, Calloway was Nothing so gleaming exists for soldiers sands Hezbollah fired into Israel way had a plush bed and a hot shower, but he Reflections” class one morning for a screen- search and policy manager with the handcuffed to his stretcher. with diagnoses of post-traumatic stress dis- during the war. It was unclear was too angry to appreciate the simple com- ing of “The Devil Wears Prada.” Only two Washington think tank Education When the 20-year-old infantry soldier woke order, who in the Army alone outnumber all of whether the attack was connected to forts. On an early venture outside Walter hours a week are devoted to a post-traumatic Sector. He has many friends who, up, he was on the locked-down psychiatric the war’s amputees by 43 to 1. The Army has Abbas’s decision earlier in the day, Reed, he went to downtown Silver Spring recovery group, according to a copy of their like Rhee, were in the program. ward at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. A no PTSD center at Walter Reed, and its psy- and Hezbollah denied carrying out and became enraged by young people laugh- schedule. It’s clear, Carey said, that Teach nurse handed him pajamas and a robe, but chiatric treatment is weak compared with the the strike. ing at Starbucks. “Don’t they know there is a These soldiers said they are over-medi- they reminded him of the flowing clothes best PTSD programs the government offers. for America is “directing the ener- BY JOSH CALLOWAY Hamas, an armed Islamic move- war going on?” he said. cated and treated with none of the urgency worn by Iraqi men. He told the nurse, “I don’t Instead of receiving focused attention, sol- ment that does not recognize Israel, Wearing a rock band T-shirt, Calloway given the physically wounded. One desperate See SCHOOLS, A5, Col. 1 want to look like a freakin’ Haj.” He wanted Calloway served nine months in Iraq as an diers with combat-stress disorders are mixed has long held sway in the Gaza Strip, looked like any other 20-year-old on the side- patient, a combat medic who broke down af- his uniform. Request denied. Shoelaces and infantryman. “I can’t remember who I was in with psych patients who have issues rang- where nearly 1.5 million Palestin- walk, but an unspeakable compulsion tore ter her third tour in Iraq, said she begged her belts were prohibited. before I went into the Army,” he said. ing from schizophrenia to marital strife. ians, most of them refugees, live through him. He said he wanted to hatchet psychiatrist: “We are handicapped patients, Calloway felt naked without his M-4, his Even though Walter Reed maintains the largely in poverty. someone in the back of the neck. too. Cut off both my legs, but give me my san- constant companion during his tour south of was ordered to help collect body parts. A few largest psychiatric department in the Army, it Israel evacuated its 8,500 settlers “I want to see people that I hate die,” he ity. You can’t get a prosthesis for that.” Baghdad with the 101st Airborne Division. days later he was sent to the combat-stress lacks enough psychiatrists and clinicians to from Gaza, along with the soldiers said. “I want to blow their heads off. I wish I In an interview this month, Col. John C. The year-long deployment claimed the lives of trailers, where he was given antidepressants properly treat the growing number of soldiers who protected them, in the fall of didn’t, but I do.” He made similar statements Bradley, head of psychiatry at Walter Reed, Discount 50 soldiers in his brigade. Two committed sui- and rest, but after a week he was still twitch- returning with combat stress. Earlier this 2005. In the more populous West to his psychiatry team at Walter Reed. said soldiers with combat-stress disorders re- cide. Calloway, blue-eyed and lantern-jawed, ing and sleepless. The Army decided that his year, the head of psychiatry sent out an “SOS” Bank, where an estimated 250,000 Violence seeped into his life in a thousand ceive the accepted psychotherapeutic treat- lasted nine months — until the afternoon he war was over. memo desperately seeking more clinical help. Jewish settlers live in protected en- ways. When he cut himself shaving, the iron ment there. He said they are placed in a spe- Dentistry, watched his sergeant step on a pressure-plate Every month, 20 to 40 soldiers are evacuat- Individual therapy with a trained clinician, claves, Abbas’s secular Fatah party smell of blood on his fingertips gave a slight cially designed “trauma track” and are given bomb in the road. The young soldier’s knees ed from Iraq because of mental problems, ac- remains politically strong. euphoria. But it was the distinct horror of his at least an hour of individual therapy a week buckled and he vomited in the reeds before he cording to the Army. Most are sent to Walter See WALTER REED, A6, Col. 1 Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip, sergeant’s death that was encoded in his and a full range of classes to help them cope South of which the movement seized last brain. The memory made him physically with their symptoms. Exposure therapy is as week in a rout of the Palestinian se- sick. He would sweat and shake as if having a effective in group settings as in individual ABOUT THIS SERIES curity services dominated by Fatah, seizure, and sometimes he felt as if he were sessions, he maintained — a belief that runs back in the heat and sand of Iraq. counter to the latest clinical research. The Border Today, The Washington Post continues an examination of the treatment of troops returning home from war with physical and mental See PALESTINIANS, A12, Col. 1 The recognized treatment for PTSD is Bradley acknowledged staff shortages and wounds. Earlier stories, along with audio, video and photo slide shows, can be found at www.washingtonpost.com/walterreed. By Manuel Roig-Franzia cognitive behavioral therapy, in which pa- said vacancies in his department go unfilled Washington Post Foreign Service tients are encouraged to face their feared for as long as a year because of the Army pay Calloway grimaces under the tattoo needle at a shop near Walter Reed. One of the pictures on his skin honors his dead sergeant; under a memories or situations and to change their scale and the high cost of living in the Wash- soldier’s silhouette are the words: “Lay down your armor. And have no fear. I’ll be home soon.” CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico — negative perceptions. A key technique is ington area. He recently asked to increase his Judy Salvador, a retired American known as prolonged exposure therapy. It in- staff by 20 percent, and last month he Center, run by the Department of Defense center, until new space becomes available. ians reading from a booklet,” he said. Airlines ticket agent, recently typed volves revisiting a traumatic memory in or- brought on a reservist to help doctors with and separate from the Army’s services, offers Joshua Calloway reported to Ward 53 five Ultimately, his treatment was in the hands two words into Google’s search en- INSIDE T-Shirt Maker’s Style, der to process it. The idea is not to erase the the time-consuming duties of preparing re- a three-week program of customized treat- mornings a week in his uniform. He was a of a civilian psychiatrist. Before taking a con- gine: “cheap dentists.” memory but to prevent it from being disa- ports for the soldiers’ medical evaluation ment. Individual exposure therapy and fewer tough patient from the start, angering easily tract job at Walter Reed in 2005, the doctor Salvador loves cheap — she THE WORLD bling. Highly structured, one-on-one sessions board process. “We are constantly looking medications are favored. Deployment Health and impatient with anyone who had not ex- had worked at Washington’s St. Elizabeths prepped for her nuptials by typing Drawn From Web Users over a limited time period have proved most for innovative ways to provide service and can see only about 65 patients a year but is perienced combat. He was irritated that he Hospital and specialized in addictions and “cheap wedding” into Google not Children Hit in Airstrike effective, according to Edna B. Foa, a profes- outreach and support to soldiers,” said Brad- the envy of many in the Army. “They need to had to attend groups with soldiers who had pedophilia. On Ward 53, he was responsible long ago — and her quest for cut- A U.S.-led coalition attack on sor of psychology in psychiatry at the Uni- ley, who deployed to Iraq last year with a clone that program,” said Col. Charles W. bombed out of boot camp or never deployed. for about 30 soldiers, many back from Iraq. rate dentistry didn’t disappoint. a suspected al-Qaeda More Firms Parcel Out Tasks Via Internet versity of Pennsylvania, who has been con- combat-stress unit. Hoge, chief of psychiatry and behavior ser- He participated in processing exercises us- Calloway felt little validation from the psychi- At her computer in suburban Mi- compound killed seven tracted by the Department of Veterans Af- One of the country’s best PTSD programs vices at the Walter Reed Army Institute of ing work sheets to help him manage his fears. atrist. Sometimes the doctor typed on his ami, Salvador found herself in an youths in Afghanistan. A10 By Alan Sipress site called InnoCentive, which links fairs to train 250 therapists who treat PTSD. is located at Walter Reed, but because of a bu- Research. (“For example, original thought: ‘I’m in a computer while Calloway talked. international cyber-bazaar of den- Washington Post Staff Writer up companies and scientists, prom- But Calloway and a dozen other soldiers reaucratic divide it is not accessible to most Instead, Deployment Health was forced to crowd, they’re looking at me, they’re all go- There was another, more delicate, prob- tistry come-ons targeting patients IN THE LOOP ising a reward often worth tens of from Iraq and Afghanistan interviewed by patients. The Deployment Health Clinical give up its newly renovated quarters in ing to jump me, the enemy looked at me in lem. The psychiatrist was Indian. Calloway March and was placed in temporary space Iraq and shot me, I leave.’ Feelings: Anxious. had a gut reaction to anyone he thought in the United States, where 45 per- Read the Fine Print The two teenagers were short of thousands of dollars in exchange for cent of the population has no dental nearly everything when they kick- the best answer. one-third the size to make room for a soldier Behavior: Leave situation.”) looked Iraqi, a paranoia shared by many of insurance. The Internet offers A new column looks at the started their Chicago T-shirt busi- From quirky Internet start-ups to and family assistance center. The move came With the exception of the post-traumatic Walter Reed’s wounded. crowns in Costa Rica, where “a few documents that flood ness seven years ago. Jake Nickell industrial titans, companies are in- after a series of articles in The Post detailed stress group run by Joshua Friedlander, a “You are seeing a [expletive] Pakistani?” miles buys beautiful smiles,” root Washington and uncovers the and Jacob DeHart each chipped in creasingly outsourcing segments of the neglect of wounded outpatients at Walter clinical psychologist and former Army cap- asked Spec. Isaac Serna, a fellow war-wound- canals in Bangkok and Caracas, and fine print that rarely makes $500. They ran it out of Nickell’s their business to sources in cy- Reed. Therapy sessions are now being held tain who had served in Iraq, most of the class- ed soldier in the 101st Airborne. “I’d freak, implants in Budapest, where the headlines. A15 apartment since DeHart still lived berspace — much as they began in Building T-2, a rundown former computer es felt like B.S. sessions to Calloway. “Civil- dude.” “Hungarian medical level of train- with his mother. For shipping, they shifting production overseas a gen- ing compares to UK or Irish practi- STYLE enlisted friends to carry the shirts eration earlier. This process, known tioners,” according to one Web site. to the post office. as crowdsourcing, means that work Closer to Sedgwick ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM IN THEIR OWN WORDS | BATTLING POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER Tempted as she was to head for As Kyra Sedgwick’s TV drama But they had a killer design team: Bangkok, Salvador, 58, chose Mex- the Web. They solicited designs See CROWDSOURCE, A14, Col. 1 “The Closer” begins its third “For me personally, the post-traumatic stress disorder ico, which is quickly transforming season, the star continues to from thousands of Internet users its border cities into catch basins and then had them vote on Jeffrey Kalmikoff’s defy the odds. C1 therapy at Walter Reed has not worked. . . . I have no, for millions of bargain-hunting and which to manufacture. Out- T-shirt business uninsured Americans. Arizona re- WASHINGTON BUSINESS sourcing design work to the relies on designs nowhere to turn other than what I’m told to do.” tirement communities now orga- Web’s mass audience has built from Web users. — Joshua Calloway, an Army private first class who served in Iraq. Despite his nize regular bus tours for Mexican D.C.’s Legal Ties That Bind the company, now called treatment at Walter Reed, his frustration and rage continue to boil. BY E. JASON WAMBSGANS — dental work and inexpensive drugs. Personal connections often Threadless, into one of the CHICAGO TRIBUNE New hospitals have opened in Ti- country’s hottest T-shirt re- determine who gets “I got buddies that are going over here to go talk to shrinks juana, because some U.S. health high-profile cases. D1 tailers, with estimated annual plans have begun covering services revenue of about $15 million. and . . . it’s making them three times crazier just because of in Mexico. And tiny border commu- SPORTS In a similar fashion, For- nities, some about an hour from Ci- tune 500 companies such as all the aggravation you have to go through.” Cabrera Holds Off Tiger udad Juarez, are becoming dentist- » Procter & Gamble, Dow — Denver Rearick, a former Army specialist who served with Calloway and ry boomtowns to handle an ever- Argentina’s Angel Cabrera AgroSciences and General became his friend, says psychiatric care doesn’t seem to help fellow soldiers. growing flow of American patients hugs the trophy after his Mills now turn to the Inter- flying in from as far away as Alaska. victory in the U.S. Open golf net to solve some of their Find these audio slide shows and previous articles at BY JOSH CALLOWAY In a recent University of Texas championship on Sunday. E1 thorniest research problems. www.washingtonpost.com/walterreed. BY ELISE AMENDOLA — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS They post them on a Web Sgt. Matthew Vosbein, left, was like a big brother to Calloway. He was killed when he stepped See MEXICO, A13, Col. 3 on a roadside bomb while on patrol. Calloway was ordered to help pick up his body parts.

Contents DAILY CODE 4942 INSIDE METRO • STYLE • WASHINGTON BUSINESS • SPORTS On Radio: 107.7 FM • 1500 AM Online:  2007 » The

Washington

Classifieds...... F1 Editorials ...... A16 Letters ...... A16 Lotteries...... B4 Obituaries ...... B5-7 Television...... C6-7 Weather ...... B8 Post PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE

C M Y K A7 PAGE B5 C M Y K 1 A8 Comics...... C9-11 KidsPost ...... C12 Local Stocks ....D5-6 Movies ...... C4 Science ...... A9 TV Sports ...... E2 World News ...... A10

DAILY 06-18-07 MD M2 A7 CMYK DAILY 06-18-07 MD M2 A8 CMYK

C M Y K A1 C M Y K A6

The Washington Post x M2 Monday, June 18, 2007 A7 A8 Monday, June 18, 2007 M2 x The Washington Post

WALTER REED AND BEYOND WALTER REED AND BEYOND Instead of Hope, Soldier Finds More Frustration

WALTER REED, From A7

way was opening his door, Vosbein was al- ready moving toward the crater. The force of the explosion rattled Calloway’s teeth and knocked two other soldiers to the ground. Vosbein — whistling, happy Vos — was evis- cerated. Parts of him were everywhere. Calloway buckled and puked. Then rage. He wanted to shoot the first Iraqi he saw, but his legs weren’t working. He was useless to help clean up the scene. Later that night as the chaplain gathered the platoon to talk, Calloway stood off to the side with two ser- geants, crying. They confiscated his weapon. Rearick sat up with him in his room until he fell asleep. His commanders watched him closely. “We want to do what’s best for you,” the company commander told him with com- passion. “You need to tell me what you need.” “I can’t handle another day of this place,” Calloway answered. He was sent to the com- bat-stress control trailers, where the decision was made to ship him to Walter Reed. In his room at Mologne House, Calloway kept photos from Iraq on his computer: Vos- bein grilling steaks at their patrol base. Callo- way’s gang piled on a tank with their guitars. Driving through a blinding orange sand- storm. Rearick, wiry and invincible, smiling in a dirty cowboy hat. “He was able to handle it,” Calloway said. But Rearick was in bad shape. While Callo- way was at Walter Reed, Rearick was home in Waco, Ky., sleeping with a .45 and the fur- niture pushed in front of the window. He was so anxious in crowds that he no longer went to bars or restaurants, ordering his meals at the drive-through window. To rouse him in the morning, his father tossed a boot from the doorway because he startled so violently when touched. Rearick had sought help after coming Joshua Calloway sleeps in while visiting Denver Rearick. “You’re a soldier,” one of his psychiatrists at Walter Reed told him. “You went to Iraq. You did your job.” home from his first tour in Iraq. While asleep one night, he knocked his girlfriend to the “Everyone thinks you are a badass,” he he was given a Dell PDA to help him remem- cording to Calloway. “You went to Iraq. You The evaluation board diagnosed depres- floor. “I damn near broke her nose,” he said. said. “But you are scared of the dark.” ber appointments. did your job.’ ” sion and chronic PTSD in Calloway, and Without telling his commanders at Fort The relationship with his psychiatrist was Something clicked for Calloway. But it was ruled that his conditions had a “definite im- Campbell, he went to the VA hospital in Lex- Going Home, Far From Cured barely tolerable. The frustration seemed mu- so late in the game. His physical evaluation pact” on his work and social capabilities. He ington, where he was prescribed antidepres- tual. “He complained about his problems but board process was nearly complete, and he was given a temporary disability rating of 30 Joshua Calloway, left, visits his friend Denver Rearick, who served with him in Iraq. Rearick was on his second tour when he met Calloway. Since returning, Rearick has struggled with anxiety and still sleeps with a loaded gun. sants. He didn’t like the pills, so he drank Calloway put a Johnny Cash song on his did not seem eager to listen to any sugges- would be going home soon. His worries percent, which meant he would get $815 a himself to sleep, while gearing up for his sec- cellphone to describe his sixth month on tions I provided him,” the doctor noted in turned to what diagnosis the Army would month. He would be reevaluated in 2008. He ond tour. Ward 53. Calloway’s records. He added that Calloway give him and how he would be rated for disa- would report to the VA hospital in Cincinnati Calloway confessed his bias to the doctor. “All the banners said ‘Welcome Home He- I’m stuck at Folsom Prison showed up to Ward 53 not in uniform but in bility pay. His case worker had told him that for treatment when he got home. “I want to kill Arabs,” he said. roes,’ ” Rearick said. “But the moment we And time keeps dragging on cutoff shorts with his tattoos showing. she could not locate anyone at Fort Campbell After eight months at Walter Reed, Callo- “Does that include me?” the Hindu doctor start falling apart it’s like, ‘Never mind.’ For One night he mixed Monster energy drink Even on high doses of sedating drugs, Cal- to provide written proof that he had wit- way showed “some improvement of his asked, according to Calloway. “You can say us, it was the beginning of the dark ages. It and Crown Royal and got so drunk he was loway’s rage crackled, and one night he start- nessed a traumatic event in combat. Forsten symptoms,” according to his medical rec- it.” was the dreams. It was going to the store and taken to the ER at Walter Reed, which landed ed breaking things outside Mologne House. picked up the phone and within days had an ords. But his step-grandfather, Greg Al- Antidepressants are most commonly used buying bottles of Tylenol PM and bottles of him in the Army’s alcohol counseling pro- He was again taken to the ER, where he official statement: bright, who came from Ohio to help him to treat PTSD, and Calloway was on a total of Jack.” gram. He had to submit to a breathalyzer test screamed that he wanted to kill his psychia- “During a routine route clearance in Au- pack, was astounded at his volatility. “He’s a seven medications by Christmas, including Rearick retired from the Army earlier this at 7 each morning. “I am losing my mind trist. gust 2006, PFC Calloway’s team leader (SGT grenade with the pin half-out,” Albright said. lithium, used to treat bipolar disorder. He year. In the bucolic green of Kentucky, he more and more while I’m here,” he said. Finally, Calloway got what he wanted — a Vosbein) was clearing a suspected IED crater Even on his last night, Calloway avoided had now gained 30 pounds and was too le- threw himself into the physical work of His psychiatrist had referred him to the new doctor. Lt. Col. Robert Forsten had while PFC Calloway was inside his M1114. the open grassy spaces in front of Mologne thargic to exercise. Bored one night, he took breaking horses and moving cattle. The only Deployment Health Clinical Center, but Cal- served in Iraq and had published studies on SGT Vosbein stepped on a crush wire that House. He chain-smoked under the awning. out the sweat-stained spiral notebook he had places he feels safe are the pastures and his loway blew his chance at getting into the cov- combat stress. Right away, Calloway noticed detonated 2X155 mm artillery shells. The He wondered what home would be like. carried in Iraq. Grains of sand were still be- barricaded room. eted program when he missed appointments. Forsten’s combat badge and his listening detonation killed SGT Vosbein and knocked At dawn the next morning, he set out for tween the pages scribbled with Arabic com- “At least Calloway doesn’t try to sugarcoat He blamed his meds and memory problems. skills. Forsten agreed that the violence of the remaining soldiers to the ground. PFC Ohio, a combat infantry sticker on the bum- mands. He repeated the phrases that loosely it,” he said. “He’s like, ‘I’m [expletive] up and He had been exposed to multiple bomb blasts Iraq was transforming and harrowing but Calloway came to the site and saw his team per of his car. translated to “don’t speak” and “shut up.” I’m pissed off.’ ” in Iraq, but after seven months at Walter said it should not define the rest of Callo- leader blown apart into several pieces.” “Balla hashee!” he said. “In chep!” Rearick knows his outlaw paradise of gui- Reed he had not been tested for traumatic way’s life. The doctor also tried to reframe Forsten would soon get another assign- Staff researcher Julie Tate contributed to He spent the holidays reading “The PTSD tars, guns and Willie Nelson is just a cover. brain injury, which affects memory. Instead the experience. “You’re a soldier,” he said, ac- ment and leave Walter Reed. this article. Workbook” and eating Starbursts in a room piled high with goody boxes from his church back home. “You are in our prayers, Josh,” one card PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE read. “We are so proud of your service to your country.” Unabating Anger A In Iraq he was infected with MRSA, a mi- KNEE PAIN crobe that makes the skin boil, and at Walter Reed he suffered a painful outbreak that land- It interferes with everyday life FREE PARKING!! DISCOUNT WINE & SPIRITS ed him in the hospital. Festering sores 5626 Connecticut Ave., N.W. ROBERT KACHER SELECTIONS If you have osteoarthritis of the (202) 686-5271 brought a respite from Ward 53. 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C M Y K A7 C M Y K A8 ABCDE

Democracy Dies in Darkness SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2007

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST “I don’t even know what ‘going on with my life’ means,” said Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon, after being told that paperwork glitches would delay his release from Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Almost Home, but Facing More Delays at Walter Reed Soldier Is Told Paperwork Errors Will Slow Retirement By Dana Priest and Anne Hull After nearly three years as an outpa- Washington Post Staff Writers tient at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon had begun the wrenching process of turning himself SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

into a civilian. He no longer wore the uniform he loved so much. He sported a short beard and traded his black beret for a baseball cap. Granted a 30-day leave to prepare for retirement as his dis- ability case finally made it through the system, he moved his family to Suffolk, Va., and began to babysit his two kids, clean the house and grow vegetables. Given what had happened Shannon testified in March at a congressional hearing on poor living conditions and other problems at Walter Reed. He has become to him in Iraq — the traumatic brain something of a spokesman for his fellow patients. injury from an AK-47 round that shat- tered one eye and half his skull — and the chronic post-traumatic stress disorder non and other wounded soldiers at Walter that followed, that was about all he could Reed endured after returning from Iraq, handle. Shannon became something of a spokes- Last week, Shannon, 43, was back at man for his fellow patients. Walter Reed, but not to say goodbye. The He testified before a congressional doctors’ signatures on two time-sensitive hearing about the Army’s obligation to forms in his disability file had expired. He care for its wounded. Members of Con- would have to be reexamined by his doc- gress and generals shook Shannon’s hand tors, he was told, and his medical summa- and thanked him for his courage, while ries would have to be written all over again. President Bush and Defense Secretary Unfortunately, the sergeant in charge of Robert M. Gates promised swift changes. his disability paperwork had not stayed on Three panels were set up to study not only top of his case. Walter Reed’s failures, but the entire over- “There was a failure of paying atten- burdened military medical-care system for tion to the currency of his paperwork,” a returning soldiers and Marines five years Walter Reed spokesman, Charles Dasey, into war. said last night. But none of that kept Shannon from The bottom line: No one could tell getting caught up again in military bureau- Shannon when he might go back to his cracy. family, transfer into the Veterans Affairs “It’s like being kicked in the teeth by a medical system and move on with his life. horse,” Shannon said this week in a phone After a Washington Post story in Feb- interview, alone in his room at Walter ruary described the conditions that Shan- Reed. “I’ve been sitting here for three years. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST In nearly three years at Walter Reed, Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon has had six different case managers assigned to him. ‘It’s About Whether We’re Important Enough’

I don’t even know what ‘going on with my reach. He couldn’t get straight answers life’ means. I want to scream at the top of about his future. Appointments were still my lungs. I’m at the end of my rope.” difficult to make. Finally, as his discharge While Shannon, a senior sniper in seemed imminent, a cascading set of errors Iraq, began speaking at public events and and inattention ensured the delay of his counseling other soldiers about the cum- release. “It’s been 33 months,” he said. bersome Army disability process, he was “What kind of beer are they drinking?” quietly fighting his own battles. After The Post’s stories in February, The case manager assigned to shep- the Army moved swiftly to fix the outpa- herd him through the system was hard to tient system. It created a new brigade SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

structure to oversee the wounded and benefits can be calculated. But that has not brought in combat infantry officers to run happened. it. More platoon sergeants and case man- In his time at Walter Reed, Shannon agers were added to give more individual has had six different disability case manag- service. Building 18, the moldy and mouse- ers assigned to him. ridden barracks for wounded outpatients, His latest round of bad news involved was closed, and soldiers moved into new his current disability case manager. In living quarters with flat-panel TVs and August, the manager called Shannon in computers. Suffolk to say that one important docu- But some soldiers still complain of lost ment was missing Shannon’s signature. paperwork and delays in appointments. In This would delay his retirement date. June, one dorm was without air condition- Shannon was livid. It had been two ing. Up and down a sweltering hallway, months since his final surgery, and the pro- soldiers used fans and kept their doorways cess should have been close to completion. open to ease the summer heat. “The files just sat there,” he said. “When At a town hall meeting in July, sol- it got ready to go to the [evaluation] board, diers vented their frustration over a variety he noticed they weren’t signed. Why was it of issues to Maj. Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker, so hard for him to do this job?” Walter Reed’s commander. One mother The case manager informed Shannon said that her son had been given discharge that he himself was in the process of retir- papers to sign with no explanation of his ing and would be hard to reach, but he said options. Other soldiers complained about he would fax Shannon the Army Form 3947 an orthopedic surgeon, saying the doctor for his signature. The fax never arrived. had been repeatedly “abusive and demean- Shannon said he could not reach the coun- ing to patients” during the medical disabil- selor, Sgt. 1st Class Allen Domingo, the ity process and should be fired. next dozen times he tried. This week Shannon praised the new Shannon and his wife were plunged brigade; his company commander, Capt. into despair. Torry Shannon, who had Steven Gventer; and the medical and psy- spent two years caring for her husband and chological care he has received. For Shan- children at Walter Reed, had just started a non and others, including some com- house-cleaning business in Suffolk. manders, the disability process remains The delay and sense of neglect seemed the largest source of anger. A presidential an echo of their early days at Walter Reed, commission suggested doing away with the when Shannon, with a bandaged head Army’s long evaluation process — which from surgery and on heavy pain medica- must essentially be redone by the Depart- tions, was released from the hospital with ment of Veterans Affairs before any VA nothing more than a map and told to find SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

his room across post by himself. He had sat Domingo again for some explanation, the for weeks without appointments and with- voice mail message told him what Domingo out anyone to check on him. The family had not: “I will be out of the office from 10 had almost gone broke. At one point they to 14 September. I will be involved in tran- lived five to a tiny room. sitional, retirement . . . training . . . please Shannon, struggling with post-trau- leave number and message. . . . Have a fine matic stress, was so angry that he broke Army day.” things around the house, including his new Dasey, the Walter Reed spokesman, Bluetooth earphone, which he smashed said Domingo was kept on the case for just thinking about all the new obstacles. the sake of continuity. “Sergeant Domingo His PTSD had been triggered, as it had already has established a relationship with been before, by the thought of soldiers Sergeant Shannon,” he said. treated disrespectfully. “It’s about whether Domingo could not be reached for we’re important enough,” he said. comment. Last Friday, Domingo phoned Shan- Dasey said Army officials determined non with even worse news. Some of the last night that Shannon’s paperwork is doctors’ signatures on some key paperwork still valid and they would send his case on — narrative medical evaluations of his dis- to the medical evaluation board, the last abilities — had expired. Shannon would step in determining Army disability pay have to make new appointments, get new and benefits, on Monday. He said addi- signatures and be reevaluated. tional appointments with doctors would Shannon checked back into a room at not be necessary. He could not explain how Walter Reed. Domingo had made such a mistake. “I’m going to lose it. He’s going to lose Shannon said he would like to take it,” Torry Shannon said Tuesday morning. over his case manager’s job. He wants to “He’s cycling up again, and I’ve become a make sure that other soldiers at Walter single parent in a 24-hour period. I just Reed, all younger and less outspoken, get opened up a business. There’s no one to the treatment they deserve. “I wish I could watch the kids. . . . I want my husband take his job so I could kick some doors in home.” and say, ‘Hey! What’s going on here!’ ” When Shannon tried to reach

C M Y K

A1 DAILY 09-15-07 MD M2 A1 CMYK

Weather Today: Partly sunny. High 77. Low 52. DISTRICT & Sunday: Mostly sunny. High MARYLAND 72. Low 54. FINAL Details, B10 ABCDE 35¢ Prices may vary in areas outside metropolitan 130th Year No. 284 M2 DC MD Saturday, September 15, 2007 M1 M2 M3 M4 V1 V2 V3 V4 Washington. (See box on A2) Greenspan Pentagon Chief Is Critical Talks of Further Of Bush in Memoir Iraq Troop Cuts Former Fed Chairman Gates Expresses Hope Despite Has Praise for Clinton New U.S. Report on Unmet Goals By Michael Abramowitz Christmas and five additional By Bob Woodward and Thomas E. Ricks combat brigades by next summer, Washington Post Staff Writer Washington Post Staff Writers reducing the troop level to be- tween 130,000 and 140,000. But Alan Greenspan, who served as One day after President Bush Petraeus told Congress this week Federal Reserve chairman for 18 announced a limited drawdown of that he will not recommend fur- years and was the leading Republican U.S. troops from Iraq by next sum- ther cuts until March. economist for the past three decades, mer, Defense Secretary Robert M. Speaking to reporters at the levels unusually harsh criticism at Gates said yesterday that it might Pentagon, Gates said he hopes President Bush and the Republican be possible to reduce U.S. forces that in March, Petraeus “will be Party in his new book, arguing that there further over the course of able to say that he thinks that the Bush abandoned the central conserva- next year, down to approximately pace of drawdowns can continue tive principle of fiscal restraint. 100,000 troops by the end of 2008. at the same rate in the second half While condemning Democrats, too, Gates’s comments followed a of the year as in the first half of the for rampant federal spending, he of- White House report yesterday year.” Asked if such reductions fers Bill Clinton an exemption. The PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST concluding that the Iraqi govern- former president emerges as the polit- “I don’t even know what ‘going on with my life’ means,” said Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon, after being ment has not made satisfactory See IRAQ, A9, Col. 1 ical hero of “The Age of Turbulence: told that paperwork glitches would delay his release from Walter Reed Army Medical Center. progress on several political and Adventures in a New World,” Green- security benchmarks. In a con- span’s 531-page memoir, which is be- gressionally mandated assess- ing published Monday. ment, the administration found Claim in Killing Greenspan, who had an eight-year only modest improvements since The insurgent group alliance with Clinton and Democratic Almost Home, but Facing an interim report in July. al-Qaeda in Iraq says its Treasury secretaries in the 1990s, In a prime-time Thursday night bomb killed a prominent praises Clinton’s mind and his tough speech, Bush endorsed the recom- tribal leader who worked anti-deficit policies, calling the former mendation of Army Gen. David H. with the Americans. A11 president’s 1993 economic plan “an More Delays at Walter Reed Petraeus, the top U.S. commander act of political courage.” in Iraq, to remove 5,700 troops by But he expresses deep disappoint- ment with Bush. “My biggest frustra- tion remained the president’s unwill- Soldier Is Told Paperwork Errors Will Slow Retirement ingness to wield his veto against out- of-control spending,” Greenspan By Dana Priest writes. “Not exercising the veto pow- and Anne Hull er became a hallmark of the Bush War Critics Question Washington Post Staff Writers presidency. . . . To my mind, Bush’s collaborate-don’t-confront approach After nearly three years as an was a major mistake.” outpatient at Walter Reed Army Obama’s Fervor Greenspan accuses the Republicans Medical Center, Staff Sgt. John who presided over the party’s major- Daniel Shannon had begun the wrenching process of turning Some Say Actions Don’t Match Talk See GREENSPAN, A7, Col. 1 himself into a civilian. He no longer wore the uni- By Perry Bacon Jr. administration to shove their form he loved so much. He Washington Post Staff Writer own ideological agendas down sported a short beard and trad- our throats, irrespective of the ed his black beret for a baseball For antiwar Illinois Demo- costs in lives lost and in hard- cap. Granted a 30-day leave to crats, the speech that made them ships borne.” prepare for retirement as his fall in love with Barack Obama This week, Obama quoted his disability case finally made it Shannon testified in March at a congressional hearing on poor living was not the one he gave in Bos- own words in a speech on Iraq through the system, he moved conditions and other problems at Walter Reed. He has become ton in 2004 at the Democratic that chastised those who “took

his family to Suffolk, Va., and be- something of a spokesman for his fellow patients. National Convention, but one the president at his word instead

gan to babysit his two kids, two years earlier at a hastily or- of reading the intelligence for

C M Y K clean the house and grow vege- say goodbye. The doctors’ sig- “There was a failure of paying ganized rally in Chicago on the themselves.” A9 Alan Greenspan writes “The Age of tables. Given what had hap- natures on two time-sensitive attention to the currency of his eve of the congressional vote to But some antiwar Democrats DAILY 09-15-07 MD SU A9 CMYK Turbulence: Adventures in a New pened to him in Iraq — the trau- forms in his disability file had paperwork,” a Walter Reed authorize the Iraq war. have raised questions about the World” from the perspective of a matic brain injury from an expired. He would have to be re- spokesman, Charles Dasey, said “I don’t oppose all wars,” Oba- depth of Obama’s opposition, “libertarian Republican.” AK-47 round that shattered one examined by his doctors, he was last night. ma, then a state senator, said on taking aim at one of the signa- eye and half his skull — and the told, and his medical summaries The bottom line: No one Oct. 2, 2002. “. . . What I am op- ture arguments for his candidacy chronic post-traumatic stress would have to be written all could tell Shannon when he posed to is a dumb war. What I — that he is the only leading disorder that followed, that was over again. Unfortunately, the might go back to his family, am opposed to is a rash war. Democratic candidate who op- The Washington Post S Saturday, September 15, 2007 A9 about all he could handle. sergeant in charge of his disabil- transfer into the Veterans Af- What I am opposed to is the cyn- posed the war from the begin- THE CONFLICT IN IRAQ Last week, Shannon, 43, was ity paperwork had not stayed on ical attempt by Richard Perle and ning. Va. High Court back at Walter Reed, but not to top of his case. See REED, A9, Col. 1 Paul Wolfowitz and other arm- chair, weekend warriors in this See OBAMA, A4, Col. 1 Little Change Breaks New Compared with its interim assessment in July, the Bush administration’s report yesterday changed only two ratings on Ground on the benchmarks to be met by the Iraqi government: In Europe and U.S., Tree Liability INSIDE BENCHMARK WHITE HOUSE RATING 1. Reviewing SATISFACTORY Although the U.S. Embassy By Brigid Schulte THE NATION Laborers Relocate Nonbelievers Are changes to the Iraqi “has engaged” the Iraqi parliament on Washington Post Staff Writer In Quest for Jobs Ex-CEO Oversaw Work constitution. the need to develop a plan for debating draft On Alaska Senator’s Home After Herndon shuttered its constitutional proposals on presidential powers, In the suburbs, there are few issues publicly funded day-laborer Increasingly Vocal the power of regions vs. the central government that can cause as much rancor and A former energy company hiring site, dozens of and the status of Kirkuk, no further progress is neighborhood discord as a deep- chief executive says his workers marched to public By Mary Jordan reported. rooted, mature tree that has no re- employees worked for land beside a park, where Washington Post Foreign Service gard for the neat boundaries of a months on remodeling of they’ll begin looking for jobs 2. Enacting and SATISFACTORY (changed from unsatisfactory). implementing property line. Ted Stevens’s home. A3 this morning. B1 BURGESS HILL, England — Every morning on his The top leaders of major political groups Who pays if your neighbor’s tree walk to work, high school teacher Graham Wright re- legislation to ease reached agreement on draft legislation on Aug. damages your house? METRO cited a favorite Anglican prayer and asked God for de-Baathifi cation. 26. It was brought before the Council of Minis- Yesterday, the Virginia Supreme STYLE strength in the day ahead. Then two years ago, he just ters but was not considered because a quorum GOP Congressman Leaning was not present. Court weighed in on the contentious O.J. Simpson Accused stopped. issue with a decision that overturns a Toward Run for Senate Wright, 59, said he was overwhelmed by a feeling 3. Enacting and UNSATISFACTORY The framework oil legisla- nearly 70-year-old precedent. Now, A formal announcement In Vegas Hotel Incident that religion had become a negative influence in his won’t come until November, A memorabilia dealer tells implementing a new tion remains in dispute. for the first time, homeowners can life and the world. Although he once considered be- hydrocarbons law. sue to force a neighbor to cut back but Virginia Rep. Thomas police that the former coming an Anglican vicar, branches or roots or take out the tree M. Davis III says he intends murder defendant and he suddenly found that reli- 4. Enacting and SATISFACTORY No further action on this altogether if it poses a risk of “actual to run for the Senate seat football star burst into a gion represented nothing implementing benchmark was reported. The legislation harm” or an “imminent danger” to being vacated by the hotel room and took items he believed in, from Mus- legislation on proce- postponed the “effective date” to April 2008. their houses, the court ruled. Tree retiring John W. Warner. B1 at gunpoint. C1 lim extremists blowing dures for forming Implementation can occur only after provincial owners can now be held liable for any themselves up in God’s semi-autonomous elections and passage of an updated elections damage caused by the tree. name to Christians con- regions. law. The reasoning? The court realized demning gays, contracep- 5. Enacting and MIXED Although some progress has been just how much Virginia has changed. COMING SUNDAY tion and stem cell research. BY MICHEL DU CILLE — THE WASHINGTON POST implementing leg- made in establishing provincial council au- The justices ruled in a Fairfax “I stopped praying be- In nearly three years at Walter Reed, Staff Sgt. John Daniel Shannon has had six different case managers assigned to him. County case that the old law made cause I lost my faith,” said Former Anglican islation to establish thorities, no election law has been promulgated IN STYLE & ARTS: Between “Cavemen” and “Bionic electoral laws and and no election date has been set. perfect sense in a rural world, but Wright, 59, a thoughtful Graham Wright used to GOVERNMENT Woman,” has television evolved? Tom Shales and Lisa De governing bodies. now, with townhouse and condo de- Moraes preview the season. man with graying hair and pray every morning. velopments springing up on former clear blue eyes. “Now I tru- Now he is an atheist. ‘It’s About Whether We’re Important Enough’ 6. Enacting and NO RESULT “No assessment can be made farmland, with infill development in IN THE MAGAZINE: The Fall travel issue goes soul ly loathe any sight or sound implementing leg- until the necessary preconditions have searching across America with stops in Memphis, South cities and densely packed neighbor- of religion. I blush at what I used to believe.” From A1 wounded and brought in combat infantry officers Suffolk. islation addressing been reached.” Local programs, however, are Dakota and the Olympic Peninsula. REED, hoods, the law “is unsuited to modern Wright is now an avowed atheist and part of a to run it. More platoon sergeants and case manag- The delay and sense of neglect seemed an echo amnesty. “creating preconditions for future amnesty ANSEL ADAMS PUBLISHING RIGHTS TRUST urban and suburban life.” IN SUNDAY SOURCE: Rev up the romance with four growing number of vocal nonbelievers in Europe and fairs medical system and move on with his life. ers were added to give more individual service. of their early days at Walter Reed, when Shannon, legislation.” Virginia is the latest state to make inspiring drives. Plus, tips on making your workout work STYLE the United States. On both sides of the Atlantic, mem- After a Washington Post story in February de- Building 18, the moldy and mouse-ridden bar- with a bandaged head from surgery and on heavy such a change. And in other states, it bership in once-quiet groups of nonbelievers is rising, 7. Enacting and NO RESULT “There is limited momentum for you and local efforts to help the troops. Ansel Adams and the Great American Outdoors scribed the conditions that Shannon and other racks for wounded outpatients, was closed, and pain medications, was released from the hospital implementing legis- toward developing and implementing has resulted, at least initially, in far and books attempting to debunk religion have been wounded soldiers at Walter Reed endured after re- soldiers moved into new living quarters with flat- with nothing more than a map and told to find his IN BUSINESS: This year’s candidates for the Color of lation establishing a a comprehensive disarmament program for more than heated over-the-back-fence More than 125 of his photographs, including this turning from Iraq, Shannon became something of panel TVs and computers. room across post by himself. He had sat for weeks Money “Penny Pincher of the Year.” Plus, a guide to strong militia disar- militia members while Iraq faces a combination negotiations. self-portrait taken in Monument Valley, Utah, go on See ATHEISTS, A14, Col. 1 a spokesman for his fellow patients. But some soldiers still complain of lost paper- without appointments and without anyone to seeking shelter from the blustery market in the comfort of mament program. of sectarian violence, terrorist attacks, and a “This is the trend around the coun- display today at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. C1 He testified before a congressional hearing work and delays in appointments. In June, one check on him. The family had almost gone broke. FDIC-insured CDs. continuing insurgency. . . . No assessment can about the Army’s obligation to care for its wound- dorm was without air conditioning. Up and down At one point they lived five to a tiny room. See TREE, A8, Col. 1 K In U.S., nonbelievers find company. |A14 be made until the necessary preconditions have ed. Members of Congress and generals shook a sweltering hallway, soldiers used fans and kept Shannon, struggling with post-traumatic stress, been reached.” Shannon’s hand and thanked him for his courage, their doorways open to ease the summer heat. was so angry that he broke things around the while President Bush and Defense Secretary Rob- At a town hall meeting in July, soldiers vented house, including his new Bluetooth earphone, 8. Establish- SATISFACTORY This aims to ensure that aid Contents DAILY CODE 4000 ing supporting INSIDE» METRO • STYLE • BUSINESS • SPORTS • REAL ESTATE • APARTMENT LIVING Online:  2007 ert M. Gates promised swift changes. Three pan- their frustration over a variety of issues to Maj. which he smashed just thinking about all the new and services are equitably distributed in The political, media and Washington els were set up to study not only Walter Reed’s fail- Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker, Walter Reed’s com- obstacles. His PTSD had been triggered, as it had Baghdad neighborhoods cleansed of violent Comics...... C9-11 Lotteries...... B4 Obituaries ...... B6 Television...... C6 Classified Sections Automotive...... K1 Merchandise ...... H1 Post ures, but the entire overburdened military med- mander. One mother said that her son had been been before, by the thought of soldiers treated dis- economic services people. Since the July assessment, relevant PAGE B4 1 Editorials ...... A16 Movies...... C4-5 Stocks ...... D4 World News ...... A10 Apartments ...... I Homes for Sale... G3 Jobs ...... J2 ical-care system for returning soldiers and given discharge papers to sign with no explana- respectfully. “It’s about whether we’re important committees in sup- committees have “continued to meet weekly Marines five years into war. tion of his options. Other soldiers complained enough,” he said. port of the Baghdad in their efforts to coordinate and synchronize” But none of that kept Shannon from getting about an orthopedic surgeon, saying the doctor Last Friday, Domingo phoned Shannon with security plan. policies and services related to the security

caught up again in military bureaucracy. had been repeatedly “abusive and demeaning to even worse news. Some of the doctors’ signatures plan.

“It’s like being kicked in the teeth by a horse,” patients” during the medical disability process on some key paperwork — narrative medical eval- C M Y K A1 Shannon said this week in a phone interview, and should be fired. uations of his disabilities — had expired. Shannon 9. Providing three SATISFACTORY “It was an impressive achieve- trained and ready alone in his room at Walter Reed. “I’ve been sitting This week Shannon praised the new brigade; ment for the Government of Iraq. . . . would have to make new appointments, get new Iraqi brigades to here for three years. I don’t even know what ‘go- his company commander, Capt. Steven Gventer; signatures and be reevaluated. Programs are in place to ensure they remain support Baghdad capable of sustaining this level of effort.” ing on with my life’ means. I want to scream at the and the medical and psychological care he has re- Shannon checked back into a room at Walter operations. top of my lungs. I’m at the end of my rope.” ceived. For Shannon and others, including some Reed. While Shannon, a senior sniper in Iraq, began commanders, the disability process remains the “I’m going to lose it. He’s going to lose it,” Tor- 10. Providing Iraqi UNSATISFACTORY “[T]here has not been satis- speaking at public events and counseling other largest source of anger. A presidential commission ry Shannon said Tuesday morning. “He’s cycling commanders with factory progress toward eliminating politi- soldiers about the cumbersome Army disability suggested doing away with the Army’s long evalu- up again, and I’ve become a single parent in a 24- authority to make cal intervention by leaders throughout the chain process, he was quietly fighting his own battles. ation process — which must essentially be redone hour period. I just opened up a business. There’s decisions without of command. The historical prejudices inherent The case manager assigned to shepherd him by the Department of Veterans Affairs before any no one to watch the kids. . . . I want my husband political interfer- to Iraq remain a challenge.” through the system was hard to reach. He couldn’t VA benefits can be calculated. But that has not home.” ence. get straight answers about his future. Appoint- happened. When Shannon tried to reach Domingo again 11. Ensuring Iraqi MIXED (changed from unsatisfactory). Although ments were still difficult to make. Finally, as his In his time at Walter Reed, Shannon has had six for some explanation, the voice mail message told security forces are the Iraqi army has made “satisfactory prog- discharge seemed imminent, a cascading set of er- different disability case managers assigned to him. him what Domingo had not: “I will be out of the of- providing even- ress,” “some elements still act with sectarian rors and inattention ensured the delay of his re- His latest round of bad news involved his cur- fice from 10 to 14 September. I will be involved in handed enforce- bias” in the Iraqi police. lease. “It’s been 33 months,” he said. “What kind rent disability case manager. In August, the man- transitional, retirement . . . training . . . please ment of the law. of beer are they drinking?” ager called Shannon in Suffolk to say that one im- leave number and message. . . . Have a fine Army 12. Ensuring the SATISFACTORY This was designed to ensure

After The Post’s stories in February, the Army portant document was missing Shannon’s signa- day.” SECRUITY moved swiftly to fix the outpatient system. It cre- ture. This would delay his retirement date. Dasey, the Walter Reed spokesman, said Do- Baghdad security that the plan targets both Sunni insurgent ated a new brigade structure to oversee the Shannon was livid. It had been two months mingo was kept on the case for the sake of continu- plan will not provide groups and largely Shiite militias in Baghdad a safe haven for any neighborhoods. “Operations in Baghdad have since his final surgery, and the process should ity. “Sergeant Domingo already has established a outlaws, regard- have been close to completion. relationship with Sergeant Shannon,” he said. made an impact, but work remains to be done, less of sectarian or especially in the Sadr City area of Baghdad and “The files just sat there,” he said. “When it got Domingo could not be reached for comment. political affi liation. ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM ready to go to the [evaluation] board, he noticed Dasey said Army officials determined last night in Kadhamiyah.” The voice mail greeting of Sgt. they weren’t signed. Why was it so hard for him to that Shannon’s paperwork is still valid and they 13. Reducing the MIXED “The effect of unsatisfactory prog- 1st Class Allen Domingo, an do this job?” would send his case on to the medical evaluation level of sectar- ress toward eliminating militia control of Army disability counselor — The case manager informed Shannon that he board, the last step in determining Army disability ian violence and local security has been negative in terms of advising of his impending retirement and himself was in the process of retiring and would be pay and benefits, on Monday. He said additional eliminating militia perceptions of the authority and fairness of the ending with “Have a fine Army day” — is hard to reach, but he said he would fax Shannon appointments with doctors would not be neces- control of local Government.” online at washingtonpost.com/nation. the Army Form 3947 for his signature. The fax sary. He could not explain how Domingo had security. never arrived. Shannon said he could not reach made such a mistake. the counselor, Sgt. 1st Class Allen Domingo, the Shannon said he would like to take over his case 14. Establishing SATISFACTORY The key element of Presi- The series “The Other Walter Reed,” all planned joint next dozen times he tried. manager’s job. He wants to make sure that other dent Bush’s strategy positions U.S. and which described battles with the Walter security stations Iraqi forces throughout Baghdad. “Nearly all of Reed bureaucracy faced by Staff Sgt. Shannon and his wife were plunged into de- soldiers at Walter Reed, all younger and less out- in neighborhoods spair. Torry Shannon, who had spent two years spoken, get the treatment they deserve. “I wish I the planned joint security stations, Coalition John Daniel Shannon and others, is online across Baghdad. outposts, and other patrol bases have been at washingtonpost.com/walterreed. caring for her husband and children at Walter could take his job so I could kick some doors in Reed, had just started a house-cleaning business in and say, ‘Hey! What’s going on here!’ ” established.” 15. Increasing the UNSATISFACTORY The number of Iraqi units number of Iraqi “capable of operating independently” security forces units of U.S. forces “has not increased as much as capable of operat- desired.” Gates Talks of Speeding Troop Reductions ing independently. IRAQ, From A1 ing to local political reconciliation reach “sustainable security” in Iraq er,” Gates elaborated on his views 16. Ensuring that SATISFACTORY Legislative work has been in places such as Anbar province as by June 2009, but he did not pro- and took issue with the assertion by the rights of minor- hampered by boycotts and security-related would mean that U.S. troops would a more telling sign that the Iraqis vide an estimate of how large a U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D- ity political parties absences. The United States is “fully engaged number about 100,000 by the end of can eventually build a functioning force would remain involved in Calif.) that Bush is planning a 10- in the Iraqi legisla- with the Iraqi parliament” in working toward 2008, Gates replied: “That would be state. The 28-page White House re- backing up Iraqi forces then. year occupation of Iraq. ture are protected. this benchmark. the math.” port made it clear that the adminis- Gates’s comments may fill in that “The reality is that what we’re 17. Allocating and SATISFACTORY The full budget has been allo- Gates spokesman Geoff Morrell tration does not want to revisit the blank, to a degree; they could also looking at is a conditions-based spending $10 billion cated, but “spending units will not be able later emphasized that the defense benchmark issue, saying only that foster expectations for Petraeus to drawdown to a long-term presence in Iraqi revenue for to spend all these funds by the end of 2007.” secretary’s comments were his officials will offer a more general as- recommend further cuts in six that would be a stabilizing force in reconstruction proj- “personal views” and did not repre- sessment of conditions in Iraq in months. Iraq and in the region,” Gates said. ects on an equitable sent administration policy or a for- March. The 100,000-troop figure may “It would be a fraction of the force basis. mal military plan. But Gates’s state- After lunching with troops at the also indicate what kind of military that we have there right now.” ments, delivered in his first Wash- Marine base in Quantico, the presi- presence the Bush administration By the end of the Bush presiden- 18. Ensuring that UNSATISFACTORY “Though there is weekly ington news conference in two dent issued another plea for Demo- intends to hand off to the next presi- cy, Gates said, he hopes to see “a Iraq’s political evidence of a more determined effort by months, underscored the continu- crats and others to abandon their dent and what the mission of that significantly smaller American pres- authorities are not the Government of Iraq to address these issues undermining mem- ing battle inside the administration opposition to his Iraq policy. “post-surge” force might be. ence in Iraq, that we would perhaps . . . there remains much work to be done.” This bers of the Iraqi challenge “will only be fully solved by education and on Capitol Hill over the size of “Now’s the chance for us to come to- “I think the mission of that be somewhere in the neighborhood security forces. the U.S. troop presence in Iraq. gether as a nation,” he said. “Some group, when you get to the final of 10 brigades instead of the 20 that and time.” Leading Democrats said yesterday of us who believe security was para- steady state, it probably looks a lot we have right now, and that the situ- THE WASHINGTON POST that Bush’s proposed cuts do not go mount were on opposite sides of the like Baker-Hamilton,” Gates said, ation was continuing to improve in far enough in reshaping the U.S. debate, where people said we just referring to the recommendations a way that allowed that to happen.” mission. simply need to bring our troops issued in December by the Iraq The administration’s benchmark benchmark report released yester- cluded the substitution of “mixed After judging two months ago home. Well, now we’ve got security Study Group, which was led by for- assessment yesterday contrasted day differed little from the White progress” for a failing grade on the that the Iraqi government had made in the right direction, and we are mer secretary of state James A. Bak- with a report released last week by House’s interim assessment two ability of Iraqi security forces to en- satisfactory progress on eight of 18 bringing our troops home.” er III and former congressman Lee the Government Accountability Of- months ago, the tone of the docu- force the law evenhandedly. The congressionally mandated bench- Vice President Cheney also of- H. Hamilton (D-Ind.). fice, which judged that only three of ment had been transformed from a Iraqi army is deemed to have made marks, the White House yesterday fered an upbeat assessment of con- Gates, who was a member of that the 18 benchmarks had been met. presentation of relatively dry, un- “satisfactory progress,” while noted “satisfactory progress” on ditions in Iraq. “Tough work lies group until Bush nominated him to Among the most significant conclu- adorned facts in July to a more nu- “some elements still act with sectar- one additional objective, emphasiz- ahead,” Cheney told the troops at replace Donald H. Rumsfeld at the sions of a draft of the GAO report anced explanation for ongoing fail- ian bias” in the national police. ing a recent agreement among MacDill Air Force Base in Florida. Pentagon, noted that the major mis- was that the number of Iraqi army ures. Progress toward provincial elec- Iraq’s senior political leaders to “But the evidence from a theater of sions of such a force would include units capable of operating without Benchmark No. 10, for example, tions remained mixed but was said move forward on a plan allowing war 6,000 miles away, in my mind, attacking terrorist groups, training U.S. military assistance had fallen requires the Iraqi government to to be moving forward. former Baathists to return to civic is beyond question: The troop surge and supporting Iraqi security from 10 to six. The numbers, which provide its military commanders A chart that Petraeus used in his life. The report did not note that the has achieved some solid results, and forces, and helping patrol Iraq’s the U.S. military said were classi- with the authority to make deci- congressional testimony indicated lack of a quorum in Prime Minister in a relatively short period of time.” borders to deter foreign interven- fied, were removed from the pub- sions without civilian interference that the number of independently Nouri al-Maliki’s cabinet — cur- Democrats reacted to the latest tion. lished version of the GAO report. and to pursue all extremists across capable security units had de- rently being boycotted by 15 of 37 benchmark report with a shrug yes- White House spokeswoman A senior administration official sectarian divides. Its performance creased every month since April. ministers — has prevented further terday. “All it does is point out the Dana Perino said there is little day- said a major reason for the differ- was judged “not satisfactory” in Yesterday’s administration report, consideration of the measure. failure,” said Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D- light between Gates and Bush and ence is that the GAO was tasked by July as well as this month, but the however, said only that the number Bush and other officials had once Del.), chairman of the Senate For- Petraeus. “I see a man who is secre- Congress to determine whether the latest report sympathized with of such units “has not increased as described the 18 benchmarks as eign Relations Committee. “You tary of defense expressing what his benchmarks had been met, while Iraq’s “historical prejudices” and much as desired.” critical to judging conditions in don’t even need to go to the bench- hope would be,” she said. “Every- the White House was supposed to said such problems will “only be ful- Iraq. But as it became clear that the marks to realize what an abject fail- thing he said was heavily condition- assess the kind of progress that was ly solved by time and the experience Staff writers Karen DeYoung, Iraqis would miss many of the goals, ure this policy has been.” al.” being made by the Iraqis, which is a of democratic government.” Ann Scott Tyson and Jonathan

the White House has increasingly Petraeus told The Washington In an interview last night on more subjective judgment. Other minor changes between Weisman contributed to this

sought to redefine progress, point- Post on Thursday that he hopes to PBS’s “News Hour With Jim Lehr- Although the bottom line of the the July and September reports in- report.

C M Y K A9 ABCDE

Democracy Dies in Darkness SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007

BEYOND WALTER REED

First Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside, an Army reservist, went to Iraq in the fall of 2006. Within weeks, she was back in the United States, recovering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Now she faces a possible court-martial and life in prison. A Patient Prosecuted Doctors at Walter Reed Say She Has a Mental Disorder. Army Superiors Say That’s Just an ‘Excuse’ for Her Actions.

Story by Dana Priest and Anne Hull |Photo by Michel du Cille | The Washington Post SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 2

n a nondescript conference room at nificant illness. Let’s treat her as a human Walter Reed Army Medical Center, 1st being, for Christ’s sake!” I Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside listened last In recent months, prodded by outrage week as an Army prosecutor outlined the over poor conditions at Walter Reed, the criminal case against her in a preliminary Army has made a highly publicized effort hearing. The charges: attempting suicide to improve treatment of Iraq veterans and and endangering the life of another soldier change a culture that stigmatizes mental while serving in Iraq. illness. The Pentagon has allocated hun- Her hands trembled as Maj. Stefan dreds of millions of dollars to new research Wolfe, the prosecutor, argued that Whi- and to care for soldiers with post-traumatic teside, now a psychiatric outpatient at stress disorder, and on Friday it announced Walter Reed, should be court-martialed. that it had opened a new center for psycho- After seven years of exemplary service, the logical health in Rosslyn. 25-year-old Army reservist faces the pos- But outside the Pentagon, the military sibility of life in prison if she is tried and still largely deals with mental health issues convicted. in an ad hoc way, often relying on the judg- Military psychiatrists at Walter Reed ment of combat-hardened commanders who examined Whiteside after she recov- whose understanding of mental illness is ered from her self-inflicted gunshot wound vague or misinformed. The stigma around diagnosed her with a severe mental dis- psychological wounds can still be seen in order, possibly triggered by the stresses the smallest of Army policies. While family of a war zone. But Whiteside’s superi- ors considered her mental illness “an excuse” for criminal conduct, according to documents obtained by The Wash- ington Post. At the hearing, Wolfe, who had already warned Whiteside’s lawyer of the risk of using a “psychobabble” defense, pressed a senior psychiatrist at Walter Reed to justify his diagnosis. “I’m not here to play legal games,” Col. George Brandt responded angrily, according to a recording of the hearing. “I am here out of the genuine concern FAMILY PHOTO for a human being that’s breaking and Whiteside served with the 329th Medical Company (Ground that is broken. She has a severe and sig- Ambulance) at the Camp Cropper detainee prison near Baghdad. SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 3

First Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside rests for a moment in her room at Walter Reed, where she is a psychiatric outpatient. Her father, Tom Whiteside, a former Marine, lost his Army-provided housing after she was moved to the psychiatric ward.

“It’s a disgrace,” said Tom Whiteside, Traumatized in a former Marine and retired federal law enforcement officer who lost his free hous- ing after his daughter’s physical wounds Iraq, and Now had healed enough that she could be moved to the psychiatric ward. A charity organi- Facing Charges zation, the Yellow Ribbon Fund, provides him with an apartment near Walter Reed so he can be near his daughter. members of soldiers recovering at Walter Under military law, soldiers who Reed from physical injuries are provided attempt suicide can be prosecuted under free lodging and a per diem to care for their the theory that it affects the order and dis- loved ones, families of psychiatric outpa- cipline of a unit and brings discredit to the tients usually have to pay their own way. armed forces. In reality, criminal charges SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 4

WhitesideWhiteside and and her her father father display display a shadow a shadow box filled box with filled mementos with from mementos their military from service. their Before military the shootingservice. incident, Before Wthehiteside shooting was highly incident, praised. Whiteside was highly praised. are extremely rare unless there is evidence court-martial. The commander of the U.S. that the attempt was an effort to avoid ser- Army Military District of Washington, vice or that it endangered others. Maj. Gen. Richard J. Rowe Jr., who has At one point, Elizabeth Whiteside jurisdiction over the case, “must determine almost accepted the Army’s offer to resign whether there is sufficient evidence to sup- in lieu of court-martial. But it meant she port the charges against Lieutenant Whi- would have to explain for the rest of her life teside and recommend how to dispose of why she was not given an honorable dis- the charges,” said his spokesman. charge. Her attorney also believed that she would have been left without the medical ‘A Soldier’s Officer’ care and benefits she needed. A valedictorian at James Madison No decision has yet been made on High School in Vienna, a wrestler and var- whether Whiteside’s case will proceed to sity soccer player, Whiteside followed in

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 5

her father’s footsteps by joining the mili- the atmosphere at Cropper, which housed tary. She enlisted in the Army Reserve in 4,000 detainees and included high-secu- 2001 and later joined ROTC while study- rity prisoners such as Saddam Hussein ing economics at the University of Virginia. and Ali Hassan Majeed, known as “Chemi- During her time in college, Whiteside said, cal Ali,” as well as suspected terrorists and she experienced periods of depression, but insurgents. she graduated and was commissioned an Whiteside, given the radio handle officer in the Army Reserve. “Trauma Mama,” supervised nine medics In 2005, she received her first assign- who worked the night shift at the prison. ment as an officer — at Walter Reed. As an She was in charge of dispatching driv- executive officer of a support company, she ers, medics and support staff to transport supervised 150 soldiers and officers, and sick and wounded Iraqis and U.S. troops her evaluations from that time presaged around the prison and to a small hospital the high marks she would receive most of inside. her career. “I loved our mission,” Whiteside said, “This superior officer is in the top 10 “because it represented the best of Amer- percent of Officers I have worked with in ica: taking care of the enemy, regardless of my 16 years of military service,” wrote her what they are doing to us.” rater, Capt. Joel Grant. She “must be pro- The hours were brutal. Whiteside ate moted immediately, ahead of all peers.” one meal a day, slept in two four-hour shifts Maj. Sandra Hersh, her senior rater, and worked seven days a week. Her supe- added: “She’s a Soldier’s Officer. . . . She is riors credited her with her unit’s success. able to get the best from Soldiers and make “She has produced outstanding results in it look easy.” one of the most demanding and challeng- Seeing so many casualties at Walter ing Combat Zones,” her commander, Lt. Reed made Whiteside feel she was not Col. Darlene McCurdy, wrote in her evalu- bearing her full responsibility, she said, so ation. she volunteered for Iraq. When she left in But the dynamics outside her unit the fall of 2006, she carried with her a gift were rockier. From the beginning, White- from her father — the double-bladed buck side and some of her female soldiers had knife he had used in Vietnam. conflicts with one of the company’s male Whiteside was assigned as a platoon officers. They believed he hindered female leader in the 329th Medical Company promotions and undercut Whiteside’s (Ground Ambulance) at the Camp Crop- authority with her soldiers, according to per detainee prison near Baghdad Inter- Army investigative documents. national Airport. The hot light from the As the tensions with the officer Abu Ghraib abuse scandal still charged increased, Whiteside said, she began suf- SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 6

fering panic attacks. She stopped sleeping, Army investigative documents she said, and started self-medicating with describe what happened next. NyQuil and Benadryl, but decided against At 6:20 p.m. a soldier frantically seeking help from the mental health clinic approached Maj. Ana Luisa Ramirez, a because she feared that the Army would mental health nurse at the prison, and said send her home, as it had recently done with Whiteside was “freaking out” and wanted a colonel. to see Ramirez. The nurse found Whiteside On Dec. 30, U.S. military officials took sitting on her bed, mumbling and visibly Hussein from his cell at Camp Cropper for upset. Ramirez left to get some medication. execution. The next day, the prison erupted. Later, she spotted Whiteside in the Thousands of inmates rioted, and military darkened hallway with her sweatshirt police used rubber bullets, flash-bang gre- hood pulled over her head and her hands nades and tear gas to restore order. in her pockets. Ramirez asked Whiteside Whiteside took charge in the chaos, to come into her room and noticed what according to written statements by troops appeared to be dried blood on her neck in her unit. She dispatched a pair of medics and hands. When she tried to take a closer to each compound to begin triage, handed look, Ramirez said, Whiteside pointed her out gas masks and organized her unit sidearm, an M9 pistol, at her and “told me to smuggle the prison’s doctors out in an to move away and she locked the door,” ambulance. according to a statement Ramirez gave to The next day, weary from the riots, the Army. Whiteside ran into the problem officer. Ramirez tried to take Whiteside’s They had another argument. gun, but Whiteside pushed her away and

FAMILYFAMILY PHOTO PHOTO The Army is considering a court-martial for Whiteside on charges of attempting suicide and endangering the life of another soldier while serving in Iraq. At a recent hearing were, from left, Maritza S. Nelson; Capt. Kari Malgeri, Whiteside’s trial defense counsel; Whiteside; and Matthew J. MacLean. SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 7

First Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside and her father attend the funeral of Sammantha Owen-Ewing, a friend from Walter Reed who had committed suicide. Owen-Ewing had been training to be a nurse when she suffered mental problems. ‘She Was Right on the Edge, and She Fell Off’ expressed her hatred of the officer she shooting scene were Whiteside’s own crew. thought was sabotaging her. She grew more agitated and twice fired into the ceiling. Recovering at Walter Reed Nurses in the hallway began yelling, Whiteside was still unconscious when and Whiteside shouted that she wanted she arrived at Walter Reed a few days later. to kill them, the report said. She opened The bullet had ripped through one of her the door and saw armed soldiers in battle lungs, her liver, her spleen and several gear coming her way. Slamming the door, other organs. Her parents and siblings she discharged the weapon once into her kept a round-the-clock bedside vigil, and stomach. her condition gradually improved. Within Whiteside says she has little recollec- two weeks an Army criminal investigator tion of the events of that night. “I remem- showed up in her hospital room, but a doc- ber bits and pieces,” she said. She declined tor shooed him away. to comment on whether she was trying to After a month, Whiteside was moved kill herself. to Ward 54, the hospital’s lockdown psy- The medics who responded to the chiatric unit, where she was diagnosed SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 8

Scott Ewing with the casket of his wife, Sammantha, at her funeral in Springville, Utah. The Army had abruptly discharged her while she was receiving care. with a severe major depressive disorder suffered mental problems and was admit- and a personality disorder. According to a ted to Ward 54. She was still receiving statement by an Army psychiatrist, she was psychiatric care at Walter Reed when the suffering from a disassociation with reality. Army abruptly discharged her. According Tom Whiteside visited his daughter to her husband, she was dropped off at a every afternoon, bringing pizza or Chinese nearby hotel with a plane ticket. takeout. He often noticed from the sign- While on Ward 54, Whiteside received in sheet that he was the only visitor on the a package from her crew in Iraq. Inside ward. The psych patients formed a close was a silver charm, inscribed with the crew bond and shared an overriding fear: that members’ names and the message: “Know the Army would drum them out with no that you are always loved by us. Never be benefits. forgotten and dearly missed. Your Trauma One soldier Whiteside befriended was Team.” The crew also wore “Trauma Mama” a 20-year-old private named Sammantha bracelets in solidarity. Owen-Ewing. Intelligent and funny, Owen- After being released from Ward 54, Ewing was training to be a nurse when she Whiteside joined the outpatient ranks just SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 9

as the Army was scrambling to overhaul its Military District of Washington, which has system for treating wounded soldiers and jurisdiction over her case, would decide President Bush ordered a commission to whether to grant her request. study military care for Iraq veterans. He reviewed recommendations from At Walter Reed, the Army brought in Whiteside’s two commanders at Walter combat-experienced officers to replace the Reed and the facility’s commander, Maj. recovering patients whom it had asked to Gen. Eric B. Schoomaker, a physician. manage the lives of the 700 outpatients on Whiteside’s immediate commander at the post. The new Warrior Transition Brigade hospital, a captain, recommended that she and its more experienced leaders were sup- be given an “other than honorable” dis- posed to manage more adeptly the tension charge, according to a document obtained between soldiering and patient recovery. by The Post. The captain wrote that her It was Whiteside’s commanders in this “defense that she suffers from a mental dis- unit, a captain and a colonel, who drew up ease excusing her actions is just that . . . an criminal charges against her in April. The excuse; an excuse to distract from choices accusations included assault on a superior and decisions made by 1LT Whiteside.” commissioned officer, aggravated assault, Col. Terrence J. McKenrick, com- kidnapping, reckless endangerment, mander of the Warrior Transition Brigade, wrongful discharge of a firearm, commu- agreed: “Although the sanity board deter- nication of a threat and two attempts of mined that at the time of the misconduct intentional self-injury without intent to she had a severe mental disease or defect, avoid service. she knowingly assaulted and threatened The Army ordered Whiteside to others and injured herself.” undergo a sanity board evaluation to deter- Schoomaker, now the Army’s sur- mine her state of mind at the time of the geon general, dissented. “This officer has shooting. a demonstrably severe depression which Tom Whiteside said the criminal manifested itself . . . as a psychotic, self- charges threatened to unglue his daugh- destructive episode. . . . Resignation in lieu ter’s already tenuous grip on recovery. “If of court-martial eliminates all of the bene- they are doing this to her, what are they fits of medical support this officer deserves doing to those young PFCs without parents after 7 years of credible and honorable ser- by their side?” he asked. vice.” By early August, Elizabeth Whiteside Rowe overruled Schoomaker. He sought an alternative to court-martial. She agreed to accept Whiteside’s resignation requested permission to resign, a measure with a “general under honorable condi- the military often accepts. tions” discharge that would still deprive her Rowe, commander of the U.S. Army of most benefits, according to her pro bono SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 10

civilian attorney, Matthew J. MacLean. appointments. On weekends she hung out But then, from her battalion com- with her clique from Ward 54, “my little mander in Iraq, Whiteside learned that posse of crazy soldiers,” as Whiteside called an investigation there had concluded that them. there was “insufficient evidence for any She still had the innate ability to criminal action to be taken against” her. motivate soldiers. To pass time one recent Furthermore, it had found a hostile com- Sunday, Whiteside drove a small group of mand climate and recommended that outpatients to go bowling at the National the officer who had been her nemesis be Naval Medical Center in Bethesda. “You removed from his position and “given a let- can do better,” she told a young private ter of reprimand for gender bias in assign- who was a terrible bowler. “We’ll pool our ments and use of intimidation, manipula- energy together and get a strike.” tion and hostility towards soldiers.” Whiteside also offered encouragement With this news, Whiteside asked that over the phone to her friend Sammantha her letter of resignation be withdrawn. She Owen-Ewing, the soldier she befriended on would fight the charges. Ward 54 who had been abruptly dismissed In an e-mail exchange, the prosecutor, from the Army. Sammantha was waiting to Wolfe, told MacLean that even if White- see if she could receive her care from the side won in court she would probably end Department of Veterans Affairs. up stigmatized and in a mental institution, Whiteside feared the same fate. just like John Hinckley, the man who shot At the hearing, the testimony focused President Ronald Reagan. on Whiteside’s state of mind at the time Wolfe suggested that the military court of her shooting. The hearing officer would might not buy the mental illness defense. have seven days to make a recommenda- “Who doesn’t find psycho-babble unclear . tion on whether to dismiss the charges, . . how many people out there believe that offer a lesser punishment or go to court- insanity should never be a defense, that it martial. The final decision will be Rowe’s. is just, as he said, an ‘excuse.’ ” A psychiatrist who performed White- side’s sanity board evaluation testified that Awaiting a Decision he found the lieutenant insane at the time Whiteside lived with other outpatient of the shooting. One of the doctors said that soldiers in a building on the grounds of Whiteside had a “severe mental disease or Walter Reed. She kept her quarters neat affect” and that she “did not appreciate the and orderly. As her preliminary hearing nature and quality of her actions.” Brandt, approached, she often went to bed at 8 p.m. chief of Behavioral Health Services in Wal- to sleep away her impending reality. She ter Reed’s Department of Psychiatry, tes- attended morning formation and medical tified that Whiteside was “grappling with SUNDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2007 KLMNO PAGE 11

holding on to her sanity,” adding: “She was Sammantha had hung herself the right on the edge, and she fell off.” night before. Wolfe made his argument for a court- On Friday, Whiteside and her father martial. “These are very serious charges,” flew to Utah for the funeral. Yesterday, he said. “The more serious the crime, the after a service at a small Mormon church, higher level it must be disposed of. . . . The Sammantha Owen-Ewing was buried. government’s position is it should be a Grief-stricken by the death of her court-martial.” friend and bitter at the Army, Whiteside When the hearing ended, Whiteside awaits the Army’s decision this week. walked outside into the cold. Her phone “I can fight them,” she said, “because buzzed with a text message from the hus- I’m alive.” band of her friend Sammantha, asking Whiteside to call right away. Staff researcher Julie Tate and photographer Michel du Cille contributed to this report.

C M Y K

A1 DAILY 12-02-07 VA M2 A1 CMYK

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BEYOND WALTER REED D.C. Tax Scandal At $44.3 Million, Analysis Finds 160 Dubious Refunds Made Since 1999

By Carol D. Leonnig the wealth with family members and and Dan Keating associates. She and five others face Washington Post Staff Writers federal charges in the case. Mean- while, the size and duration of the al- The D.C. government issued leged thievery has Congress, council more than $44 million in question- members and many taxpayers ques- able property tax refunds in the past tioning why no city officials caught nine years — more than double the it. amount that prosecutors have de- New information from the city’s clared to be missing in a massive chief financial officer indicates that theft of city money. at least two and as many as four top A Washington Post analysis of leaders of the D.C. tax office, in- city records identified 160 checks cluding its director, should have per- since June 1999 that lacked the sonally reviewed the refunds before court orders that are required for le- they were issued. The payments ex- gitimate refunds. The review pro- amined by The Post were to ficti- vides the clearest picture to date of tious companies or to firms that did how the alleged tax scam evolved not own the properties listed on re- over the years, apparently circum- fund documents. venting internal controls. Federal authorities are examining Prosecutors have said that Harri- the same kinds of records scruti- ette Walters, a mid-level manager at nized by The Post and acknowledge the D.C. Office of Tax and Revenue, approved illegal refunds and shared See TAX SCAM, A29, Col. 1 First Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside, an Army reservist, went to Iraq in the fall of 2006. Within weeks, she was back in the United States, recovering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. Now she faces a possible court-martial and life in prison. Family Ties Offer A Patient Prosecuted Link in Taylor Killing Doctors at Walter Reed Say She Has a Mental Disorder. Four Men Are Charged in Florida By Peter Whoriskey Army Superiors Say That’s Just an ‘Excuse’ for Her Actions. and Amy Shipley TODAY AT THE GAME Washington Post Staff Writers Story by Dana Priest and Anne Hull |Photo by Michel du Cille | The Washington Post FORT MYERS, Fla., Dec. 1 — Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor and his half-sister Sasha n a nondescript conference her with a severe mental disorder, Johnson grew up on different room at Walter Reed Army possibly triggered by the stresses of coasts of Florida but Taylor wanted Medical Center, 1st Lt. Eliza- a war zone. But Whiteside’s superi- to be closer to her and bring a bro- In His Memory beth Whiteside listened last ors considered her mental illness ken family together, according to weekI as an Army prosecutor out- “an excuse” for criminal conduct, friends and family members. Washington Redskins players lined the criminal case against her according to documents obtained Taylor bought a $900,000 house will wear a sticker with Sean in a preliminary hearing. The by The Washington Post. in his home town of Miami for his Taylor’s jersey number, 21, charges: attempting suicide and en- At the hearing, Wolfe, who had mother, Donna Junor. He invited on their helmets and a patch dangering the life of another sol- already warned Whiteside’s lawyer Sasha Johnson, who grew up in with 21 on their jerseys for dier while serving in Iraq. of the risk of using a “psycho- Fort Myers, and her brother to live today’s game against the Her hands trembled as Maj. Ste- babble” defense, pressed a senior in it, the friends and family mem- Buffalo Bills at FedEx Field. fan Wolfe, the prosecutor, argued psychiatrist at Walter Reed to justi- bers said. And they said Taylor also Fans will receive towels with that Whiteside, now a psychiatric fy his diagnosis. bought Johnson a new Toyota the number 21 on them. A outpatient at Walter Reed, should “I’m not here to play legal Camry to drive to classes at Miami- moment of silence will be be court-martialed. After seven games,” Col. George Brandt re- Dade College. held at each National Football years of exemplary service, the 25- sponded angrily, according to a re- “He wanted them all to be to- League game today. year-old Army reservist faces the cording of the hearing. “I am here gether and never want for anything COMPLETE COVERAGE possibility of life in prison if she is out of the genuine concern for a hu- again,” said Dwayne Johnson, 44, IN SPORTS, D1 tried and convicted. man being that’s breaking and that Sasha’s father. “Sean was her ev- Military psychiatrists at Walter is broken. She has a severe and sig- erything.” parently unwittingly, provided a di- Reed who examined Whiteside af- FAMILY PHOTO nificant illness. Let’s treat her as a But over the past few days it has rect link between Taylor and the ter she recovered from her self- Whiteside served with the 329th Medical Company (Ground become increasingly clear that in- four Fort Myers men charged with inflicted gunshot wound diagnosed Ambulance) at the Camp Cropper detainee prison near Baghdad. » See WHITESIDE, A16, Col. 1 vestigators working on Taylor’s killing believe Sasha Johnson, ap- See TAYLOR, A18, Col. 3

Younger Muslims INSIDE Democrats Gear Up

C M Y K C M Y K A16 Tune In to Upbeat For Final Appeal to A17 DAILY 12-02-07 MD SU A16 CMYK DAILY 12-02-07 MD SU A17 CMYK Religious Message Undecided Iowans By Peter Slevin and Shailagh Murray By Kevin Sullivan Washington Post Staff Writers Washington Post Foreign Service A16 Sunday, December 2, 2007 S x The Washington Post The Washington Post CARROLL,x Iowa — Work hard for Hillary Clinton and S Sunday, December 2, 2007 A17 CAIRO — Muna el-Leboudy, a 22-year-old medical stu- get an invitation to visit with her in the Sac City fire sta- dent, had a terrible secret: She wanted to be a filmmaker. tion before a rally. The way she understood her Muslim faith, it was haram — Commit to John Edwards and ride his bus to the next BEYOND WALTER REED forbidden — to dabble in movies, music or any art that BEYOND WALTER REED stop. might pique sexual desires. Volunteer for Barack Obama and grab a ticket to see Then one day in September, she him with Oprah Winfrey. flipped on her satellite TV and saw Barely a month before Iowa presidential caucuses that Moez Masoud. are still rated a toss-up, the Democratic candidates have A Muslim televangelist not much turned to every kind of marketing strategy — from star- older than herself, in a stylish goatee lets making conference calls to musicians playing con- BY JESSICA RINALDI — REUTERS and Western clothes, Masoud, 29, was certs alongside the contenders — in the increasingly preaching about Islam in youthful Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford, center, joins the celebration of the win over top-ranked Missouri. tense final push to persuade voters to show up on Jan. 3 Arabic slang. for the inaugural contest of 2008. He said imams who outlawed art STYLE & ARTS SPORTS Undecided voters, according to several campaigns, Moez Masoud, 29, and music were misinterpreting their may still constitute as much as half of the Democratic elec- is a TV preacher faith. He talked about love and rela- Kennedy Center Honors Happy Day for Some, but Not Nos. 1 and 2 » torate, giving fragile hope to underdogs such as New in the Mideast. tionships, the need to be compassion- This year’s picks are Diana Ross, Martin Top-ranked Missouri and No. 2 West Virginia Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Sen. Christopher J. ate toward homosexuals and tolerant Scorsese, Steve Martin, the Beach Boys’ Brian fall, giving several teams new hope for a place Dodd (Conn.) as they unnerve front-runners Clinton, of non-Muslims. Leboudy had never heard a Muslim Wilson and pianist Leon Fleisher. M1 in the BCS title game. D1, D15 Obama and Edwards, who have spent millions of dollars preacher speak that way. to woo them only to find that they cannot lock the voters “Moez helps us understand everything about our reli- TRAVEL Hokies Win ACC: Virginia Tech is Orange gion — not from 1,400 years ago, but the way we live now,” Bowl-bound after beating Boston College. D1 See IOWA, A6, Col. 3 Bet You Don’t Know About . . . See MASOUD, A25, Col. 1 The best ski resorts you’ve never heard of. P1 Navy Wins Big: Mids blast Army, 38-3. D16 K Winter storm curbs campaigns. | A6

INSIDE» OUTLOOK • METRO • SPORTS • BUSINESS • STYLE & ARTS • SUNDAY SOURCE • TRAVEL • BOOKWORLD • COMICS • TVWEEK • THE MAGAZINE Online:

Arts Listings ...... N7 Editorials, Letters ...... B6 KidsPost ...... M18 Movies...... M12-13 Ombudsman...... B6 TV Sports ...... D2 DAILY CODE 5089 Contents  2007 Crossword ...... Magazine Horoscopes...... M14 Lotteries...... C4 Obituaries ...... C7-10 Stocks...... F10-14 World News ...... A20 The Washington

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First Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside and her father attend the funeral of Sammantha Owen-Ewing, a friend from Walter Reed who had committed suicide. Owen-Ewing had been training to be a nurse when she suffered mental problems. ‘She Was Right on the Edge, and She Fell Off’ WHITESIDE, From A16 little posse of crazy soldiers,” as Whiteside called them. next day, the prison erupted. She still had the innate ability to Thousands of inmates rioted, and motivate soldiers. To pass time military police used rubber bullets, one recent Sunday, Whiteside flash-bang grenades and tear gas drove a small group of outpatients First Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside rests for a moment in her room at Walter Reed, where she is a psychiatric outpatient. Her father, Tom Whiteside, a former Marine, lost his Army-provided housing after she was moved to the psychiatric ward. to restore order. to go bowling at the National Na- Whiteside took charge in the val Medical Center in Bethesda. chaos, according to written state- “You can do better,” she told a ments by troops in her unit. She young private who was a terrible dispatched a pair of medics to each bowler. “We’ll pool our energy to- compound to begin triage, handed gether and get a strike.” Traumatized in out gas masks and organized her Whiteside also offered encour- unit to smuggle the prison’s doc- agement over the phone to her tors out in an ambulance. friend Sammantha Owen-Ewing, The next day, weary from the the soldier she befriended on Ward riots, Whiteside ran into the prob- 54 who had been abruptly dis- Iraq, and Now lem officer. They had another ar- missed from the Army. Samman- gument. tha was waiting to see if she could Army investigative documents receive her care from the Depart- describe what happened next. ment of Veterans Affairs. At 6:20 p.m. a soldier frantically Whiteside feared the same fate. Facing Charges approached Maj. Ana Luisa Rami- At the hearing, the testimony fo- rez, a mental health nurse at the cused on Whiteside’s state of mind prison, and said Whiteside was at the time of her shooting. The WHITESIDE, From A1 and benefits she needed. “freaking out” and wanted to see hearing officer would have seven No decision has yet been made Ramirez. The nurse found White- days to make a recommendation human being, for Christ’s sake!” on whether Whiteside’s case will side sitting on her bed, mumbling on whether to dismiss the charges, In recent months, prodded by proceed to court-martial. The com- and visibly upset. Ramirez left to offer a lesser punishment or go to outrage over poor conditions at mander of the U.S. Army Military get some medication. court-martial. The final decision Walter Reed, the Army has made a District of Washington, Maj. Gen. Later, she spotted Whiteside in will be Rowe’s. highly publicized effort to improve Richard J. Rowe Jr., who has juris- the darkened hallway with her A psychiatrist who performed treatment of Iraq veterans and diction over the case, “must deter- sweatshirt hood pulled over her Whiteside’s sanity board evalua- change a culture that stigmatizes mine whether there is sufficient head and her hands in her pockets. tion testified that he found the mental illness. The Pentagon has evidence to support the charges Ramirez asked Whiteside to come lieutenant insane at the time of the allocated hundreds of millions of against Lieutenant Whiteside and into her room and noticed what ap- shooting. One of the doctors said dollars to new research and to care recommend how to dispose of the peared to be dried blood on her that Whiteside had a “severe men- for soldiers with post-traumatic charges,” said his spokesman. neck and hands. When she tried to tal disease or affect” and that she stress disorder, and on Friday it take a closer look, Ramirez said, “did not appreciate the nature and announced that it had opened a ‘A Soldier’s Officer’ Whiteside pointed her sidearm, an Scott Ewing with the casket of his wife, Sammantha, at her funeral in Springville, Utah. The Army had abruptly discharged her while she was receiving care. quality of her actions.” Brandt, new center for psychological M9 pistol, at her and “told me to chief of Behavioral Health Services health in Rosslyn. A valedictorian at James Madi- move away and she locked the trist, she was suffering from a dis- tion Brigade and its more experi- The Post. The captain wrote that towards soldiers.” in Walter Reed’s Department of But outside the Pentagon, the son High School in Vienna, a wres- door,” according to a statement association with reality. enced leaders were supposed to her “defense that she suffers from With this news, Whiteside Psychiatry, testified that White- military still largely deals with tler and varsity soccer player, Whi- Ramirez gave to the Army. Tom Whiteside visited his manage more adeptly the tension a mental disease excusing her ac- asked that her letter of resignation side was “grappling with holding mental health issues in an ad hoc teside followed in her father’s foot- Ramirez tried to take White- daughter every afternoon, bring- between soldiering and patient re- tions is just that . . . an excuse; an be withdrawn. She would fight the on to her sanity,” adding: “She was way, often relying on the judgment steps by joining the military. She side’s gun, but Whiteside pushed ing pizza or Chinese takeout. He covery. excuse to distract from choices charges. right on the edge, and she fell off.” of combat-hardened commanders enlisted in the Army Reserve in her away and expressed her hatred often noticed from the sign-in It was Whiteside’s commanders and decisions made by 1LT White- In an e-mail exchange, the pros- Wolfe made his argument for a whose understanding of mental ill- 2001 and later joined ROTC while Whiteside and her father display a shadow box filled with mementos from their military service. Before the shooting incident, Whiteside was highly praised. of the officer she thought was sab- sheet that he was the only visitor in this unit, a captain and a colo- side.” ecutor, Wolfe, told MacLean that court-martial. “These are very seri- ness is vague or misinformed. The studying economics at the Univer- otaging her. She grew more agitat- on the ward. The psych patients nel, who drew up criminal charges Col. Terrence J. McKenrick, even if Whiteside won in court she ous charges,” he said. “The more stigma around psychological sity of Virginia. During her time in ed and twice fired into the ceiling. formed a close bond and shared an against her in April. The accusa- commander of the Warrior Transi- would probably end up stigma- serious the crime, the higher level wounds can still be seen in the college, Whiteside said, she ex- Nurses in the hallway began overriding fear: that the Army tions included assault on a superi- tion Brigade, agreed: “Although tized and in a mental institution, it must be disposed of. . . . The smallest of Army policies. While perienced periods of depression, yelling, and Whiteside shouted would drum them out with no ben- or commissioned officer, aggravat- the sanity board determined that just like John Hinckley, the man government’s position is it should family members of soldiers recov- but she graduated and was com- that she wanted to kill them, the efits. ed assault, kidnapping, reckless at the time of the misconduct she who shot President Ronald Rea- be a court-martial.” ering at Walter Reed from physical missioned an officer in the Army report said. She opened the door One soldier Whiteside befriend- endangerment, wrongful dis- had a severe mental disease or de- gan. When the hearing ended, White- injuries are provided free lodging Reserve. and saw armed soldiers in battle ed was a 20-year-old private named charge of a firearm, communica- fect, she knowingly assaulted and Wolfe suggested that the mili- side walked outside into the cold. and a per diem to care for their In 2005, she received her first gear coming her way. Slamming Sammantha Owen-Ewing. Intelli- tion of a threat and two attempts threatened others and injured her- tary court might not buy the men- Her phone buzzed with a text mes- loved ones, families of psychiatric assignment as an officer — at Wal- the door, she discharged the weap- gent and funny, Owen-Ewing was of intentional self-injury without self.” tal illness defense. “Who doesn’t sage from the husband of her outpatients usually have to pay ter Reed. As an executive officer of on once into her stomach. training to be a nurse when she intent to avoid service. Schoomaker, now the Army’s find psycho-babble unclear . . . friend Sammantha, asking White- their own way. a support company, she supervised Whiteside says she has little rec- suffered mental problems and was The Army ordered Whiteside to surgeon general, dissented. “This how many people out there believe side to call right away. “It’s a disgrace,” said Tom Whi- 150 soldiers and officers, and her ollection of the events of that admitted to Ward 54. She was still undergo a sanity board evaluation officer has a demonstrably severe that insanity should never be a de- Sammantha had hung herself teside, a former Marine and re- evaluations from that time pres- night. “I remember bits and receiving psychiatric care at Wal- to determine her state of mind at depression which manifested itself fense, that it is just, as he said, an the night before. tired federal law enforcement offi- aged the high marks she would re- pieces,” she said. She declined to ter Reed when the Army abruptly the time of the shooting. . . . as a psychotic, self-destructive ‘excuse.’ ” On Friday, Whiteside and her fa- cer who lost his free housing after ceive most of her career. comment on whether she was try- discharged her. According to her Tom Whiteside said the criminal episode. . . . Resignation in lieu of ther flew to Utah for the funeral. his daughter’s physical wounds “This superior officer is in the ing to kill herself. husband, she was dropped off at a charges threatened to unglue his court-martial eliminates all of the Awaiting a Decision Yesterday, after a service at a small had healed enough that she could top 10 percent of Officers I have The medics who responded to nearby hotel with a plane ticket. daughter’s already tenuous grip on benefits of medical support this of- Mormon church, Sammantha Ow- be moved to the psychiatric ward. worked with in my 16 years of mili- the shooting scene were White- While on Ward 54, Whiteside re- recovery. “If they are doing this to ficer deserves after 7 years of cred- Whiteside lived with other out- en-Ewing was buried. A charity organization, the Yellow tary service,” wrote her rater, side’s own crew. ceived a package from her crew in her, what are they doing to those ible and honorable service.” patient soldiers in a building on Grief-stricken by the death of Ribbon Fund, provides him with Capt. Joel Grant. She “must be Iraq. Inside was a silver charm, in- young PFCs without parents by Rowe overruled Schoomaker. the grounds of Walter Reed. She her friend and bitter at the Army, an apartment near Walter Reed so promoted immediately, ahead of Recovering at Walter Reed scribed with the crew members’ their side?” he asked. He agreed to accept Whiteside’s kept her quarters neat and orderly. Whiteside awaits the Army’s deci- he can be near his daughter. all peers.” FAMILY PHOTO names and the message: “Know By early August, Elizabeth Whi- resignation with a “general under As her preliminary hearing ap- sion this week. Under military law, soldiers Maj. Sandra Hersh, her senior The Army is considering a court-martial for Whiteside on charges of attempting suicide and endangering the life of another soldier while serving in Iraq. At a Whiteside was still unconscious that you are always loved by us. teside sought an alternative to honorable conditions” discharge proached, she often went to bed at “I can fight them,” she said, “be- who attempt suicide can be prose- rater, added: “She’s a Soldier’s Of- recent hearing were, from left, Maritza S. Nelson; Capt. Kari Malgeri, Whiteside’s trial defense counsel; Whiteside; and Matthew J. MacLean. when she arrived at Walter Reed a Never be forgotten and dearly court-martial. She requested per- that would still deprive her of most 8 p.m. to sleep away her impend- cause I’m alive.” cuted under the theory that it af- ficer. . . . She is able to get the best few days later. The bullet had missed. Your Trauma Team.” The mission to resign, a measure the benefits, according to her pro bono ing reality. She attended morning fects the order and discipline of a from Soldiers and make it look ripped through one of her lungs, crew also wore “Trauma Mama” military often accepts. civilian attorney, Matthew J. Mac- formation and medical appoint- Staff researcher Julie Tate and unit and brings discredit to the easy.” port. The hot light from the Abu port sick and wounded Iraqis and manding and challenging Combat increased, Whiteside said, she be- her liver, her spleen and several bracelets in solidarity. Rowe, commander of the U.S. Lean. ments. On weekends she hung out photographer Michel du Cille armed forces. In reality, criminal Seeing so many casualties at Ghraib abuse scandal still charged U.S. troops around the prison and Zones,” her commander, Lt. Col. gan suffering panic attacks. She other organs. Her parents and sib- After being released from Ward Army Military District of Washing- But then, from her battalion with her clique from Ward 54, “my contributed to this report. charges are extremely rare unless Walter Reed made Whiteside feel the atmosphere at Cropper, which to a small hospital inside. Darlene McCurdy, wrote in her stopped sleeping, she said, and lings kept a round-the-clock bed- 54, Whiteside joined the outpa- ton, which has jurisdiction over commander in Iraq, Whiteside there is evidence that the attempt she was not bearing her full re- housed 4,000 detainees and in- “I loved our mission,” Whiteside evaluation. started self-medicating with Ny- side vigil, and her condition gradu- tient ranks just as the Army was her case, would decide whether to learned that an investigation there was an effort to avoid service or sponsibility, she said, so she volun- cluded high-security prisoners said, “because it represented the But the dynamics outside her Quil and Benadryl, but decided ally improved. Within two weeks scrambling to overhaul its system grant her request. had concluded that there was “in- that it endangered others. teered for Iraq. When she left in such as Saddam Hussein and Ali best of America: taking care of the unit were rockier. From the begin- against seeking help from the men- an Army criminal investigator for treating wounded soldiers and He reviewed recommendations sufficient evidence for any crimi- ON WASHINGTONPOST.COM At one point, Elizabeth White- the fall of 2006, she carried with Hassan Majeed, known as “Chem- enemy, regardless of what they are ning, Whiteside and some of her tal health clinic because she feared showed up in her hospital room, President Bush ordered a commis- from Whiteside’s two commanders nal action to be taken against” her. The Washington Post continues an examination of the treatment side almost accepted the Army’s her a gift from her father — the ical Ali,” as well as suspected ter- doing to us.” female soldiers had conflicts with that the Army would send her but a doctor shooed him away. sion to study military care for Iraq at Walter Reed and the facility’s Furthermore, it had found a hostile of men and women returning home from war with physical and offer to resign in lieu of court- double-bladed buck knife he had rorists and insurgents. The hours were brutal. White- one of the company’s male officers. home, as it had recently done with After a month, Whiteside was veterans. commander, Maj. Gen. Eric B. command climate and recom- mental wounds. Previous stories can be found at martial. But it meant she would used in Vietnam. Whiteside, given the radio han- side ate one meal a day, slept in They believed he hindered female a colonel. moved to Ward 54, the hospital’s At Walter Reed, the Army Schoomaker, a physician. White- mended that the officer who had www.washingtonpost.com/walterreed. have to explain for the rest of her Whiteside was assigned as a pla- dle “Trauma Mama,” supervised two four-hour shifts and worked promotions and undercut White- On Dec. 30, U.S. military offi- lockdown psychiatric unit, where brought in combat-experienced of- side’s immediate commander at been her nemesis be removed from life why she was not given an hon- toon leader in the 329th Medical nine medics who worked the night seven days a week. Her superiors side’s authority with her soldiers, cials took Hussein from his cell at she was diagnosed with a severe ficers to replace the recovering pa- the hospital, a captain, recom- his position and “given a letter of AUDIO SLIDESHOW: Hear Army 1st Lt. Elizabeth Whiteside orable discharge. Her attorney Company (Ground Ambulance) at shift at the prison. She was in credited her with her unit’s suc- according to Army investigative Camp Cropper for execution. The major depressive disorder and a tients whom it had asked to man- mended that she be given an “oth- reprimand for gender bias in as- and her father, Tom Whiteside, discuss their predicament and also believed that she would have the Camp Cropper detainee prison charge of dispatching drivers, cess. “She has produced outstand- documents. personality disorder. According to age the lives of the 700 outpatients er than honorable” discharge, ac- signments and use of intimidation, see more photographs of the family. been left without the medical care near Baghdad International Air- medics and support staff to trans- ing results in one of the most de- As the tensions with the officer » See WHITESIDE, A17, Col. 1 a statement by an Army psychia- on post. The new Warrior Transi- cording to a document obtained by manipulation and hostility

PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE PHOTOS BY MICHEL DU CILLE

C M Y K C M Y K A16 A17