Untreated PTSD Endangers Families and Others-Donald Henson a result of AIG’s Deadly Mistreatment of Injured Contractors

Accused Saco gunman had raised red flags

The man’s wife had gotten a protection order and police saw disturbing signs before Tuesday’s standoff.

Perhaps AIG and their claims adjusters, and their  attorneys should be arrested for this

Portland Press Herald

BIDDEFORD — The wife of a Saco man accused of shooting at her and her mother and burning a house down Tuesday had secured a protection-from-abuse order against him on Monday.

Donald A. Henson, 47, was arrested Tuesday night after a three-hour standoff with police at his mother-in-law’s house at 645 Goodwin Mills Road in Dayton. He is charged with aggravated attempted murder, arson and terrorizing.

Police say he shot at his wife and mother-in-law and set two houses and a pickup truck on fire.

Henson made his initial court appearance Wednesday in Biddeford District Court. Justice Paul Fritzsche did not ask him to enter a plea. Henson was being held in the York County Jail on $250,000 cash bail.

Prosecutors had requested $100,000 bail. Fritzsche said he raised it because of Henson’s “incredibly dangerous behavior.”

Henson did not speak during his arraignment. B.J. Broder, the lawyer representing him, said Henson has post-traumatic stress disorder and is disabled.

Broder said Henson was injured in Iraq in 2009 while working as a civilian contractor and it appears that he doesn’t understand his rights because of his mental state.

In an email sent Tuesday morning to Biddeford District Court, a Saco Police Department representative said officers were concerned about Henson’s potential for “homicidal/suicidal” actions

Please read the entire story here

Contractors in War Zones: Not Exactly “Contracting”

There are more contractors than troops in Afghanistan

Time’s Battleland  October 9, 2012 by David Isenberg

U.S. military forces may be out of Iraq, but the unsung and unrecognized part of America’s modern military establishment is still serving and sacrificing — the role played by private military and security contractors.

That their work is dangerous can be seen by looking at the headlines. Just last Thursday a car bomb hit a private security convoy in Baghdad, killing four people and wounding at least nine others.

That is hardly an isolated incident. According to the most recent Department of Labor statistics there were at least 121 civilian contractor deaths filed on in the third quarter of 2012. Of course, these included countries besides Iraq.

As the Defense Base Act Compensation blog notes, “these numbers are not an accurate accounting of Contractor Casualties as many injuries and deaths are not reported as Defense Base Act Claims. Also, many of these injuries will become deaths due to the Defense Base Act Insurance Companies denial of medical benefits.” To date, a total of 90,680 claims have been filed since September 1, 2001.

How many contractors are now serving on behalf of the U.S. government?

According to the most recent quarterly contractor census report issued by the U.S. Central Command, which includes both Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as 18 other countries stretching from Egypt to Kazakhstan, there were approximately 137,000 contractors working for the Pentagon in its region. There were 113,376 in Afghanistan and 7,336 in Iraq. Of that total, 40,110 were U.S. citizens, 50,560 were local hires, and 46,231 were from neither the U.S. not the country in which they were working.

Put simply, there are more contractors than U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

These numbers, however, do not reflect the totality of contractors. For example, they do not include contractors working for the U.S. State Department. The CENTCOM report says that “of FY 2012, the USG contractor population in Iraq will be approximately 13.5K.  Roughly half of these contractors are employed under Department of State contracts.”

While most of the public now understands that contractors perform a lot of missions once done by troops – peeling potatoes, pulling security — they may not realize just how dependent on them the Pentagon has become.

Please read the entire post here

At Least 121 Civilian Contractor Deaths in the Third Quarter of 2012

WE ARE THE BEST KEPT SECRET OF THE WARS

According to the Department of Labor’s Defense Base Act Claim Summary Reports there were at least 121 Civilian Contractor Deaths filed on in the third quarter of 2012.

Keep in mind that these numbers are not an accurate accounting of Contractor Casualties as many injuries and deaths are not reported as Defense Base Act Claims. Also, many of these injuries will become deaths due to the Defense Base Act Insurance Companies denial of medical benefits.

Many foreign national and local national contractors and their families are never told that they are covered under the Defense Base Act and so not included in the count.

At least 18 death claims were filed for Iraq

At Least 90 death claims were filed for Afghanistan

At least 3,195 Defense Base Act Claims were filed during this quarter

At least 121 were death claims

At least 1,138 were for injuries requiring longer than 4 days off work

At least  85 were for injuries requiring less than 4 days off work

At least 1,879 were for injuries requiring no time off of work

A total of 90,680  Defense Base Act Claims have been filed since September 1, 2001

Kevin O’Rourke, Retired NYPD, Civilian Contractor killed in Afghanistan Insider Attack

HERNANDO –October 3, 2012

A 52-year-old contractor from Citrus County was one of two people killed last weekend in Afghanistan.

According to Bay News 9’s partner newspaper the Citrus County Chronicle, Kevin O’Rourke, who lived in the town of Hernando, was in Afghanistan as a civilian contractor with NATO, working for Engility, a law enforcement professional firm based in Alexandria, Va.

A former New York City police officer, O’Rourke missed being in the World Trade Center by 20 minutes on September 11, 2001. He spent hours that day helping a friend trapped in the rubble.

Friends say after 9/11, O’Rourke saw “a great need to go to (Iraq and) Afghanistan and to help the younger generation understand what we went through in New York.”

New York Post  October 1, 2012

A retired NYPD sergeant working as a civilian contractor in Afghanistan was killed during an apparent “insider attack” by members of the Afghan military.

Kevin O’Rourke, 52, and an unidentified US soldier were slain Saturday in the clash with Afghan troops.

O’Rourke had been on the force for 20 years and worked as member of the NYPD’s elite Emergency Service Unit.

He was also one of the department’s scuba instructors, based at Brooklyn’s Floyd Bennett Field.

O’Rourke, originally from Long Island, retired in 2003 and later moved to Florida.

The soldier was the 2,000 service member to die in the 11-year conflict.

Three Afghan troops were also killed in the shootout at a checkpoint in the eastern part of the country.

American Civilian Contractor Killed, three wounded, in Green on Blue in Eastern Afghanistan

Rueters

while three other U.S. citizens and one Afghan were wounded, police spokesman Wali Mohammad said on Sunday.

Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) — Two Americans and three Afghan soldiers died in a firefight that may have involved insurgent forces, the International Security Assistance Force said Sunday.

One of the U.S. deaths was a soldier; the other, a civilian, U.S. officials said.

NATO soldier, civilian contractor killed by Afghan soldier

A NATO soldier, a NATO civilian contractor and several Afghan soldiers were killed by an Afghan soldier on Saturday in eastern Afghanistan, the latest in growing number of the so-called “green-on-blue” insider attacks in the country, the NATO said Sunday.

“An International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) service member and an ISAF civilian contractor died following a suspected insider attack in eastern Afghanistan yesterday,” the NATO-led coalition or ISAF said in a statement.

“It is also known that there were Afghan National Army (ANA) casualties,” it said, adding “a joint ANA and ISAF assessment is underway.”

The brief statement did not disclose the nationalities of the victims and the exact place of the incident under ISAF policy.

Troops mainly from U.S. have been stationed within the 100,000 strong NATO-led ISAF forces in eastern Afghan provinces.

Please read the entire article here at China.org

Civilian Contractor, Kyrgyz national, killed in Afghanistan

The Voice of Russia  September 18, 2012

A Kyrgyz national died in a terrorist attack in Afghanistan earlier today, according to the Russian Embassy in Kabul.

The authorities are now checking up on the number of those injured.

Jeni Ayris,South African Civilian Contractor of Edinburgh, killed in Afghanistan Attack

SOUTH AFRICAN born Jeni Ayris, who lived in Edinburgh, was killed in the blast in Kabul.

The Daily Record  September 19, 2012

A WOMAN who was killed in a suicide bomb attack in Afghanistan was due to return home this week.

Jeni Ayris, 46, who was born in South Africa but held a British passport, died in the blast in the capital, Kabul, yesterday, when a female insurgent drove a car full of explosives into a minibus carrying mainly foreign workers.

Her friend, Kirsten Bennett, from the Isle of Mull, said Ms Ayris was expected to return to Edinburgh this weekend.

Ms Ayris worked as a customer relations manager for South African aviation company ACS/BalmOral.

In a statement, the firm said: “ACS/BalmOral is deeply saddened by the loss of the lives of some of our staff in Kabul, Afghanistan, due to a suicide bombing attack that occurred on September 18.

“We are in the process of notifying the next of kin and our main focus now remains with the families of the innocent victims who tragically lost their lives. Our prayers and thoughts are with them and all our staff remaining in Kabul.”

Ms Ayris lived in the Morningside area of the Scottish capital for about 17 years.

She was born in the Durban region of South Africa, but left the country many years ago and had dual citizenship with the UK.

Ms Ayris ran a South African themed cafe in the Tollcross area of Edinburgh, Ndebele, for about a decade.

Please read the entire article here

At Least One Civilian Contractor Wounded in Camp Bastion Attack

In addition to the two U.S. Marines killed in the assault, eight military members and one civilian contractor were wounded.

Attackers in Afghanistan Wore US Uniforms  September 17, 2012

International coalition officials say the insurgents who attacked a British military base in Afghanistan Friday, killing two U.S. Marines, were dressed in U.S. Army uniforms and were armed with automatic rifles, rocket propelled grenade launchers and suicide vests.

The coalition said in a statement Sunday the 15 militants were organized into three teams and “executed a well-coordinated attack” against the airfield on Camp Bastion in Helmand province.

The alliance say the attackers destroyed six Harrier jets and “significantly damaged” two more. The militants also destroyed three coalition refueling stations and damaged six aircraft hangars.

International troops killed 14 of the insurgents and wounded one, who is in custody. Earlier reports said 18 militants died in the attack.

In addition to the two U.S. Marines killed in the assault, eight military members and one civilian contractor were wounded.

Civilian Contractor Tyrone Woods, US Navy SEAL, Killed in Libya Embassy Attack

CNN  September 14, 2012

Tyrone Woods became a Navy SEAL after his mother suggested he join the military. Friday afternoon, Cheryl Croft Bennett will attend a ceremony to honor the life of her son Ty and grieve his loss after his death along side three other Americans in Tuesday’s assault on the U.S. consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi.

Woods, who had retired from the Navy, handled security for diplomats and perished with fellow former SEAL Glen Doherty, computer expert Sean Smith and U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens

On Thursday, a U.S. official confirmed Woods was among the dead. “Tyrone’s friends and colleagues called him ‘Rone,’ and they relied on his courage and skill, honed over two decades as a Navy SEAL,” said Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a statement.

“In uniform, he served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Since 2010, he protected American diplomatic personnel in dangerous posts from Central America to the Middle East. He had the hands of a healer as well as the arm of a warrior, earning distinction as a registered nurse and certified paramedic. All our hearts go out to Tyrone’s wife Dorothy and his three sons, Tyrone Jr., Hunter, and Kai, who was born just a few months ago.”

Please read more here

Civilian Contractor, Former Navy SEAL Glen Doherty killed in Libya Embassy Attack

The 42-year-old was part of private security detail and was protecting Ambassador Chris Stevens; also worked against proselytizing by troops

New York Daily News  August 13, 2012

A former Navy SEAL from Massachusetts was identified Thursday as one of the four Americans killed in the attack on the U.S. Consulate in Libya on the 11th anniversary of 9/11.

Glen Doherty, 42, of Winchester, Mass., was working a security detail in the volatile nation when he was killed Tuesday, The Boston Globe reported.

“I never thought he’d be another victim of 9/11,” his sister Katie Quigley told the newspaper. Doherty arrived in Libya just six days before his death in Benghazi.

Doherty was protecting Ambassador Chris Stevens and aiding the wounded after the consulate was blasted with rocket propelled grenades during a four-hour firefight, Quigley said.

Stevens and 10-year diplomatic veteran Sean Smith were also killed in the attack. A fourth victim of the attack remains unidentified.

Doherty was a lifelong thrill seeker whose past included stints as a ski instructor and at a flight school.

He spent seven years in the Navy, and belonged to a group that fought against religious proselytizing by U.S. troops.

He left military service to join a company that provides security for U.S. officials overseas, his sister said.

Since going into the security business, Doherty was sent back to Iraq and Afghanistan — and worked in Israel and Kenya, his sister told the Globe.

The family received word of his death on Wednesday afternoon.

igley said she believed the attack was not prompted by an anti-Islamic movie but was premeditated and timed to coincide with Sept. 11.

“Glen was highly trained,” she said. “He was the best of the best. He wouldn’t have gone down for some protest over a movie. This was serious, well-planned, well-executed.”

Please see the original and read more here

Untreated PTSD puts family at risk

A presentence investigation found Ali has untreated mental illness, defense attorney Blair Nelson said. He said Ali had a good job as a civilian contractor for the military, but it ended when he developed post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety.

Moorhead man gets 27 months for trying to run over wife, daughter

Hisham Fazil Ali says he suffers from PTSD from time as contractor in the Middle East

A Moorhead man convicted of trying to run over his wife and daughter was sentenced to 27 months in prison Thursday, despite his tearful statements that he needs to care for his family and suffers from mental issues as a result of his civilian work in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Mark McGowan, Ex Soldier, Private Security Contractor, dies in Afghanistan

Ex-soldier dies in Afghanistan

Mr McGowan had previously served in the Parachute Regiment.

It is thought he left the Army to become a private security contractor, joining the lucrative “circuit”, as it is known.

The 32-year-old was engaged to be married and had two young children, Manus and Mila.

No details surrounding his death were available last night.

Luke Duffy  June 27, 2012

I regretfully announce the loss of yet another fallen comrade and great friend,

Marc McGowan, sadly passed away yesterday while in Afghanistan.

 

Wade Dill AIG/KBR PTSD DBA Casualty July 16th, 2006

After many years of surviving an extremely abusive and Overly Zealous Defense

Wade Dill’s  family was finally provided death benefits under the Defense Base Act

These benefits were recently taken away by the Benefits Review Board when Attorney Bruce Nicholson, who was actively pursuing a settlement with KBR/AIG’s Attorney Michael Thomas, had a contract with the widow, was an attorney with the Law Firm of Peyman Rahnama, was the attorney of record with the BRB, did not as much as respond to the Appeal.

While Bruce Nicholson is the one who apparently purposely abandoned the claim, Michael Thomas and the BRB were more than happy to carry on without notifying the widow that AIG’s appeal of her claim was unopposed.

The man I married was my prince charming.
We had grown up together.
High school sweethearts, we were married 17 ½ years.
I believe that if he had never gone over there he would still be
here today.
Something happened in Iraq.
He committed suicide the morning of July 16th, 2006
He left behind a lot of pain and two ruined lives.
I never dreamed I would be without him
and
my daughter without a father.

Our thoughts are with you today Barb

Nine Years Ago Today, Still getting screwed over by CNA !

July 7, 2003

Nine years ago you get that phone call you hoped you’d never get

But hey they say, not to worry, the insurance company will take care of everything

Heart is breaking but not to worry

Everything, they say, will be OK

Good thing we’ve been paying for good medical insurance

No way of knowing that the “insurance” was Defense Base Act through CNA, a policy we had never heard of,  looked at, or signed for

Or that  Administrative Law Judge Paul C Johnson would deem his injuries to be alleged when denying him his rights under the DBA

One day we’ll look back at this and be so grateful for our blessings, for what we’ve overcome………

But one day never comes

What’s that in the way?

CNA 

CNA with the assistance of the Department of Labor District Office in Jacksonville

From failing to provide a medical evacuation and abandoning him to the military medical system to defaulting on the order to provide his medical care for nearly two years now after denying for six years.

CNA, their Claims Adjusters, their overly zealous legal representation, and the biased Department of Labor District Office have caused much more physical, mental, and financial  damage than there ever had to be. 

What should have been temporary disabilities have become permanent.

CNA has denied the looking back one day, the moving forward, the healing

If CNA had simply lived up to their responsibilities rather than playing paper games this family would have long moved on

And the US Taxpayers would not be paying ever more to the War Profiteers CNA and their “representation”

Documents showed that CNA reported the highest profits margins, taking in nearly 50 percent more in premiums than it paid out in benefits.

Iraq releases Former Marine, DynCorp Civilian Contractor, Michael Copleland’s body after dispute

The body of an Oklahoma contractor who was found dead in Baghdad is being flown back to the U.S. after a two-week bureaucratic debate over whether the Iraqi government would perform an autopsy on his remains.

Tulsa World  June26, 2012

Officials say Michael David Copeland, 37, of Colbert in southern Oklahoma, is one of the first Americans working for the U.S. government to die in Iraq this year. He was found unresponsive June 9 in his living quarters. Foul play is not suspected in his death.

Copeland previously served in the Marines and later with the Oklahoma Air National Guard. He was a contractor with DynCorp International at the time of his death.

Copeland’s case is a snapshot of the new reality of working in Iraq for Americans who, over the years, were accustomed to vast privileges and influence that disappeared when U.S. troops left last December.

Iraq agreed to release the remains of the Oklahoma man after negotiations with the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. His body was flown out of Iraq Tuesday afternoon.