[Vision2020] Mom: GI in Iraq made 2 calls telling of abuse

[Tom Hansen]

Courtesy of the Army Times.

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Mom: GI in Iraq made 2 calls telling of abuse

By John Seewer - The Associated Press
Posted : Friday Aug 28, 2009 15:17:21 EDT

WILLARD, Ohio — Before killing himself with a single gunshot, Pvt. Keiffer
Wilhelm called his mother twice from Iraq and told her he was being
targeted in his new unit and forced to run for miles with rocks in his
pockets that smashed against his knees.

He told her he hated it, she said in an interview with The Associated
Press on Thursday, marking the first time anyone has said Wilhelm spoke to
them about the abuse.

“He said ‘Mom, I don’t have anybody to turn to here,’” said Kathe Wilhelm,
recalling the last conversation she had with her son, a day before he
died.

The investigation into Wilhelm’s death has led to charges against four
soldiers who the military says were mistreating some of the men in their
platoon. Allegations include verbal abuse, physical punishment and
ridicule toward the soldiers.

The military has said there’s no direct evidence, so far, that the alleged
misconduct caused Wilhelm’s death.

Wilhelm, who grew up in northern Ohio, was in Iraq with his new platoon
for just 10 days before he killed himself on Aug. 4.

He had volunteered to leave for Iraq before the rest of his unit and join
a brigade with the mission of training Iraqi security forces.

His family said he wanted to make a career in the military and talked
about becoming a military police officer, following in the footsteps of
his brother who is in the Air Force.

Wilhelm arrived in Iraq on July 25 and called his mother to tell her he
had landed safely. She said he was excited to begin a new adventure.

In five days everything had changed, she said.

Wilhelm told his mother he was being forced to exercise for hours and that
others in his platoon were making fun of him, Kathe Wilhelm said. He also
told her his personal items were disappearing.

Another call two days later revealed that he was being forced to go on
long runs that left his knees bloody, and that he spent hours doing
push-ups and sit-ups in a dirt pile, she said.

“He sounded bad,” she said. “He was in trouble for everything.”

His mother, whose father retired from the military, told him he’d make new
friends and things would get better. “He said ‘Mom, No it won’t. I hate it
here,’” she said.

That was the last time they spoke.

“I knew they’d push him,” she said. “Somebody pushed him to the point
where he broke.”

Her son knew enough to expect some hazing, she said, but it must have been
worse than she even imagined. He survived boot camp, after all.

The military said last week that four soldiers had been charged with
cruelty and maltreatment and reckless endangerment. Three of the four were
also charged with making false official statements.

The four remain in Iraq, where legal proceedings will take place.

The military has identified the four soldiers facing charges as Sgt. Enoch
Chatman, Staff Sgt. Bob Clements, Sgt. Jarrett Taylor and Spc. Daniel
Weber of B Troop, 2nd Squadron, 13th Calvary Regiment from Fort Bliss,
Texas.

They face anywhere from eight to 25 years in prison if convicted on all
counts.

There have been unconfirmed reports that Wilhelm was harassed about his
weight. Family members say that doesn’t make sense because he was in such
good shape coming out of boot camp.

He was always a bit pudgy as a teen and had to lose about 20 pounds before
leaving for basic training. But his mother said she was proud of his
transformation when she saw him at his boot camp graduation.

“Just in the way he carried himself,” she said. “The twinkle in his eye.”

No one knows with certainty why he ended his own life.

Kathe Wilhelm thinks he did it to save others in his platoon from enduring
further abuse.

“In order to get somebody’s attention, he had to take a drastic step,” she
said. “I would bet my life he thought he was helping protect those boys.”

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An Army carry team carries a transfer case containing the remains of Pvt.
Keiffer P. Wilhelm on Aug. 6 at Dover Air Force Base, Del. Wilhelm, 19,
died Aug. 4 in Maysan province, Iraq.

http://tinyurl.com/KeifferWilhelm

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Question . . .

Where the HELL were Private Wilhelm's platoon sergeant and first sergeant
during Whilhelm's first ten days in country?  Why aren't they being called
onto the carpet?

Yes. Those four souldiers, currently being charged, should be held to
account for their actions.  Responsibility for those actions should also
fall directly on the shoulders of Private Wilhem's platoon sergeant. 
There is a special place in hell for such a lame, irresponsible, no-count
platoon sergeant.  What a piece of garbage.

Seeya at Farmers' Market, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"The Pessimist complains about the wind, the Optimist expects it to change
and the Realist adjusts his sails."

- Unknown