Testimony presented to the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on personnel

September 12, 1996

By Mrs. Linda Shults:

Thank you for allowing me to speak to this committee today about the issues concerning the military investigations into the tragic deaths of our loved ones whose deaths have been ruled self-inflicted by the military. I would like to say we would not be here today if it were not for the efforts of Congressman Frank Pallone, Congressman David Levy, Senator Exon, Senator Dole, and Congressman Brownback, who, in the beginning, assisted this group. There is not a family member represented here today that would not like to be relating to you in their own words every aspect that has offended and troubled them in the handling of the deaths of their children, brothers, and sisters. Unfortunately, we are limited to five individuals who will instead attempt to relate to you, issue by issue, the shared experience of every family in this group, and how we view the results of section 1185, part A and B presented by the DOD Inspector General. The tone and delivery contained in most of the I.G. reviews that have been received by families have been justifying, directed toward and explaining the behavior of the original investigators. The section 1185 report itself points out certain defects but appears to be directed at controlling the flow of information to the press and to the families and suggests that in some areas there needs to be further training. Time and time again a self-inflicted finding has been supported by the office of the Inspector General in death situations that have astounded experts. For example, missing guns, missing shell casings, unidentified blood stains, broken bones, super human feats worthy of Houdini, such as hanging yourself with your hands chained behind your back. The destruction of all physical evidence at the commands wish within a few months after the death, theft of all personal property, sloppy and incomplete pathology by the Armed Services, bizarre and incomplete preparation of psychological autopsies and most certainly leading and inappropriate interviews with witnesses, friends and families and in some cases, no interviews with witnesses, friends and families and in some cases, no interviews with them. We have read the reports of all investigations and reviews and closely attended to the report issued by the Inspector General and despite how it may be presented, it will not change the most basic fault in current investigative procedure..........the behavior of the investigator. It is our common experience that the decision to weaken and replace the Section 1023 language in the House National Security bill was a sad day for all the families that will follow us. We believe that the dropping of language that dealt with the practice of criminal investigators making judgmental and suggestive statements during interviews and alluding to consequences in failing to cooperate with investigators, will continue to be a key element in these particular cases that becomes a cancer on the investigation and obscures the truth. I ask you to remember that we supported the decision of our sons and daughters to serve this country and trusted that their life and their death, if it came to that, would concern this nation’s leaders no matter how they died in active duty. We have seen this body respond to Tailhook, loss of military lives in aircraft disasters, and bombings, but none of these have taken the number of lives as has been taken in the last 20 years by alleged non-combat, self-inflicted deaths.

Thank you Mr. Chairman