Chris Kyle Death: Eddie Ray Routh, Iraq War veteran, arraigned in murders of former Navy SEAL and a friend

By: Crimesider Staff
Topics: Daily Blotter

This photo provided by the Erath County Sheriff»??s Office shows Eddie Ray Routh. He was charged with murder in connection with a shooting at a central Texas gun range that killed former Navy SEAL and "American Sniper" author Chris Kyle and Chad Littlefield, the Texas Department of Public Safety said Sunday, Feb. 3, 2013.

Eddie Ray Routh, seen above, is charged with murder in connection with a shooting at a central Texas gun range that killed former Navy SEAL Chris Kyle and Chad Littlefield on Feb. 2, 2013.

/ AP Photo/ Erath County Sheriff's Office

(CBS/AP) STEPHENVILLE, Texas - Eddie Ray Routh, an Iraq War veteran, was arraigned early Sunday in the murders of former Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle and friend, Chad Littlefield.

PICTURES: Ex-Navy SEAL fatally shot on Texas gun range

Authorities say Routh, 25, turned a gun on Kyle, who wrote the best-selling book "American Sniper," and Littlefield at Rough Creek Lodge, a Texas shooting range about 50 miles southwest of Fort Worth on Saturday.

Travis Cox, the director of a nonprofit Kyle helped found, told the Associated Press on Sunday that Kyle, 38, and Littlefield, 35, had taken Routh to the range to try to help him work through his PTSD. Littlefield was Kyle's neighbor and "workout buddy," Cox said.

It is unclear what Routh's motive was for the murders. Police say he was unemployed and "may have been suffering from some type of mental illness from being in the military."

Sheriff Tommy Bryant said he didn't know whether Routh, of Lancaster, was on any medication or had been officially diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Routh is being held on $3 million bond and is charged with one count of capital murder and two charges of murder. Bryant said he thought Routh was seeking a public defender.

Officials believe Routh used a semi-automatic handgun, which authorities found at his home. Ballistic tests were not complete as of Sunday.

The U.S. military confirmed Sunday that Routh was a corporal in the Marines, serving on active duty from 2006 to 2010. He was deployed to Iraq in 2007 and Haiti in 2010. His current duty status is listed as reserve.

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February 4, 2013 - Chris Kyle, ex-Navy SEAL and bestselling author, fatally shot in shooting range, authorities say

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by addict42 February 4, 2013 3:37 PM EST

This man who shot these ex-soldiers is in no way resposnbile for his actions and should be committed to a mental institution for therapy and rehabilitation until he can return to society as a functioning memeber.

We sometimes forget that the United States was the invading occupying force in Iraq, therefore, technically the villians in that entire debachle.

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by stefani1001 February 4, 2013 3:45 PM EST: Too bad the idea of therapy and rehab was of no interest to his "friends" who brought him to the range. Risking and ultimately ending their lives, and risking the other people at the range. May be too late for him now for a real life.


by stefani1001 February 4, 2013 3:29 PM EST: If we refuse to learn from past mistakes, we will be doomed to repeat them. Regardless of the good intentions the ex navy seal may have had, what he did was in such bad taste. We keep taking people with serious mental illnesses, PTSD, for example which can be terribly debilitating.. flash backs, hallucinations.. I have no military back ground, and even I know I would not want that person to have a gun. Same situation with Adam Lanza, mother is taking him to shooting ranges? Why do we feel it necessary to give people who are unstable, these weapons? What's wrong with some tennis, or swimming, maybe a little therapy to work through the problems? Kickboxing? Wrestling? Even paint ball could "Work out the ptsd". Shame on these people for giving this man a gun, when he was known to be suffering from a mental illness. now instead of getting the therapy he needs, and being recuperated from what he dealt with over seas defending out country, he was put in a situation in which he could not overcome. Lives were lost and families will never be the same because good judgment was not used. Freedoms will be taken one by one. Now this man who could have had a shot at freedom, will stand trial for murder. We are slowly going to turn the mentally ill community into our enemy, because we are not giving them the care they need, and SETTING THEM UP FOR FAILURE. Unfair.; Reply to this comment

by MomsHugs February 4, 2013 2:32 PM EST

My condolences to the families of both men who were killed. Also my prayers for the family of the man who shot them. Only those who have walked this path can truly understand what they are going through. My heart goes out to them all.

However, it is highly ironic that Kyle's company, Craft International, uses a logo of a skull wrapped with these words: "Despite what your mama told you, violence does solve problems." http://www.thecraft.com/craft_skull.html

According to Craft's website, violence, whether in hand combat or with guns, is at the heart of Craft's training programs. Maybe this explains why Kyle took this young Marine veteran to a shooting range.

As a society, we are at the crossroads of deciding whether our culture of violence is healthy long term. Within 6 days, 8 people were shot & killed by our own citizens - some of whom are veterans, both young & old.

We citizens must stop foolishly debating whether or not the Second Amendment is at risk or citizen's lives. The hard questions are broader than that! We must also ask when our military is proposed to be used by our government and for what purpose.

These are OUR responsibilities - not simply to be left to our government to determine. These questions deserve robust discussion, open minds and penetrating answers. Let's not shirk OUR duties to each other and to our country.

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by BigCountryTactical February 4, 2013 10:26 PM EST: "If you are for gun control, then you're not against guns, because the guns will be needed to disarm people. You'll need to go around, pass laws and shoot people who resist ... just to take away guns. So it's not that you're anti-gun ... you just believe that only the government should be allowed to have guns. So there's no such thing as gun control, there's only centralizing gun ownership in the hands of a small political elite." ---Stefan Molyneux

Molyneux is bringing up the obvious: Gun owners will not simply turn in their guns because Congress or the president tells them to. Guns will be necessary to collect guns, and thus force will be required to disarm the public. With "pro-gun centralization" laws, society will only be taking the individual's natural right to defend him/herself away. But then again, maybe gang members will cooperate if you just say, "Please follow orders." Additionally Why are AR-15's 'Personal Defense' Weapons for the DHS but 'Assault Rifles' for Citizens?

"We are fast approaching the stage of ultimate inversion: the stage where government is free to do as it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission." - Ayn Rand

by myknownfacts February 4, 2013 1:52 PM EST

We all know now that it was poor judgment to have gone to the range, but that knowledge comes from hind sight. What Mr. Kyle and his friend Mr. Littlefield did should be praised. They had no duty to help, but they did try to help. That is what these two men should be remember for.

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by erasmus111 February 4, 2013 3:00 PM EST: That knowledge comes from HIND SIGHT? Really? Anyone with an ounce of common sense would know better than to take someone with mental problems to a shooting range, or to allow them to have a gun, PERIOD.

To me, this just shows the mentality of Americans. All they think about are their GUNS. Guns are everything. It's an OBSESSION. Guns solve all problems. Like who in their right mind would think taking a nut job to a shooting range was a good thing? That it would actually help someone suffering from PTSD??

It's truly bind boggling.


by addict42 February 4, 2013 3:41 PM EST: They shouldn't be praised, they were playing with fire and this tragic outcome was inevitable.


by stefani1001 February 4, 2013 3:51 PM EST: knowledge that it is poor judgment to hand a person who is known to be suffering from PTSD a gun does not come from hind sight. It would be rational to assume that that type of activity would not be suitable for a "friend suffering from PTSD"


by ShawnK38 February 4, 2013 1:25 PM EST: My condolences to Mr. Kyle and Mr. Littlefield's families, as well as the surrounding Roth family as they struggle with and for their son's situation. Mr. Kyle is a great American, having served our nation and our law enforcement communities. I appreciate that he like many veterans step forward to help and guide other with issues related to service work that our government isn't readily capable of understanding, let alone the general public. Mr. Kyle and Mr. Littlefield's sense of community is something we can learn from and respect. Don't just thank a veteran, get involved and support veterans. This tragedy is a sad take on human behaviors, results and mental illness. Instead of posting negative commentary, step up and get involved and make a positive difference for the greater good of mankind and our society. Everything else is a distraction and not worth our time or effort. That is the best way to honor Mr. Kyle and Mr. Littlefield's lives, through action, not cheap words. May God keep them close.; Reply to this comment


by taosword February 4, 2013 1:19 PM EST: Defense of our family, our community, our nation is a necessary and sometimes deathly job. But, Iraq, Afganistan, and Vietnam did not impose tyranny on our community or attack our communities. The young and enlisted soldiers were brainwashed, used and discarded by the 3 branches of government and the military after they were messed up enough to not be able to go back on another multiple occupying tour of the killing fields. We need warriors as do most all societies. The military is not a Warrior Society but has been corrupted and now has mostly brainwashed, corrupted, puppet soldiers and contractors for occupying others lands and killing and terrorizing them. I know, I was one as one time. This is the truth. Lets wake up.; Reply to this comment


by taosword February 4, 2013 1:04 PM EST: "Some type of mental illness from being in the Military." The military is the mental illness and most all those who enter this system are prone to be infected with this illness. The military does not have to be a mentally/morally/spiritually ill,corrupted organization, but it is a reflection of the other 3 branches of government that have chosen to not do a check and balance on it. They have joined it or it has joined them in this sickness of violence as a means to get stuff and get their way in the world and use ignorant immature people(soldiers) to do their dirty work. I was one of their puppets at one time and know this programing well.; Reply to this comment


by skyp2 February 4, 2013 12:57 PM EST: How true, there has to be other ways than sending our men in harms way where they are sitting ducks, if you notice most politicians that are quick to advocate war, have never served, nor most of their children, they seem to get waivers, all this for the multinational corporations. This needs to stop!! We need to stop invading other countries on the premise it is for our national security, which is a bunch of bull s---!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!; Reply to this comment


by mikesmith999 February 4, 2013 12:55 PM EST: The last place in the world I would take a guy to work on his PTSD is a friggin' gun range. WTH???!!!; Reply to this comment


by OldProfessor February 4, 2013 12:50 PM EST: Landyn10, You ask some hard questions....that have no easy answers. Our country cannot ignore the rise of dangerous regimes abroad. However, we have to find a better way to evaluate the total cost of sending our military to fightin another country, enemies who have no official government nor uniform. What we can see from our experience is that we make untold numbers of enemies for our country and our values and we lay on our young warriors handicaps the majority of us have no way of understanding or appreciating. We can say nice things on Veteran's day but significant portions of our citizens fuss about the financial burden that we encur.; Reply to this comment