Sgt.'s Death Not Counted As War Casualty

Family Says "Undetermined" Cause Of Death Following Battlefield Injury Puts Son In Limbo

(AP)  Joan McDonald believes her son was a casualty of the war in Iraq, but the Army says that while he did suffer a severe head wound in a bomb blast, the cause of his death is undetermined, keeping him off the casualty list.

She and her family are demanding more answers in the death of Sgt. James W. McDonald.

"I don't want it to be an undetermined cause of death," said Joan McDonald. "That is ridiculous."

McDonald, 26, was injured in a roadside bomb blast in Iraq last May. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment based at Fort Hood, Texas. After treatment in Germany, McDonald returned to Fort Hood and underwent extensive facial surgery in August.

His body was found in his barracks apartment Nov. 12, a Monday. He was last seen alive the previous Friday.

The Army ruled out suicide and accidental factors, but an autopsy could not determine the exact cause of death, in part because of the decomposition of the body, said Col. Diane Battaglia, a base spokeswoman.

As a result, McDonald's death is considered noncombat-related, with the caveat that medical experts couldn't rule out that "traumatic brain injury" may have been a factor, Battaglia said.

Joan McDonald, of Neenah, has no doubts about her son's death.

"If my son was not at the war, he would not be dead, plain and simple," she said. "He was a strong healthy boy. ... Don't tell me it was unrelated to the war. I will never accept that."

Tom Wilborn, a spokesman for Disabled American Veterans in Washington, said the question of whether McDonald was a war casualty is the first that he was aware of from the Iraq war.

"But it happened a lot during Vietnam," he said. "There's a long history where guys would be wounded in the jungle and they might live long enough to come home. And then they would pass away and were not counted as a combat casualty."

According to an Army study in 2007, 1.4 million people in the U.S. suffer traumatic brain injuries each year. Of those, 50,000 die, 235,000 are hospitalized and 1.1 million are evaluated, treated at a hospital emergency department and released.

A Government Accountability Office study found that of soldiers who required a medical evacuation for battle-related injuries in Iraq or Afghanistan, 30 percent suffered a traumatic brain injury. But it was unknown how many soldiers suffered more mild forms of brain injury.

The family has asked Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., for help. McDonald has a copy of a March 11 letter Feingold sent to Maj. Gen. Galen Jakman at the Pentagon outlining her concerns.

McDonald said her son was a strapping 6-foot-3, 200-pound soldier who served two tours of duty in Iraq and loved the military.

"He was having a problem sleeping since he came back from the war. I don't think it had anything to do with sleep apnea. I think it had to do with bombs," she said. He also had seen a doctor because of severe nose bleeds but was told the symptoms were not that unusual, given his August surgery, she said.

Before he died, McDonald had worked on the base at a weapons room and the post office, she said. He had planned to leave the Army in January to pursue a career in firefighting.

She said she recently ran across a T-shirt that said he helped build a memorial wall at Fort Hood to honor its soldiers killed in Iraq.

"I want his name on that wall," she said. "We don't know what else to do. I have one brother who is saying 'Does it matter. To you, he is a casualty of war. To everyone that knew him, he is a casualty of war.' I am like, well, it kinda does matter."

[dowjones20k]

I am sorry for this families pain ..

However, if this soldier was in the US 6 months after the initial injury and passed away, then I guess technically he would not be considered as such ..

I feel he was and see the mothers point .. but we all know how the beauracacy works .. they love tehcnical reasoning and use it to their advantage whenever possible ...

Shameful & Sad but thats where we are ...

[joyous88]

just another case of republiCON accounting

want to see some more conservative think tank politics

check out our nations economy

[fiteit1]

It''s not uncommon for our government to under report casualties, for the same reason they don''t keep track of Iraqi deaths. Why make it look worse than it already is.

An illegal war, ill thought out attack on a disliked nation going after Bin Laden that has always been hiding in Pakistan.

Our government needs to wake up and count the soldiers that gave their lives for Bush, oil and profits and stop lying to cover up your war crimes.

[gkc99]

Perhaps Blackwater or Halliburton will get a bigger takehome if they don''t have to pay for this soldier''s death.

That fits perfectly with the "morals" of the Bushits and the U.S. Fascist Party.

[excoachken]

This administration has been "cleansing the records" for Iraq for a long time, first to keep the body count down and second to deny the needed care for those wounded soldiers and keep the "cost ratio" in a politically palatable form.

[suleimom]

It is a sad commentary on this country when lives are taken in war, whatever the circumstances, an not counted. Look at the Frank E. Evans during Viet Nam, ship hit, sunk 72 killed, not on the Viet Nam wall because at the time of the accident they were "outside" the war zone.
The loses need to be honored not cast aside on "technicalities" to make the death count less.
I wish politicians and the military would really "Support the Troops". What lip service!!!!!

[cbsblogger]

This country is driven from the top by those that view and manipulate every event to serve their self serving political interests...such as keeping the death of this serviceman hero off the casualty list.

Rev Jeremiah Wright may have been pretty accurate in his assessment of our country. Then we have losers like Nancy Pelosi that take impeachment off the table and refuse to hold them Constitutionally accountable.

[fibonacci_]

Poor guy. :(

[barbaraf4]

Respect and sympathy to McDonald''s family.

This is clearly the most rediculous thing I have ever heard. He has died as a result of wounds received in the theater of war. Show him some respect for crying out loud! If we let the War Department get away with this, then all that exposure to chemical warfare suffered by our people will quickly be swept under the rug. Remember Agent Orange and Gulf War Syndrome. This is just another excuse to disrespect the people who volunteered to go to war.

For those of you considering enlisting, think long and hard.

[stn_sage]

cbsblogger & suleimom & exCoachKen - I agree with you.

This is absolutely goulish! ONLY a thoroughly evil administration would treat it''s country''s soldiers like this! How dare they! It''s clear we surpassed the 4,000 death level a long time ago---they just don''t want the public to find out about it! So, they''re not listing KIA''s as such!

It''s stories like this,on days like this---I wish we could have the election NOW! Kick every last Republican out of office!

[fredhetz]

Pathetic. And how bizarre that a soldier in his barracks isn''t seen by anyone for 3 days?

[stn_sage]

Hello! Is anybody awake in Congress? How about some Democratic leader getting off their rearend and investigating this blatant act of misjustice?!

Where ARE YOU, Nancy Pelosi?! How''s about looking into this?! Oh, that''s right---you''re too busy crying over Tibetan dead in Tibet than to worry about your OWN country''s dead soldiers, aren''t you! You can go with the Reps who are going to get voted out this Fall!

[flreason]

The main reason the military won''t acknowledge these heroes is because their families would get more compensation if they were listed as combat deaths. The brass are treating the troops as cannon fodder--no different from the European monarchies whose endless political wars caused many of their people to emigrate to America. We-the-people must stand up for our active duty military and veterans, since it seems the brass, Congress, and the Executive branch won''t. The only way you can get action from the politicians is if they think their cushy jobs are in jeopardy. If there ever was a cause that deserved marches and protests, this is it!

[madashell4lo]

I am so sick of this administration and the criminals that run it. This is but another example of the length they will go to to improve the immage they portray to the American people.

[xlib]

stn_sage-You want the democratic congress to investigate the military??? The same democratic congress that has demeaned and bad mouthed our military?? The one that sits on funds for our military?? Get real.
Let''s take a look at a precedent for such a tragic death after coming home from the war. Let''s take a look at how these deaths were treated in the past.
THis is just another misleading story by this liberal site. That''s it.

[jaygshaw]

My comment is simple; each person that displays a "Support Our Troops" sign on their vehicles and on their homes MUST write their Senators and Congressmen and DEMAND that such deaths be properly accounted for as direct results of the conflict in Iraq (and Afghanistan). Are there more we have not learned aboout yet?

Do it NOW! TODAY.

[donevis-2009]

Hey Xlib; This is one story in thousands. By not having to reveal a true amount of dead the Government hides its shame by trimming the numbers. So 6000 dead suddenly becomes 26,000 dead. 26,000 families living without their Brothers. Fathers, Mothers, Sisters, Aunts, Uncles, Friends and Mentors. BECAUSE THEY''RE DEAD!!! Oh I''m sorry it''s all the LIBS FAULT!! Wake Up Idiot!!! "God Speed USA"

[j-whitman]

Xlib,,,, You ignorant F_ck, How did our dems in Congress demeaned and bad mouthed our military ??

FYI -- Repubs controlled Congress for the better part of 5 years & they also have an input into funding which quite frankly, billions have been wasted.

[j-whitman]

Xlib,,,,, Is that the Easter Message you are sending to our Troops ???? Lies & Flat Out Ignorance ? Stop abusing our Troops for your dishonorable politics.

[stn_sage]

Xlib- Yes, I do want the Dems to investigate this incident! As they are the majority party now, it''s their responsibility!

You, sir---are WRONG! Whatever shortcomings the Dems have---and they have them---they have NOT bad-mouthed the troops or the job they are doing! They HAVE criticized military leadership---and they should have---when they''ve screwed up, such as at Walter Reed Hospital!

Also, they have NEVER withheld necessary funds for operations or their physical support,sir. They have however---rightfully so---demanded this administration delineate how these funds are going to be used---in order to avoid any more billions of dollars in boxes from getting lost again, etcetera! Do you remember that Xlib?!

Additionally, they have increased spending on vets when it was the Bush administration & former GOP-controlled congress who were stealhily reducing medical coverage on our soldiers!

Finally, yes---let''s stick to ''traditional'' means! Let''s count a soldier dead when he''s shot in the field and not exclude him from the count because he took the hit in the back when his unit was retreating from overwhelming force---and all the other ''gotcha'' calculating done by this administration!

I hope these points serve to adjust your incorrect positions! Happy Easter to you! :)

[tucano2]

Well if death was not cause by medical malpractice it was caused by our other enemy, and therefore is certainly a lingering death from combat wounds. Pick one of these two excuses. Do remember what the choices are, because there are no others.

[jinxy013]

A friend of mine returned from Iraq missing an eye and has shrapnel embedded in his face and head. They operated on him to reconstruct the eye socket to house a prosthetic eye. He now has no hearing in one ear, no feeling on that side of his face, and no sense of smell. They want to operate again and he may lose his sense of taste. He said no. They also said as he ages he may lose brain tissue and memory.
They will not declare him disabled. Hmmm. I guess he''s not a casualty of war either.

[pfd572]

xlib: Pat Tillman''s death would still be falsified if it weren''t for the Dem congress, for instance, so get your head out your butt and get the facts.

I don''t know one Democrat who has bad-mouthed the troops, in fact they are the biggest supporters of these men and women...they want to stop killing them and bring them home. Your so gung-ho, enlist and make the trip. This is just another case of the conservative military leaders continuing to abuse and abandon the troops. When are you ppl going to wake up and see that this administration looks at our troops as fodder, nameless faces with no right to a future. This war is insane, and it is the people who want the troops home who REALLY support them. Your support of this abuse and the administrations failure to support them is like spitting on them and their graves.

[alphaa10-2009]

Bushbot anti-Patriot Whines about Congress-- 2

Do you mean, congress "mistreated the military" when congressmen were the only ones demanding Rumsfeld armor the vehicles running patrol around Baghdad? And while Rumsfeld protested, "You go with the army you have..."

Or do you mean when congressmen demanded Bush overhaul places like Walter Reed, where the roaches run free? Where there is still a huge backlog of cases and staff is stretched to the limit-- all inexcusable overload from the war Bush started?

You want to support the troops? We can start by not sending them on a foolish errand like Iraq. To do what Bush did in Iraq is... UNAmerican!

But what do you think our military accomplished in Iraq? Found WMDs? Removed Saddam-- and unhinged the whole country into the four-year, $1.5 to $2 trillion running civil war and proxy fight it is today? Four thousand American dead, tens of thousands of wounded (DOD doesn''t like to release these figures)-- all, Bush claims, to "avenge" the three thousand who died at 911? Do the math, Bubba.

But you counsel like George Bush, or more aptly, George A. Custer, whose last words must have been, "Where did all these Indians come from?!"

[pfd572]

How many more service men and women have to be abandoned and mistreated by the military and this administration before we start screaming to our Congressmen to do right by these veterans. Write, march, volunteer...do something tangible. This means you xlib.

[alphaa10-2009]

Bushbot Anti-patriot Whines about Congress--

Says he, "You want the democratic congress to investigate the military??? The same democratic congress that has demeaned and bad mouthed our military?? The one that sits on funds for our military??..."
---
Words are cheap, Bubba, and yours need some research behind them.

By mistreating the military, do you mean the occasion when Bush cut appropriations for aid to military families, which congress was ready to provide to spare military families from living on borderline poverty?

Or do you mean running soldiers through two, maybe three tours of duty under an indefinite obligation of service?

Or, do you mean spending on high-cost new weapons systems, but so little on armor for troops, they have to ask their families to help them buy their own? (Talk about outsourcing the military budget.)

(see Bushbot anti-Patriot Whines about Congress-- 2)

Xlib wrote:

"Let''''s take a look at a precedent for such a tragic death after coming home from the war. Let''''s take a look at how these deaths were treated in the past.
THis is just another misleading story by this liberal site. That''''s it."

It seems to me that it''s Republicans who have abandoned our troops - and especially so when they return home in need of help.

Inadequate health care (especially psychological care) and financial support are costing lives - and Republican scum choose to ignore it.

Republicans put profit above supporting our troops - and people like you ensure that continues to happen.

[alphaa10-2009]

lyndajean asks, "How dare they say that her son, James McDonald was NOT a war casualty?! ... What morons!!"
---
By now, most Americans can recount some anecdote of blatant Bush lies. Some remember "We know Saddam has WMDs..." That one''s good, but how about this-- when Bush was asked what 911 had to do with Iraq, Bush said, "Nuttin''"

Calling Bush the "Rhinestone President" is giving him too much credit. "Astroturf President", maybe, but with less emphasis on "president".

After all, Bush is the guy who, in November, 2005, facing an assembly of his own party members critical of his NSA spying program, bristled like a teenager caught drinking after curfew-- "Stop throwing the Constitution in my face! It''s just a GD)((#@*! piece of paper!"

Is this figure, who claims to be president of the United States, the same who pledged an oath to "protect, preserve and defend" the document he calls a "GD)((#@*! piece of paper"?

[alphaa10-2009]

jamesm12341 said, "lol...the meeting of the feebleminds has started..."
---
Nope, not yet. Your Bushbot partners have left.

[ranger1948]

Our government has lied and hid the true figures of war casualties thruout history. They said 58,000 died in Vietnam. They lied. They play with the figures. If a person was wounded and sent out of country for treatment and died he wasn''t considered a war death, If a soldier was snake bit, caught a disease, killed in an accident not combat related, he wasn'';t countesd as a war death. I saw the bodies being shipped home daily, i saw the figures of the actual casualty count. We lost a lot more than 58,000. Write our senators ? They are a part of the govt, they will close ranks and protet their own. Exposure to agent orange will eventually kill me. I am 100% disabled because of it, yet when i die i will not be considered a war casualty. I hope this mother does fight and screams until she gets some answers. My condolences to her and all families who have lost a loved one. My daughter is presently srving in Iraq. Each time i hear another soldier has been killed i wait to get a message from our govt or if i am lucky get an email or im from her.

[ranger1948]

jinxy013
Have your friend contact the DAV. They helped me get my disability. They are a great organization and thy helped me when i wasn''t even a member. Afterwards i bought a lifetime membership for myself and my father. They refuse to take no for an answer.

[MekhongKurt]

I can conceive, if just barely, some reason not to count this soldier as a *known* battle casualty.

But it''s really stretching a point, i.e., so, the autopsy didn''t conclusively establish a link to his war service. Yet it''s inconceivable that he would have died had he *not* served in combat.

Besides, it''s really stretching a point to say, "Well, yes, he got hurt badly, and did suffer a severe brain injury, but we can''t count him as a war casualty."

I reckon his Mother is right: had he not served, he likely would have lived, barring the possibility of accident we all face every day.

I guess the Army folks who determine this stuff have as part of their charge the consideration of legal liability.

It''s sad to learn of an honorable veteran of war only because his status becomes newsworthy. It''s even sadder to see some of the completely irrelevant comments regarding the war, President Bush (whom I don''t like for the record), and so on. The story''s about one vet -- not the amount the war has cost, not the WMD b.s., none of that stuff. It''s about a man who died after serving his country.

[randynason]

So, is this going to be yet another case of the American government sucking dry life energy from it''s finest young men and women and *ucking over yet another grieving family? There''s is something very wrong with the way this government determines what is legitimate and what is ususal "collateral damage," which they (the government) have no responsibility.

[ranger1948]

dowjones20k
With all due respect for your beliefs, he was perfectly healthy until wounded. Sometimes wounds take a long time before killing you. I am 100% disabled from Vietnambut when i die i will not be counted as a war casualty, even though i will die froma direct cause of the war. Agent orange. Barry Sadle who wrote and sang the song "The Green Berets ", died from a gunshot wound to the head 9 months after being shot. Supposedly he was drunk and oplaying russian roulette in a taxi when he shot himself. The man was a trained professional and was working as an arms dealewr when he was shot. I personally think it was an assination. He spoke out against our govt after the war and maybe he was dealing guns to someone our govt didn''t approve of.

[ranger1948]

I would like to give credit where credit is due. I have been treated at Ft Sam Houston Army hospital many times. This hospital and its staff are second to none. They do fantastic job. A lot of wounded soldiers are sent there for treatment. I can say i was proud of everyone i met working in that hospital. I had a heart attack and was treated in the emergency room. They had three heart spcialists working on me that night and my hear attack wasn''t even a severe one. I have total respect for the men and women working there. They are the best i have seen anywhere.

[dannysnana]

This poor women lost her son in a usless war. I agree with her that if this wasn''t going on for the good ole boy''s getting rich,her son would be alive today.

[vincan-2009]

How horrible and unnecessary that so many have died in this war of Bush and Cheney. How terrible that so many have suffered and will continue to suffer because of this war for oil.

[cyberus-2009]

I guess this is another example of how the Bush Administration stands behind the troops ... to bend them over and ram it to them.

[antoniof123]

And another one dies in a useless war of vanity. I hope the neo cons are enjoying this because this will be the last year they ever see power in our life time.

I intend to vote 100 percent Democrat from now on.

Fool me once (Nixon) shame on you, fool me twice (Bush) shame on me, fool me three times never again.

[fstop100]

Hey George, sleep tight tonight. You are one hell of a leader!!!

[pfd572]

jamesm...
So how do you excuse and propagandize the Bush administration''s abandonment of 1,000''s of veterans who have been denied disability, sent back to the war zone before medically cleared, who are not getting adequate post-injury medical care, who have been lied to by recruiters, who are losing homes and savings because they are inadequately paid, etc. etc. etc. Sounds to me like all you can do is the typical right wing, brain-washed mantra-make inane, unsupported comments and name calling to cover up your ''short'' comings. Just what have you and your friends got to be so smug about? Bush and Cheney, et al, have sent this country into a tailspin diplomatically, economically and morally. 70% plus of Americans have such a low opinion of Bush, the lowest approval rating of ANY president. Seems to me most of them are intelligent, reasonable people who have reacted to Bush''s incompetence, lack of empathy and ''let them eat cake'' mentality. Thank God you and your midget minded friends are in a minority.

[pfd572]

Joan McDonald, my prayers and best wishes are with you in your quest for justice. However, I understand that Justice, the military and isolated Republicans (Bush, et al) is an oxymoron.

Your son, and too many like him, deserve so much better. I, for one, will write to my Congressmen to demand they take notice and appropriate action for your son and the others.

May you and your family find peace in the caring thoughts of millions of Americans and Justice for your son.

[pfd572]

My father spend 26 years in the military, he is one of the ''Greatest Generation''. One of the things he was promised when he enlisted, if he made the military his career, was life long health care. Since he retired, he has lost more than half the benefits he was promised for serving his country in three war zones - WWII, Korea, Viet Nam. Example, each year the gov''t reduces his prescription benefits. Wait, one correction, these reductions have occurred when the Republicans controlled Congress and the White House. So don''t talk about something you know nothing about. That is the thanks veterans have been getting from their country. BTW, Postal Employees have ten times the benefits military retirees receive. Do you see something wrong with this?

[feelfree1]

In light of this article, I wonder what the REAL U.S. military death toll is from Iraq, so far?

[jemison4]

amerika''s son''s are cannon fodder because they are stupidly voting against their own interest. you idiots who support the republicans are digging your children''s graves. how long will you be lied to by a party who is pro life and pro war? can''t you see the contradictions, you fools???

[brianbwb-2009]

"Sgt. James W. McDonald, in an undated photo, suffered a severe head wound in Iraq in a bomb blast last May, but the army says what caused his death six months later was undetermined, and thus keeps him off the casualty list."

Just so they won''t have to say "4001" for another day or so.

[brianbwb-2009]

"But it happened a lot during Vietnam," he said. "There''s a long history where guys would be wounded in the jungle and they might live long enough to come home. And then they would pass away and were not counted as a combat casualty."

And the beat goes on, they whip up war fever, and encourage the castigation of all who don''t support it, saying that they "endanger the troops", or "they aren''t patriotic" but after the meat is ground, they play with semantics, and obscure "rules" in order to throw it away, no more patriotic than the worst war critic.

If a citizen volunteers to go into harm''s way, that person has given his life. If he survives the ordeal, that life should be the responsibility of the government, as repayment.

Playing word games to evade responsibility is pure hypocrisy, and those who play them are the real enemy.

[stezzer]

brianbwb

Well said. Intelligently and succinctly put.

[truth_police]

It cannot be stated any more accurately or succinctly than "brianbwb" said it (05:08 AM : Mar 24, 2008), where it is so-well said that it bears repeating:
____

"But it happened a lot during Vietnam," he said. "There''''s a long history where guys would be wounded in the jungle and they might live long enough to come home. And then they would pass away and were not counted as a combat casualty."

And the beat goes on, they whip up war fever, and encourage the castigation of all who don''''t support it, saying that they "endanger the troops", or "they aren''''t patriotic" but after the meat is ground, they play with semantics, and obscure "rules" in order to throw it away, no more patriotic than the worst war critic.

If a citizen volunteers to go into harm''''s way, that person has given his life. If he survives the ordeal, that life should be the responsibility of the government, as repayment.

Playing word games to evade responsibility is pure hypocrisy, and those who play them are the real enemy.

Posted by brianbwb at 05:08 AM : Mar 24, 2008
Repeated by Reflecting_Pool

[barbaraf4]

"But it happened a lot during Vietnam," he said. "There''''s a long history where guys would be wounded in the jungle and they might live long enough to come home. And then they would pass away and were not counted as a combat casualty."

And the beat goes on, they whip up war fever, and encourage the castigation of all who don''''t support it, saying that they "endanger the troops", or "they aren''''t patriotic" but after the meat is ground, they play with semantics, and obscure "rules" in order to throw it away, no more patriotic than the worst war critic.

If a citizen volunteers to go into harm''''s way, that person has given his life. If he survives the ordeal, that life should be the responsibility of the government, as repayment.

Playing word games to evade responsibility is pure hypocrisy, and those who play them are the real enemy." Posted by brianbwb
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It is impossible to improve upon perfection. Congratulations, brianbwb, on an excellent analysis.