The US Department of Defense drafted a directive aimed at clarifying the military’s duty to properly investigate non-combat deaths. Unfortunately, we find that this document is not always followed. In some instances, military personnel directly involved in non-combat death investigation are not aware of its existence!
Freedom of Information/Privacy Act
The Federal Freedom of Information Act applies to all US Federal agencies. This includes all of the uniformed military services. Likewise, the Privacy provisions apply to your loved one’s personnel records and other private materials.
Section 1185 of Public Law 103-160
There was an attempt at legislation to insure the proper investigation of all military suicides to determine if they were actual or staged homicides. This came as a result of hearings which included the testimony of the families of men and women killed in improperly investigated non-combat deaths. Click on the link above to read about it.
A Line of Duty Investigation is required in cases of non-combat death.
Subject: Military Personnel Casualty Matters, Policies, and Procedures, December 18, 2000, 54 pages
Air Force Instruction 36-3002, 2010: Casualty Services
If you are a family member of an active servicemember killed in a non-combat death, and you feel that any of these Directives or procedures for dealing with families was not followed properly, please contact us. We are gathering information from families to see whether our Department of Defense and/or the various Military Services follow their own rules regarding the investigation of non-combat deaths.
Please consider creating an account at whitehouse.gov and sign our petition.
Instructions 5505.10 and 1300.18 regarding non-combat
deaths.
“All military non-combat deaths, not of natural
causes, must be investigated as potential homicides, as the most current
Department of Defense Instructions, 5505.10 and 1300.18 specify. We believe that
the Department of Defense should obey their own guidelines regarding
investigations. Rules about informing family members of these fallen military
men and women should be followed. Breaches of the Uniform Code of Military
Justice by members of the Armed Forces which have contributed to these
non-combat deaths or to the dissemination of false official statements must be
punished according to the UCMJ. An independent review panel should be created to
investigate discrepancies presented by families. “
