#79

LaVena Johnson was a 19 year old private in the Army, serving in Iraq, when she was raped, murdered, and her body was burned [3 years ago] by someone from her own military base. Despite overwhelming physical evidence, the Army called her death a suicide and has closed the case.¹

For three years, LaVena's parents have been fighting for answers. At almost every turn, they've been met with closed doors or lies. They've appealed to Congress, the one body that can hold the military accountable. But, as in other cases where female soldiers have been raped and murdered and the Army has called it suicide, Congress has failed to act.

Will you join Dr. and Mrs. Johnson in calling on Congressman Henry Waxman, Chairman of the House Government Oversight Committee, to mount a real investigation into LaVena Johnson's death and the Army's cover-up²? Will you ask your friends and family to do the same?

http://www.colorofchange.org/lavena/?id=2240-134813

From the beginning, LaVena's death made no sense as a suicide. She was happy and had been talking with friends and family regularly³--nothing indicated she could be suicidal. And when the Johnsons received her body, they noticed signs that she had been beaten.⁴ That was when they started asking questions.

After two years of being denied answers and hearing explanations that made no sense, the Johnsons received a CD-ROM from someone on the inside. It contained pictures of the crime scene where LaVena died and an autopsy showing that she had suffered bruises, abrasions, a dislocated shoulder, broken teeth, and some type of sexual assault. Her body was partially burned; she had been doused in a flammable liquid, and someone had set her body on fire. A corrosive chemical had been poured in her genital area, perhaps to cover up evidence of rape.⁵

Still the Army sticks by their story. They refuse to explain the overwhelming physical evidence that LaVena was raped and murdered and continue to claim that she killed herself.

For many Black youth, and working class young people of every race, the military is seen as an option for securing a better future. LaVena came from a deeply supportive family, and while the military wasn't her only option, she was attracted by its promise to help her pay for a college education and the opportunity to travel around the world. She also thought that by joining she could continue her lifelong commitment to serving other people in need. She made a decision to serve in the military, with all its risks, and expected respect and dignity in return.

LaVena's death is part of a disturbing pattern of cases where female soldiers have been raped and killed, and where the military has hidden the truth and labeled the deaths suicides.^6,7 In virtually all cases, Congress has been slow to investigate or hold the military accountable in any way. Unfortunately, most families simply don't have the resources, time, and psychological strength to push back.

We can help the Johnsons, and other families, by holding Congress accountable in the LaVena Johnson case and by demanding it investigate the pattern of cover-ups by the military.

Please take a moment to join those calling on Congressman Waxman to investigate the cover-up of LaVena Johnson's death:

http://www.colorofchange.org/lavena/?id=2240-134813

Thanks and Peace,

James, Gabriel, Clarissa, Andre, Kai, and the rest of the www.ColorOfChange.org team

References:

IS THIS THE PERPETRATOR or are there others?

Bush OKs Execution of Army Private

WASHINGTON (July 29) President Bush could have commuted the death sentence of Ronald A. Gray, a former Army cook convicted of multiple rapes and murders. But Bush decided Monday that Gray’s crimes were so repugnant that execution was the only just punishment. Bush’s decision marked the first time in 51 years that a president has affirmed a death sentence for a member of the U.S. military. It was the first time in 46 years that such a decision has even been weighed in the Oval Office.

Gray, 42, was convicted in connection with a spree of four murders and eight rapes in the Fayetteville, N.C., area between April 1986 and January 1987 while he was stationed at Fort Bragg. He has been on death row at the U.S. Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., since April 1988.

“While approving a sentence of death for a member of our armed services is a serious and difficult decision for a commander in chief, the president believes the facts of this case leave no doubt that the sentence is just and warranted,” White House press secretary Dana Perino said.

“The president’s thoughts and prayers are with the victims of these heinous crimes and their families and all others affected,” she said.

Bush’s decision, however, is not likely the end of Gray’s legal battle. Further litigation is expected and these types of death sentence appeals often take years to resolve. It also remains unclear where Gray would be executed. Military executions are handled by the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Members of the U.S. military have been executed throughout history, but just 10 have been executed by presidential approval since 1951, when the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the military’s modern-day legal system, was enacted into law.

President Kennedy was the last president  to stare down this life-or-death decision. On Feb. 12, 1962, Kennedy commuted the death sentence of Jimmie Henderson, a Navy seaman, to confinement for life.  President Eisenhower was the last president to approve a military execution. In 1957, he approved the execution of John Bennett, an Army private convicted of raping and attempting to kill an 11yearold Austrian girl. He was hanged in 1961.

Gray was held responsible for the crimes he committed in both the civilian and military justice systems. Silas DeRoma, who left active duty in 1999, was one of several military attorneys who represented Gray on appeal. “It’s disappointing news, as you can imagine,” said DeRoma, who now works as a regulatory attorney in Honolulu for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. He said the basis for some of Gray’s appeals focused on the prisoner’s mental competency and his representation at trial.

In civilian courts in North Carolina, Gray pleaded guilty to two murders and five rapes and was sentenced to three consecutive and five concurrent life terms. He then was tried by general court martial at the Army’s Fort Bragg. There he was convicted in April 1988 and unanimously sentenced to death. The court martial panel convicted Gray of: 

—Raping and killing Army Pvt. Laura Lee Vickery Clay of Fayetteville on Dec. 15, 1986. She was shot four times with a .22caliber pistol that Gray confessed to stealing. She suffered blunt force trauma over much of her body. 

—Raping and killing Kimberly Ann Ruggles, a civilian cab driver in Fayetteville. She was bound, gagged and stabbed repeatedly, and had bruises and lacerations on her face. Her body was found on the base.

—Raping, robbing and attempting to kill Army Pvt. Mary Ann Lang Nameth in her barracks at Fort Bragg on Jan. 3, 1987. She testified against Gray during the court martial and identified him as her assailant. Gray raped her and stabbed her several times in the neck and side. Nameth suffered a laceration of the trachea and a collapsed or punctured lung.

Gray has appealed his case through the Army Court of Criminal Appeals (then known as the U.S. Army Court of Military Review) and the Court of Appeals for the Armed Services. In 2001, the Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

Associated Press writer Martha Waggoner in Raleigh, N.C., contributed to this report.

RESPONSES

Joan,

I did voice my opinion.    This is just awful how the US Military treats serving and retired military.

Carl

From: James Van ColorOfChange.org
To: Carl Hill

Dear Carl,

Thank you for calling on Congressman Waxman to investigate the U.S. Army's cover-up of Pfc. LaVena Johnson's tragic death. Right now we have the chance to hold the U.S. Army and Congress accountable--but we need as many voices as possible speaking up and demanding the truth about LaVena. Can you take a moment and ask your friends and family to add their voice?

Below you'll find a brief letter you can send. Personalize it as you wish or write your own, but please send it along right away. Also,
please only contact people who know you personally. Spam will hurt the effort.

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YOU CAN CUT AND PASTE THE FOLLOWING TEXT:
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Dear Friend,

LaVena Johnson was 19 years old, serving in Iraq as a private in the
Army, when she was raped, murdered, and her body was burned--by someone
from her own military base. Despite overwhelming physical evidence,
the Army called it a suicide and closed the case.[1]

For three years, LaVena's parents have been fighting for answers. At
almost every turn, they've been met with closed doors or lies. But
together we can help achieve justice for LaVena and other families who
have suffered similar tragedies.[2]

Will you join me in standing with the Johnsons and calling on Henry
Waxman, Chairman of the House Oversight Committee, to investigate the
Army's cover-up of Lavena's death? And ask your friends and family to
do the same?

http://www.colorofchange.org/lavena/?id=2685-631786

Thanks.

1. "The cover-up of a soldier's death?" LavenaJohnson.com, March 6, 2007
http://www.lavenajohnson.com/2007/03/cover-up-of-soldiers-death.html

2. "Is There an Army Cover Up of Rape and Murder of Women Soldiers?" CommonDreams.org, April 28, 2008
http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/04/28/8564/

This woman was raped, murdered and her body was burned. . .

This young woman was raped, murdered, and her body was burned... ...the Army called it suicide. Please take a moment to help the Johnsons achieve justice.

Military Rapist

Question: Has the role Blacks have accepted as part of the military forces led to their association and assimilation into the folds of war criminals on all levels, including rape, torture and murder?

WHAT DOES AMERICA MEAN TO US?