IGTNT - Under Investigation

There are two words that are dreaded by those of us who write about our fallen. It is hard to write a fitting memorial tribute to someone when the announcement of their death says that the incident is "under investigation."

Today we honor two sailors who have died far from home. Their deaths are still under investigation. This must be an awful time for their friends and family. Please let us be especially kind in our comments.

Petty Officer 1st Class Cherie L. Morton from Bakersfield, California, died April 20th in Galali, Muharraq, Bahrain. She was assigned to Naval Security Force, Naval Support Activity Bahrain. Bahrain is a tiny island nation in the Persian Gulf. It is a U.S. ally and home to the Navy's 5th Fleet.

Airman Apprentice Adrian M. Campos from El Paso, Texas, was found dead in Dubai on April 21st. He was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Support Squadron 22, which was attached to the USNS Arctic. The USNS Arctic is a Navy vessel which is a fast combat support ship.

Petty Officer 1st Class Cherie L. Morton

Sailor Petty Officer 1st Class Cherie L. Morton, 40, of Bakersfield, Calif., died April 20 in Galali, Muharraq, Bahrain.  She was assigned to Naval Security Force, Naval Support Activity Bahrain.

In 1971, United States Navy moved onto an area formerly occupied by British Royal Navy in Bahrain. In 1997, the facilities were built up and the name changed to Naval Support Activity Bahrain.

The Navy base in Manama is the headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet and where roughly 3,600 personnel work. Most of the personnel there live off base.

Millie Slamin, a spokeswoman for Naval Support Activity Bahrain is quoted in the Stars and Stripes:

Morton, who lived off base, was found in her home near the Navy base at 9:20 a.m. Sunday, Slamin said.

Slamin declined to provide details surrounding Morton’s death but ruled out terrorism. "There is no terrorism that is connected with this case," she said.

Nor would she say whether officials suspect foul play, but she added: "The case is under investigation, but no one here feels in any way threatened."

Reports that Morton died of a gunshot wound are erroneous "as there was no gun involved in her death,"

According to the Gulf Daily News:

MYSTERY yesterday surrounded the death of a US sailor in Bahrain, identified as 41-year-old Cherie Morton. Initial hospital notes reported a suspected bullet wound to the back of her head, but a US navy spokeswoman vigorously denied this and said no weapon was involved.

...Navy officials said Ms Morton helped hundreds of enlisted sailors assigned to both Naval Support Activity Bahrain and navy region south-west Asia.

She picked up several awards during her 15 years of service, including the Navy Achievement Medal (two awards) and the Good Conduct Medal (four awards).

Another story in the Gulf Daily News talks of the reaction to Morton's death:

TRIBUTES poured in yesterday for a US sailor found dead at her home in Bahrain, as hundreds of colleagues attended a memorial service at the navy base in Juffair.

Staff of all ranks came out in force to pay respects to Cherie Morton, who leaves behind a son, Brian Trevor, in Los Angeles.

...Ms Morton's body has already been repatriated to the US.

This is from All Headline News:

Manama, Bahrain (AHN) - A memorial service for a U.S. naval officer found dead at her home over the weekend was held Wednesday at the naval support station here.

Navy Petty Officer Cherie Morton, 40, was found dead at her residence in Qalali, Muharraq, on Sunday. Officials say there was no indication that a gun involved in the death, contrary to initial claims that her body had gunshot wounds.

...Morton, 41 was born in Rockville, IL, and graduated from West Rockford High School. She was twice awarded the Navy Achievement Medal and the Good Conduct Medal on four occasions.

She is survived by her father, Richard Gary; her mother, Mary Hughes; and her son Brian Trevor of Los Angeles.

The cause of death is under investigation.


Airman Apprentice Adrian M. Campos

In April 2006, Adrian Campos joined the Navy. Airman Apprentice Adrian M. Campos was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Support Squadron 22, which was attached to the USNS Arctic, a fast-moving supply ship out of Norfolk, Virginia. In November, Adrian Campos' unit was deployed to the Middle East in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

The Airman Apprentice Campos was found dead in a hotel in the United Arab Emirate of Dubai on April 21st, while he was off duty and on liberty.

El Paso Times:

Airman Apprentice Adrian M. Campos, 22, died "due to a non-combat related incident," but further details were not released. Campos' family could not be reached for comment.

...According to information on the Navy's Web site, the USNS Arctic is a high-speed combat supply ship capable of carrying 7 million gallons of fuel, food and ammunition.

...Campos is among at least 4,044 members of the U.S. military who have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

WVEC News

NORFOLK – 13News has learned that a Norfolk-based sailor found dead in Dubai on Monday apparently fell from the hotel.

According to a Fifth Fleet spokesman, Airman Apprentice Adrian M. Campos’ death is being investigated by Naval Criminal Investigative Service.
He was found dead in the atrium of the Ramada Hotel.

The 22-year-old, from El Paso, Texas, was assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Support Squadron 22, based in Norfolk. The squadron is attached to the USNS Arctic.

A story in the El Paso Times relates how U.S. authorities said Campos might have been sitting on a railing and accidently fell from the third floor of the atrium in a Ramada Hotel in Dubai.

"He wanted to see the world, wanted to travel, to see other things other people dream about," said Campos' older brother, Carlos Campos.

Adrian Campos was the youngest of four siblings and graduated in 2003 from Fabens High School, where at one time he was a member of the school's Navy Junior ROTC program. He leaves behind a wife and a 1-year-old daughter, Carlos Campos said. Adrian Campos' wife could not be reached.

Carlos Campos described his younger brother as an outgoing person who enjoyed helping others.

"He was the life of the party," Carlos Campos said.

..."He loved his experience in the Navy. He had a job he liked to do a lot. He worked with helicopters," said Carlos Campos, adding that his brother had the goal of eventually opening his own auto body shop.

The cause of Adrian Campos' death is under investigation.
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The USNS Arctic is designed to escort carrier battle groups. It is one of Military Sealift Command's approximately 120 noncombatant, civilian-crewed ships that replenish U.S. Navy ships, chart ocean bottoms, conduct undersea surveillance, strategically preposition combat cargo at sea around the world and move military equipment and supplies used by U.S. forces

The USNS Arctic

Link to information about the image

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Helping our troops:

If you wish to assist our military and their families, consider Operation Helmet, or Fisher House. If you have frequent flyer miles, they can be donated to hospitalized veterans or their families. See Fisher House’s Hero Miles program for details. Consider sponsoring a deployed service member at TroopCarePackage.com. Letters or care packages can make a real difference in a military person's life. To assist the animal companions of our deployed military, information is available here. Also, you could visit:

When our veterans come back home, they need jobs. Look at the programs of Hire Heroes USA and Welcome Back Veterans to see if you can help out.

There are two recent diaries that have some great suggestions too. Ninepatch’s diary about care packages, and Greenies’ diary, about supporting our troops

About the IGTNT series: "I Got the News Today" is a diary series intended to honor, respect, and remind us of the sacrifice of our troops. Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno, and which is maintained by Sandy on Signal, monkeybiz, noweasels, MsWings, greenies, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, moneysmith, labwitchy, joyful, roses, SisTwo, SpamNunn, and a girl in MI.  These diaries are heartbreaking to write, but an important service to those Americans who have died and to our community’s respect for and remembrance of them. If you would like to volunteer, even once a month, please contact me, Sis. Fallen service members whose names have been released by the Department of Defense will usually be diaried two days after the official announcement on the DoD website. This allows the IGTNT team to cover each person more fully, but still in a timely manner

Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service members mentioned here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.