Army Secretary Notes Challenges of Detecting Insider Threats

 

David Vergun at the Army News Service offers the below piece:

WASHINGTON, April 4, 2014 - The Army has done a great deal since the tragedies at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009 to track the insider threat, "but something happened, something went wrong, and we need to know what that was," Army Secretary John M. McHugh told lawmakers yesterday.

McHugh was responding to questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee regarding the April 2 shootings at Fort Hood that left four dead, including the alleged gunman, Army Spc. Ivan Antonio Lopez.

After Lopez killed three fellow soldiers, he committed suicide. Sixteen other soldiers were injured, three critically.

Fort Hood was the scene of another mass shooting in November 2009, when then-Army Maj. Nidal Hasan killed 13 people and injured others.

Behavioral health screenings done at least annually and more often when soldiers deploy are among the proactive measures the Army uses to detect possible insider threats. Those screenings could point to tendencies towards violence, McHugh said.

McHugh explained to lawmakers that there are several types of behavioral health assessment "touch points." Assessments are conducted for soldiers 180 days prior to deployment, within 90 days when they get to the deployment theater, 30 days after redeployment, and then 90 days after redeployment. All soldiers also get an annual screening, irrespective of their deployment status.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Ray Odierno, who also testified at the hearing, added that the number of behavior health counselors and screenings has increased by about 150 percent over the last five years. "We've made some really good progress here," he added.

McHugh pledged that Army officials will examine the latest tragedy and learn from it. "If we failed in some way against our current policies, we need to be honest with ourselves and with you and hold ourselves accountable," he told the Senate panel. "But if we identify new challenges, new threats we hadn't recognized before, we have to put into place programs to respond to them."

Odierno agreed that finding insider threats is challenging, and he pointed out what he called "the biggest problem we have."

That problem, he said, is balancing the need to share information with commanders and the chain of command, while also protecting an individual's right to privacy. "It's a real dilemma," the general said.

Without knowing about insider threats, commanders and others in the chain of command don't know when a problem exists, Odierno added.

"So the secretary and I are really doing the best we can to come up with processes that allow us to share information," he said, "because in a lot of cases, that's the problem. There is some limitation to what we can do. And we're trying to do the best we can."

Soldiers might not come forward with mental health problems if they know their privacy concerns are not going to be addressed. This attaches a stigma to the notion of seeking care.

"We are doing everything we can to de-stigmatize seeking help," McHugh said.

Odierno held out a solution, suggesting that the Army, along with members of Congress, can work together on creating ways for better information sharing to have "the ability to really understand when soldiers are having problems," while also addressing the need for confidentiality. He pointed out that the alleged shooter was screened and was receiving counseling.

"So in a lot of ways, the system worked," the general said. "But obviously, it didn't work completely, because in the end, he made some decisions that obviously cost other people's lives."

McHugh added: "We've really increased our behavioral health encounters in the Army and we view that as positive. Folks are reaching out more. They're asking for help more voluntarily. But then, sometimes things happen, like happened [April 2], that we fail to understand.

"So we're trying to keep as close a watch on our soldiers as we can," he continued, "but clearly, we believe there are more things we can do to identify problems in the earliest stages of their development."

Odierno added that the Army has recently put behavioral specialists into brigades, something not done before. However, he noted, some soldiers would rather get behavioral health treatment off-post to avoid the possibility of being identified by their unit as someone with a mental health issue.

Funding off-post behavioral health could be something the Army will look into, he added.

Behavioral health issues are "something we're going to have to deal with for a very long time, and that's a consequence of 13 years of war," Odierno said. "And so, we're going to have to make sure that we have the systems in place to do this."

Note: The above photos were released by the U.S. Army.

Officials Focus On Cause Of Fort Hood Shooting

Terri Moon Cronk from the American Forces Press Service offers the below piece:

WASHINGTON, April 3, 2014 - The Defense Department and the Army are working to determine why a soldier killed three others and wounded 16 before taking his own life yesterday at Fort Hood, Texas, a Pentagon spokesman said here today.

"Both DOD and the Army are focused on finding the root cause of this incident, comforting victims and assuring [them] our military communities are safe places to live and work," Army Col. Steve Warren told reporters.

Warren expressed DOD's condolences, as well as his own, to the service members, military families and civilian employees affected by the shooting.

"My heart is personally broken for my brothers and sisters at Fort Hood," he said. "We are certain the Fort Hood community will once again prove their resilience and let the world know [why it is] called, 'The Great Place.'"

Fort Hood officials have scheduled a news conference later today to provide more details about the incident, possibly including the alleged shooter's name. Details from his military records also are expected to be released at some point, Warren added, although it's unknown when that will occur.

Investigators at Fort Hood are talking to personnel at the gunman's previous duty station "to determine the facts surrounding his behavioral health status," the colonel said.

Yesterday's incident was the second mass shooting in less than five years at Fort Hood, Warren said, noting that the Defense Department has "poured a tremendous amount of resources, time, energy and money into examining these exact issues since 2009, and again after the [Washington] Navy Yard shooting."

Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, a psychiatrist, opened fire at Fort Hood on Nov. 5, 2009, killing 13 and injuring more than 30 others. A contract employee and military veteran entered the Washington Navy Yard and opened fire Sept. 16, killing three, injuring eight before turning the gun on himself.

"While we still have a long way to go and there's still room for improvement," Warren told reporters, "it is safe to say we've put a tremendous amount of resources against this problem."

Investigation Continues On Fort Hood Shooter

Yesterday Jim Garamone at the American Forces Press Service offered the below piece on the Fort Hood shooting by U.S. soldier Ivan Lopez (seen in the above photo):

WASHINGTON, April 2, 2014 – A soldier killed three fellow soldiers and wounded 16 more before killing himself at Fort Hood, Texas, officials said tonight.

There is no evidence that the incident is related to terrorism, said Army Lt. Gen. Mark A. Milley, the commander of 3rd Corps and Fort Hood.

“We are not ruling anything out, and the investigation continues,” the general said during a late-night news conference. “Our focus now is to focus on the families of the injured, and focus on the families of the killed [to] ensure they have the best care and counseling available.”

The soldier used a recently purchased .45-caliber pistol and first fired on personnel in the 1st Medical Brigade at about 4 p.m. CDT before moving on to the 49th Transportation Battalion. 

A military policewoman confronted him in a parking lot, where he drew his pistol and killed himself. Milley called the MP’s actions heroic. 

The soldier – whose name is withheld until his next of kin are notified – had some behavioral health and mental health issues and was being evaluated for post-traumatic stress, Milley said. “When we have these kinds of tragedies on our bases, something is not working,”

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said during a news conference in Hawaii, where he has been attending a conference of Pacific-nation defense ministers and visiting U.S. forces.  In a written statement issued by the Pentagon, Hagel stressed that nothing is more important to the department than the safety and well-being of service members and their families. “I am grateful to all the first responders who rushed to the scene,” he said. “We will closely monitor the situation at Fort Hood and stay informed by what investigators and law enforcement personnel learn about the shooting.”

President Barack Obama also is following the situation closely. In an appearance in Chicago, the president said DOD, federal and state officials will work together to find out what happened and why. Obama said the shooting reopens the pain of the shootings at Fort Hood five years ago. “We know these families,” he said. “We know their incredible service to our country and the sacrifices that they make. Obviously, our thoughts and prayers are with the entire community.”

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the thoughts and prayers of the greater military community are with those at Fort Hood. “Many questions remain, and our focus is on supporting the victims and their families,” Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey said in a statement released at the Pentagon. “This is a community that has faced and overcome crises with resilience and strength.”Personnel on the base were ordered to shelter in place, and the order was lifted about 10 p.m. EDT.