Goodrum is not able to recall exactly when he first began experiencing symptoms of PTSD. He had some symptoms in Iraq, but that is normal for that environment. Other symptoms began to appear during evacuation and gradually got worse. Goodrum said he does not know which event, or combination of events, might have triggered his PTSD, or whether he might have been more susceptible because of his combat service in the first Gulf War on the USS Missouri. His gun team fired on Iraqis, and the ship was nearly hit by an Iraqi missile.

That summer, Goodrum was medically evacuated to Fort Knox because of wrist injuries, a legacy of his job of loading 65-pound shells on the USS Missouri. He has had surgery on his left wrist but is waiting to have the other wrist treated until he gets out of the Army. He still wears a brace on that hand.

On Aug. 20, a few weeks after Goodrum's evacuation, a soldier in Goodman's unit, Sgt. Kenneth Harris, was killed in a gruesome truck wreck that cut him in half. Soldiers from the unit have said it was a preventable accident caused or exacerbated by the shoddy vehicles. "Kenneth Harris wouldn't be dead if the vehicles had been better maintained," Jr. Staff Sgt. Reginal Coleman told This Is Rumor Control, a foreign-policy and security-issues blog, about the fatal accident. Coleman was in one of the vehicles involved. Goodrum clearly hurts when the topic comes up, even though by the time the accident occurred, Goodrum was back in the States.

When he got to Fort Knox, Goodrum fell into the "medical hold" bottleneck, in which many soldiers waited weeks and sometimes months for medical care. The Army later pledged tens of millions to fix the problem, and Congress held hearings. Goodrum's on-the-record quote in the UPI wire article I filed was: "I have never been so disrespected in my military career. I have never been so treated like dirt."

Goodrum had never before filed a formal complaint against the Army. But the equipment situation in Iraq was so dire, he says, that he decided to make noise about it. And Harris' death only made him angrier.

Goodrum criticized Capt. Randall Fisher, his superior officer in Iraq, saying Fisher should have done a better job of fixing the problems that may have contributed to the death of Harris. Fisher was not present at the accident but said that it was due to "driver's negligence" and that "an investigation determined that the truck that Sgt. Harris was driving was fine," according to a summary of Fisher's sworn statements prepared by the Army. A spokesman for the 81st Regional Readiness Command in Birmingham, Ala., Maj. William Ritter, said Fisher did not want to comment on what he called a "he said, she said type of thing." But when he testified in Goodrum's disciplinary proceedings, Fisher characterized the unit's equipment and trucks as being in good shape.

It is unclear what investigation of the accident Fisher was referring to. Goodrum's defense team requested reports on any investigation into the incident and received a two-page report that lists the basics of the accident, like the location and time of the crash. It says nothing about what might have caused it. Goodrum said the inspector general from the Army Reserve looked into the 212th and gave me the name of the investigator. A spokesman for the Army Reserve, Steve Stromvall, would not confirm or deny that such an investigation had taken place or let me talk to the investigator.

Goodrum says he has talked to three soldiers present at the accident. (One of those soldiers, Coleman, confirmed Goodrum's account.) He says all three said Harris' vehicle had been recently "deadlined" and was breaking down in the desert and falling behind the main convoy. It was racing to catch up when it slammed into the back of the convoy, severing Harris in half. "That vehicle should have never been out there," Goodrum told me.

At Fort Knox that summer and fall, Goodrum became increasingly frustrated because nobody in the Army would take any action on his complaints. On Oct. 15, 2003, he sent a letter to Rep. William Jenkins, R-Tenn. In the letter he wrote, referring to Fisher, "It is also my professional and common sense observation that the commander has fostered an unsafe climate for the company." He continued, "This commander is not fit to command and has fostered an unsafe command climate, which has resulted in a soldier getting killed under his command." Almost immediately, Jenkins asked the Army to look into Harris' death.

Goodrum's confrontation with the Army was about to turn toxic.

At the same time, Goodrum's mental condition was deteriorating. The symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder often do not appear until some time after a traumatic event. Panic attacks, depression, sudden bouts of anger, paranoia and suicidal thoughts are symptoms. Some soldiers have frightening homicidal thoughts, as well.

Goodrum says his condition didn't prevent him from doing what he believed was the right thing in blowing the whistle on the Army. "Unless you are in the midst of a panic attack or totally dysfunctional, you still know right from wrong," Goodrum said. "Don't get me wrong, if I get in a rage I might not know what is going on. But I still know right from wrong. Just because you have PTSD does not mean you are totally crazy."

Recent Stories