A Falling Star
Owen Ray began his profession within the Army as a Personal. He labored his means as much as turning into a full fowl (O-6) Colonel, chief of workers of I Corps, and was a former commander of the first Special Forces Group (Airborne). On high of that, he served as a navy help to President Obama for a number of years. A distinguished achievement by anybody’s accounting. On December twenty seventh, 2020, Ray was arrested on felony home violence costs. In line with the DuPont, Washington police division, the embellished officer was accountable for a two-hour standoff that resulted in his being charged with two counts of felony harassment, kidnapping within the first diploma, and reckless endangerment. Their press launch additionally famous that they had been dispatched “for a home assault in progress involving a firearm.”
Stars and Stripes experiences charging paperwork sourced in Pierce County Superior Courtroom state that the Special Forces officer has apparently been ingesting earlier than the confrontation and threatened to kill any police officer who tried to arrest him. The information present that police arrived on the Ray residence shortly after midnight on the twenty seventh, and he allowed his spouse and kids to depart the scene by 12:30 AM. The assault costs had been made on account of allegations that Ray kicked his spouse within the face and chest together with his boots. The Colonel maintained that she was injured on account of him opening a door together with her on the opposite aspect.
After surrendering, Colonel Ray, 48, was booked into Pierce County Jail and has been free on $100,000 bail since January of 2021.
A spokesman for I Corps, Lt. Col. Neil Penttila, was fast to tell the press that Ray had been suspended. He put out the next assertion:
“We’ve been in touch with native regulation enforcement, who’ve knowledgeable us that the investigation remains to be on-going. Whereas the investigation continues, we’ll work carefully with the Household and the Officer to supply help providers together with counseling, conduct well being help, and authorized help. The security of everybody concerned is the command’s precedence.”
Battle and Remembrance
Upon listening to of Colonel Ray’s case, I instantly recalled an incident from Fort Carson, Colorado, residence of the tenth Special Forces Group (Airborne) and my final responsibility station. “Incident” is far too delicate a phrase to explain what occurred there. That phrase makes it sound like a minor automotive accident. It was March 2003. Chief Warrant Officer Invoice Powell and his spouse Laura lived in Monument, CO…rather less than half an hour’s drive from Submit.
Invoice had completed up a five-month deployment to Iraq, his third, I consider and had been residence for about three weeks. The couple had three children; the youngest was solely seven months outdated on the time. Round 9:30 PM, an area 911 dispatcher acquired a name; it was Laura:
“My husband simply hit me, and he’s going downstairs to get his gun.”
In line with the police document, she hung up and tried to get away. I heard a bunch of discuss on the time about what he supposedly stated, however that’s rumour; I gained’t write about any of that. Suffice it to say; I don’t assume he was very glad in regards to the police being referred to as on him.
Laura recalled that her husband pulled a .357 revolver from his waistband, pointed it in her face, and stated, “You’re going to observe this.” Within the subsequent few moments, law enforcement officials made their means by means of the icy yard. They will need to have caught Invoice’s consideration, and after they did, Laura took the split-second alternative to knock his arm up and away, the weapon now not pointed at her. Invoice’s subsequent motion was to place the gun to his temple and pull the set off. Similtaneously Invoice’s deadly shot, a police officer shot him within the arm.
Laura would later inform police that she may make no sense of what occurred, “He was a superb dad and a superb officer,” she stated. She additional remarked, “The man standing in that door that night time was not my husband. He under no circumstances resembled him. The look in his eyes was, ‘Who’re you?’ It was demise.”
That is however one of many quite a few suicides of troopers assigned to the Mountain Submit. There have been so many who documentaries have been made in regards to the topic.
No Lack of Life within the Ray Case
Even though Col. Ray supposedly made quite a few threats and had a pistol throughout his hours-long standoff with police, he didn’t kill anybody. That was a significant level that his protection group made to the jury throughout his trial. In line with Cision PR Newswire (Supply: Jared Ausserer, Puget Legislation Group), a jury discovered Colonel Ray not responsible of kidnapping and never responsible of two counts of harassment. Nonetheless, he was discovered responsible of 1 depend of assault within the second diploma, one depend of harassment, and reckless endangerment.
Ray’s protection group argued that he “suffered an emotional and psychological breakdown from the cumulative impacts of untreated psychological and bodily well being points, operational and profession stress throughout eight deployments, high-pressure jobs, and extreme relationship misery resulted in a state of full psychological exhaustion.” Throughout his 20 months on bail, Ray was evaluated by the Division of Veterans Affairs and was discovered to be 100% Completely and Completely disabled because of the severity of his service-connected well being circumstances, which included traumatic mind harm and despair.
The Colonel has issued the next assertion to the press:
Learn Subsequent: What Colonel Owen Ray’s Case Tells Us About Submit Traumatic Stress
“There aren’t any phrases that adequately clarify how sorry I’m for any worry that my youngsters and spouse felt the night I made a decision to finish my life. I deeply remorse any unintended bodily hurt that my spouse encountered on account of me kicking the door. I by no means meant to harm anybody apart from myself. For the final two years, I’ve labored, in full compliance with the courtroom and authorized system, and sought medical remedy to heal mentally and bodily. I’ve religion that the night time I made a decision to dwell versus ending my life will result in restoration and hope – not only for myself however for my household and others.”
In line with Stars and Stripes, Ray was honorably discharged from the Army final 12 months.
Throughout his time awaiting sentencing, the Colonel will need to have employed a PR agency as a result of there may be a complete professionally achieved web site at owenray.com that addresses how folks (particularly former service members) can finest search assist for points with their psychological well being. I’m attempting to not be cynical right here. It’s not my job to guage Colonel Ray. That has already been achieved by a jury of his friends. On the similar time, I really feel that navy officers of any rank will not be above the regulation. I’ve carefully reviewed the Colonel’s web site, and there are a whole lot of helpful assets on there.
On October twenty eighth, 2022, Colonel Ray was sentenced to 60 months behind bars. Shortly thereafter, his attorneys introduced their intent to enchantment the responsible verdicts. His lead counsel acknowledged:
“We thank the jury and the Courtroom for his or her onerous work, consideration, and for the a number of not-guilty verdicts for Colonel Owen Ray. Nonetheless, Colonel Ray doesn’t agree with the responsible verdicts and shall be interesting all convictions. It was clear, based mostly on our dialogue with the jury afterwards, there was a misunderstanding and misapplication of the regulation. That, together with a number of points, shall be challenged on enchantment.”
That is an ongoing story, and SOFREP will report again at a future time on the outcomes of the appeals course of.
