A battalion commander with the first Cavalry Division primarily based at Fort Cavazos, Texas, was fired after an investigation discovered he was unqualified to command, Army officers instructed Army.com.
Lt. Col. Damasio Davila was relieved from his place commanding the 2nd Battalion, twelfth Cavalry Regiment, on the set up previously often called Fort Hood on April 26, after being in command since June 2021.
The firing comes after a sequence of high-profile suspensions and questionable conduct amongst senior officers throughout the service, notably at Fort Cavazos. The bottom additionally turned the middle of a nationwide scandal and spurred the Army to overtake its felony investigation divisions following the 2020 homicide of Spc. Vanessa Guillén.
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Army.com reported in April {that a} non-public had died by suicide on the base only a month earlier after telling her household she had been sexually harassed — and a second feminine soldier died by suicide on the identical day, however the Army remained mum.
Davila was relieved as a result of “lack of belief in his potential to command,” Lt. Col. Jennifer Bocanegra, a division spokesperson, mentioned however declined to supply any further details about the investigation. The explanations for Davila’s elimination may vary from normal misconduct to felony motion.
Stars and Stripes was the primary to report on his firing.
Lt. Col. Patrick Merriss, an armor officer and Iraq conflict veteran, assumed command of the battalion final week.
Col. Jon Meredith was additionally fired from his position as commander of 1st Armored Brigade Fight Workforce of the first Cavalry Division in October. The earlier commander, Col. Michael Schoenfeldt, was fired for bullying workers in April 2021 in the course of the unit’s deployment in Europe.
Meredith, who faces a court-martial, is charged with two counts of abusive sexual contact and two counts of conduct unbecoming of an officer, based on a supply with data of the investigation.
His spouse, Col. Ann Meredith, was additionally terminated in January from her position because the commander of the 89th Army Police Brigade, which can be primarily based at Fort Cavazos.
Fort Cavazos was renamed this month as a part of a military-wide initiative to wash Accomplice names from bases and property. Since Guillén’s dying, the bottom has struggled with controversy.
In December 2020, after a evaluate sparked by her homicide, greater than a dozen officers with the bottom have been suspended or fired. The Army’s damning Fort Hood Report discovered systemic points with command together with failures with guaranteeing the protection of troopers, notably ladies.
In that very same yr, at the least 39 troopers on the base died or went lacking, based on reporting from Vainness Truthful.
— Steve Beynon might be reached at Steve.Beynon@navy.com. Comply with him on Twitter @StevenBeynon.
Associated: One other Feminine Soldier Died at Fort Hood. The Base Mentioned Nothing.
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