Paper: Dead Army Wives Wanted Divorce

[Arrow]

Paper: Dead Army Wives Wanted Divorce
Sunday, August 04, 2002

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. ? Four Army wives who investigators say were killed by their husbands all wanted to get out of their marriages, a newspaper reported Sunday.

The deaths at Fort Bragg in June and July have prompted post officials to promise a review that will include how the military deals with marital problems.

Three of the husbands were special operations soldiers who had been deployed to Afghanistan, but investigators discounted a direct connection to wartime service.

``It's not like all three went to Afghanistan, came back and killed their wives,'' Lt. Sam Pennica of the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office told The Fayetteville Observer. ``They all had ongoing marital problems before the war.''

The newspaper reported that Jennifer Wright, 32, told her parents in January she was ``tired of being a military wife'' and wanted a divorce. Investigators said her husband, Master Sgt. William Wright, 36, killed her at the end of June, then confessed three weeks later and led authorities to her body.

Marilyn Griffin, 32, separated from her husband of eight years in May, for the third time. Two months later, she was stabbed to death and her body set on fire in her home. Sgt. Cedric Griffin, 28, who worked in the commissary and had never been to Afghanistan, was charged.

Investigators and family believe Teresa Nieves, 28, and Andrea Floyd also told their husbands they wanted to separate in June.

Lawmen said Sgt. 1st Class Rigoberto Nieves, 32, shot his wife in the head and himself June 11. Sgt. 1st Class Brandon Floyd killed Andrea on July 19, then turned the gun on himself.

There was no indication that threats of separation played any role in a fifth death on July 23, of Maj. David Shannon, 40. His wife and a teenager were arrested last week. Investigators believe Shannon was killed for insurance money.

Andrea Floyd's mother, Penny Flitcraft, told the newspaper she believes her daughter's desire to leave undercut Brandon Floyd's sense of control.

Kendra League, one of Andrea's best friends, said he was a perfectionist and wanted the perfect wife.

``She struggled to please him. She was tall, blond and beautiful. He would tell her she was fat and she needed to do something with herself,'' said League, who lives in Syracuse, N.Y.

[Keith_Hixson]

As I have said before on this issue:

Those personality types who are attracted to high intensity training and high achieving are the same kind that often have to be in control. Controllers have big ego's and big egos break easy. To be rejected as a husband and lover could cause them to crack.

The majority of the guys attracted to that level of service don't crack and they are great soldiers but I believe there is a connection. "Can't throw the baby with the bath water."

When I was a mayor we established a series of psychological tests for our police officers. If you flunked the test, you didn't get hired. We had over half flunk out. Police work is attractive to the same type of folks.

The military should start doing some in depth psychological testing before allowing these guys to go into high intensity training. I think quite a few would show significant emotional problems and not be allowed to enter the program.

Anyway that's my opinion, based on many years of personal experience.

Keith

[judyvillecco]

Good advice Keith..I agree...too bad the military doesn't believe in mental health! They put people out with mental health problems. Don't ask don't tell. Too bad for those wives don't you think? Wish they would listen to guys like you with experience.

[Keith_Hixson]

Men like that would kill their wives in the military or out. In the police force or out. However, the military as police departments should do proper testing to prevent these guys from getting into highly responsible positions where they might even do greater harm to society.

Keith

[SEATJERKER]

...of questions regarding each, and every one of these cases...

...1 were any of the wives "inservice members prior to marriage?...
...2 how many (all?) had problems before the special op's became special op's,
...3 don't lump either side together in any one catagory for the sake of a "news story"
...4How many special op's "wanted the ""best looking"" """wife""" as per """"the perfect image"""" of a special op's I'm the best, and I have the best etc...
...5 How many of the wives wanted the "perfect macho elite fighting man in the world" to feather their cap also without considering what the true meaning of what it takes to be a """wife"... let alone the """"wife of a soldier"""", or the """"""""wife of a special operations soldier before making a commitment of such...


...having been married to an in service member during my time being "active" and knowing how tough it was even to be married, let alone to one in service, I can attest to the trails, and troubles that can arise,...My ""newlywed bride, and myself tried to make a go of it...two live cheaper then one, right....we'll compounding that by the workload, and split shifts etc tales it's toll, and then adding on when a "female problem" arose, the "competent good doctors" make a deceision to "whack out" her reproductive organs two days after informing her what was supposedly wrong??? another "unwarrented practice surgery???, without a second opinion etc.......
....men, or wemon can both lose it,... she did, 3-4 weeks after the surgery, after healing, she went AWOL for 32 days while I was sent on a TDY to Fla, (no they wouldn't let me stay as I was scheduled to go...., no one wanted to switch the TDY with me so I went...
...I never even knew my self what happened until she returned, and told me herself, You just can't take away a women's ability to have children,, and send a husband TDY with such a crisis looming after surgery for such as that.....so, she got busted, and thrown in the city jail as the base didn't have a "
brig" for women, she just didn't want to be a soldier, or a wife anymore???, so you all can see why my commanding officer didn't like me in the first place, my wife was the "black shhep of the whole base, as she "tarnished" the rep of the base etc...
...who suffered, we both did, can I blame her, no, as I belive the "adheasions" she supposdly had was an easy excuse to go in anf give some asshole a chance to "practice.....
...soldiers, and marriages are a hard combo on an average level, the special op's must be that much higher in all aspects of lfe, and service.....................

[Arrow]

C you hit the nail on the head on every point. You also brought out the very dark side of military service. It makes me sick to hear what happend to the two of you. I know you found peace with a good lady. I hope your first wife found some peace too. Your story is all to familiar regard military health? care. They damn near killed me and my youngest when I was in delivery. What a nightmare experience. But the Father made me strong through it. sis

[Keith_Hixson]

Seatjerker,

You hit the nail on the head, from your personal experience.

1. There are women who are attracted to a "man in uniform."
They want someone who can protect them, who is a man's
man. They are attracked to image of "extreme macho."

I have counciled more than few ladies who have been in out
of abusive relationships. It is there attraction to these type of
men, they know they are "jerks," but I can change them.
(Co-dependancy) Some of these ladies will be beat to a pulp
and still go back to their man or get a divorce and find another
jerk that will beat up on them.

2. The military lifestyle can be very rough on marriages. I
wouldn't marry my fiancee until I was out. I didn't want to
start my married life married to Uncle Sam and my fiancee all
at the same time. Its rough.

3. Blame can go both directions in these situations. But . . . .
there is no excuse for murder and physical abuse. Real
men . . . (Real Women) . . . . . walk away and solve their
domestic problems in a civil manner.

I am sorry to hear about your situation. I'm glad you made it through it all. It must have been rough.


Keith

[Seascamp]

While in the yards at Hunters Point my favorite hang out was San Francisco?s Mickey Finns. There was also a Mickey Finns in San Diego at the time. It was a beer /peanuts sing along place with live banjo and all that. There I met a really nice gal who was a fledgling nurse at the SF hospital. Long story short-I was going back on 7th fleet deployment when the yard period was over and felt it would be really unfair to her to start an emotional involvement. So we said our farewells almost as soon as we said hello. At the time I knew that the military and emotional involvements don?t mix at all. The one sure thing was that the first mail chopper out of Da Nang on the first day of deployment brought all the ?Dear Johns? and there was more or less an ad hoc anchor pool on who was going to get it. Kind of a cruel bet but that?s how we kept the green side up. The axe cut both ways and the wedding bands were put away as soon as we cleared the breakwater and it was a usual deal to see guys sunning their ring finger to tan out the white ring.
In time and distance, I?m sure I made the right decision but she was a really nice gal from Indiana that I?ll always have fond memories of. Her name is Diane.

Scamp

[judyvillecco]

If we wanted you to have a family we would have issued you one. Uncle Sam.