My name is Heather Baker and I am a Gold Star Mother. A lot of people aren’t even aware of what a Gold Star Family is and one
of my goals is to change that. A Gold Star Family never chooses the title. We become Gold Star Families when we lose a loved
one in uniform. What’s different about my Gold Star is that my son’s death was not on the battlefield or in combat. My son died in
his barracks, alone and neglected. My Gold Star means I now carry the torch to seek justice for my son. My Gold Star has given a
new meaning to my life, my purpose, and my path. My Gold Star means that I will never stop asking, seeking, and fighting until
we have answers.
There is a wall that stands between us and justice. Brick by brick this wall will be taken down. The Vanessa Guillen
family gallantly put a spotlight on this wall for the world to see…. And now, we are bringing the wrecking ball to tear it down.
Each brick is defined by our loved ones who have died under suspicious circumstances, cover ups, neglect, harassment, bullying,
sexual assault, medical malpractice, murder and unspeakable acts. Lives lost such as Gregory Wedel, Austin James Hawk,
Lavena Johnson, Vanessa Guillen, Kamisha Block, Brandon Caserta, Danyelle Lucky, MasonWebber, Carri Leigh
Goodwin,Enrique Roman-Martinez, Tina Priest, Brandon Rosecrans, Caleb Smither my beloved son, and countless others have a
brick in this wall and we will not stop shouting their names until change happens. Each brick has a unique story and this is my
son’s.
“PV2 Smither
PV2 CALEB Smither
PV2 CALEB GEANT Smither
PRIVATE SECOND CLASS… CALEB GRANT SMITHER” The haunting chours that closed his memorial at Ft Bragg.
PV2 Caleb Smither was my beautiful 19 year old ambitious paratrooper of the 82nd Airborne Division in Fort Bragg. He
was a picture perfect soldier of pristine health, youth, and vitality. His military goals included Hotel 8, Zapper, Ranger, and Air
Assault. He wrote of his desires to become a better mechanic and soldier. Caleb was a true patriot and he was enthusiastic about
serving his country to the fullest. His personality radiated human kindness, compassion, selflessness, and the epitome of love. He
lived his life fully by the Latin creed “Amat Victoria Curam”, victory loves preparation, and he was wholeheartedly prepared to
valiantly defend his country, however, he was never prepared to die behind enemy lines inside the same country he swore to defend.
On January 22nd, 2020, I was notified by two beautifully decorated soldiers that my son was found deceased in his barracks. (At
this point in time Caleb Smither was only in the army for less than eight months and at Ft Bragg for 7 weeks and 4 days before
he was lost in a non-combat incident. Caleb at 19 yrs old, was the first death of 2020, according to a 2020 congressional
research service report nearly 75% of active duty deaths occurred in non combat, with 93% of those deaths occurring on US soil.
Working as a 91 Lima track line mechanic, Caleb was servicing a M105 Earthmover vehicle on January 13th when he reported
hitting his head. He proceeded to take 3 trips to the emergency room at Womack Army Medical Center (WAMC), presenting with
symptoms of a severe concussion or worse, and he was simply sent home with medication for pain and nausea that you would
administer to a cancer patient. In the investigation that was done by the Army Criminal Investigation Devision, or CID, there was
testimony from both Caleb’s Captain and his First Sgt, who testified that he was “turned away” from the WAMC the first time he
sought medical treatment after hitting his head on the Radiator of a M105 Earthmover.
After he showed up late to morning formation the next day wearing night vision goggles so that he could make the sunlight
bearable and report to duty despite throwing up and being in severe pain. When he was finally escorted to the WAMC, two
consecutive days in a row, he was simply sent home with medication for pain and nausea. A CT scans taken during one of those
ER visits showed evidence that further treatment was needed but was apparently disregarded by the medical staff at WAMC.
After a lack of testing, a disregard of his symptoms and history of his head injury in relation to his symptoms, and negligence to
treat him, on January 15th, my son was sent home to die a miserable death alone, while surrounded by thousands of his brothers
and sisters on his base.
Over six days later Caleb would be discovered in his room. His body was decomposed to the point that when Caleb was discovered
he was in the 5th stage of decomposition, his body was putrefied, his hands were mummified, and his flesh was falling off his
body. Rather than checking on him, his roommate proceeded to spray Febreeze to cover up the smell of his rotting flesh.
We were not able to see him one last time or have an open casket for Caleb because I was notified a week after his death that he
was not viewable due to the decomposition of his body, so instead he was sent home to his family and community, not only in a
flag-draped coffin, but in a body bag as well.
Now, I am still left needing answers. Why didn’t anyone check on him for 6.5 days? Where was his chain of command? What ever
happened to following accident or injury protocol? Where was his roommate? Where was the soldier that was ordered to check on
Caleb and then later lied about doing so in the CID investigation? Why would the Army leave a man behind on their own base to
die surrounded by his fellow soldiers? During the commands final review, they state that, “ there was no standard protocol in
place to check on injured soldier”, how is this possible when the army states in its Soldier’s Creed that they will never leave a
fallen comrade which is reiterated again in the NCO creed– Competencies is my watchward my two basic responsibilities will be
uppermost in my mind, accomplishment in my mission and the welfare of my soldiers. The same notions are uttered in the
Paratroopers creed, such as I will never fail my fellow comrades by shrinking any duty or training and fighting as a team. How
could he be expected to devote his life and live by these creeds that ultimately failed him? Almost 2 years later, I have still not
received answers to justify what happened to my son. Basic facts that anyone would expect to have are being withheld and it’s unclear whether these will ever be revealed.
The few reports I have received only leave me to draw conclusions and raise only more questions. The lack of transparency and
the growing mountain of missing information and facts causes me to question the integrity and accountability of those responsible.
My son’s autopsy report subsequently ruled his death as meningitis; something that he had a required vaccine for and that could
have been treated had correct medical procedures been followed. Symptoms of this were seen in his medical records and on the CT scan, but why was this overlooked or neglected by the medical staff?
Why did the CID negate the evidence of his phone records and other obvious testimonies that tend to prove this could have been
negligent homicide? Why isn’t anyone held accountable for ensuring safety, treatment, and follow up of my solider? Why are the
lives of our brothers, sisters, husbands, wives, sons and daughters not valued enough to demand a change to this failed system?
To the Army, Caleb was nothing but domestic Collateral Damage that could be easily replaced by another body like livestock. As a
united body we are only as strong as our weakest link….leaving our soldiers to die, covering up heinous acts of violence and
neglect, abuse and harassment, classifying murders as suicides, all show nothing but weakness in leadership and this has to be
changed. We must come to a resolution before we cave in on ourselves. The military must be held accountable for those weak
links. To stand by and allow this to continue will cause an implosion that completely negates the purpose of our military.
Independent investigations are the solution to discovering and depleting our system failures. We cannot allow the military to
investigate itself! Two wrongs do not make a right…. The right thing to do is to be transparent, accountable, and have a unbiased
third-party involved to conduct the investigation.
Although Caleb’s cause of death was lited as Acute Bacterial Meningitis, the real cause of his death was ignorance, laziness, and
apathy by his fellow soldiers and the skirking of responsibility by his own command. Had my son been helped, he could still be
alive today. In the presentation that was given to me by the command it stated that, There was no standard protocol in place to
check on injured soldiers.” How can this be when the way the Army functions is to check, double check, triple check, have a backup plan, and have a back up plan for the back up plan.
A reality that I have had to face is that accountability does not end at the command. Having to tirelessly fight to even
obtain my son’s personal belongings, lack of communication, having to question the extent of information being released, realizing
that the casualty assistance office completely lacks empathy, respect, and compassion are obstacles I was not prepared to have to
battle after having to bury my son. The support system for our patriots’ families needs a better foundation. Without the help of
my personal casualty officer, Texas Congressman Jody Arrington’s office, and my beloved Gold and Blue Star families, I would
have never known where to turn.
The system hides, covers up, and runs, but is no match for the wrath of a Gold Star mother. I will never back down or stop
breaking down this wall. We will prevail and allow our patriots to rest in peace with justice. I am making my stance by asking
President Biden to please help us reform our military. Rejuvenate this system so that our soldiers may do what they take an oath
to do and live out their dreams and fight for our freedoms. Make our military accountable and implement independent or
congressional investigations for all of our Patriots that have died in non combat deaths.
So, This is what WINNING LOOKS LIKE to me:
I want:
#1 …Independent review of any non-combat related death,
#2 …to be able to take the military to court on medical malpractice and non-combat incidents where there are negligent issues, so
that the military can be held accountable and correct these systemic failures that have been allowed to persist for generations. At
this point it seems the military is above the law.
And Finally,
#3… there needs to be some type of auditing of the quality of care that these service members get at these bases, because it is
incomprehensible that the providers who missed what happened to Caleb should be providing medical care to other soldiers, and
for that matter the COC should be dismantled.
If this is how the military chooses to practice medicine, we need to make sure that there are good practitioners in these facilities.
Change the culture that is the systemic pattern. Make a difference. If something happens once maybe it is an anomaly, if it
happens twice, it could be a coincidence, but if it happens more than three times it is a pattern in practice and becomes a culture
of toxic leadership. If we can’t protect our soldiers on American soil, how can they be protected overseas? We can help make
America great by not forgetting the heartbeat of America, which are our patriots.
Who IS protecting our protectors?