Military

  • Mental health defense for Staff Sgt. Bales?

    Attorneys for the Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier accused of murdering 16 Afghan civilians last spring are five weeks from a deadline for declaring whether they intend to use a mental health defense at his court-martial.

  • Sergeant tells story, pleads guilty to Baghdad killings

    Sgt. John Russell returned to a Baghdad combat stress clinic “in a rage,” seeking out the Army psychiatrist who Russell believed had encouraged him to commit suicide earlier that day.

  • Army sergeant may plead guilty today

    A soldier who faced the death penalty on charges he killed five service members at a military mental health clinic in Baghdad reached a plea agreement with the Army last week and is expected in court today at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.

  • Health task force shut down

    A high-profile Army Medical Command task force charged with improving the health care atmosphere among patients and staff was shut down late last year after an investigation found that it created a “toxic and intimidating working environment” in its own ranks.

  • Photos Local leaders urge Army to maintain troop levels

    Lakewood Mayor Don Anderson understands that cuts are coming to a downsizing Army leaving a decade of war.

  • 17 years for plot on military site

    A man who helped plot an attack with machine guns and grenades on a Seattle military complex was sentenced in federal court Monday to 17 years in prison, the U.S. attorney’s office said.

  • Photos Lewis-McChord receives last C-17

    With the war in Iraq over and the conflict in Afghanistan winding down, McChord ended another era Wednesday with the delivery of the 49th and final C-17 that will be permanently based there.

  • Photos Conflict reshaped lives, reputation at JBLM

    Maj. Chuck Hodges wished he was in a different desert 10 years ago today.

  • Photos No air rodeo at JBLM this year, due to budget

    The Pentagon is canceling a well-loved international Air Force competition at Joint Base Lewis-McChord this summer, grounding the air mobility “rodeo” to save money.

  • Photos Robert Bales will get sanity review next week

    A U.S. soldier charged with killing 16 Afghan civilians is expected to undergo a court-ordered review of his sanity beginning this weekend, after the military judge overseeing the case agreed that the results would not automatically be shared with prosecutors, his lawyers said Wednesday.