A Schofield Barracks soldier and four-time Iraq War veteran who refused to report for duty because he said he wasn’t receiving help for post-traumatic stress has been promised by the Army that he’ll get medical treatment and other assistance.
"I feel good about what they said so far," said Sgt. Daniel McCarley, 28. "But until something actually happens, then I’ll be good, because I’ve heard talk the whole time I’ve been trying to get treatment."
His mother, Lori, who with other relatives hadn’t been able to reach McCarley for several weeks until she flew into Honolulu from Florida on April 2, is happy to be with her son — and also happy with the Army’s response to his plight.
"Definitely, we’re pleased that Daniel is going to get the help that he needs," she said. "I’m very sad that it had to come to that we had to go and make it public."
Daniel McCarley said he reported back to Schofield on Thursday and met with Lt. Col. Carl Michaud, commander of his unit, the 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment.
The McCarleys are expected to meet today with Dahlia Melendrez, chief benefits counsel for the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, who is in Honolulu, Lori McCarley said.
"She is in town for hearings at the (state) Capitol and wants to meet to discuss Dan’s case to prevent this from happening to any other soldiers," she said.
After three combat tours in Iraq as a medic and one as a cavalry scout, the Schofield soldier described anxiety so severe he would sometimes throw up when on base.
Months of frustration with a military bureaucracy unable to help him cope with his severe PTSD left him with no other option, he said, than to go absent without leave.
The 11-year soldier said he first went AWOL in January, and warned his command he would do so after twice being rejected for a Warrior Transition Unit that would help him with his illness.
Doctors said the best situation was for McCarley to be out of a military environment, while the Army, through the medical board disability review process, seemed intent on keeping him in that military environment "for an almost undetermined amount of time, risking his health," McCarley’s father, John, said in a previous email to the Star-Advertiser.
The Army was not dealing with his problem or was saying its hands were tied, "essentially saying ‘just soldier on and tough it out because the process is slow,’" John McCarley said.
BEING in a military environment at Schofield led to anxiety, which caused nausea, and sometimes vomiting, Daniel McCarley said. The soldier said he refused to be in an environment that made him sick while little to nothing was being done to treat him, and he was AWOL for the month of February and again since March 13.
John and Lori McCarley, who had not been able to reach their son for three weeks, feared for his safety and were worried that a dishonorable discharge would leave him adrift, with little chance of getting the intensive care he needs.
The soldier said he stayed with friends, camped and went to the beach to find some peace.
Lori McCarley said Monday the Army has arranged to send her son to a civilian inpatient treatment center on the mainland for three to six weeks. He is expected to leave Honolulu in about nine days, she said.
He is expected to be admitted into the Warrior Transition Unit at Schofield, and the Army has indicated it can accelerate his medical board separation from the Army, according to the family.
His pay was reactivated, no disciplinary discharge was processed and he is not confined to base, Lori McCarley said.
"(There is) no disciplinary action for (being) AWOL at this time, but Daniel has to attend all appointments and meetings and put 100 percent toward his health issues," she said.
Daniel McCarley said he knows of other soldiers who have tried unsuccessfully to get into the Warrior Transition Unit at Schofield, which is intended to better manage the cases of wounded warriors.
The Army did not respond with any comment Monday about McCarley’s case, but Lt. Col. Sean Wilson, public affairs officer for the 25th Infantry Division at Schofield, previously said the command was deeply concerned about McCarley.
"The problem I have is right now, because of the (publicity over the case) and everything that’s going on," Daniel McCarley said. "They are bending over backwards to take care of my situation, but what about everyone else?"
