June 9, 2005, 1:07AM
Katy soldier added to war casualty roster
James Coons committed suicide after his return from Iraq in 2003
By MIKE GLENN
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
The Department of Defense has added the name of a soldier from Katy who committed suicide almost two years ago to the official roster of casualties from the war in Iraq.
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While he has some concerns about how his son's case was handled, Richard Coons said he won't criticize the military that was his son's career for almost two decades.
"He gave his life up for (the Army.) I'm not about to talk bad about it," he said.
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Coons led soldiers in the 385th Signal Company, and set up a communications infrastructure for the March 2003 invasion of Iraq, the Post reported. He received a Bronze Star. Several months later, he complained to doctors about hallucinations of a dead soldier's face, the Post reported. He took an overdose of sleeping pills in Kuwait and was taken to Walter Reed for psychiatric treatment.
Coons was not admitted to the hospital when he arrived in late June 2003, the Post reported. Instead he stayed at Mologne House, a hotel for outpatients on the campus. A hotel staff member found him hanging in his room.
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