![]() Special Operations Command, or SOCOM, says that they treat such totals as "unofficial." He adds, "If anything, we shy away from reporting numbers like that. Army, said that the Army "does not keep any official, or unofficial for that matter, record of confirmed kills." Ken McGraw, a spokesman for the U.S. "Every time we'd come back we'd have to fill out an assessment of what happened throughout the day," Kyle told TIME Magazine, "the time, the place, the caliber used, the distance he was, what exactly he was doin', where he was standin', what he was wearin'. Kyle's American Sniper co-author, Jim DeFelice, says that Kyle routinely reported his kills to his direct commanders "because they had to know what was going on," and Kyle also "personally kept track" ( NBC News). The real Chris Kyle explained confirmed kills during a TIME Magazine video interview, "While you're on your sniper rifle, you take a shot and the guy goes down, and you have to have witnesses verify that he is dead." The witness does not have to be the spotter, nor does the kill have to be verified up close, though both do often occur. Others will tell you that it has to be verified up close. "People have this stigma that veterans are damaged, broken people.Movies and video games have helped to create a mystique and fascination around the notion of "confirmed kills." Some people will tell you that only a sniper's spotter can confirm a kill. "It's a tragedy what happened to Chris, but that's why this film is so important - it shows the tragedy of war and of people coming home and struggling with PTSD," group founder Paul Rieckhoff said. To raise awareness about aiding veterans, the advocacy group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America is sponsoring screenings of "American Sniper." Depending on their state, they might have a flashback where they don't know where they are and you're standing beside them, looking like the enemy." ![]() He owns guns and enjoyed hunting, but recently had suicidal thoughts andgave his firearms to his son.Īnother excused juror, Nathan Goldberg, 33, served with Kyle in Iraq and still hunts with fellow veterans, but said that in some cases, "We don't put a gun in their hands. Joe McCartney, 63, a former Marine sniper who served in Vietnam, was excused from serving on Routh's jury last week because he suffers from PTSD. He said vetting people before a shooting event could be as simple as having their doctor ask whether they were making plans to harm themselves or others. Tuma said shooting should not be considered therapy, but was not necessarily dangerous for those with PTSD. "All of a sudden he can get a flashback or a disassociation, even for a minute, and think he's back in Iraq," Foa said.Įven when a veteran seems fine, Foa said, "They cannot trust their own selves because they can have an internal trigger." Farris Tuma, chief of the National Institute of Mental Health trauma research program in Rockville, Md.Įdna Foa, a professor of clinical psychology at the University of Pennsylvania who pioneered treatments for PTSD, recommended against hunting and shooting for such a veteran. Up to 15% of recently returning veterans have been diagnosed with PTSD, in addition to those suffering from traumatic brain injuries, depression and other types of mental illness, according to Dr. "The whole point of the scene was to show that there's healing there," said Schick, who knows Kyle's family and still hunts with fellow veterans. "Who's the legend now?" Schick says, an ad-libbed line in a scene Schick says was filmed by director Clint Eastwood in two takes. Schick appears in the movie firing a rifle at a range and turning triumphantly to Kyle, played by Bradley Cooper. For some guys, it really helps release some stress." Schick, who was wounded by a tank mine explosion in Iraq, said it could be "good therapy for wounded warriors to squeeze off a few rounds. ![]() Jacob "Jake" Schick, 32, a Shreveport, La., native who grew up hunting and works with other wounded veterans through the University of Texas' Center for Brain Health in Dallas, said he too was worried about the fallout. Washam worries that with the popularity of the Oscar-nominated "American Sniper" movie and publicity surrounding Routh's trial, veterans will not be trusted to hunt and target shoot. The shoot went off as planned, but Washam also noticed a bit of a backlash.Ī Texas landowner who had hosted a deer and duck hunt for Washam telephoned, worried that he had allowed "a complete stranger" on his property with a gun, saying, "That scares me." Kyle had been scheduled to attend a veterans' shooting event the weekend after he was killed.
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