The head of Madigan Army Medical Center has been removed from command while the Western Region Medical Command concludes its investigation into a psychiatry team that adjusted diagnoses of certain soldiers who were seeking medical retirements.

Col. Dallas Homas’ leave was announced Monday evening by Maj. Gen. Phillip Volpe, who leads the Western Region Medical Command. Col. Mike Heimall, commander of Irwin Army Community Hospital, Fort Riley, Kan., is taking Homas’ place as interim commander.

Meanwhile, the Army Surgeon General this week is contacting the families of 14 soldiers whose diagnoses for post-traumatic stress disorder were adjusted by the Madigan …

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The Joint Base Lewis-McChord commander who directly supervised the “kill team” courts-martial gave his first public remarks about the war crimes investigation today and sought to retake his brigade’s legacy from the controversies that have overshadowed it.

Col. Barry Huggins of the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division has avoided questions about the courts-martial since he took command of the unit in July 2010. The cases came to a close early this month when the Army dropped murder and assault charges it pressed against Spc. Michael Wagnon, the fifth and final soldier it accused of killing noncombatants during patrols with the …

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The Army today announced that it charged a 22-year-old private with the theft of more than $600,000 worth of equipment from his Joint Base Lewis-McChord Stryker brigade.

The Army would not say whether it believes Pvt. Nicholas Solt of Slatington, Pa., acted alone in an alleged scheme to steal and resell weapons accessories from his unit. Solt is under confinement at Lewis-McChord. The Army did not say when it arrested him.

“Our investigation remains ongoing,” Army Criminal Investigative Division spokesman Christopher Grey said.

Solt, 22, faces 59 years in prison if he’s convicted on six criminal charges including larceny of …

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Sgt. Chad Sparks of Joint Base Lewis-McChord’s 2^nd Stryker Brigade can focus a little easier on getting ready for his upcoming mission in Afghanistan. His visit to the Ellen DeGeneres show yesterday left his family in good hands to cope with his  nine-month deployment.

Sparks on the show received a $50,000 check from country star Dierks Bentley, who was moved by a letter Sparks’ wife wrote to DeGeneres. Watch the video here.

Ashley Sparks described her husband as “truly the man every girl dreams of, an honest, hard-working, dedicated soldier.”

She wrote that the family recently fell …

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About 180 Washington National Guard soldiers came home from the desert last weekend, ending a yearlong deployment in Kuwait.

The soldiers flew and maintained UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters to support American aviation assets in the Middle East and in Afghanistan. They belong to the 1st Battalion, 168th Aviation Regiment, and are based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. The Army calls the unit the “Raptor” battalion.

“We are thrilled to have the Raptors home.  They are a vital asset to our state and nation, and having them home safe is an early Valentine’s Day gift
for all of us,” said Maj. Gen. …

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Spending on military construction in Washington State continues to rise in President Obama’s 2013 budget request despite talk of nationwide defense cuts.

The state would gain $581 million for work at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Naval Base Kitsap and Naval Station Whidbey Island, up from $519 million in Obama’s 2012 defense budget.

About half of the state’s military construction work in 2013 would take place at Lewis-McChord. The base south of Tacoma stands to receive $91 million for a long-awaited sewage plant upgrade, as well as $73 million for a new battalion complex.

The base’s growing Special Forces units …

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Last week’s abrupt conclusion to the Army’s two-year “kill team” investigation at Joint Base Lewis-McChord led me to call several of the families whose lives were upended by successive courts-martial. Check The News Tribune Sunday for the story I’m writing from the interviews on how they’re rebuilding their lives with the trials behind them.

One impression that stood out: Some of the families are standing by convicted “kill team” ringleader Staff Sgt. Calvin Gibbs.

This isn’t too surprising given that so many of Gibbs’ friends and fellow soldiers attended his November court-martial. They’ve been pulling for him along …

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Army Surgeon General Lt. Gen. Patricia Horoho yesterday cast her investigation into a forensic psychiatry team at Madigan Army Medical Center as a push to ensure that the Army delivers a consistent diagnosis for post-traumatic stress disorder across the service.

Her testimony before a congressional subcommittee represented her first public remarks on the investigation since The Seattle Times reported that the Army is investigating the forensic psychiatry team’s reversal PTSD diagnoses for 14 soldiers who passed through Madigan.

According to a Defense Department summary of her testimony, Horoho told lawmakers she launched the investigation to “look into the …

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