Ciara Durkin, Soldier from Massachusetts
(See all Ciara Durkin entries here.)
Wanted to pass this article along:
http://www.patriotledger.com/articles/2007/10/03/news/news01.txtGI to her family: Ask many questions if I die; ‘I made some enemies,’ Durkin said
Durkin |
By DIANA SCHOBERG and SUE SCHEIBLE
The Patriot Ledger
QUINCY - Ciara Durkin was home on leave last month and expressed a concern to her family in Quincy: If something happens to me in Afghanistan, don’t let it go without an investigation.
Durkin, 30, a specialist with a Massachusetts National Guard finance battalion, was found dead last week near a church at the Bagram Airfield in Afghanistan. She had been shot once in the head, the Army says.
Fiona Canavan, Durkin’s older sister, said today that when her sister was home three weeks ago, she told family members that she had come across some things that concerned her and had raised objections to others at the base.
‘‘She was in the finance unit and she said, ‘I discovered some things I don’t like and I made some enemies because of it.’ Then she said, in her light-hearted way, ‘If anything happens to me, you guys make sure it gets investigated,’’’ Canavan said. ‘‘But at the time we thought it was said more as a joke.’’
The family did not know what she was referring to, said Canavan, who lives in Quincy.
Canavan said that her sister was openly gay, but that the family had no specific reasons to think that had anything to do with her death.
‘‘She was gay, but because she really wanted to go into the Army, she had to make a choice and she chose to put that part of her lifestyle behind her,’’ Canavan said.
The family is determined to have the military investigate ‘‘every aspect’’ of her sister’s life at the base and determine the truth of what happened, Canavan said. ‘‘If she was killed because she was a smoker or had red hair - not to be flip, but we want nothing held back.’’
Canavan vehemently denied a published report attributing to her a statement that the family was concerned that Durkin’s lesbianism was the reason for her death.
When her sister told the family three weeks ago about her concerns over her safety at the base, due to whatever information she had found out, Canavan said, ‘‘we reported it to the Army.’’
Canavan said that the offices of Sen. John Kerry and Edward Kennedy have been tremendously supportive in the ongoing investigation. U.S. Rep. William Delahunt has also been pressing the Pentagon for answers.
Other family members are coming in for Durkin’s funeral on Saturday at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Quincy, she said.
Kerry sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates on Tuesday. It contained a list of questions he said were raised by Durkin’s family:
—Why had the family not gotten a response to its request for an independent autopsy?
—Why did the family not receive the results of the Army’s autopsy when it was told it would?
—Why had the Army not made Durkin’s will and other paperwork available to the family so they could plan her funeral?
Asked in a telephone interview about what the seriousness of the questions might imply, Kerry said there were ‘‘no implications.’’
‘‘There’s simply a request for a family at a moment of great loss and great anxiety to have everything possible happen to put their minds at ease,’’ he said. ‘‘There have been some unfortunate situations, as we’ve seen historically in the past few years, of false information being given, of people not sufficiently having their questions answered.’’
Her family was initially told that Durkin was killed in action on Friday. But on Monday, the family learned that she died about 6:30 p.m. of a single gunshot wound to the head in a non-combat situation.
Durkin had been assigned to a finance unit at the base since February. Her tour of duty had been scheduled to end in February.
Her younger brother, Pierce Durkin, said that because of the nature of the wound and the fact that the shooting happened under ‘‘curious’’ circumstances, the family decided to contact legislators.
The family was going through old photos of Ciara on Tuesday in preparation for the wake and funeral.
‘‘She’s undoubtedly smiling in every one,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s making it all so much more difficult.’’
Durkin was born in Ireland and moved to the United States when she was 9 years old. The family lived first in Dorchester and later in Quincy.
She joined the Army National Guard in October 2005.
Kerry's letter to GatesThis is the letter Sen. John Kerry sent Tuesday to Defense Secretary Robert Gates about the death of Army National Guard Spc. Ciara Durkin.
Dear Secretary Gates:
I write to you on behalf of my constituent, Angela Durkin, who
last week was notified that her daughter, Army Specialist Ciara Durkin,
had been killed while serving our country in Afghanistan.
Since the terrible news of Ciara's death became public, I
have spoken with her mother and brother and my staff has spoken with
other family members. Initial reports indicated that Ms. Durkin, a
member of the Massachusetts National Guard, was "killed in action" but
since that time, other circumstances and rumors surrounding her death at
Bagram Airfield have come to the attention of her family.
As you can imagine, the confusion and potential misreporting around
Specialist Durkin's death have added to what is already an
extraordinarily painful time for her mother, her siblings and her
extended family, here in Massachusetts and in Ireland. The Durkin family
desperately needs answers to the following questions:
1. Why has the Army not responded to the Durkin family's request
for an independent autopsy?
2. Why, after not responding to the family's request for an
independent autopsy, did the Army fail to contact the Durkin family with
the Army's autopsy results? The family was told to be available to
receive a phone call between 1 and 3 PM on October 1 and the Army never
called.
3. Why has the Army refused to make Specialist Durkin's will and
paperwork available to her family so they can respect her wishes as they
plan her funeral and burial?
While I understand that in accordance with the US Central
Command policy, an investigation is taking place, I cannot overstate the
urgency and importance of this matter to the Durkin family. I urge you
to deploy your staff on this matter immediately so that the answers and
circumstances around Specialist Durkin's death are uncovered,
expeditiously and thoroughly.
Your cooperation in this matter is appreciated. Please know
that my staff in Washington and Massachusetts is prepared to assist you
and the Department of Defense with regard to this matter.
Sincerely,
John F. Kerry
United States Senator
Military misinformationIn several recent cases, the U.S. military has been accused of providing inaccurate information about military actions:
—Pat Tillman: The Army Ranger was killed in 2004 by friendly fire in Afghanistan. The military initially said he died in a firefight with the enemy.
—Jessica Lynch: The military initially said the former Army private fought until shooting her last round of ammunition when she was captured in 2003 in Iraq. She later said she was injured too badly to fight.
—Patrick McCaffrey and Andre Tyson: Both were killed in 2004 by two Iraqi soldiers they were training. The military had said the deaths resulted from an insurgent ambush.
