FORT HOOD, Texas — Every time there’s another death of an American solider on or near Fort Hood, it stops Kim Wedel cold.
“God, how do you keep letting this continue? We talk. Nobody really gets closure. Even those who supposedly got their case solved, it’s still not “solved,”’ she says.
Kim is now a part of a group she never imagined: parents who have lost children posted to Fort Hood.
Her son, Gregory Morales, first went missing in August of 2019.
The army said he was AWOL.
In actuality, he’d been killed and left in a field off post. His remains were only found during the search for another missing and murdered solider, Vanessa Guillen, in the spring of 2020.
“Nothing has changed. Nothing is different. Changing the name of the facility, changing anything, has not fixed it,” she told 25 News this week.
Kim says hearing about last week’s death of solider Ana Basaldua Ruiz speaks to larger cultural issues that still exist on post when it comes to mental health, harassment, and death, whether it be suicide, homicide, or even accidental.
“We shouldn’t be losing soldiers on a base. It should be one of the safest places in the world to be," Kim said.
The new Lt. Gen. Sean Barnabe says Ana’s death didn’t involve foul play, but did speak to harassment allegations that surfaced last week.
"We do not tolerate harassment," he said at a Friday news conference. "Come forward with information [...] We anticipate they'll [the family] visit Fort Hood in the near future, and we're prepared to receive them and support them throughout their visit."
The Army's CID, or Criminal Investigation Division, is looking into Ana's death.
After the deaths of Guillen, Morales and other soldiers, the Pentagon and Congress launched investigations which led to some sweeping structural and leadershipchanges on post.
The reward in Morales' case wasdoubled to $50,000 about six months ago.
Wedel recently got a promising tip in the case, which she says Killeen police detectives are chasing down as a possible lead.
"I'm hopeful it might be something."
