The Air Force has reprimanded the former commander of the service-run military mortuary at Dover AFB, Del., who was accused of retaliating against workers there who came forward and reported on the mishandling of remains of some fallen service personnel, reported Associated Press (via the Seattle Times) May 21. In addition to the reprimand, the Air Force leadership ordered Col. Robert Edmondson, the former mortuary commander, to forfeit $7,000 in pay, according to AP. He received a first reprimand in April 2011 for his mismanagement in overseeing the mortuary. The Air Force also suspended Trevor Dean, who was Edmondson’s top civilian deputy at Dover, for 20 days without pay, for his role in the reprisals against the whistleblowers, according to AP.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.