Hon disch. and retirement in grade for Green Beret colonel involved in armed standoff with police

COL Owen Ray

Jeff LPH 3 sends an update on a story we covered a while back. You might remember Colonel Ray here. He’s the Green Beret colonel, former commanding officer of the 1st Special Forces Group, who was involved in an armed standoff with police back in December of last year. During that incident you’ll recall;

Col. Owen G. Ray, 47, and his wife got into an argument earlier in the evening, according to a probable cause affidavit. Believing her husband was intoxicated, the wife retreated to her children’s bedroom to hide.

She then heard Ray say, “let’s do this,” before he went to the garage where the guns were stored, Pierce County prosecutors wrote in the affidavit. The house is in the town of DuPont, about 10 miles southwest of the base where Ray serves as the Army’s I Corps chief of staff and previously commanded a Special Forces group.

Ray, now armed, went back into the house and found his wife, who proceeded to call the police, “at which point, the defendant became enraged.”

“He pointed the gun at [the wife] and threatened to kill her,” the affidavit reads. “He proceeded to kick [her] over and over with his boots in the face and chest. The two children had woken up and were screaming, ‘don’t kill mom, don’t shoot us.’”

Ray left the room but returned after his wife had tried to barricade the entrance with a bookshelf, the affidavit stated. He smashed the barricade down and waved a gun while yelling threats.

Washington State Patrol and a mix of local police units arrived sometime after midnight. Ray eventually allowed his wife and two of the children to exit at around 12:33 a.m. His teenage daughter followed them out shortly afterward.

Police were able to contact Ray via phone at 12:49 a.m., and he threatened to take his own life as well as anyone who tried to arrest him.

“The defendant outlined his extensive training in combat,” the affidavit reads. “He told law enforcement he was a 25-year veteran and spent most of his time in the 1st group special forces. He stated that he had killed a lot of people and he had no problem killing law enforcement if they made attempts to arrest him. The defendant was calm, coherent, and articulate.”

After these initial threats, Ray would alternate between saying he had great respect for law enforcement and warning them not to arrest him, according to the affidavit. During the two-hour standoff, police said they saw Ray on the balcony holding a pistol to his head and holding a rifle inside the house.

“Active negotiations and de-escalation attempts took place until the suspect eventually surrendered and was safely taken into custody,” DuPont police said in a statement. “This occurred approximately two hours after initial communication was established between the police and the suspect.”

Colonel Ray is facing charges of assault and kidnapping. While that’s going on, the Army has reviewed his case and decided that he can retire with full rank, privileges, and an honorable discharge.

Army Times reports;

The memo documenting Col. Owen G. Ray’s discharge status was included among court records filed with the Pierce County Superior Court in Washington state, near his duty station of Joint Base Lewis McChord.

“The Army Grade Determination Review Board has reviewed the Retirement in Lieu of Elimination, based on misconduct and moral or professional dereliction,” reads the memo signed by Michael T. Mahoney, a deputy assistant secretary of the Army. “I approve his Retirement in Lieu of Elimination, and he will be placed on the Retired List in his current grade of 0-6 (Colonel).”

The 47-year-old Ray will be allowed to retire Sept. 30 with a separation code of “RNC,” meaning “unacceptable conduct,” though his characterization of service will be noted as “honorable.”

Ray’s defense attorney, Jared E. Ausserer, confirmed the criminal case is set for trial in mid-September. Prosecutors are arguing that Ray should be sentenced to seven years in prison, which Ausserer said is excessive.

“[Prosecutors] have been unwilling to acknowledge that the PTSD components of Col. Ray’s service have any impact on this case whatsoever, and they’re treating him very differently than a civilian,” Ausserer said. “I have multiple clients who are charged with very similar conduct who are getting misdemeanors.”

Ausserer stressed that Ray served several decades with no history of similar actions, adding that the military’s decision to honorably discharge his client reflects that. Army officials did not respond to requests for comment prior to this article’s deadline.

Ray was suspended from his last Army assignment as the chief of staff for I Corps after he was arrested and charged by Pierce County prosecutors with two counts of felony harassment, one count of kidnapping, two counts of assault and one count of reckless endangerment.

Of course he’s claiming the PTSofD.

Category: Army, Big Army, Big Pentagon, Crime, Dick Stepping, Dumbass Bullshit