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Fort Lewis Washington Army Barracks: 2 Young Girls Found,1 Dead

by Tina Kells | February 17, 2009 at 10:13 am

1498 views | 20 Recommendations | 6 comments

Two young girls, both 16, were discovered in the Fort Lewis Army barracks, just outside of Tacoma, Washington, in the early hours of Sunday, February 15, 2009, the morning after Valentine's Day.

Around 3:30am Sunday morning military emergency crews responded to a 911 call that the two girls were unconscious and unresponsive. When crews arrived at the Army barracks they found that one of the young girls was dead.

UPDATE: Manslaughter Charges Laid in Case (scroll down for details).

The Army is investigating the matter internally and will be conducting an autopsy on the dead girl to determine cause of death. The second girl was taken to hospital and is listed in stable condition. Neither girl had visible injuries when emergency crews attended to them.

Among the many questions that the Army is seeking to answer are the obvious; what were two underage civilians doing in the Army barracks, why were they there past curfew, what happened to them while they were there, and were drugs and/or alcohol involved?

The names of the girls are not expected to be released because they are minors and civilians. The Fort Lewis Criminal Investigations Division is now investigating the case and have identified at least one soldier who was "acquainted" with the girls.

The army did not release any information about the incident until 36 hours later in order to allow authorities to alert the girls families.

In a statement issued about 36 hours after base emergency personnel responded to a 911 call early Sunday morning, Fort Lewis spokesman Joe Piek said a Madigan Army Medical Center doctor declared one girl dead at the scene. The second teen was taken to Madigan for emergency medical care and was reported in stable condition Monday.
There were no outward signs of physical trauma on either girl, Piek told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Monday night. He said Army doctors at Madigan were performing an autopsy on the dead girl, but results might not be available for at least a week.

Update: Charges Laid in Deaths of Two Girls at Fort Lewis

A 19-year old soldier has been charged with manslaughter in the death of a young girl at Fort Lewis, Washington. Private Timothy E. Bennitt of Rolling Prairie, Indiana, has been charged in the death of 16-year old Leah King.

Private Bennitt has also been charged with wrongful use and distribution of controlled substances and conspiracy to use controlled substances. The allegations state that Bennitt, King and an unidentified second girl who was found unconscious but alive where King's body was discovered, had been inhaling crushed pills to get high.

Timothy E. Bennitt, a native of Indiana, also has been charged with wrongful distribution and use of controlled substances and conspiracy to wrongfully use controlled substances.

The case will be presented for a hearing similar to that of a civilian grand jury. Bennitt could face court-martial as a result of the hearing. He could face 82 years in prison.

Leah King, a Lakes High School sophomore, was found dead at a post barracks early Feb. 15. Investigators determined the teen died of a toxic combination of Xanax, which is used to treat panic disorders, and Opana, a pain reliever. Some of the drugs were inhaled.

Another 16-year-old girl was found unresponsive at the same time and was released from a hospital after treatment. Both girls were acquainted with a soldier living in the barracks.

Army investigators suspect Bennitt, who reported to Fort Lewis in December 2007, was dealing to other soldiers.

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Barry Artiste

at 07:21 on February 18th, 2009

Thats going to stir the crap, many soldiers date girls from the base, and the girls families are also military members.

Col. Bull Durham (not verified)

at 10:48 on February 18th, 2009

This isn't going to stir up anything.

It will be promptly covered up and forgotten so that the Army can carry on its proud tradition of protecting the American people.

Barry Artiste

at 15:50 on February 18th, 2009

Put it this way, if it is a military member who committed this act, he best run and run fast to the civy authourities, cause a military prison aint no cakewalk, a civy prison is luxury!

misstr8c (not verified)

at 08:37 on February 23rd, 2009

The Army is not responsible for this tragedy it's the soldier that did it that is at fault. Why is he dating a 16 year old girl in the first place and they shouldn't have been sneaking around on base.

Nlove with a Ranger (not verified)

at 12:48 on February 23rd, 2009

How are you so sure that a soldier is at fault? What if these teenage girls where doing drugs and over dosed... They could have lied bout their age which happens alot... as you for Moonwolf dont be a dumb a**... be real... get a life and grow up...

alberto colon (not verified)

at 07:21 on July 28th, 2009

hey my name is alberto colon,im here tryin to find my father...all i have is two names,my fathers name is juan acevedo and his brothers name is victor acevedo..the only information i have is dat victor acevedo joined the fort lewis army in the early and mid 80's...if anybody has a way to search for soldiers other then using the internet please contact me at 551-697-9880