Welcome to Army Truth
This site exists to share the stories of spouses who suffered abuse by armed service members, but were not protected by the Family Advocacy Program (FAP) or Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).
Have your own Army Truth story you would like to share? Email us at [email protected]
Christie
Weishaar
The following narrative is written in the words of Christie Lee, a soldier’s wife, mother of four and a victim of domestic violence by the hand of her husband.Jeff and I were married in the fall of 1999. I was excited to be Mrs. Jeffery Weishaar and to start this new journey with him. Jeff was active-duty for our entire marriage, first working with tanks, then recruiting, and finally being trained as an interrogator. Along the way, we were blessed with four children: 2 girls and 2 boys. I knew Jeff had a temper, but in 2006, he pushed me to the ground, crossing the lines from verbal abuse to physical abuse. In 2011, the verbal and emotional abuse against myself and our children (especially our oldest son) had escalated to the point I was considering divorce. Several times I had alerted Jeff’s command to the abuse, but they would only ask if he had hit me. Finally they told him to go to marriage counseling. But, Jeff went once, and the army never followed up. In 2013, in a fit of rage, Jeff picked me up with both hands and shook me like a rag doll. I heard my neck break. It is a sound I will never forget. Jeff dropped me off at the steps of a nearby hospital where the results of an MRI showed that my neck had been broken in two places, and my left arm was broken as well. I was then airlifted to a larger medical center for expert care. While there, it was revealed that I had also sustained a traumatic brain injury.It took several days to decide to turn Jeff in, but I did. I called his command and reported what he had done. Our marriage counselor, Judy Pike, called Jeff and warned him of the upcoming arrest. Jeff used this time to liquidate all of our assets, leaving me penniless. The army chose not to protect us, as Jeff was still allowed to freely roam on base. As a result, I moved the children and myself to California, under the protection of my family, and filed a restraining order against him.In the United States Army, protocol dictates that domestic violence cases be presented to a board. This board determines if the allegations are substantiated. Judy Pike both presented my case to the board (FAP-CRC) and also had a vote in the decision. The board subsequently found Jeff’s abuse unsubstantiated, deeming me as the offender. It was then that I realized the Army would protect their investment in Jeff rather than protect me or my children.I was shocked by the board’s ruling, and submitted a letter of dispute through the proper channels. Judy Pike informed my counsel that she had received the reconsideration letter in the time allotted, however there was no response from the board. I continued to try to verify whether or not the letter made it to the FAP-CRC – without response. At one point, I contacted Jeff’s battalion commander in regard to this question. He responded that Jeff’s good conduct since the incident made him reluctant to hand down any punishment. I was informed that Jeff had received professional counseling and attended anger management therapy. Had I known this therapy was really just a few sessions with Judy Pike, I wouldn’t have dropped my domestic violence restraining order, which allowed Jeff to re-establish visitation with the children.After realizing Judy had no interest in truth or justice, I took my case to the State Board of Licensed Social Workers. At the time, I was unaware that Ms. Pike had a habit of enabling abusive soldiers. After a lengthy investigation, Judy Pike was found guilty of violating her professional oath and the ethical standards of her licensure, and she surrendered her license rather than accept the remediation demanded by the State Board. This, however, brought me very little satisfaction, except for knowing she wouldn’t do this to anyone else. The irreparable damage to my family was done.For the next 3 months I worked to identify and contact the head of MEDCOM and resubmitted my letter of reconsideration directly to him. After conducting a case review, the members of the review committee voted unanimously that Jeff ‘was the offender and met the criteria of adult physical and emotional abuse’. The Army Central Registry database was corrected to reflect this decision.
*See attachment belowThe board’s decision was hand-delivered to Jeff’s command, but instead of passing down a sentence, Jeff’s command chose to ignore the ruling. They believed too much time had passed since my neck had been broken. Without facing any consequences for his actions, Jeff became emboldened with his abusive behavior. While the divorce decree required Jeff to pay a portion of the children’s healthcare expenses, he made that process so difficult and painful for all involved, that several healthcare offices begged me not to deal with him at all. It was at that point, I quit submitting receipts to Jeff and started paying the whole bill in order to maintain a working relationship with our doctors.Just two years ago, Jeff felt he had the right to hide the death of our oldest son. I found our son’s obituary, while scrolling on Facebook in an airport. He had taken his own life. Jeff hadn’t included me or our three other children in the services, and initially, Jeff’s wife was even listed as our son’s biological mother on the death certificate. I received the ashes of my son through the USPS.You may have a name and a face for my story, but I represent many nameless and faceless people who have also been victimized by military domestic violence and the Army’s inability to provide consequences to the offenders. Seen as disposable, some of these people have paid the ultimate price with their lives. Until this dark shadow in the military is brought to light, stories like mine will continue. We have to stand for what is right. Policies must be changed. If a soldier commits a violent act, it should be given to the law, not the UCMJ. Only then, will we see an end to this broken chain that has been hidden for so many years.
