Training procedures at Fort Bragg to change

Posted 1:30PM on Tuesday 26th February 2002 ( 23 years ago )

FORT BRAGG, N.C. - The Army's Special Forces has changed some procedures in Green Beret training to prevent a repetition of the fatal training accident in which a soldier was shot by a deputy who was unaware of the drill, authorities said Tuesday. Among other things, soldiers will no longer wear civilian clothes during exercises outside Fort Bragg and no role-playing will involve civilian law enforcement agencies, said Col. Charles King, commander of the 1st Special Warfare Training Group, Airborne. Army officials said the shooting on Saturday was the tragic result of a breakdown in communications. Deputy Sheriff Randall Butler, who was unaware of the off-base exercise, stopped a pickup carrying two soldiers who were wearing civilian clothes and carrying a duffel bag containing a disassembled carbine. The soldiers apparently thought the deputy was part of their role-playing exercise and tried to disarm him, officials said. In addition to the changes in procedures, Army officials already have met in person with sheriff's departments in each county where the exercises occur, King said at a news conference Tuesday. "We are confident we can adjust our procedures to preclude this from ever happening again," King said. The Special Forces also will conduct an internal investigation to determine what can be done to prevent such accidents, King said. The training cannot be conducted entirely on Fort Bragg because Special Forces need the realism of training with civilians, he said. Special Forces in many countries, including Afghanistan, have reaffirmed the need for this type of training, King said. Prosecutors said Monday that Butler would not be charged. According to Moore County officials, Butler had become suspicious when he spotted the pickup truck, driven by a civilian, with someone crouching in the back exposed to 40-degree cold. His fears were heightened after he stopped and noticed a duffel bag containing the disassembled carbine. In a confrontation with the two soldiers, Butler used pepper spray, then opened fire, killing one man and wounding another. Army officials said the Moore County sheriff's department had not been told about Saturday's exercise because the Army did not think the department would be involved. Prosecutor Garland Yates said Butler "reasonably believed that he was confronted with a threat justifying his use of deadly force," and the soldiers believed Butler "was a participant in a legitimate training exercise." Fort Bragg officials said 1st Lt. Tallas Tomeny was killed and Sgt. Stephen Phelps was wounded. Their ages and hometowns were not immediately available, though The Tampa Tribune quoted relatives of Phelps who said he was a former resident of Clearwater, Fla. Tomeny and Phelps were taking part in "Robin Sage," the 19-day final exam for soldiers trying to become Green Berets. Phelps was in fair condition Tuesday at FirstHealth Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst, Army officials said. Conducted since the 1950s in North Carolina, Robin Sage tests skills in survival, tactics and dealing with people, as well as judgment, decision-making and ethics.

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