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John Michalak of Ledyard was at work Thursday when a co-worker told him about the shootings at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas, where Michalak's son, Brandyn, is stationed.
The men, plant operators at an Uncasville coal-burning plant, went looking for computers to get more information. At the time, Internet news sites were reporting that seven people had been killed, a dozen injured.
As afternoon turned to evening, the news became more grim: Thirteen dead in an attack that appears to have been committed by a fellow serviceman. Michalak waited for news about Brandyn -- the oldest of his four children -- who has been in the Army for a year.
2006 Courant Investigation: Mentally Unfit To Fight
There are many unknowns about Nidal Malik Hasan, the man authorities say is responsible for the worst mass killing on a U.S. military base. Most of all, his motive.
For six years before reporting for duty at Fort Hood, Texas, in July, the 39-year-old Army major worked at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center pursuing his career in psychiatry, as an intern, a resident and, last year, a fellow in disaster and preventive psychiatry. He received his medical degree from the military's Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., in 2001.
While an intern at Walter Reed, Hasan had some "difficulties" that required counseling and extra supervision, said Dr. Thomas Grieger, who was the training director at the time.
Grieger said privacy laws prevented him from going into details but noted that the problems had to do with Hasan's interactions with patients. He recalled Hasan as a "mostly very quiet" person who never spoke ill of the military or his country.
"He swore an oath of loyalty to the military," Grieger said. "I didn't hear anything contrary to those oaths."
But, more recently, federal agents grew suspicious.
At least six months ago, Hasan came to the attention of law enforcement officials because of Internet postings about suicide bombings and other threats, including posts that equated suicide bombers to soldiers who throw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of their comrades.
They had not determined for certain whether Hasan is the author of the posting, and a formal investigation had not been opened before the shooting, said law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the case.
Federal authorities seized Hasan's computer Friday during a search of his apartment in Killeen, Texas, said a U.S. military official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Hasan's aunt, Noel Hasan of Falls Church, Va., said he had been harassed about being a Muslim in the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and he wanted out of the Army.
"Some people can take it and some people cannot," she said. "He had listened to all of that and he wanted out of the military."
As of 8:15 p.m. Thursday, John Michalak hadn't heard anything about his son at Fort Hood.
Pictures: Fort Hood Shooting
A 20-year Navy veteran, Michalak said he now knows what it was like for his wife, Jodi, on Sept. 11, 2001, when he was deployed overseas. She couldn't reach him, he said, and didn't know if he was all right.
Brandyn's wife, Amanda Michalak, told WTNH Channel 8 that Brandyn had left his cellphone at home Thursday morning. She told the news station she is confident the military would have notified her if anything was wrong.
John Michalak, too, suspected his son is OK. He could be stuck in a building because of the lockdown, he said.
"If a father's intuition is anything, he's probably fine," he said.
At about 9 p.m., he found out his instincts were right. His son is safe, he learned from Amanda.
"He couldn't get to a phone," Michalak said. "He's fine and everybody that he knew was fine. It's a great relief."
-- An Associated Press report is included
The men, plant operators at an Uncasville coal-burning plant, went looking for computers to get more information. At the time, Internet news sites were reporting that seven people had been killed, a dozen injured.
As afternoon turned to evening, the news became more grim: Thirteen dead in an attack that appears to have been committed by a fellow serviceman. Michalak waited for news about Brandyn -- the oldest of his four children -- who has been in the Army for a year.
2006 Courant Investigation: Mentally Unfit To Fight
There are many unknowns about Nidal Malik Hasan, the man authorities say is responsible for the worst mass killing on a U.S. military base. Most of all, his motive.
For six years before reporting for duty at Fort Hood, Texas, in July, the 39-year-old Army major worked at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center pursuing his career in psychiatry, as an intern, a resident and, last year, a fellow in disaster and preventive psychiatry. He received his medical degree from the military's Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., in 2001.
While an intern at Walter Reed, Hasan had some "difficulties" that required counseling and extra supervision, said Dr. Thomas Grieger, who was the training director at the time.
Grieger said privacy laws prevented him from going into details but noted that the problems had to do with Hasan's interactions with patients. He recalled Hasan as a "mostly very quiet" person who never spoke ill of the military or his country.
"He swore an oath of loyalty to the military," Grieger said. "I didn't hear anything contrary to those oaths."
But, more recently, federal agents grew suspicious.
At least six months ago, Hasan came to the attention of law enforcement officials because of Internet postings about suicide bombings and other threats, including posts that equated suicide bombers to soldiers who throw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of their comrades.
They had not determined for certain whether Hasan is the author of the posting, and a formal investigation had not been opened before the shooting, said law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the case.
Federal authorities seized Hasan's computer Friday during a search of his apartment in Killeen, Texas, said a U.S. military official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Hasan's aunt, Noel Hasan of Falls Church, Va., said he had been harassed about being a Muslim in the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and he wanted out of the Army.
"Some people can take it and some people cannot," she said. "He had listened to all of that and he wanted out of the military."
As of 8:15 p.m. Thursday, John Michalak hadn't heard anything about his son at Fort Hood.
Pictures: Fort Hood Shooting
A 20-year Navy veteran, Michalak said he now knows what it was like for his wife, Jodi, on Sept. 11, 2001, when he was deployed overseas. She couldn't reach him, he said, and didn't know if he was all right.
Brandyn's wife, Amanda Michalak, told WTNH Channel 8 that Brandyn had left his cellphone at home Thursday morning. She told the news station she is confident the military would have notified her if anything was wrong.
John Michalak, too, suspected his son is OK. He could be stuck in a building because of the lockdown, he said.
"If a father's intuition is anything, he's probably fine," he said.
At about 9 p.m., he found out his instincts were right. His son is safe, he learned from Amanda.
"He couldn't get to a phone," Michalak said. "He's fine and everybody that he knew was fine. It's a great relief."
-- An Associated Press report is included
