Soldier Whose Son Killed Himself Is Ordered Out of Army

The father of a 13-year-old boy whose suicide drew national attention to military pay rates two years ago has been ordered out of the Army at his duty station in West Germany, it was reported here Thursday.

The Monterey Peninsula Herald reported that Staff Sgt. Johnnie Holley has been told that he cannot renew his enlistment, and he and his family have been given less than a month to arrange their affairs and return to civilian life.

“There’s been nothing but turmoil since Danny died,” said Holley’s wife, Jennifer. “Why can’t they let us finish (her husband’s) six years in peace?”

Danny Holley hanged himself from an eave of the family’s house in Marina, Calif., in August, 1984, while the father was stationed at Ft. Ord. The youngster committed suicide in the apparent belief that he could help his mother, two younger brothers and a sister out of financial straits by leaving them with “one less mouth to feed.”

The event drew international media attention and focused interest on the financial hardship imposed on military families, particularly in areas with high living costs, by low pay rates.

The Holleys were besieged by reporters from around the world after the boy’s death, but Jennifer Holley said they granted few interviews because Army officials had told them that publicity could harm Holley’s career.

A year later, the family transferred to Germany and the Holleys’ marriage began to be troubled.

“Everyone knew who we were,” Jennifer Holley said. “It was very hard for Johnnie. We were having problems dealing with it. I went to his commander and said, ‘I think Johnnie needs help.’ We’d fight all the time, and he wouldn’t talk about it, wouldn’t get close.”

She said she and her husband underwent counseling, but Holley’s former commander did not seem satisfied with the results. It was that commander who recommended that Holley be barred.

Holley said the former commander once surprised him with a urinalysis because he thought he was on drugs. That test and others showed that he had no drug problem, the 13-year veteran said.

The family also was ordered to undergo financial counseling, but Jennifer Holley said they were able to show that they were paying their bills and providing for their three surviving children.

A spokeswoman at the Pentagon said the Army could not reveal the reasons behind the reenlistment ban.