Husband Seeks Divorce From War Protest Mom

The husband of Cindy Sheehan, the mother camped outside President Bush’s Texas ranch to protest the death of a son in the Iraq war, has filed for divorce, according to court documents.

Patrick Sheehan filed the divorce petition Friday in Solano County court. His lawyer did not return a call seeking comment Monday.

The couple’s eldest child, Casey, 24, was an Army soldier killed in April 2004. Cindy Sheehan has said the stress of the death led to the separation of the couple, who were high school sweethearts.

Cindy Sheehan has vowed to remain in Texas through Bush’s August vacation, unless he meets with her. She began her protest 10 days ago and has since been joined by more than 100 antiwar activists.

“Our message is to bring the troops home,” the Vacaville, Calif., resident said Monday.

The White House has again issued a statement saying that Bush sympathizes with the woman. The president has given no indication that he would meet with her, however.

Cindy Sheehan, 48, and other grieving military families met with Bush in June 2004 at Ft. Lewis, Wash., near Seattle, two months after her son’s death. But she said the meeting was unsatisfactory, and it came before reports surfaced about faulty pre-war intelligence.

When Cindy Sheehan arrived in Crawford on Aug. 6, her small group started marching to Bush’s ranch, then was moved by authorities to a plot of land a few miles away.

Late Monday, a pickup tore through rows of white crosses that stretched about two-tenths of a mile along the side of the road at the Crawford camp. The crosses bore the names of fallen U.S. soldiers. No one was hurt.