Vietnam vet with PTSD on death row seeks clemency

Gregg Zoroya | USA TODAY Opinion

Show Caption Hide Caption Vet with PTSD fighting execution for killing deputy Andrew Brannan is scheduled to be executed for killing Deputy Kyle Dinkheller during a traffic stop years ago. Brannan's lawyers claim the Vietnam veteran was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and should not be put to death.

Family and lawyers of a Vietnam veteran facing execution in Georgia next Tuesday for murdering a deputy sheriff in 1998 are pleading that he be spared because his actions were linked to severe post-traumatic stress disorder.

In clemency papers filed Wednesday, lawyers for Andrew Brannan argue that "our knowledge of PTSD and the frightful toll that it can exact on veterans has grown exponentially as a result of ... wars in Iraq and Afghanistan."

This level of understanding, particularly within the public, didn't exist when Brannan stood trial in 2000, they argue.

"It's not right to execute a decorated veteran for a crime that stemmed, without question, from the mental suffering that he incurred from serving his country,'' Brannan lawyer Tom Lundin said in a phone interview.

The killing of Laurens County Deputy Sheriff Kyle Dinkheller during a traffic stop for speeding was captured on a video camera mounted on the officer's patrol car.

The video shows a confrontation quickly escalating with Brannan shouting obscenities, dancing around, daring the officer to shoot and then retrieving a rifle from his pickup truck. A gunfight erupted and a wounded Dinkheller can be heard pleading with Brannan to stop as the veteran reloads and keeps shooting.

Dinkheller, who was 22 and a father-to-be, suffered nine gunshot wounds. Brannan was hit once in the stomach.

Neither the prosecution in the case nor the family of the slain officer had any immediate comment on the clemency request.

Brannan had served as an first lieutenant and forward artillery observer in Vietnam near the Laotian border in 1970 and saw considerable combat, according to military records. He received a Bronze Star for meritorious service.

Years later, he was rated 100% disabled with PTSD by the Department of Veterans Affairs, which also found him to be suffering from depression, suicidal thoughts and bipolar disorder.

A defense psychologist testified at Brannan's 2000 trial that he was likely in the middle of an emotional flashback to his combat experience during the shooting.

Research shows that violence typically does not occur among those with PTSD, though combat veterans may be a greater risk for this kind of reaction. The illness can lead to bouts of anger and aggression. An Institute of Medicine study reported that 13% to 20% of the 2.6 million Americans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan may suffer from PTSD.

In Brannan's 2000 trial, the jury rejected the defense argument that he was innocent by reason of insanity, and Brannan was convicted and sentenced to death.The sentence was later upheld on appeal in state courts.

In their clemency papers, Brannan's lawyers say he should certainly remain in prison for the rest of his life. "The only issue here," they write, "is whether the veteran should pay the ultimate price of death for a crime that is unquestionably the result of mental illness flowing from his combat experience."