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Corps falls in line on casualty notification

Families of Marines killed in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan will no longer get the dreaded knock at the door during the middle of the night.

The Army has had a similar policy in place for more than a decade.

According to a Marine Corps-wide administrative message issued April 26, casualty notifications will occur no earlier than 5 a.m. and no later than midnight.

Until the message came out, families could receive the unwelcome news at any time, even if it meant rousing them from sleep in the early morning hours.

“Conducting a notification for deceased or DUSTWUN [duty status whereabouts unknown] casualties is difficult on a family,” the MarAdmin message stated. “Notifications conducted in the middle of the night, although timely, limit immediate support and assistance from family, friends and other support-type organizations.”

The Army notifies next of kin of their loved ones’ death between the hours of 6 a.m. and 10 p.m., and has done so for several years.

“Sometimes there are extenuating circumstances that require us to notify next of kin outside this window, but this is not normal practice,” Army Human Resources Command spokesman Lt. Col. Kevin Arata said.

He declined to identify specific circumstances but explained that there haven’t been many and each is approved on a case-by-case basis with the director of the Casualty and Mortuary Affairs Operations Center.

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Corps falls in line on casualty notification