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CBS and NBC took different angles on the mental health problems of the military to illustrate army statistics showing a fivefold increase in soldiers' attempted suicides in the past five years. For NBC's In Depth, Robert Bazell looked at research that found a high incidence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder among soldiers who were rendered unconscious by brain injuries while serving in Iraq. Fully 44% of those who were knocked out during combat developed PTSD upon their return. CBS' David Martin brought us the case of Lt Elizabeth Whiteside, who tried to blow her brains out while serving in Iraq. Her commanding officer noted her diagnosis with mental illness, called it "an excuse" and had her court-martialed for illegal discharge of her weapon. The court martial dismissed the charge but the verdict had to be ratified by senior officers. The delay in processing the verdict caused the lieutenant such distress that she tried to kill herself again, this time with an overdose. The charges are now dropped but only after Whiteside was imprisoned under "psychiatric lockdown" at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.
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