Millers File Claim Against U.S. Army, Await Response

Investigations into Army Sergeant Adam Arndt did not prevent him from seeking out high school recruits, such as former senior Michelle Miller, whose family is filing a claim against the Army after her death.

Last April, Michelle and Arndt were found shot dead in Arndt’s Germantown home in what was declared a murder-suicide. Michelle had left her home the night before, telling her parents she needed to help a platoon member who was having suicidal thoughts. She had become an Army recruit in large part because of her desire to become a military psychologist.

The investigation into the incident ended June 28, with the cause of Michelle’s death being a gunshot wound and the manner of death undetermined. Closing the case with an undetermined manner of death essentially means that though the weapon used was identified, the way in which it was used and the person using it could not be definitively determined.

Arndt, who worked in a recruitment center, was being investigated by the Army at the time, but was still allowed to work with recruits, including high school students.

“He was apparently not supervised,” Kevin Miller said of Arndt’s time on the job while he was being investigated.

The claim against the Army was filed in June, and the Army has six months to respond, meaning that if a response does come, it will arrive sometime in November.

“I don’t know what to expect honestly,” Miller said. “From what I gather, it could be all over the place.” The Army may not respond to the claim, but if it does, there are several potential outcomes, such as a settlement or some kind of compromise between them and the family. The Army has not commented on the claim nor their potential response.

Regardless of the uncertain nature of the case, the stories of Arndt’s history as an Army recruiter and the concept of recruitment of underage high school students in general remain large concerns for the community.

“I think recruiters need more direct supervision when working with young people,” Miller said. According to tv.msnbc.com, under the No Child Left Behind Act, public schools receiving federal funding must allow military recruiters to have access to high school students just as they give that access to colleges and universities.

The Millers expressed gratitude and appreciation for the RHS community, with which they have often worked and volunteered, after the large amount of support that came from the students and staff in the months after Michelle’s passing.