Instructor dunked trainee before death

Associated Press

SAN DIEGO

A Southern California medical examiner ruled the death of a Navy SEAL trainee a homicide, saying his instructor repeatedly dunked him during a pool exercise while the 21-year-old was struggling, according to an autopsy report released Wednesday.

The homicide ruling on the May 6 drowning of Seaman James Derek Lovelace raises questions about the safety of the grueling training that produces the U.S. military’s most-elite warfighter. It also raises questions about where the line is drawn between what is considered to be rigorous training designed to weed out the weakest and what is abuse that leads to a homicide.

Lovelace, of Crestview, Fla., was in his first week of training in Coronado, near San Diego. An autopsy found he drowned. The report noted he also had a heart abnormality but said the problem was only a contributing factor.

The homicide ruling does not necessarily mean a crime occurred, and the instructor has not been charged.

The Navy is investigating and has assigned the instructor to administrative duties. Officials said they want to ensure investigators will carry out a thorough probe and declined to release any details on the instructor.

Lovelace showed signs he was having difficulty treading water in fatigues, boots and a dive mask filled with water. While struggling, he was seen on surveillance video being dunked at least twice by an instructor, the report said.

At one point in the training, a fellow trainee tried to help Lovelace keep his head above water. Video appears to show the instructor dunking Lovelace and later pulling him partially up and out of the water and then pushing him back, the autopsy report said.

Multiple people stated that his face was purple and his lips were blue, according to the report. One individual was even considering calling a “time-out” to stop the exercise, the report said.

Shortly after being pulled from the pool, Lovelace lost consciousness and was taken to a civilian hospital, where he died.