Killed in Action-SGT Carlo Robinson
Donation protected
Hello, my name is Christine; I am a close family friend of Ms. Jennifer Robinson and a trauma nurse who was part of a team who tried to save the life of her son, SGT Carlo Robinson, while deployed to Afghanistan in 2009. We are raising money for the Robinson family to help restore money spent by Ms. Robinson to represent her deceased son during a civil fraud case related her son’s military death benefits. All money raised will be given directly to Ms. Robinson to pay her court and attorney fees amounting to $25,000.00. All donations will be greatly appreciated and help the Robinson family recover from a devastating loss. Please continue below to read about Ms. Robinson and SGT Carlo Robinson’s story:
On January 17, 2009, SGT Carlo M. Robinson's patrol was hit by a suicide bomber while serving in Afghanistan. I was a member of the trauma team who tried to save his life. Due to the severity of SGT Robinson's wounds he died despite our best efforts. After redeploying home I began to search for his family to find closure. On May 19, 2010, I finally found his mother, Ms. Jennifer Robinson and spoke to her for the first time.
As we began to talk, Ms. Robinson explained that she thought her son was still alive but lost in Afghanistan. I asked her why she would have thought he was still alive and she explained that when the military brought her son’s body back to Hope, AR, the military delivered the wrong body. The mix-up wasn't discovered until Ms. Robinson was in the process of saying her final good-byes at the funeral home. The military recalled the plane that had Carlo's body back to the Hope, AR airport and exchanged the caskets. However, there was no military honors for Carlo, the parade members who lined the streets had already gone home, and there was no one to properly welcome Carlo home. The military quietly took the proper casket back to the funeral home hoping none of the community members who stood outside the funeral home would notice.
Ms. Robinson further explained that eight months after Carlo died she discovered someone had been fraudulently taking her son’s death benefits. Ms. Robinson wrote to her congressmen, wrote the military, wrote the VA, and even wrote letters to the President for assistance. However, no one could provide assistance. Even though Ms. Robinson was the legal guardian of Carlo’s two children and Executor of his estate, none of the government agencies would assist or help her understand how someone was able to fraudulently take her son’s death benefits.
Finally, in February 2013, we uncovered the extent of fraud. We located a court case which was initiated eight months after the tragic death of Carlo by an ex-girlfriend. It took us another two years to build enough evidence to finally take the ex-girlfriend to civil court. Concurrently, as the evidence mounded, we made two separate requests to the military’s Criminal Investigation Department and other governmental requests, however, each agency we spoke to said they would not get involved because it was a civil matter. Due to the lack of government support Ms. Robinson had to retain a civil attorney and assumed all the out-of-pocket expenses to defend her deceased son.
Ms. Robinson retained Attorney, Ms. Lily Cruickshank, of Oklahoma City, OK. After six years of battling the fraud claims, Ms. Robinson finally had a court hearing (October 22 – 23, 2015) and was able to speak on behalf of her deceased son. When the attorney asked the ex-girlfriend “why”, the ex-girlfriend stated, “If she knew what I was doing, she would have blocked me”. At the end of the two day trial, the judge ruled in Ms. Robinson’s favor and charged the ex-girlfriend with fraud.
Ms. Robinson’s attorney, Ms. Cruickshank made a plea to the courts on February 5, 2016, asking that the ex-girlfriend pay all attorney fees associated with this court case. Unfortunately, the courts ruled that each party will be responsible for their own fees. That being said, Ms. Robinson has paid over $25,000 in court fees which has depleted all the remaining money left over from her son’s death to take care of Carlo’s two children of who she has been raising. Ms. Robinson is currently out of work due to an autoimmune disease and lives off of a small social security check. We are asking your support to help recover her court fees and make things right for the Robinson family.
On June 16, 2016, we will be hosting a “Final Welcome Home/Celebration of Life” in honor of SGT Carlo Robinson in Hope, AR, to finally give him the proper hero's welcome that he deserves.
Event location, time & date:
June 16, 2016
10:00 AM - 11:00 am
University of Arkansas Community College
Hempstead Hall - Theater
2500 S. Main
Hope, AR 71802
Thank you for your consideration and support.
On January 17, 2009, SGT Carlo M. Robinson's patrol was hit by a suicide bomber while serving in Afghanistan. I was a member of the trauma team who tried to save his life. Due to the severity of SGT Robinson's wounds he died despite our best efforts. After redeploying home I began to search for his family to find closure. On May 19, 2010, I finally found his mother, Ms. Jennifer Robinson and spoke to her for the first time.
As we began to talk, Ms. Robinson explained that she thought her son was still alive but lost in Afghanistan. I asked her why she would have thought he was still alive and she explained that when the military brought her son’s body back to Hope, AR, the military delivered the wrong body. The mix-up wasn't discovered until Ms. Robinson was in the process of saying her final good-byes at the funeral home. The military recalled the plane that had Carlo's body back to the Hope, AR airport and exchanged the caskets. However, there was no military honors for Carlo, the parade members who lined the streets had already gone home, and there was no one to properly welcome Carlo home. The military quietly took the proper casket back to the funeral home hoping none of the community members who stood outside the funeral home would notice.
Ms. Robinson further explained that eight months after Carlo died she discovered someone had been fraudulently taking her son’s death benefits. Ms. Robinson wrote to her congressmen, wrote the military, wrote the VA, and even wrote letters to the President for assistance. However, no one could provide assistance. Even though Ms. Robinson was the legal guardian of Carlo’s two children and Executor of his estate, none of the government agencies would assist or help her understand how someone was able to fraudulently take her son’s death benefits.
Finally, in February 2013, we uncovered the extent of fraud. We located a court case which was initiated eight months after the tragic death of Carlo by an ex-girlfriend. It took us another two years to build enough evidence to finally take the ex-girlfriend to civil court. Concurrently, as the evidence mounded, we made two separate requests to the military’s Criminal Investigation Department and other governmental requests, however, each agency we spoke to said they would not get involved because it was a civil matter. Due to the lack of government support Ms. Robinson had to retain a civil attorney and assumed all the out-of-pocket expenses to defend her deceased son.
Ms. Robinson retained Attorney, Ms. Lily Cruickshank, of Oklahoma City, OK. After six years of battling the fraud claims, Ms. Robinson finally had a court hearing (October 22 – 23, 2015) and was able to speak on behalf of her deceased son. When the attorney asked the ex-girlfriend “why”, the ex-girlfriend stated, “If she knew what I was doing, she would have blocked me”. At the end of the two day trial, the judge ruled in Ms. Robinson’s favor and charged the ex-girlfriend with fraud.
Ms. Robinson’s attorney, Ms. Cruickshank made a plea to the courts on February 5, 2016, asking that the ex-girlfriend pay all attorney fees associated with this court case. Unfortunately, the courts ruled that each party will be responsible for their own fees. That being said, Ms. Robinson has paid over $25,000 in court fees which has depleted all the remaining money left over from her son’s death to take care of Carlo’s two children of who she has been raising. Ms. Robinson is currently out of work due to an autoimmune disease and lives off of a small social security check. We are asking your support to help recover her court fees and make things right for the Robinson family.
On June 16, 2016, we will be hosting a “Final Welcome Home/Celebration of Life” in honor of SGT Carlo Robinson in Hope, AR, to finally give him the proper hero's welcome that he deserves.
Event location, time & date:
June 16, 2016
10:00 AM - 11:00 am
University of Arkansas Community College
Hempstead Hall - Theater
2500 S. Main
Hope, AR 71802
Thank you for your consideration and support.
Organizer and beneficiary
Christine Collins
Organizer
Hope, AR
Jennifer Robinson
Beneficiary