Fort Drum Commander Fired over Alleged Misconduct
Col. J.T. Eldridge (right), 1st Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division Commander, during his Change of Command ceremony at Sexton Field, Fort Drum, N.Y., June 20, 2019. (U.S. Army/Facebook)
29 Apr 2021
The commander of the 10th Mountain Division at Fort Drum, New York fired the unit s 1st Brigade Combat Team commander Wednesday following the completion of an investigation into claims of professional misconduct.
Maj. Gen. Brian Mennes relieved Col. J.T. Eldridge due to a loss in trust in his ability to command after an investigation stemming from allegations of misconduct, according to a news release from Fort Drum.
FORT DRUM â A colonel in charge of a brigade has been relieved of command stemming from allegations of misconduct.
In a news release Thursday morning, Fort Drum officials announced that Maj. Gen. Brian J. Mennes, commanding general, 10th Mountain Division, relieved Col. J.T. Eldridge, commander, 1st Brigade Combat Team, on Wednesday âdue to a loss in trust in his ability to command after an investigation stemming from allegations of misconduct.â
âWe have full confidence in our soldiers who are trained and ready to meet any mission. We hold our leaders accountable for their actions,â Maj. Gen. Mennes said.
Lt. Col. Dwight F. Towler, commander, 10th Brigade Support Battalion, 1st Brigade Combat Team, is assuming command responsibility in the interim.
Fort Drum brigade commander fired over alleged misconduct April 29 Col. J.T. Eldridge, right, was relieved Wednesday, April 28, by the 10th Mountain Division commanding general. (Army/Facebook) The commanding general of 10th Mountain Division relieved one of his brigade commanders Wednesday due to a loss in trust in his ability to command, the unit said in a press release. Maj. Gen. Brian J. Mennes relieved Col. J.T. Eldridge, commander of 1st Brigade Combat Team at Fort Drum, New York, following an investigation stemming from allegations of misconduct. Mennes said in a statement accompanying the release that “we hold our leaders accountable for their actions,” but the reasoning behind the relief was not included.
FORT DRUM â An argument between two Fort Drum soldiers swapping their vehicles with each other apparently led to one of them being shot to death in a wooded area in northern New Jersey.
First Assistant Prosecutor Gregory Mueller told the New Jersey Herald that the body of Cpl. Hayden A. Harris, 20, was found on Saturday in a wooded area in Byram Township, Sussex County, N.J., and a fellow soldier was taken into custody in connection with his death.Â
Pvt. Jamaal Mellish, 23, remains in the custody of Fort Drum Military Police.
Cpl. Harris was meeting with Mellish âfor some type of vehicle exchangeâ in Watertown when the meeting escalated, according to the New Jersey newspaper.