Suicide Rate Among Marines at All Time High

Full Article at: Marine Corps suicide rate nears record level
November 14, 1:45 PMLA Military Headlines ExaminerMark Nero


"The suicide rate in the U.S. Marine Corps is nearing an all-time record, but still remains below the per-person rates in the Army and civilian populations, USMC data shows.

There have been 42 confirmed or suspected suicides in the USMC through Oct. 31 of this year, the same number as there was in all of 2008, according to the Corps' Personnel and Readiness Division.

The Marine Corps has about 208,000 troops, which makes 2008's suicide rate 16.8 per 100,000 troops. In comparison, among the Army's 1.1 million troops, the 2008 suicide rate was 20.2 per 100,000 troops. The civilian population' suicide rate was 19.5 per 100,000 people.

But the Marine Corps suicide level has inched up each year the past few years: in in addition to the 42 Marines who killed themselves in 2008, 33 Marines committed suicide in 2007 and 25 in 2006, according to Corps data."