National Guard returns from Middle East

Published 5:43 pm Thursday, March 24, 2011

After a year of active duty, the Alabama Army National Guard’s 1156th Military Police Detachment, Criminal Investigation Division (based in Clanton) recently returned home from deployment.

The 12 members were deployed to Iraq and Kuwait in March 2010 in support of Operations Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn.

The members consisted of two mechanics and 10 law enforcement officers from across the state.

The 1156th deployed to conduct general crimes investigation such as homicides, sexual assault and other crimes while overseas.

The dozen Guard members went to Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas for a few weeks before beginning their work in the Middle East.

“Do your job. Do it well. Come home,” said Brig. Gen. Charles H. Gailes Jr. at the unit’s send-off ceremony held at Fort Ivan Smith in March 2010, and the members did just that.

The small criminal investigations unit returned to Fort Hood last week and before traveling back to their individual homes.

The 1156th deployed some agents to Washington, D.C., in 2003, but had not deployed the unit in the current war until this deployment.