Crime, the media and veterans

I am wondering why the media feel it necessary to identify the perpetrators of criminal acts as veterans, former soldiers, Marines, etc.? The Tuesday front-page article’s title uses the term “veteran” in its headline. Yet the criminal’s veteran status had nothing to do with the story or the criminal act. Is this a media bias against veterans?

I note suspects in many local and national crimes have Hispanic surnames. Yet I rarely see the term “illegal” or “undocumented” attached to the perpetrator, especially in the headline. We don’t identify criminals as white, black, Asian, Hispanic or Native American, so why “veteran”?

Do the media believe that veterans are somehow tainted because of their military service? Do the media believe that we veterans should all be choir boys and have spotless records? May I remind the media and everyone else that the military draws its recruits — and even its leaders — from the same society in which we all live. Just as there are murderers, rapists, thieves and con artists in society, so are there in the military.