IAMA am a former New York Times journalist who was strangled by a Green Beret, a Vietnam War Veteran, during an interview. Since then I’ve been in a wheel chair with limited use of my arms and legs. AMA

Thanks for sharing!

Did you pursue any legal action against him? Did you ever speak to him again? How was it?

Also, your attitude is very motivating!

I received 10,000 dollars from the state of Hawaii as a victim of a violent crime. That's it. I couldn't sue him because he was working for the government. The government is immune from such suits. I was never angry with him, as I said, we were both victims of the war. He was sent to a mental institution for three months. I often thought of contacting him, but I never have. Thank you for that compliment. It was wonderful and makes my struggles worth while.

I find it astounding that you couldn't sue this man.

So do I. I didn't want to sue him, I wanted to sue the government that sent him to fight an unjust war in our names.

Oh, thanks for clarifying. You could have sued him, but you wanted to sue the government. I thought he was like James Bond, with a license to kill or something like that.

I could not sue him, so he sort of was like James Bond. Obviously not as cool and debonair. But he was not above the law. He was sent to a mental institution because he was found mentally incompetent to stand trial.

Maybe you should contact him ... he probably feels an extraordinary amount of guilt about what happened. It might be beneficial to him to know that, one, you don't blame him, and two, that you haven't let your injuries keep you from living life.

I've often thought of doing that. Maybe this might reach him. I hope it does.

I understand that you may not have wanted to sue the individual personally, and that you would rather have wanted to sue the government (which is understandably problematic), but please do not misinform us by saying that you "couldn't sue him because he was working for the government." I don't know who if anyone informed you so, but that statement is false on its face.

I talked to lawyers, and they advised me against pursuing this matter because I could not win this case. Anyone can bring a suit, but being successful is an entirely different matter.

Did you get any type of compensation from NY times for this? You lost your ability to live a 'normal' life due to something you were doing for them. I would think they'd be making you live as comfortable as possible for the rest of your life.

I was not working for them at the time. I was a freelance reporter. I started working for the Times in 77'. They hired me despite my disabilities, because my brain remain intact.

Do you have any advice for people with disabilities on how they can go about procuring employment, specifically with organizations that do things that matter?

I would research your market and market your expertise. Being disabled can actually work for you. Make your disability work for you, because you will have insight that no one else will have. What works for you, such as work place accessibility, will make it easier for everyone. I hope this helps again!

I'm going sailing with some friends, I'll be back later to answer more questions.

"Short documentary on Shake-A-Leg Miami's Kerry Gruson"

(Thank you for your story. Hope you don't mind me posting this here.)

Not at all. Thank you!

Verification, please.

Edit: That you are Kerry Gruson.

I am :)

I know that you mentioned that you can't remember the attack. However, do you have any clues (e.g., your notes) as to what initiated it. Are you assuming that it was a flashback, or do you have proof? How do you know that he just didn't like you?

My mother, Flora Lewis, a famous foreign correspondent went to Hawaii to be with me. She investigated the incident and talked to the priest to whom he confessed that he had, "Killed a girl." And to the mother of his girlfriend, whom he had also attacked. I don't remember anything. My mind is a total blank. I've even tried hypnosis and that didn't work.

this was going to be my line of questioning... since you cannot remember, do you still have your notes in your possession? i was wondering the types of questions you were asking him that would set him off or he was on the verge of a mental breakdown regardless and you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time?

my friend's father was a huey door gunner in vietnam. sadly, he can't even ask his father about his experiences as that chapter of his life still effects him to this day.

I don't have any notes of the interview. it was clearly a wrong time wrong place situation. I don't even remember the questions I had planned to ask him long before the actual interview.

PTSD is a very real problem, which we are seeing again with soldiers returning from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. We have not learned our lesson!

Any hope that medical advances will enable you to regain use of your limbs?

Scientists are working on stem cell transplants into the brain. This is of course experimental, and quite frankly too risky. Maybe in the future...

I don't get it. The blood was cut off from your brain so you can't use your legs now?

When did the accident occur? You say at 26 but you dont say if you are now 27 or 50 etc.

Yes, the blood was cut off from my brain. I don't know for how long. The accident was in 1974, so I've spent more than half my life in a wheelchair. The diagnosis is Traumatic Parkinson's, and what was affected is a part of the brain that controls motor function. Someone is helping me with the typing now, because I type slowly.

The story is 100% legit. I'm not saying who it is though.

Edit - oh, if I'd looked up top.... (waves to kerry).

I'd like to say that yours is an inspirational story, and that you have encouraged many disabled people to take part in sports and other activities.

Keep up the good work.

I wrote an article for the New York Times. You can find it here. It took 9 months to write. It was hard labor, but perhaps the best thing I've written.

I'd just like to say, thank you, I'm glad you've been able to share this all with us.

Thank for taking the time to read this. It means a lot. Reddit has made my day!

Wow. I'm a 25-year-old journalist at a small midwestern weekly, and I'm pretty floored by this story. Sure, I've had people threaten litigation against me or my publication for some of my articles, but I've never felt I had to worry about actual physical violence. Granted, this is a bit different, but all the same it's not one of those things you think of going into an interview.

That said, any career advice for a young media professional? While I enjoy my newspaper job, I'm also considering other positions in the areas of communication and media management. The main problem I keep running into is that it's hard to get my foot in the door. The job market is tough, and it's difficult to compete against a field of candidates who often have years more experience than me.

Now a days there are so many different outlets of media. If you want to make a living as a journalist you have to think creatively, out of the box. In my day traditional journalism was very much a possibility. Today however, it's a dinosaur. To get yourself into the door, I would volunteer your services to the community and organizations, like non-profits. Get somes exposure to the outside world in order to figure out where you belong. Figure out what excites you. Travel, take notes, and keep a diary/journal, write...write...write... I don't want to send you on a wild goose chase but the only way to improve is to keep at it. Best of luck to you. I hope this helps.

How do you fap?

That's an interesting question because sex and disability is a huge issue, which many people are leery of approaching.

My answer to you right now is: Use your imagination!

I want to thank you for sharing this quote:

Sailing expands your universe once again, brings you out of the dark and back up into the air, the sunlight, back to joy and a life worth living.

That is good writing and is inspirational. It makes the unknown dangers of life a little less intimidating.

You brought light into my day! The unknown doesn't have to be intimidating. It can be a big challenge and very exciting!

Edit: Life is a great adventure!!

This is more logistics than anything, but how do you sail if you have limited use of your arms and legs? How limited is limited? I've seen the puff-suck sails, is that what you use?

Thanks for doing this! Your story is really interesting and you seem like a very inspiring person.

Very Good Question:

Check out this website: yditot.com. You can see me sailing on the TackMaster3, which is on my boat Blew BaYOU (A triple pun).

The boat has not been modified at all. I have a drop in adaptive sailing chair that allows me to swing from side to side. So I can always sail from the high side. This gives me good visibility. I also have a very innovative overhead tiller, so I can swing underneath it. You can go to the site to see photos of it. My dear friend Jorg Pawlik designed everything with my input.

Was it the tall ship races you were doing? They took over for a week and it was fantastic! My older brother was on one of the ships.

I participated in the tall ship race from Miami to South Carolina. The fleet continued up the coast of North America. It was a glorious experience. Everything with disabled and able-bodied passengers alike from peeling potatoes to cleaning the toilets, to raising the sails. I was even hoisted up the mast in my chair!

I read the article you posted. The bill seemed ridiculous, but the program seemed to have results...

In my opinion the government, if not cover medical costs, should cover medical costs in certain conditions... I don't think you should have had to pay for that.

Being a disabled person, I receive medicare, but that doesn't even begin to cover my medical expenses that have amassed over the years.

Are you of Vietnamese or asian decent?

I'm Irish and English. My dad's family relocated from Latvia to Ireland and then Canada. My grandmother was born in England, and had to get to the US on the Titanic. She postponed her departure by a week. Glad she did haha.

Are you/have you ever been married? Kids?

Yes I was married, after the "accident." Being married to a disabled person is not easy and our marriage dissolved after 4 years. No kids.

Hi.

What was the process/experience of waking up and realizing and coping with the situation. How exactly did you come out of your dark place? How long did that take?

How are you able to support yourself financially?

You mentioned limited use of your limbs. Just how "limited" is it and are you able to sail conventionally?

It seems like you are interested in activism. Are there any issues that you are passionate about or participate in. Do you pay attention to the state of war veterans?

Can you tell me your favorite ice cream flavor?

Thank you for answering.

Great Questions!

Favorite flavor, mmmm Chocolate Chip Mint and Mocha Almond.

I was awake but not aware of my surroundings until a week later when I read the menu and saw the date, April 5th and the name of the hospital on the linen. I find that anger is too draining and counterproductive. I've always been an optimist. I like to see the best in people and situations. Then of course there is sailing, which has changed my life.

I worked for the New York Times for 27 years after my injury, and I get disability and medicare.

I can walk for a short distance with assistance, because I have no balance. I still have control of my hands. Both arms and legs are very stiff. My condition requires me to make an active decision to move my body, where as most people can do that automatically.

I am very passionate about Shake-A-Leg Miami. I am on the board of Directors.

as a money less college student how can I get into sailing?

Find a sailing organization and volunteer! It's the best way to start.

edit: a community sailing organization. Go to the US-Sailing website to find out more information.

How did you get into sailing after your incident?

I chanced upon Shake-A-Leg Miami and sailing. Quite accidentally. While rolling along Coconut Grove's water front in 1991, Shake-A-Leg Miami at the time had two boats. I took my first sailing lesson. Once I got on the helm, I was hooked. It gave me back, a sense of freedom and powerfulness. Sailing is the perfect sport because it can be done by anybody, at any level, and with any abilities.

Did the Green Beret face criminal proceedings (or court martial)?

I know you attribute his actions to flashback/post traumatic stress, but there are plenty of soldiers in jail now for less violent crimes that could be attributed to the same flashbacks.

As I said before, he was found mentally incompetent. I don't think there was a court martial.

Thank you for doing this AMA and being an inspiration on a number--well, more like a countless number--of different levels. What's your take on journalism today? Is it any more sensationalized than the 70s? Were there Olbermanns and O'reillys then, but just didn't get millions of viewers or readers? If you could change one thing about mainstream journalism, what would it be?

There has always been sensational journalists. It's just now, with the internet, it is more widely read and widely available. With regards to journalism today, everybody who has a cellphone with a camera is a reporter. So information as well as misinformation spreads quickly like wildfire. Hope this helps!

If I change anything, I would want people to read more and listen to NPR, the BBC, or the CBC.

[deleted]

Social Media is where it's at. New York Times is still the best traditional source of information. I do keep in contact with some staff, but I don't recognize most of the bylines anymore.

can you use your arms freely ?

I have very restricted motion. And I smashed my left elbow, when I fell in China. So that doesn't help either.

What were you doing in China, and can we assume that the China was also smashed?

I was visiting friends. And yes it was smashed but it is rising haha!

Do you feel like, with the training military personnel receive, this was bound to happen sooner or later?

Also, do you believe that the government has gotten any better at treating soldiers with PTSD since the incident, or does their treatment of battle-scarred soldiers seem the same?

I am by no means an expert on this subject matter, but I know that many of our troops return seriously troubled. It is the governments job to take care of those that serve us. Has it done a great job thus far?

Slightly different topic for my question: As someone who was (is?) in the Journalism industry for so long, how do you feel about the shift, especially in youth, from 1) the physical medium of newspapers to the Internet and 2) mainstream authorities in Journalism to more independent or community-driven sources?

I am very excited about both shifts. Activity among young people means they are building life long habits of involvement with the world around them. A journalist can't ask for anything more. You have to maintain quality control though. There will always be room for professional journalists or aspiring journalists.

I like your positive attitude, but geez- how could you not be absolutely pissed off?

Whether you answer me or not- that's cool. All my respect to you, and sorry that that happened. I wish you well, and all the best.

Of course I was angry. I was angry at myself for having gotten into the situation, angry at the world for the atrocities it had committed. Why do bad things happen to good people? I don't know. The anger dissolved, and what I was left with was a feeling that we all have to get on with our lives. So I did.