Lt Joshua Woodhouse A Mother's Experience of Military Justice

by Polly Woodhouse

This is the explosive story of Lt Joshua Woodhouse, a young, highly successful officer, who died in suspicious circumstances whilst serving his country on board HMS Ocean in August, 2010.

At the time of his death, HMS Ocean was berthed in the Unites States naval base, Mayport in Jacksonville, Florida.
At the very time of the incident, a US Navy warship, the USS Mitscher was sailing past and three of her crew were eye witnesses to his fateful fall.

The Royal Navy SIB Military Police, instead of investigating the possibility of foul play, refused to interview these three independent US Navy witnesses as part of their criminal investigation. Instead, on receipt of these witness statements the SIB created a brand new unsubstantiated account.

The book recounts how the Royal British Legion took on this suspicious military death and brought together an outstanding legal team. This team resolutely fought the combined might of the Coroner, the MOD, the Royal Navy Military Police, and the Royal Navy who did all in their power to cover up this inconvenient death.

The book culminates with the proceedings of the Inquest where the mask slips and the real motives of the MOD and Coroner are exposed.

This is the resolution of a mother’s determined fight to see her son’s story told.

395 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 15, 2016

Reviews

[Mandy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a remarkable – and deeply disturbing – story. In it, Polly Woodhouse explores the circumstances of her son’s death. Young and successful naval officer Lt Joshua Woodhouse fell to his death whilst serving aboard HMS Ocean. The official Navy Investigation concluded that it was a tragic accident. Polly Woodhouse couldn’t accept this and in spite of opposition, delays and obfuscation on the part of the naval authorities, painstakingly pieced together an account of what actually happened, and in spite of strenuous denials that there could have been any foul play insisted that the matter hadn’t been properly investigated. I see no reason to mistrust or disbelieve her conclusions – but indeed if only some of her account were true that that in itself would be enough to damn the Navy authorities for their cover-up. As it is, the book sheds a shameful light on a cynical and uncaring service.
The book is heartfelt and moving, but should not be judged by any literary criteria. Its aim is to uncover the truth and this it does supremely well. Yes, at times it is repetitious, and yes, sometimes the technical details are difficult to follow, but all credit to Mrs Woodhouse for her detailed account, and I hope that one day justice will be done.

[David Mattingly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Polly Woodhouse, mother and author of this book tells the story of the death and aftermath of her son’s death. The tragedy of a son’s death while deployed is likely on of the toughest tragedies for a family, especially a Mother. Ms Woodhouse writes the story in short snippets of information while she and her family investigated her son’s death aboard a Royal Navy ship while inport a US Navy Base in Florida. The bureaucracy of the Royal Navy’s handling of the death of a Sailor while in a foreign country leaves the reader with a the appearance of a cover-up.

While the book painstakingly draws out the tedious process of the family’s investigation it does not tell the story in a way to hold the attention of the average reader.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lt Joshua Woodhouse, a young, highly successful officer, died in August 2010 under suspicious circumstances whilst serving his country on board HMS Ocean. His family demanded justice. However, the Royal Navy SIB Military Police did not investigate the possibility of foul play and refused to interview three independent US Navy witnesses as part of their criminal investigation. The Coroner in charge and other officers also tried to cover up any crime or suspicious circumstances of Lt Woodhouse's death.
Joshua's mother Polly, determined to see justice, tells her son’s story in this book. While the account of his death and the inquest is long and repetitive in places, her love for her son shines through.
I appreciated the element of faith in the book. Polly's determination gives me the courage to continue fighting on behalf of my children.
I would recommend this book to parents and readers who are interested in military justice or the military legal system in the UK.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a heartfelt and moving story about the death of naval officer Lt Joshua Woodhouse.

MS Woodhouse is convinced her son Joshua’s death was not an unfortunate accident and lays out her family’s investigation into the incident. I can’t imagine the turmoil this caused her.

The proceedings were a bit tedious and repetitive but she does make her point. This book is a true testament to the lengths a parent will go to seeking the truth for their child.
I found the information on the UK military system insightful.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and am not required to leave a positive review.