Service honors fallen heroes, as Tirador mystery deepens - NEWS10 ABC: Albany, New York News, Weather, Sports

Service honors fallen heroes, as Tirador mystery deepens

COLONIE, N.Y. - Evidence in the death of a Colonie soldier now suggests she may not have taken her own life. Staff Sgt. Amy Seyboth Tirador was found shot in the head on base in Iraq in November.

Thursday night her mother spoke to News10's Marie Luby, at a Memorial Day service honoring all of our fallen heroes.

Veterans know Memorial Day doesn't always inspire the respect it should in everyone.

U.S. Army Veteran John McKenna III, whose Marine son was killed in action in 2006, said, "The first day of summer, graduations, sales at the mall...those are the people that really don't understand what the cost of war is."

Those paying tribute at the Colonie Veterans Memorial do know the cost -- the lives of their heroes.

One of those deaths is a deepening mystery. Colleen Murphy bent to kiss the stone honoring her daughter, Staff Sergeant Amy Seyboth Tirador.

Tirador's death was ruled a suicide, but new evidence shows DNA and fingerprints from one or more others on Tirador's gun.

"It could possibly be that these people had touched her gun," Murphy said.

Murphy feels the Army's investigation has been rife with inconsistencies. She looks to the sky at Thursday's memorial, cautiously hopeful the new evidence will lead to answers she desperately needs.

"If they've pulled the gun out after six months and re-examined it again and found something they didn't find the first time, that part of me says, 'Yeah man, go!' I mean that's what the military should be doing for our fallen soldiers, for my daughter."

This crowd knows the pain of losing a hero. They salute each of them together.

McKenna said, "When my son was killed in 2006, it was an incredibly devastating experience for us. I still haven't gotten over it. I probably never will."

Never will they forget the sacrifices of those in uniform.

Murphy said of her daughter, "She would want us to celebrate her life and what she did."

Murphy plans to hire a private investigator once the Army closes its case.