The Medals of Honor awarded by each of the three branches of the U.S. military, and are, from left to right, the Army, Coast Guard/Navy/Marine Corps and Air Force. Wikipedia
The Changing Process Of Awarding Military's Highest Medal -- North County Times
Peralta case an example of modern methods interfering with witness accounts, vets say.
When it comes to the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for battlefield bravery, the standard has long been the same: Two eyewitnesses.
San Diego Marine Sgt. Rafael Peralta had seven.
His nomination, though, was rejected earlier this month by the Pentagon for the second time in four years, raising questions about whether modern sensibilities — CSI meets G.I. Joe — will forever alter how combat heroes are evaluated and rewarded.
On one hand are the witnesses, who reported seeing Peralta, already on the ground with a gunshot wound to the head, pull a live grenade to his body and shield his squad mates from the blast during combat with insurgents in Fallujah.
On the other hand are forensic experts who doubt whether he could have consciously smothered the grenade and say the evidence shows it exploded next to his body, not under.
The two sides can’t both be right.
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My Comment: So .... a pathologist is the one who now decides who gets the Medal of Honor .... not the witnesses who saw the action that would merit this recognition.
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