U.S. Military Imposters Are Becoming An Epidemic

Military Posers Are 'An Epidemic,' Says Soldier Who Outs Them -- People

Anthony Anderson has been unmasking "military posers" on his website Guardian Of Valor for the past three years. But the moment he glimpsed the video of a former infantryman angrily confronting a wannabe serviceman trying to pass himself off as an Army ranger at a shopping mall in Pennslyvania on Black Friday, he knew a few fans of his site might find it interesting.

"It really holds your attention," Anderson recalls thinking while viewing the clip of Army veteran Ryan Berk denouncing a pudgy 30-year-old man in Army fatigues – later identified as Sean Yetman – as he pretends to be a decorated combat veteran.

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WNU Editor: I suspect that this fraud is far bigger and greater than what is being reported. Kudos for the work that Anthony Anderson does. The Guardian of Valor website is here.

Exposing A Navy SEAL Imposter

Exposing A Navy SEAL Imposter: How A.J. Dicken Was Found To Be A Fake -- ABC News

When Navy veteran Carol Roberts first met A.J. Dicken, who boasted about being the most decorated Navy SEAL ever, she was in awe of him, and she wasn't the first.

"He's a big guy," Roberts said. "He commands authority."

For years, Dicken, 57, claimed he was an ex-Navy SEAL who had served in dozens of covert combat missions, from the jungles of Vietnam to the caves of Afghanistan. He proudly wore the SEAL trident insignia and loved to show off his numerous awards. He would regale listeners about his mission to assassinate Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar and his death defying swoop into Pakistan to make the kill shot on Osama Bin Laden. He also carried discharge papers that included two Medals of Honor, and even a laudatory email from Col. Oliver North.

But it was all an elaborate lie, one that he would allegedly use to take hundreds of thousands of dollars from his victims -- and something else harder to put a price on: their honor.

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Update: 'Navy SEAL who fired the bin Laden kill shot and took down Pablo Escobar' found out to be a fraud after 'securing a half-billion dollar security contract' -- Daily Mail

My Comment: My blood always boils when I read stories like this one. Kudos to people like retired SEAL Senior Chief Don Shipley and others like him who expose these frauds.

U.S. Congress Passes New Stolen Valor Act

New Stolen Valor Act passes House 390-3 -- Air Force Times

Bill comes after Supreme Court struck down earlier law in 2012

WASHINGTON — The Stolen Valor Act, a bill making it illegal to profit from falsely claiming to have received a military valor medal, has passed the House of Representatives again on a 390-3 vote.

The fate of HR 258 now depends on whether the Senate passes the same bill.

Sponsored by Rep. Joe Heck, R-Nev., the measure makes it a federal crime to benefit from knowingly lying about receiving certain valorous military medals and awards.

It does not apply to every medal. Specifically covered are the Medal of Honor, service crosses, Silver Star, Purple Heart and combat badges such as Combat Infantryman’s Badge, Combat Action Badge, Combat Medical Badge, Combat Action Ribbon, or Combat Action Medal.

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Update: House bill makes it a crime to lie about military medals to obtain benefits -- FOX News/AP

My Comment: 3 voted against the new bill. I would love to know who are those three. The Senate has a similar bill that will also be voted on.

The site, http://valor.defense.gov/, lists individuals who were awarded the Medal of Honor or a Service Cross prior to or after Sept 11, 2001. It also lists Silver Star recipients for actions since Sept. 11.

Lawmakers Retarget ‘Stolen Valor’ Thieves

Lawmakers Retarget ‘Valor’ Thieves After Court Rules Bogus Military Boasts Are Free Speech -- FOX News

A day after the Supreme Court struck down a law that made it a crime to lie about military service, veterans groups and lawmakers are gearing up for another battle.

The nation's top court voted 6-3 on Thursday that the Stolen Valor Act of 2006 infringes upon speech protected by the First Amendment. The law, which was enacted amid the U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, targeted those who made bogus claims about receiving the Medal of Honor or other military decorations. The retooled Stolen Valor Act of 2011 wouldn't stop barroom boasting about bogus service, but would take aim at people who benefit financially or otherwise from their phony claims.

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My Comment: I am sure the law will be rewritten .... something along the lines of what happens if you impersonate a police officer. But I still believe that an open data base will probably be the best route.

Update: Why Is The Pentagon Unable To Keep Awards Records? -- US News and World Report

An Alternative To ‘Stolen Valor’?

Veteran’s Database of Medals Cited as Alternative to ‘Stolen Valor’ New York Times

In his opinion striking down the Stolen Valor Act on Thursday, United States Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy offered an alternative solution for defending the military’s award system against fakers, one he said would not infringe on First Amendment rights.

“The government could likely protect the integrity of the military awards system by creating a database of medal winners accessible and searchable on the Internet, as some private individuals have already done,” Justice Kennedy wrote. “Were a database accessible through the Internet, it would be easy to verify and expose false claims.”

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My Comment: Even though budgets are tight .... this is a program that I would support.

Some Reaction To The Stolen Valor Act Ruling

White House photo by Pete Souza.

Reaction to Stolen Valor Ruling -- New York Times

The Supreme Court on Thursday overturned a federal law that made it illegal to lie about being a decorated war veteran, saying that the law was an unconstitutional infringement on free speech.

The New York Times’ James Dao reported that the court’s 6-to-3 ruling was “somewhat surprising, since during oral arguments in February, the justices seemed to accept that it might be able to uphold the law without infringing First Amendment guarantees.”

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My Comment: So .... the rights of liars and cheaters take precedent over soldiers who sacrificed to earn their medals and honor. Hmmmmm ....

U.S. Supreme Court Overturns The Stolen Valor Act

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

Supreme Court: Lying About Military Medals Is Protected By Constitution -- Washington Post

The Supreme Court on Thursday struck down a federal law that made it a crime to falsely claim being awarded a top military honor, saying the law infringed on the Constitution’s First Amendment protection of free speech.

The court ruling concerned the Stolen Valor Act, under which a California man, Xavier Alvarez, was convicted for claiming falsely in 2007 that he had been awarded the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for valor.

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More News On The Stolen Valor Act Being Declared Unconstitutional

Lies About Military Honors Not Illegal, Court Finds -- New York Times
Supreme Court ruling on Stolen Valor Act rests on 1st Amendment -- L.A. Times
Lies About Military Medals Can’t Be Punished, Court Says -- Bloomberg Businessweek
Top court strikes down military medal lying law -- Reuters
SCOTUS strikes down Stolen Valor Act -- NBC Politics
Supreme Court overturns Stolen Valor Act -- UPI
Supreme Court Upholds Right to Lie About Military Honors -- Threat Level

Will The Stolen Valor Act be Overturned?

Law That Makes It A Crime To Lie About Military Honors Could Be Overturned -- Star Telegram

More than any other person in the nation, B.G. Burkett is responsible for the Stolen Valor Act, which criminalizes lying about heroism.

An officer in the Army for just three years, one of them in Vietnam, Burkett emerged from a profitable career as a stockbroker more than 20 years ago to become a national expert on military phonies and frauds and the chief defender of Vietnam veterans' honor, a role that he says has easily cost him tens of thousands of dollars and drawn the ever-loving hatred of some people, including fellow veterans.

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My Comment: My gut is also telling me that the Act will be overturned. If the money was available in the government, I would recommend setting up a national database that can be easily accessible through the internet in verifying a person's claim that he earned the medals that he has in his possession. But my gut is also telling me that this is not going to happen.

U.S. Supreme Court Hears The Challenge To The Stolen Valor Act

Supreme Court Hears Challenge To Stolen Valor Act -- ABC News

Maj. David McCombs, a U.S. Marine who has served four tours overseas, stood out in the cold early morning Wednesday waiting for one of the few public seats in the Supreme Court hearing room.

McCombs came to the Court to hear a case challenging the Stolen Valor Act, a law that makes it a crime to lie about receiving military awards.

"The medal of honor is the highest medal that can be awarded," said McCombs. "I believe the medal itself represents the highest sacrifice someone can pay. To lie about such an honor is a disgrace."

But some of high court justices struggled with what Justice Anthony Kennedy called the "slippery slope problem."

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Update #1: Supreme Court Takes Up Stolen Valor Case -- New York Times
Update #2: Supreme Court conflicted about prosecuting those who lie about military valor -- Washington Post

My Comment: The high court will rule on U.S. vs. Alvarez by this summer.

Is The 'Stolen Valor Act' Unconstitutional?

Congressional Medal of Honor Society/CONGRESSIONAL MEDAL OF HONOR SOCIETY - From left, Medals of Honor for the Army, Air Force and Navy.

Supreme Court To Hear Arguments On Whether A Lie Is Protected Speech -- McClatchy News

WASHINGTON — Fake hero Xavier Alvarez lied to his fellow Californians.

He never rescued an American ambassador. He was never a Marine. Most definitely, contrary to what he told a Southern California audience, Alvarez was never awarded the Medal of Honor.

He lied, until he was caught. Now, the Supreme Court must decide whether the First Amendment protects Alvarez and other wannabes from prosecution. The consequences could stretch well beyond what lawmakers and veterans call stolen valor.

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My Comment: Not surprisingly, many in the media are coming out in support of fraudsters like Xavier Alvarez. What is my take .... insecure people with no confidence in themselves are a fact of life, but this not a "get out of jail" free card. The law is the law, and Congress with the support of the American people have been consistent in the support of laws like the 'Stolen Valor Act' .... from the founding fathers of the Republic .... George Washington on down.

Supreme Court to rule on Stolen Valor Act

Supreme Court To Hear Dispute Over Stolen Valor Act -- USA Today

WASHINGTON – The Supreme Court said Monday that it will hear an emotionally charged dispute over a federal law that makes it a crime to lie about being a war hero and earning military medals.

The case, involving the Stolen Valor Act passed in 2006, tests the reach of First Amendment free-speech protection for false statements, including those about personal military feats.

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More News On The Supreme Court To Hear Dispute Over The Stolen Valor Act

Supreme Court to review free speech issue on lying about military honors -- Washington Post
Supreme Court to Rule on Constitutionality of Stolen Valor Act -- ABC News
Supreme Ct to decide if criminal law against falsely claiming military medal is constitutional -- Washington Post/AP
Free speech vs. lying? Supreme Court to rule on Stolen Valor Act -- L.A. Times
Supreme Court to hear military medal lying case -- Reuters
High Court to Decide Legality of Lying About Military Service -- Threat Level

Exposing The Phoney SEALS

Photo: Ex-Navy SEAL: Don Shipley said wannabes lie to get free beers, to get women into bed, to further their civilian careers or to get military benefits. Photo from The Daily Mail

Sleuths Expose Men Who Pretend To Be SEALs -- Washington Times/AP

Thousands of phonies outed.

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Navy SEAL wannabes lie to get free beers, to get women into bed, to further their civilian careers or to get military benefits. And the number of phonies will probably only grow with the SEALs in the spotlight for the May 1 operation that killed Osama bin Laden.

In fact, there might be more fakes than the real thing — so despite being outnumbered, retired SEALs and others are doing what they can to stop impostors from stealing the valor that rightly belongs to others who have trained for some of the world’s toughest military missions.

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My Comment: I always find it amazing how insecure people are that they must create these false persona's to gain acceptance. I say .... be who you are, it's easier to keep track of that than the lies that you are living. Now .... to create the false impression that you are a U.S. Navy SEAL .... c'mon .... that is one hell of a big lie to live (publicly) everyday.

U.S. 9th Circuit Rules That The Stolen Valor Act Is Unconstitutional

The High Court: Is Lying Protected Speech? Military-Medal Case On Track For Supreme Court -- Washington Post

Why do we lie? Let Alex Kozinski, the chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit in San Francisco, count the ways.

“We lie to protect our privacy (‘No, I don’t live around here’); to avoid hurt feelings (‘Friday is my study night’); to make others feel better (‘Gee, you’ve gotten skinny’); to avoid recriminations (‘I only lost $10 at poker’),” Kozinski wrote recently in a case about an inveterate liar named Xavier Alvarez who, just to drive home the point, is also known as Javier Alvarez.

Kozinski listed 28 other reasons we avoid the truth, including to “avoid a nudnick” and to “defeat an objective (‘I’m allergic to latex’),” and ending sweetly with “to maintain innocence (‘There are eight tiny reindeer on the rooftop’).”

Kozinski’s entertaining treatise was in service to his point about the Constitution.

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More News On The 9th Circuit Court Ruling That The 'Stolen Valor Act' Is Unconstitutional

Federal court: Stolen Valor Act unconstitutional -- Mercury News/AP
9th Circuit rules that fibs can be protected speech -- L.A. Times
9th Circuit strikes down law that punished Pomona man who lied about Congressional Medal of Honor -- L.A. Times
Federal appeals court strikes down Stolen Valor Act -- Sacremento Bee

My Comment: This ruling is from the 9th Circuit .... why am I not surprise. I expect this to go to the Supreme Court, where the law will be upheld.

For everyone's info, the true heroes are here, and their photo gallery is here.

Court Rules That The Stolen Valor Act Is Unconstitutinal

9th Circuit Finds A Right To Lie -- Politico

In a major First Amendment decision Tuesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit struck down a federal law making it a crime to falsely claim a military honor or decoration.

In a 2-1 ruling, the appeals court panel found that the poetically named Stolen Valor Act is unconstitutional. The majority threw out the prosecution of an elected member of a California water district board, Xavier Alvarez, who claimed at a meeting in 2007 and on previous occasions that he was the recipient of a Congressional Medal of Honor.

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More News On Yesterday's Ruling On The Stolen Valor Act

Court: Lying about Medal of Honor is no crime -- San Francisco Chronicle
Appeals court: Stolen Valor Act unconstitutional -- AP
Court again strikes down Stolen Valor Act -- Marine Times
Court Rules People Have a Right to Lie About Receiving Military Medals -- FOX News
Should Faking Military Honors Be Illegal? -- Time Magazine

Do We Need A Stolen Valor Act?

Should Faking Military Honors Be Illegal? -- Time Magazine

The hefty bags of soiled war laundry currently being paraded for inspection all over the Internet may have topped the military's list of woes in the past few days, but WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is not the only person giving the armed forces the collywobbles right now. There's also Richard Glen Strandlof.

When Strandlof first came to prominence, it was as Rick Duncan, a Colorado-based veterans-rights activist and local hero. A decorated Marine who was at the Pentagon on 9/11 and was later wounded in Iraq, Duncan had been a prominent fighter for homeless vets. But after months as a fixture in the media and in local-election campaigns, he was publicly unmasked in 2009 as neither a Duncan nor a veteran, but rather a small-ball crook from Montana who had done no stretches in Iraq but had served two in county jail.

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My Comment: With search engines like Google, it has become easier to flush out these impostors. Unfortunately .... it takes time and a curious person to find out the truth.

Judge: Stolen Valor Act Is Unconstitutional

Photo: Rick Strandlof, above, was exercising free speech when he lied about being a vet, the jurist says, calling the law unconstitutional. (The Denver Post)

Stolen Valor Act Unconstitutional, Federal Judge Rules -- Denver Post

A federal judge in Denver has ruled that the Stolen Valor Act is "facially unconstitutional" because it violates free speech, and he dismissed the criminal case against Rick Strandlof, a man who lied about being an Iraq war veteran.

U.S. District Judge Robert E. Blackburn issued his decision Friday and rejected the prosecution's argument that lying about having military medals dilutes their meaning and significance.

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More News On The Latest Ruling On The Stolen Valor Act

Judge: Law penalizing fake heroes unconstitutional -- AP
Case dismissed vs. fake war hero -- Boston Herald/AP
Judge: Stolen Valor Act unconstitutional -- UPI
Federal court says Stolen Valor Act violates First Amendment -- Hot Air