Kerry Purple Heart Doc Speaks Out

National Review Online ^ | May 04, 2004 | Byron York

[rwfok]

Some critics of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry have questioned the circumstances surrounding the first of three Purple Hearts Kerry won in Vietnam. Those critics, among them some of Kerry's fellow veterans, have suggested that a wound suffered by Kerry in December 1968 may have made him technically eligible for a Purple Heart but was not severe enough to warrant serious consideration, even for a decoration that was handed out by the thousands. Whatever the case, Kerry was awarded the Purple Heart, and, along with two others he won later, it allowed him to request to leave Vietnam before his tour of duty was finished.

Kerry was treated for the wound at a medical facility in Cam Ranh Bay. The doctor who treated Kerry, Louis Letson, is today a retired general practitioner in Alabama. Letson says he remembers his brief encounter with Kerry 35 years ago because "some of his crewmen related that Lt. Kerry had told them that he would be the next JFK from Massachusetts." Letson says that last year, as the Democratic campaign began to heat up, he told friends that he remembered treating one of the candidates many years ago. In response to their questions, Letson says, he wrote down his recollections of the time. (Letson says he has had no contacts with anyone from the Bush campaign or the Republican party.) What follows is Letson's memory, as he wrote it.

I have a very clear memory of an incident which occurred while I was the Medical Officer at Naval Support Facility, Cam Ranh Bay. John Kerry was a (jg), the OinC or skipper of a Swift boat, newly arrived in Vietnam. On the night of December 2, he was on patrol north of Cam Ranh, up near Nha Trang area. The next day he came to sick bay, the medical facility, for treatment of a wound that had occurred that night.

The story he told was different from what his crewmen had to say about that night. According to Kerry, they had been engaged in a fire fight, receiving small arms fire from on shore. He said that his injury resulted from this enemy action.

Some of his crew confided that they did not receive any fire from shore, but that Kerry had fired a mortar round at close range to some rocks on shore. The crewman thought that the injury was caused by a fragment ricocheting from that mortar round when it struck the rocks.

That seemed to fit the injury which I treated.

What I saw was a small piece of metal sticking very superficially in the skin of Kerry's arm. The metal fragment measured about 1 cm. in length and was about 2 or 3 mm in diameter. It certainly did not look like a round from a rifle.

I simply removed the piece of metal by lifting it out of the skin with forceps. I doubt that it penetrated more than 3 or 4 mm. It did not require probing to find it, did not require any anesthesia to remove it, and did not require any sutures to close the wound.

The wound was covered with a bandaid.

Not [sic] other injuries were reported and I do not recall that there was any reported damage to the boat.

[Prince Charles]

Bttt.

[Eva]

I have read that the second purple heart is now in question, as well. There is a report that there was no enemy engagement on that date either, that the wound came from training excercise firing from another boat that was too close to Kerry's.

[tet68]

During the tet offensive, one of our hydraulic men tripped
on a pallet while running to a bunker during a rocket attack. He broke his ankle and was awarded a PH because it
happened during enemy action. I don't begrudge him it, he did NOT apply for it. Kerry on the other hand knew how to
work the system. I believe he had this all in mind long before he ever reached Vietnam.

Tet68 USMC VMA-223 Chu Lai RVN 1966-68.
21 months in country and now I'm SHORT!
Kerry wasn't even there long enough to
fill in part of a pin up calender.

This person (I hesitate to call him a MAN) should be
no where NEAR the Presidency much less the Senate.
I applaud those veterans who are finally standing up
and saying, "We aren't going to take the shovel of shit
the liberal left has MADE us eat all these years."

God Bless OUR President George W. Bush
and may God grant him four more years
to defend our nation from the forces
of Islamic/leftist terror.

[hummingbird]

When I was a Junior at Girl Scout camp, I got a worse injury while training the Brownies on how to properly store knives with their mess kits. And, I had to hike uphill (both ways!) just to get to the Red Cross station for my butterfly bandage. What a wuss....

[BykrBayb]

I knew that. I just got so excited over this story, I pinged her without thinking. At least she can enjoy it when she gets back. Do you think 3 cameras will be enough?

[texasflower]

Exactly.

[Atlas Sneezed]

"The Band-Aid Brothers"

---

Brilliant. This deserves a photoshop.

[Triple Word Score]

The way Kerry behaves with his "inferiors" seems to make him quite memorable. Either that or the VRWC is finally getting into gear....

[BykrBayb]

You mean this one?

[alnick]

Didn't I read an article the other day that the vanity plates on one of Kerry's vehicles (or maybe it's on one of his family's vehicles) reads: PRPLE HRT 3?

What a PHONY!!!!!!

[ladyinred]

"some of his crewmen related that Lt. Kerry had told them that he would be the next JFK from Massachusetts."

You ain't no JFK but you are a EMK you liar.

[NonValueAdded]

Some of his crew confided that they did not receive any fire from shore, but that Kerry had fired a mortar round at close range to some rocks on shore. The crewman thought that the injury was caused by a fragment ricocheting from that mortar round when it struck the rocks.

No wonder he has sympathy for Max Cleland.

[Ciexyz]

I bet Kerry had his horoscope cast in Vietnam that showed him his great destiny. He probably thinks he's the reincarnation of George Washington.

[Pukin Dog]

If I can be intimate with you for a moment, I used to get hemorrhoids from G-straining during maneuvers when I was on the F-14 demo team, flying airshows around the country.

Should I have applied?

John Kerry pisses me off.

[OldFriend]

We always put bacitracin on the kids' owies......made them feel better!

Of course, he couldn't ask the Doc to kiss his boo boo so he made do with a bandaid.

[Triple Word Score]

If it's the right three cameras...I dunno...she was packing tired. I hope she REMEMBERS the cameras! :-)

[4mycountry]

O_O

Uh... please let me clear this with the parentals...

[alnick]

Can you even begin to imagine how the alphebet media would be all over this if the story was about BUSH fradulently obtaining a PURPLE HEART? The Outrage wouldn't stop for years!!!

The talk shows would have constant panel discussions on the topic for weeks on end.

[onehipdad]

Such bravery!

[Pukin Dog]

Consider the massive insecurity the man must have if he feels the need to ADVERTISE his medals, whether he earned them or not. I would not trust Kerry to water my lawn.

Just like Clinton before him, he is deeply flawed, and has serious character issues.