Heroic Marine won't get Medal of Honor (Navy Cross)

NC Times ^ | September 17, 2008 | Mark Walker

[jazusamo]

Service announces that Sgt. Rafael Peralta will instead get Navy Cross

CAMP PENDLETON ---- A Marine nominated for the Congressional Medal of Honor and singled out by President Bush for throwing his bullet-riddled body on a grenade to protect fellow Marines in Iraq in 2004 won't be receiving the award, his mother said Wednesday.

Rosa Peralta said Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Richard Nantonski informed her Wednesday morning that her son, Sgt. Rafael "Rafa" Peralta, of the Hawaii-based 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, will instead be awarded the Navy Cross.


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Natonski indicated that a committee reviewing the nomination for the San Diego native could not agree upon the award, she said.

"I don't understand why if the president has been talking about him," Rosa Peralta said during a telephone interview.

She said the officer cited lingering questions over whether friendly fire from a fellow Marine may have contributed to her son's death, she said.

An official announcement from the Marine Corps was expected soon.

A San Diego lawyer who has been acting as an intermediary for the family, George Sabga, said he was extremely disappointed by the decision, which he termed "b.s."

Peralta's heroism is legendary in the chronicles of the Iraq war. Shot in the torso and face shortly after opening the door to a house during the battle for the once insurgent-laden city of Fallujah in Iraq's Anbar province on Nov. 15. 2004, he would moments later throw his body over a grenade to save his fellow Marines.

It was the final act for the 25-year-old Mexican immigrant and Morse High School graduate who joined the service the day after he got his green card.

On Memorial Day in 2005, Bush told an audience that Peralta "understood that America faces dangerous enemies, and he knew the sacrifices required to defeat them."

Much of the support for him to receive the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military award, came because his actions occurred in front of military correspondent, Marine Lance Cpl. T. J. Kaemmerer, who penned an account his death.

Datelined on Dec. 2, 2004, the story of Peralta's heroism appeared on the Marine Corps Web site.

Kaemmerer reported that he put down his camera and volunteered to join fellow Marines, rifle in hand, on a mission to clear buildings that lined the streets of the battle-gripped Iraqi city.

Kaemmerer was part of a six-man group, dubbed a "stack." Peralta was a part of the same group. Two stacks teamed up that morning, going house to house to ferret out insurgents.

A platoon scout, Peralta could have stayed behind in safety, but instead joined the house-clearing mission.

Kaemmerer wrote of watching as Peralta pulled the grenade to him and smothered it with his body.

"I watched in fear and horror as the other four Marines scrambled to the corners of the room and the majority of the blast was absorbed by Peralta's now lifeless body," Kaemmerer wrote. "His selflessness left four other Marines with only minor injuries from the smaller fragments of the grenade."

As a fire began to consume the house, the Marines pulled out Peralta's body.

They later learned that another group of Marines found and killed the three insurgents that were using the house to stage their attack.

There have been many similar accounts of what happened that day, including testimonials from the Marines that were present.

One of those Marines, Sgt. Adam Morrison, told the Honolulu Advertiser newspaper in January that he had no question about Peralta's heroism.

"He deserves it, by far. It's obvious," Morrison, who was a few feet away from Peralta, was quoted as saying, adding a reference to another Marine who was awarded the Medal of Honor for an act that mirrored Peralta's. "They awarded Cpl. (Jason) Dunham for doing the same exact thing."

Peralta, who came to San Diego from Tijuana with his family when he was 15, was not married and had no children.

His father died in 2004 in a work-related accident and he has three surviving siblings, two sisters and a brother. Peralta is buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in Point Loma.

In 2006, the San Diego Police Department made him an honorary member in recognition of his desire to one day join the police force.

"We would have hired him the second he came out of the Marine Corps," San Diego police Chief William Lansdowne said at the time.

Peralta's mother and his siblings were on hand for that honor bestowed in April 2006.

Speaking through a Spanish-language interpreter, she said she was pleased that her son has not been forgotten and she maintained his room "as if he was still coming home."

Rosa Peralta also said then that she understood why her oldest child had died so selflessly.

"He had so much love for his Marines," she said after that ceremony. "I'm very proud and I'm still proud ... He saved other lives and sacrificed his own."

Peralta's family does have one Medal of Honor in recognition of his heroism. The state of Hawaii in 2006 awarded him its Medal of Honor given to troops killed in Iraq or Afghanistan who had ties to the islands.

Reviews to determine who is bestowed with a Congressional Medal of Honor are lengthy reviews that often take years.

The first two Iraq war veterans to receive the award, Marine Cpl. Jason Dunham and Army Sgt. 1st Class Paul Smith, received the honors more than two years after the actions for which they were nominated.

[jazusamo]

Navy Cross Ping!

[pfflier]

The MOH is not subject to judicial review, public opinion or lawyer's opinions. It is awarded based on the merits of the deed and the findings of the official(s) that review the action.

Peralta performed heroically adhering to the highest standards of the Naval service and the United States Marine Corps. He will be awarded the Navy Cross.

[miele man]

Does heroism vary from war to war? Apparently so. Medals of Honor were awarded to soldiers in Viet Nam who did the same as this young Marine. Why would this review board say no now?

[Little_shoe]

Kaemmerer wrote of watching as Peralta pulled the grenade to him and smothered it with his body. "I watched in fear and horror as the other four Marines scrambled to the corners of the room and the majority of the blast was absorbed by Peralta's now lifeless body," Kaemmerer wrote. "His selflessness left four other Marines with only minor injuries from the smaller fragments of the grenade."

Precedent demands that action like this demands the awarding of the MOH. There were many similar acts of valor during ww2. The marines need to stop dragging their feet and recommend it.

[jazusamo]

That’s correct, was surprised to read a lawyer was involved.

[SBprone]

Amen.

Rest in peace Sgt. Peralta.

[BuffaloJack]

Some of these committees are pretty stingy with awards. Also, they need to award a few MOHs to living guys who deserve it.

[brityank]

Thank you, Jaz.

If there is any doubt that this is a political decision ...

She said the officer cited lingering questions over whether friendly fire from a fellow Marine may have contributed to her son's death, she said.

... that has no bearing on his selfless sacrifice.

Salute, Sgt. Rafael "Rafa" Peralta. Your Honour stands above and beyond those of the committee.

[jazusamo]

Sgt. Rafael "Rafa" Peralta, one of America's finest.

God Bless him and his family.

[jazusamo]

Thanks, brit...I don’t know anything about this other than what’s in this article.

[Joe 6-pack]

"Also, they need to award a few MOHs to living guys who deserve it."

I agree...The old line about "CMH" standing for "Casket w/ Metal Handles" has never been more true than in this war. I suspect the award boards and bureaucrats simply don't want to award it to somebody who's mere presence would remind them of all the things they aren't.

There's nothing in the criteria that says it can only be awarded posthumously, but that seems to have become the standard.

[SBprone]

When I was a kid and asked my dad about his bronze star from Okinawa he said it wasn’t anything and that they would give one to a cook for making an extra batch of biscuits. When I asked him about the three Purple Hearts he said that the medics kept them and would dispense them along with aspirin.

I don’t think my dad cared about the hardware, but my mom sure did! I don’t blame Sgt. Peralta’s mom for being upset. God bless her.

[jazusamo]

Agreed...Have no idea why no MOH have been awarded to living military, I’d bet there are those that are deserving.

[jazusamo]

Sounds like to me your dad was very much a hero and didn’t want to talk about it. God Bless.

[Joe 6-pack]

"Agreed...Have no idea why no MOH have been awarded to living military, I’d bet there are those that are deserving."

I suspect a lot of people in entrenched positions of power don't want to deal with the concept of heroes walking among us, so they choose not to recognize those that actually do.

[brityank]

Thanks, brit...I don’t know anything about this other than what’s in this article.

I don't, either, but here's the info from the Press Release pdf:

I Marine Expeditionary Force Public Affairs
United States Marine Corps
Camp Pendleton, Calif.

(760) 763-4675

imefpublicaffairs@usmc.mil


Press Release #08- 005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sept. 17, 2008

MARINE TO RECEIVE NAVY CROSS

Camp Pendleton, Calif. - (September 17, 2008) The Secretary of the Navy, the Hon. Donald C. Winter, announced today that Marine Sgt. Rafael Peralta will be posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for his valor during combat operations in Iraq in November 2004.

Peralta was a member of Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, based in Hawaii. His unit was assigned to 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force, during Operation Al Fajr (Phantom Fury), the assault to recapture the insurgent-held city of Fallujah.

Clearing scores of houses in the previous three days, Peralta asked to join an under strength squad and volunteered to stand post the night of Nov. 14, allowing fellow Marines time to rest. During search and attack operations the following morning, while clearing the seventh house of the day, Peralta was caught in a deadly crossfire between insurgents and his Marines, leaving him mortally wounded. After the initial exchange of gunfire, the insurgents broke contact, throwing a fragmentation grenade as they fled the building. The grenade came to rest near Peralta's head. Without hesitation and with complete disregard for his own safety, Peralta reached out and pulled the grenade to his body, absorbing the brunt of the blast and shielding fellow Marines only feet away. Peralta succumbed to his wounds.

In 2005, an investigation was directed by then-Maj. Gen. Richard F. Natonski, commanding general of the 1st Marine Division, to determine the source of a bullet fragment recovered from the body of Peralta.

Following multiple and exhaustive reviews, the evidence supports the finding that Peralta was likely hit by "friendly fire." This finding had no bearing on the decision to award the Navy Cross medal. In honoring Peralta, Secretary Winter determined that the Marine's leadership and courageous actions that day and after his initial wounding were worthy of the Department of the Navy's second highest military award.

Peralta was born on April 7, 1979, in Mexico. He immigrated to the United States and joined the Marine Corps on April 17, 2000. He later became an American citizen.
Details on the award presentation will be announced at a later date.

Note the paragraph I bolded -- that has absolutely no bearing on Sgt. Peralta's act -- in fact it makes it all the more heroic in that he ignored his own wounds, regardless of where they originated, to shield his comrades-in-arms.

[RedMonqey]

I think Sgt. Peralta earned the MoH.

Just IMHO

Sounds like the committee is worried about Medal “inflation”.
However if another person is awarded the medal and they aren't seen as heroic as Sgt. Peralta, then I will say other non combat factors had come into play.

Need I say what “it” is?

Still, we must remember, the Naval Cross isn't something to sneeze at.

[RedMonqey]

correction:

Make that the “Navy” Cross

[freema]

Ping