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A Navy corpsman who was sentenced to a year in military prison for his role in the killing of an Iraqi man will be released from the brig two months early, his attorney said Tuesday. Petty Officer 3rd Class Melson J. Bacos, 21, will be released between March 7 and March 12, said attorney Jeremiah Sullivan III. The sentence was reduced for good behavior. Bacos was the Navy medic assigned to a squad of Marines who were accused of kidnapping and murdering Hashim Ibrahim Awad on April 26 in the town of Hamdania. He was the first of the squad...

Like twins, the Haditha and Hamdaniya cases are often mistaken for each other. Both involve Camp Pendleton infantry units, both have made international headlines and both are playing out on the base. Camp Pendleton officials are expected to announce the Haditha charges tomorrow, and they have scheduled several Hamdaniya trials for next year. Furthering the similarities, both cases center on allegations of murder. In one incident, eight members of the Kilo Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment are charged with abducting and shooting to death an Iraqi man in April in the town of Hamdaniya. In the other incident, some...

Anderson, a Navy hospital corpsman assigned to the Marines, died fighting in Iraq on Dec. 4 and was promoted after his death to petty officer. An admiral will present his family with Anderson’s Purple Heart during this afternoon’s service. Also planning to show up in force are members of the Patriot Guard motorcycle riders. The veterans attend funerals of fallen military men and women to show their respect. They also attempt to serve as a counterpoint to protests by members of the Westboro Baptist Church. This afternoon, Anderson’s body will be driven to north Longmont and the start of Lake...

The skinny sailor sat in the Philadelphia airport terminal in his deep-blue dress uniform, cracking his knuckles, shifting in his seat, waiting for his best friend. A woman from the airline walked over and motioned for him to follow. She saw the nervous look on the sailor's face and stopped. "Wait," she said. "Is this your first time doing this?" "Yes, ma'am," the 22 year-old said, his voice cracking. "Well, unfortunately, it's not the first time for me," she said. "Not even the first time this week." She led him toward the gate and gave him a soft smile. "You'll...

LOS ANGELES -- During two tours of duty in Iraq, Navy corpsman Melson J. Bacos said he experienced everything combat had to offer -- fire fights with insurgents, soldiers dying in his arms, thoughts of whether he'd live another day. Now he's got another unnerving assignment. On Friday, the 21 year old is scheduled to give testimony that military prosecutors hope will help them convict seven Marines accused of kidnapping and murdering an Iraqi man in the town of Hamdania. Bacos, a medic who patrolled with the Marines, will have similar charges dropped in exchange for testimony during his court...

CAMP PENDLETON ---- A Navy corpsman pleaded guilty this morning to two charges for his role in the killing of a 52-year-old civilian in the Iraqi village of Hamdania last spring. Petty Officer 3rd Class Melson Bacos pleaded guilty to conspiracy and kidnapping during a court-martial conducted in a base courtroom before Marine Col. Steven Folsom. Charges of premeditated murder and related offenses were dropped in exchange for the guilty pleas. Bacos is the first of the eight troops from 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment's Kilo Company to plead guilty to an offense arising out of the April 26 slaying...

During two tours of duty in Iraq, Navy corpsman Melson J. Bacos said, he experienced fire fights with insurgents, soldiers dying in his arms, thoughts of whether he'd live another day. Now he has another unnerving assignment. On Friday, the 21-year-old is scheduled to give testimony that military prosecutors hope will help them convict seven Marines accused of kidnapping and murdering an Iraqi man in the town of Hamdania. Bacos, a medic who patrolled with the Marines, will have similar charges dropped in exchange for testimony during his court-martial, his attorney, Jeremiah Sullivan III, told The Associated Press. The military...

A Navy corpsman has reportedly reached a deal that would drop a murder charge and allow him to plead guilty to kidnapping and conspiracy in the April death of an Iraqi man, an attorney for one of the men's co-defendants said Tuesday evening. Special Report The reported agreement for Petty Officer Melson Bacos would require he serve no more than 12 months in the brig and would allow the Wisconsin native to stay in the service after that punishment is served, attorney Victor Kelley said. Attempts to reach Marine Corps officials for comment were not immediately successful. A deal would...

CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq (June 12, 2006) -- Many months of preparation, including hours upon hours of diligent study and practical application rehearsals, and a grueling four-hour oral examination were finally rewarded here June 12. Four Navy corpsmen assigned to Regimental Combat Team 5’s Regimental Aid Station were awarded the Fleet Marine Force Warfare Specialist designation. Even better, they were pinned by RCT 5’s Commanding Officer Col. Larry D. Nicholson. The awardees were Navy Petty Officers 3rd Class Orlando A. Soriano, John W. Harper, Andrew W. Tuohy and Seaman Bounmy Meunsy. The designation authorizes the sailors to wear the FMF insignia,...

PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter presented the Bronze Star to Senior Chief Hospital Corpsman (SW/SCW) Reginald Dean at Naval Hospital Pensacola June 1, for his heroic life-saving actions following a suicide-bomb explosion near Fort Tal-Afar in Iraq. Winter presented the Bronze Star medal to the Naval Branch Health Clinic Whiting Field, Fla., corpsman before a specially-chosen, six-person ‘Honor Formation,’ and another full contingent of previously-deployed Naval Hospital personnel. "This award is unique in and of itself," Winter said. "It is a noteworthy statement of what this individual has done for his country." Following the presentation,...

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas (NNS) -- Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class (FMF) Juan M. Rubio, 32, of San Angelo, Texas, was awarded the Silver Star Medal April 27 for conspicuous gallantry against the enemy Jan. 1, 2005, while serving as a Marine Platoon corpsman in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). The Silver Star Medal is the U.S. Navy’s third highest award for gallantry in combat, following the Navy Cross and the nation’s highest award, the Medal of Honor. Rear Adm. Thomas R. Cullison, commander, Navy Medicine East and commander, Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth, Va., made the presentation in front of the...

Corpus, Christi, Texas (April 27, 2006) - Hospital Corpsman 2nd Class Juan M. Rubio, of San Angelo, Texas, was awarded the Silver Star Medal for conspicuous gallantry against the enemy on Jan. 1, 2005, while serving as a Marine platoon corpsman in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Medical Corps, Commander, Navy Medicine East and Commander, Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth, Va., Rear Adm. Thomas R. Cullison, left, made the presentation in front of the Naval Hospital on board Naval Air Station Corpus Christi. U.S. Navy photo by Mr. Bill W. Love (RELEASED)

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. (April 12, 2006) -- The morning of Oct. 4, 2005 had a different feel than other mornings Company L had experienced in Iraq, said 2nd Lt. Matt J. Hendricks, Weapons Platoon commander. Sensing the anxiety in the air, he approached Petty Officer 3rd Class Nathaniel R. Leoncio, serving as platoon corpsman, 4th Platoon, Company L, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines, 2nd Marine Division. “That morning, right before we pushed off, I approached Leoncio and said, ‘You’re the angel on my shoulder.’ He said, ‘Yeah, you’re mine too, sir,’” said Hendricks. Those statements were foreshadowing of...

In a war marred by prisoner-abuse scandals and rife with political wrangling, Nathaniel R. Leoncio's heroic actions in Iraq are the pure stuff of legend. Leoncio, a 24-year-old corpsman, received the Bronze Star yesterday at Naval Hospital Camp Pendleton. The Navy petty officer third class was on patrol with Marines in southern Ramadi on Oct. 4 when they were struck by a series of roadside bombs. The explosives killed one Marine and seriously injured three other men, including Leoncio. At least two of the bombs detonated under the 6-ton Humvee that carried Leoncio, flipping it upside down and on top...

CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq (March 4, 2006) -- For servicemembers in a combat zone, the stress associated with deployment can lead to a variety of symptoms, unique to each individual. For one corpsman here, laughter is the best medicine to fight them all. Seaman Justin G. “Buck” Buckingham’s unique personality is helping his friends, coworkers and patients make it through the challenges of a seven-month deployment at Camp Taqaddum, Iraq. The 23-year-old corpsman assigned to the 1st Marine Logistics Group recently arrived here for his second deployment to provide medical care, and if necessary, save the lives of fellow servicemembers while...

WASHINGTON — Marine medics in Iraq are more likely to face serious injury or death than are the riflemen they’re working to help, according to the assistant commandant. Gen. Robert Magnus said Tuesday that statistics from Corps health officials show that the job of the combat medic, or Navy corpsman, is among the most dangerous in the war, in large part because of the situations they put themselves in. “They’re literally moving in and moving out of the fight to get to their patients,” he said. “They’re among the first to go into battle, and they’re right in the middle...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 25, 2006) -- In combat, Navy corpsmen are relied on to be ready to treat any type of injury or mass causality situation, sometimes risking their own lives in the process. Petty Officer 3rd Class Jason C. Deguzman, from Santa Rosa, Calif., did this more than once, earning him the Bronze Star Medal for his achievement during combat operations. On May 13, 2005, the corpsman with Company C, 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Marine Division responded to mass casualties that happened when a crowded civilian bus collided into the rear of a...

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. (Jan. 17, 2006) -- Six-year Navy veteran, Petty Officer 3rd Class Christopher D. Baird, was presented the Thomas A. Christensen Jr. Award Dec. 16, for “going above and beyond the call of duty,” according to the award citation. The Cordell, Okla., native, a corpsman with 2nd Dental Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, was selected from three contestants – one from each MLG. The Thomas A. Christensen Jr. Award is presented to a dental technician in recognition of significant contributions to the Navy and the Fleet Marine Force. Baird is one of 15 Sailors to...

CAMP TAQADDUM, Iraq (Jan. 13, 2006) -- Being a hospital corpsman with Marines is different than most Navy jobs. They are inserted into combat zones right next to their “Devil Dog” brothers to ensure their health and safety. For one corpsman numerous challenges did not stop him from joining the fight and earning the title “Doc.” Petty Officer 3rd Class David L. Brown, a hospital corpsman with Headquarters and Service Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group (Forward), was committed to himself when he decided to join the Navy after speaking to a recruiter. “I didn’t think they would let me join,”...

CAMP AL ASAD, Iraq (Jan. 9, 2006) -- Retired Marine Maj. Gene Duncan once defined Navy hospital corpsmen as, “Usually a young, long haired, bearded, Marine-hatin' Sailor with certain medical skills, who will go through the very gates of Hell to get to a wounded Marine.” Though “long haired” is open to subjective interpretation, beards have officially gone the way of bell-bottomed dungarees in the Navy and levels of disdain for their brothers in green vary from Sailor to Sailor, most Marines and corpsmen find a level of truth in Duncan’s definition. Take, for example, Petty Officer 3rd Class William...