Free Republic

OCEANSIDE ---- A pursuit suspect from Oceanside stopped his vehicle midspan on the Coronado Bridge, exited the car and jumped off the bridge at about 7:25 p.m.Monday, along with an Oceanside police dog that tried to stop him, according to California Highway Patrol officer Larry Landeros. The man lived, but the dog died. The pursuit began in Oceanside at 6:44 p.m after police suspected the driver was intoxicated. During the pursuit, the man was involved in a hit-and-run crash, authorities said.Highway Patrol officers joined the pursuit southbound on Interstate 5 as the car approached the Coronado Bridge, Landeros said. The...

LAS CRUCES, N.M. -- Las Cruces police have arrested 25-year-old Justin Quintana and have charged him with an open count of murder in the shooting death of Susan Kuchma, Quintana's mother and a five-year veteran of the New Mexico State Police. Police responded to the intersection of Dr. King Way and Taylor Drive at around 2:30 Thursday morning after learning of the shooting. When police arrived they found the victim laying in the street and Quintana nearby. She had been shot once and died at the scene. Quintana was taken into custody and detained for questioning. A handgun was found...

SAVANNAH, Ga. - Marine Cpl. Dustin Jerome Lee and his German shepherd, Lex, scoured Iraq for roadside bombs together, slept next to each other and even posed in Santa hats for a holiday photo. When a mortar attack killed the 20-year-old Marine in Fallujah a few months later, Lex, whimpering from his own injuries, had to be pulled away, Lee's father was told. That strong bond compelled the slain Marine's family to adopt 8-year-old Lex even though the military said he still had two years of service.

Seattle commentator Ken Schram of KOMO: "How does some inept, insensitive idiot with the IQ of room temperature even get a TSA job? That TSA screener should have his [expletive] fired. And those soldiers deserve at least an apology."

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (AP) -- A police officer shot in the head during a robbery in a doughnut shop died Thursday morning, the police commissioner said, and his killer remained at large. He was the third city officer shot in the span of four days. Officer Charles Cassidy walked in on a robbery and was shot in the forehead, police officials say. Charles Cassidy, 54, was shot in the forehead Wednesday at a Dunkin' Donuts when a hooded robber spun from the counter and fired at him as he walked in the door, according to an employee. The 25-year police veteran...

The death toll of Americans killed in Iraq is much higher than commonly reported and may now exceed 5,000, based on Pentagon and U.S. Labor Department reports. That's because official Pentagon statistics do not count the deaths of private contractors, who are playing a much bigger role in Iraq than in most previous wars. Based on workers' compensation claims filed with the U.S. Labor Department, 1,001 contract employees had died in Iraq as of June. Adding contractor deaths to the Pentagon's statistics gives a more realistic assessment of the war’s total impact. As of late August, for example, the Pentagon...

The Department of Defense announced today the death of three sailors who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died July 6 as a result of enemy action while conducting combat operations in the vicinity of Baghdad, Iraq. The three sailors were assigned to an East Coast-based SEAL team. Killed were: Petty Officer First Class Jason Dale Lewis, 30, of Brookfield, Conn., Petty Officer First Class Robert Richard McRill, 42, of Lake Placid, Fla., Petty Officer First Class Steven Phillip Daugherty, 28, of Barstow, Calif.

WASHINGTON - A new book offers chilling details about the valor and sacrifice of a Long Island Navy SEAL - but it could also hurt his chances for the Medal of Honor. Lt. Michael Murphy of Patchogue died leading three other frogmen on a secret Afghan recon mission on June 28, 2005. One of them, Marcus Luttrell, writes in "Lone Survivor" that the team was surprised by three Pashtun tribesmen, including a young boy, herding goats. Luttrell made the shocking claim that Murphy took a vote on whether to kill them to stay covert. One SEAL abstained. One said they...

Here is the song I help write about my son Cpl Chris Mason, and all the fallen warriors in the war on terrorism. It was recorded by Joe Monto and is now being released. Please listen to it and give me some feed back as to what you think. Do not walk away from this request, all I am asking is you give it a listen and give me some input about what you think, surly you can give a few seconds of your time. Cpl Chris Mason' dad Hear is the song "CHRIS MASON HERE ON THIS BATTLEFIELD" CLICK...

A crowd of people put their hands over their hearts, saluted and thrust flags in the air as the slow procession of Cpl. Joseph Anzack Jr.'s white, silver-trimmed, horse-drawn hearse made its way through the streets of Torrance on Friday. Many stood outside their homes to honor a man who made the ultimate sacrifice in military duty, and to mourn with his family.. Cpl. Joseph Anzack Jr. Complete ArticleProcession slideshow

BAGHDAD -- Americans have opened nearly 1,000 new graves to bury U.S. troops killed in Iraq since Memorial Day a year ago. The figure is telling — and expected to rise in coming months. In the period from Memorial Day 2006 through Saturday, 980 soldiers and Marines died in Iraq, compared to 807 deaths in the previous year. And with the Baghdad security operation now 3 1/2 months old, even President Bush has predicted a difficult summer for U.S. forces. "It could be a bloody — it could be a very difficult August," he said last week. U.S. commander Gen....

When I was a kid we called it Decoration Day, so named because it was the custom on May 30 to decorate the graves of Union Army soldiers. Some of those veterans were still alive in the 1930s and I can remember seeing these old men in their Grand Army of the Republic uniforms sitting in the back of open limousines during Decoration Day parades. The Civil War had been over for 55 or 60 years, but the memory was still fresh in the minds of many. My maternal grandmother, for example, remembered sitting on the front porch when a...

Chicopee, Mass. -- Here is a surprise: I am not going to defend the Iraq war. I won't even explain the importance of the war on terrorism. Veterans Affairs budget? Not today. That's because this column is about Memorial Day, a hallowed day that should be about honoring the more than 1 million men and women who died in the service of this nation in wars and conflicts dating back to 1775. It should be above politics. Period. Yet Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards is calling on Americans to use Memorial Day weekend as a time to "bring an end...

A major radio station in Montana has announced plans to dedicate 36 hours of airtime over Memorial Day weekend to honor America's fallen soldiers by reciting their names and other information. "We are dedicating over 36 hours of commercial free air time to pay our respect and gratitude," KGEZ 600 AM spokesman John Stokes told WND. "Nothing will ever fill the hole in these families' hearts. The least we can do is remember their ultimate sacrifice." The station in Kalispell, Mont., said although Memorial Day is filled with "sales" and is known as the launch of the summer season, or...

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2007 – A body found in Iraq May 23 is that of one of three U.S. soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division’s 31st Infantry Regiment believed to have been abducted during a May 12 ambush, Defense Department officials confirmed late yesterday. Iraqi police found the body of Army Pfc. Joseph J. Anzack Jr., 20, a native of Torrance, Calif., in the Euphrates River south of Baghdad and turned it over to American officials for identification. A massive search continues for Spc. Alex R. Jimenez, 25, of Lawrence, Mass., and Pvt. Byron W. Fouty, 19, of Waterford, Mich.,...

A local soldier who died in Iraq is being remembered and honored through a song. A singer and songwriter from Washington state heard about the death of Corporal Chris Mason of Mobile. After contacting Mason's father, Joe Monto wrote, produced and is now recording song as a tribute for Mason's bravery. Monto said it was Mason's faith in God and dedication to his country that inspired him. Monto said he should be finished with the song next week. To get a behind the scene look at at the song tribute to Corporal Chris Mason visit: Cpl Chris Mason's Song news...

LONG BEACH - Friends, family and fellow servicemen remembered Staff Sgt. Joshua Whitaker on Tuesday as a great American hero. "Josh wanted to be the best of the best," said long-time friend Matt Miller at Whitaker's funeral, held at Parkcrest Christian Church in Long Beach. Whitaker, a decorated Green Beret and former Millikan High School student, died from enemy small-arms fire during a firefight on May 15 near Qalat, Afghanistan, the Army said. He was 23 years old. ....."Seven days ago we were ambushed (in Afghanistan)," he said. "Josh died defending myself and the other two members (of the unit)....

LONG BEACH - More than 200 friends and family packed into Vision Misionera, a small Spanish church on Elm Avenue, for a funeral service to honor Spc. Astor Sunsin-Pi eda Saturday morning. The 20-year-old combat engineer was killed May 2 when his vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device in Baghdad, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) -- Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's second-largest automaker, officially opened Tuesday a euro1 billion (US$1.36 billion) plant in Slovakia and said it planned to invest another euro100 million (US$136 million) in the country, an official said. The plant, located near the northwestern city of Zilina, is the company's first in Europe. Though it was unveiled Tuesday, production began in December, said Dusan Dvorak, the plant's spokesman. The maximum capacity of 300,000 cars a year is expected to be reached by 2010 and the factory will create 3,000 jobs, Dvorak said. This year, it plans to produce 150,000...

WASHINGTON - A private delegation working with the approval of the White House will travel to North Korea this weekend to recover the remains of Soldiers killed in the Korean War. The four-day trip will be led by Bill Richardson, the New Mexico governor and Democratic presidential candidate, and Anthony Principi, the former veteran affairs secretary for President Bush. White House deputy press secretary Dana Perino announced the effort on Tuesday. The bipartisan delegation has been invited by the North Korean government to help recover remains of missing servicemen, Perino said. "The trip will reinforce progress already achieved in this...