This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Stolen Valor Act

  • Guidi, phony POW, arrested

    Guidi, phony POW, arrested

    guidi1

    Pablo sends us a link to the news that Robert Guidi, the phony Green Beret Special Forces postal clerk was arrested in New Jersey;

    Robert Guidi, 66, was arrested on Saturday following an investigation by Wharton police after it was reported that Guidi’s claims of holding the rank of sergeant or captain in the U.S. Army and of being a POW in Vietnam were fabricated, Wharton police Lt. David Young said in a news release.

    Officer Robert Ornelas investigated the report and determined Guidi was never a POW and that he was discharged from the military as a Private First Class. Guidi allegedly used his reported status to receive a new deck and a hunting item, with a total value of more than $30,000.

    In Dec. 2013, Guidi received a new deck to replace the one he lost during Superstorm Sanday, Neighbor News reported. Guidi estimated at the time the cost of the materials and labor was more than $30,000.

    […]

    Guidi’s been charged with theft by deception and with violating the New Jersey Stolen Valor Act. He was remanded to Morris County Correctional Facility in lieu of $25,000 bail, police said.

    I’m conflicted. If he was given the deck for being a Vietnam veteran, he was a Vietnam veteran. But if he was given a deck because he was a Special Forces sniper, POW captain, then he wasn’t any of those things. I can see them punishing him for lying about the POW thing, but not for the rest of it. Unless someone is willing to admit that we only give free stuff to Special Forces snipers. Like I said, I can see them pounding on him for claiming to be a POW, but not because he was “only” a postal clerk. I mean, he went to Vietnam when many of his generation didn’t. He shouldn’t have lied, he should have admitted the truth from the beginning. So, like I said, I’m conflicted.

  • Maryland state Senator seeks to strengthen Stolen Valor laws

    In Maryland, State Senator Bryan Simonaire, a member of the veteran caucus, plans to submit a new stolen valor act to the state Assembly this winter, according to ABC News;

    “It specifically for when they’re obtaining property or money or other benefits,” Sen. Simonaire said. “As we saw in the federal case, you have to protect freedom of speech. So they can wear the uniform, but they can’t do it for their own personal gain.”

    If the Stolen Valor Act of 2016 is passed, impersonators could face imprisonment or fines up to $2,500.

    As we’ve seen in the case of Jason Scaletta, there are prosecutors like Ella Disharoon who are willing to use current Maryland laws to prosecute stolen valor, but, anything to let the phonies know that Maryland won’t tolerate Stolen Valor is a good thing.

  • Massachusetts passes five veteran-related bills into law

    Massachusetts passes five veteran-related bills into law

    Stephen_Burrell

    Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed five new veterans-related bills into law yesterday, according to MassLive;

    The so-called Stolen Valor Act, sponsored by Velis, will make it illegal to impersonate a military member for financial gain.

    State Rep. Aaron Vega, D-Holyoke, sponsored a law that will give Purple Heart recipients free access to Massachusetts state parks and recreation areas.

    State Rep. Todd Smola, R-Warren, sponsored a law that will require anyone convicted of willfully damaging a war memorial or veteran’s gravestone or marker to pay restitution to the property owners.

    The other new laws make it a crime to steal commemorative flag holders from veterans’ or first responders’ graves and to buy or sell stolen headstones or monuments from veterans’ or first responders’ graves.

    According to another MassLive link, Massachusetts will have the toughest Stolen Valor law in the country;

    Velis’ bill would make it a misdemeanor, punishable by a year in prison or a $1,000 fine, to wear a military uniform, awards or decorations that one has not earned, to use fake military identification or to falsely claim to be a military member or veteran for purposes of financial gain. Financial gain can be anything from getting a home loan to buying a discounted movie ticket.

    A federal Stolen Valor law and similar laws in other state make it illegal to falsely claim a military medal for financial gain. The Massachusetts law is unique because it would extend that to any claim of military service.

    The photo in this post is Stephen Franklin Cio Burrell, the fourth most dangerous crybaby in the world. He used to claim that he earned the Medal of Honor, but he’s the first Massachusetts resident who came to mind when I read this article.

  • Massachusetts legislature passes Stolen Valor Act

    WWLP reports that the Massachusetts legislature sent their own Stolen Valor Act to the Senate for a vote on what they claim is the strongest Stolen Valor Act in the country;

    “Even just standing on the corner with a sign that says ‘help me I’m a veteran,’ if they’re not a veteran that’s wrong. They shouldn’t be doing that,” [Eric Segundo, Sr. of the Massachusetts Veterans of Foreign Wars] said.

    If the “Stolen Valor Act” is signed into law, anyone convicted of the crime would be punished by up to a year in jail or a $1,000 dollar fine, or both. We asked House Speaker Robert DeLeo whether the punishment fits the crime. He said, “I think that he found that was the most reasonable amount of time.”

    Massachusetts joins a dozen or so states who have passed their own laws to stem the eruption of phonies across the country. As soon as the fake warriors discovered that federal prosecutors weren’t interested in passing the law there was an explosion of cases. Maybe the states can get a grasp on the problem if states’ attorneys figure out that lying about one’s military service is usually just one symptom of criminal behavior.

  • New Jersey’s Stolen Valor law

    New Jersey’s Stolen Valor law

    New Jersey Valor thieves

    One of our lurkers send us a link to NewJersey.com which reports that Governor Christie signed New Jersey’s stolen valor act into law which is bad news for some of our usual suspects like Ron Mailahn, Steve “Snake Eyes” Jordan, and Angelo Otchy, along with a number of trolls from that state whose comments can’t get through our filter;

    The “New Jersey Stolen Valor Act” makes impersonating a veteran or military member “with intent to deceive for the purpose of obtaining money, property, or other tangible benefit” a third-degree crime. Violators face a mandatory minimum fine of $1,000 and a three- to five-year prison term, according to the bill.

    It’s already a fourth degree crime under state law to wear a military uniform “with the intent to deceive,” though not necessarily for personal gain. Fourth degree crimes are punishable by up to 18 months imprisonment.

    Fines collected under the bill would be dedicated to the new Military Dependents Scholarship Fund, for the Post 9/11 Operation Noble Eagle, Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, or Operation New Dawn.

    Lucky for them, they can’t be prosecuted until they re-commit their crimes, but knowing them, that’s almost a certainty.

  • What is “Stolen Valor”?

    Lately, I’ve found myself explaining to folks the difference between the Stolen Valor Act and the thing that we call “stolen valor”. The phrase actually comes from BG “Jug” Burkett who wrote the book “Stolen Valor” which was published in the 90s and told the story about folks who had appropriated the valor of the Vietnam generation of warriors. In 2005, President Bush signed the Stolen Valor Act which made lying about one’s military experience a crime.

    In 2012, the Supreme Court invalidated that federal law because, they said, it violated Americans’ freedom of speech. The following year, Congress passed, and the President signed a new law, called the Stolen Valor Act of 2013 (Pub.L. 113–12; H.R. 258) that made lying about your military experience illegal if you told that lie for some sort of “tangible benefit” if your lies concern certain badges and medals. The list of medals and badges reads like this; a Medal of Honor (Army, Navy, Air Force), a Distinguished Service Cross, a Navy Cross, an Air Force Cross, a Silver Star, a Purple Heart, a Combat Infantryman’s Badge, a Combat Action Badge, a Combat Medical Badge, a Combat Action Ribbon, a Combat Action Medal, or any replacement or duplicate medal for such medal as authorized by law. The Stolen Valor Act of 2013 modified Title 18 of the United States Code, Section 704.

    Generally, we, in the Stolen Valor community, aren’t concerned with the federal law. TAH and our partners have very little influence with federal prosecutors who are usually reluctant to pursue Stolen Valor Act charges against a criminal. What we are concerned about is the truth.

    The Supreme Court essentially gave us a warrant to hunt down these valor thieves and expose them to the public. Justice Kennedy wrote in US v. Alvarez that “Truth needs neither handcuffs nor a badge for its vindication.” That means that we don’t need the government regulations or law enforcement to expose liars to the light of truth.

    We look at things that aren’t necessarily regulated by the US Code – things like the POW Medal, for example.

    Many of the conversations I have on social media are with people who confuse the Stolen Valor Act with BG Burkett’s phrase. In our community, there doesn’t have to be a “tangible benefit” to be Stolen Valor. That’s for lawyers to parse. All we’re interested in is the truth. In US v. Alvarez, Justice Kennedy wrote;

    The remedy for speech that is false is speech that is true. This is the ordinary course in a free society. The response to the unreasoned is the rational; to the uninformed, the enlightened; to the straight-out lie, the simple truth.

    […]

    Society has the right and civic duty to engage in open, dynamic, rational discourse.

    The court of public opinion doesn’t expect us to prove a “tangible benefit” for valor to be stolen. We’re only interested in preserving history and the valor of those who wrote those chapters of history in blood. The lie makes it stolen valor, not the intentions or motivations, legality or illegality. Most of the people who commit Stolen Valor are within their legal rights to do so – and so are we within our legal rights to expose them as common liars.

  • Stolen Valor Act discussed in Maryland

    Stolen Valor Act discussed in Maryland

    Maryland lawmakers are discussing a state solution to the problem of Stolen Valor, according to ABC2.

    State Sen. Bryan Simonaire, R-Anne Arundel, a member of the legislatures military veterans caucus said he is getting involved because he wanted to see the state get involved to target anyone found to be committing an act of stolen valor.

    “We have had cases here in Maryland,” Simonaire said.

    Right off the top of my head, in Maryland, there’s Jason Scaletta, who conned a charity out of several thousands of dollars and was arrested for being a felon in possession of a firearm. If Maryland had arrested him for stolen valor when we busted him in December, he wouldn’t have committed either of those crimes.

    You may recognize a few faces from our community in this video report;

  • Stolen Valor; don’t try this at home

    Stolen Valor; don’t try this at home

    Robert D. Ford

    A couple of folks sent us this link to the PennLive article about an incident in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania recently where a police officer, Detective John O’Connor, confronted Marine veteran Robert D Ford, over what some folks thought was a case of Stolen Valor, but it turned out to be a case of wearing a uniform that was out of date;

    An Army soldier attending Artsfest on Memorial Day thought something was fishy with the Marine uniform worn by 75-year-old Robert Ford, who was strolling along Front Street.

    Ford’s hat bore some wrinkles, according to the soldier’s assessment, and his belt buckle looked too ornate for his rank.

    The soldier enlisted the help of a Harrisburg police officer working at the event, who was a Marine, and together, they accused Ford of being a fraud.

    “He’s not a real Marine!” the officer shouted to the crowd gathered for the PennLive/Patriot-News Artsfest of Greater Harrisburg. “Stolen valor!”

    “I was humiliated,” said Ford, of Marysville.

    It turns out that Mister Ford had indeed served in the Marines from 1958 to 1064 1964. We’ve made a mistake or two in this business, but never over a wrinkled cover, or the wrong belt buckle. The problem, of course, is similar to the same reasons that we have with the explosion of Stolen Valor cases. The videos that have gone viral and get featured in the national news makes it attractive for amateurs to engage in the very serious business.

    Folks here at TAH recognize what a serious business this is – many times our exposures of phonies cost them their jobs, their reputations and some of them end up in jail. But as our friend Doug Sterner says often, even one mistake is one too many.

    “I’d rather see a dozen phonies get kudos they don’t deserve than besmirch the reputation of one innocent veteran,” [Doug Sterner] said. “Even if I see something totally outlandish, I’m not going to jump. … You don’t just go up and confront people.”

    Another problem is this very same situation – many phonies will see this as an opportunity to talk themselves out of trouble.

    The money quote from Mister Ford to the officer;

    “What am I trying to do?” Ford said. “Impersonate a lance corporal who never served in combat?”

    I’d rather track down the Richard Rahns and the Jason Scalettas than some guy pretending to be Lance Corporal.