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A Montana judge hit 2 offenders with a deeply fitting punishment for stolen valor
VIDEO: Why do some people steal valor?
Talk about a punishment that fits the crime: a pair of Montana men who lied about serving in military to get their cases to a state veterans court ended up getting an extra lesson in respect for the U.S. armed forces.
On Friday, Cascade County District Judge Greg Pinski sentenced Ryan Morris and Troy Nelson to prison for violating the terms of their probation in two separate crimes after they both falsely represented themselves as veterans to get their cases moved to Pinski's Veterans Treatment Court.
Morris had previously claimed that he suffered from PTSD after seven combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to the Associated Press, while Nelson had somehow managed to weasel his way into the veterans court before he was exposed for stolen valor.
While Morris and Nelson were sentenced to ten years for his felony burglary conviction and five years for a drug possession conviction, respectively, Pinski tacked on some additional requirements before the two can be eligible for parole.
Aside from 441 hours of community service apiece (one for each Montanan killed in combat since the Korean War), the two must both hand-write obituaries for the 40 Montanans killed in the U.S. military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan and hand-write the names of all 6,756 U.S. service members killed in those wars.
In addition, the two must stand at the Montana Veterans Memorial in Great Falls wearing a placard that says, "I am a liar. I am not a veteran. I stole valor. I have dishonored all veterans," for eight hours on each Memorial Day and Veterans Day, according to the Associated Press.
"I want to make sure that my message is received loud and clear by these two defendants," Pinski reportedly said on Friday.
ABC News thought this Kentucky gun range video was from Turkey’s invasion of Syria
Video footage of a purported "bombing of Kurd civilians" by Turkish military forces shown on ABC News appeared to be a nighttime firing of tracer rounds at a Kentucky gun range.
US troops in anguish as the White House and Pentagon give their Kurdish allies the middle finger
For U.S. service members who have fought alongside the Kurds, President Donald Trump's decision to approve repositioning U.S. forces in Syria ahead of Turkey's invasion is a naked betrayal of valued allies.
"I am ashamed for the first time in my career," one unnamed special operator told Fox News Jennifer Griffin.
In a Twitter thread that went viral, Griffin wrote the soldier told her the Kurds were continuing to support the United States by guarding tens of thousands of ISIS prisoners even though Turkey had nullified an arrangement under which U.S. and Turkish troops were conducting joint patrols in northeastern Syria to allow the Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG, to withdraw.
"The Kurds are sticking by us," the soldier told Griffin. "No other partner I have ever dealt with would stand by us."
Up to 5,500 US troops will keep deploying to the southwest border through September 2020
The U.S. military's seemingly never-ending mission supporting civil authorities along the southwestern border will last at least another year.
On Sept. 3, Defense Secretary Mark Esper approved a request from the Department of Homeland Security to provide a total of up to 5,500 troops along the border until Sept. 30, 2020, Lt. Gen. Laura Richardson, commander of U.S. Army North, said on Monday.
Marine Corps confirms two 7-ton trucks collided in August, sending 30 Marines to the hospital
Editor's note: This article by Gina Harkins originally appeared on Military.com, a leading source of news for the military and veteran community.
On Aug. 16, two 7-ton trucks collided aboard Marine Corps Air-Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California. Thirty Marines were sent to the hospital.
Russia is planning a major test of its ballistic and cruise missile systems
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia announced on Monday it would hold a large test of its Strategic Missile Forces that will see it fire ballistic and cruise missiles from the land, sea and air this week.
The exercise, from Oct. 15-17, will involve around 12,000 military personnel, as well as aircraft, including strategic nuclear bombers, surface ships and submarines, Russia's Ministry of Defense said in a statement.