Marine accused of killing 24 Iraqis in Haditha makes plea deal

[BeGoodDoGood]

110. KIA

Sergeant Peralta:

Killed in action

On November 15, 2004, 25 year old Sgt. Peralta, deployed to Iraq as a scout team leader assigned to Company A, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, along with his team was ordered to clear houses in the Operation Phantom Fury. Peralta was not assigned to enter the buildings, but chose to do so anyway.

Sergeant Peralta led his team through a series of house clearings before charging into the fourth house. He found two rooms empty on the ground floor. Peralta opened a third door and was hit multiple times with AK-47 fire, leaving him severely wounded. He dropped to the floor and moved aside in order to allow the Marines behind him to return fire.

The insurgents responded by throwing a grenade at the Marines. The two Marines with Sgt. Peralta tried to get out of the room but could not. Sgt. Peralta was still conscious on the floor and reports indicate that despite his wounds, he was able to reach for the grenade and pull it under his body absorbing the majority of the lethal blast and shrapnel which killed him instantly, but saved the lives of his fellow Marines.[4]

Corporal Amaya:

Texas Marine saved his unit from insurgent gunfire

By Shia Kapos
Special to the Tribune
Published July 20, 2004

A laid-back Texan who dreamed of being a comedian but planned to work as a chiropractor died saving fellow Marines from gunfire.

As squad leader, it was Cpl. Daniel R. Amaya's job to check the safety of his unit's surroundings before it entered enemy territory.

On April 11, as his squad headed into a building in Al Anbar province, Iraq, Amaya stepped into the doorway and confronted insurgent fighters.

"He called out for the rest of the unit to get back," said his mother, Kacey Carpenter. And then, she said, he shoved the Marine closest to him out of the way, saving his life. Amaya, 22, of Odessa, Texas, was killed in the ensuing firefight.

Amaya, who earned a Purple Heart and Bronze Star, was killed during his second tour in Iraq. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force from Twentynine Palms, Calif.