Frequently I receive questions from people who want to know how to verify
the claims of a friend or neighbor who says he or she earned a high
military medal, or served in "Special Forces", or did something
fantastically heroic while serving in the military.
Although it is possible in some cases to check on some aspects of a
person's military history (one way is to access the person's listing in The
War Library) it is better not to seek information directly from the
person's military record file which could be a prosecutable violation of
privacy, or it will certainly list your name in the person's file as being
an official inquirer... which could later open you up to investigation
should the person you are inquiring about become involved in a criminal
investigation.
My recommendation is to handle possible "wannabe" situations on a man to
man basis. That is, don't descend to being an equal jerk by spying on
someone behind their back... Tell the person you want to look at his
DD-214. If his DD-214 does not appear altered and shows that he really
earned the medal(s) he claims he earned, or served in the military capacity
he claims was his military job or training, he will not refuse to show you
his DD-214. However, if he refuses to show you his DD-214 ask him to NEVER
mention his alleged medal(s) or military job to you again because it is now
a federal crime (Stolen Valor Act of 2007) for anyone to verbally misstate
military service, Tell the person that you do not want hear another word
from him about his military service because you do not want to be accused
or charged with being a co-conspirator in his felonious crime of military
deception.
Another way of dealing with a person who refuses to show documentation to
back up his military tales is to simply distance yourself completely from
the person because if he won't be forthcoming with documentation to back up
his military claim(s) it may be better for you not to have anything
whatsoever to do with him because if he considers you a moron who will
believe or accept any lie he tells about his fictional life, he will soon
lie to you about something that could negatively affect your life.
Lastly, managers of veterans organizations should always request a copy of
an applicant's DD-214 to be placed on file as a requirement for membership.
.
__,_._,___
the claims of a friend or neighbor who says he or she earned a high
military medal, or served in "Special Forces", or did something
fantastically heroic while serving in the military.
Although it is possible in some cases to check on some aspects of a
person's military history (one way is to access the person's listing in The
War Library) it is better not to seek information directly from the
person's military record file which could be a prosecutable violation of
privacy, or it will certainly list your name in the person's file as being
an official inquirer... which could later open you up to investigation
should the person you are inquiring about become involved in a criminal
investigation.
My recommendation is to handle possible "wannabe" situations on a man to
man basis. That is, don't descend to being an equal jerk by spying on
someone behind their back... Tell the person you want to look at his
DD-214. If his DD-214 does not appear altered and shows that he really
earned the medal(s) he claims he earned, or served in the military capacity
he claims was his military job or training, he will not refuse to show you
his DD-214. However, if he refuses to show you his DD-214 ask him to NEVER
mention his alleged medal(s) or military job to you again because it is now
a federal crime (Stolen Valor Act of 2007) for anyone to verbally misstate
military service, Tell the person that you do not want hear another word
from him about his military service because you do not want to be accused
or charged with being a co-conspirator in his felonious crime of military
deception.
Another way of dealing with a person who refuses to show documentation to
back up his military tales is to simply distance yourself completely from
the person because if he won't be forthcoming with documentation to back up
his military claim(s) it may be better for you not to have anything
whatsoever to do with him because if he considers you a moron who will
believe or accept any lie he tells about his fictional life, he will soon
lie to you about something that could negatively affect your life.
Lastly, managers of veterans organizations should always request a copy of
an applicant's DD-214 to be placed on file as a requirement for membership.
.
__,_._,___