Legendary Recon Marine could finally get the Medal of Honor

Ambushed in Vietnam, retired Marine Maj. James Capers Jr. led a small team of Force Reconnaissance Marines despite suffering from bullet and shrapnel wounds. For the third time, there's a bill to see him awarded the Medal of Honor.

In April 1967, Marine 2nd Lt. James Capers Jr. ignored his numerous bullet and shrapnel wounds to lead his nine-man team from 3rd Force Reconnaissance Company against an enemy ambush in South Vietnam.

The ambush had erupted with hidden explosives that threw Capers against a tree. Shrapnel from the blast punctured his body in more than a dozen places, including wounds to his abdomen and a broken leg, Capers told Coffee or Die Magazine in 2021.

Still, Capers ordered a mortar strike on the team’s position to keep the enemy at bay. Despite losing a significant amount of blood and being administered morphine, he led his team to a helicopter landing zone.

When a helicopter landed, Capers refused to get on board unless the crew took the body of the team’s military working dog. After the helicopter was initially unable to take off, Capers twice tried to get out of the aircraft to lighten the load. Both times, a crew chief had to pull him back inside.

The helicopter eventually lifted off and ferried Capers and his team to a hospital. Capers later retired from the Marine Corps as a major, and in 2010, he was awarded the Silver Star for his “bold leadership, undaunted courage, and complete dedication to duty,” his award citation reads.

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