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Nearly dead from a total of 37 separate bayonet, bullet andshrapnel wounds received on multiple occasions over the courseof the six-hour fight between the 13 men and an enemy battalion,[1]Benavidez was evacuated once again to Brooke ArmyMedical Center, where he eventually recovered. For his heroism,the Army awarded him the Distinguished Service Cross.In 1973, after more detailed accounts became available,Special Forces Lieutenant Colonel Ralph R. Drake insisted thatBenavidez receive the Medal of Honor. By then, however, thetime limit on the medal had expired. An appeal to Congressresulted in an exemption for Benavidez, but the Army DecorationsBoard still denied him the Medal of Honor. The boardrequired an eyewitness account from someone present duringthe action, but Benavidez thought that no others were alive whohad been at the “Six Hours in Hell.”[citation needed]In 1980, however, Brian O’Connor, a radioman in the attackedSpecial Forces team, provided a ten-page report of theengagement. O’Connor had been severely wounded (Benavidezhad believed him dead), and was evacuated to the United Statesbefore his superiors could fully debrief him. O’Connor learnedthat Benavidez was alive by chance. He had been living in theFiji Islands and was on holiday in Australia when he read anewspaper account of Benavidez from an El Campo newspaper.It had been picked up by the international press and reprinted inAustralia. O’Connor soon contacted his old friend and submittedhis report, confirming the accounts already provided by othersand providing the missing eyewitness.On February 24, 1981, President Ronald Reagan presentedRoy Benavidez the Medal of Honor. Reagan reportedly turnedto the press and said: “If the story of his heroism were a moviescript, you would not believe it.” He then read the official awardcitation.[citation needed]Medal of Honor citationBENAVIDEZ, ROY P.Rank and organization: Master Sergeant. Organization:Detachment B-56, 5th Special Forces Group, Republic ofVietnamPlace and date: West of Loc Ninh on May 2, 1968Entered service at: Houston, Texas June 1955Born: August 5, 1935, DeWitt County, Cuero, Texas.Citation:Master Sergeant (then Staff Sergeant) Roy P. Benavidez, UnitedStates Army, who distinguished himself by a series of daring andextremely valorous actions on 2 May 1968 while assigned to DetachmentB56, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), 1st SpecialForces, Republic of Vietnam. On the morning of 2 May 1968, a12-man Special Forces Reconnaissance Team was inserted byhelicopters in a dense jungle area west of Loc Ninh, Vietnam,to gather intelligence information about confirmed large-scaleenemy activity. This area was controlled and routinely patrolledby the North Vietnamese Army. After a short period of time onArmy Master Sgt. Roy P. Benavidez (center) is flanked byUnited States Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger (left)and President Ronald Reagan at his Medal of Honor presentationceremony in 1981.the ground, the team met heavy enemy resistance, and requestedemergency extraction. Three helicopters attempted extraction,but were unable to land due to intense enemy small arms andanti-aircraft fire. Sergeant Benavidez was at the Forward OperatingBase in Loc Ninh monitoring the operation by radio whenthese helicopters returned to off-load wounded crewmembersand to assess aircraft damage. Sergeant Benavidez voluntarilyboarded a returning aircraft to assist in another extraction attempt.Realizing that all the team members were either dead orwounded and unable to move to the pickup zone, he directed theaircraft to a nearby clearing where he jumped from the hoveringhelicopter, and ran approximately 75 meters under witheringsmall arms fire to the crippled team. Prior to reaching the team’sposition he was wounded in his right leg, face, and head. Despitethese painful injuries, he took charge, repositioning the teammembers and directing their fire to facilitate the landing of anextraction aircraft, and the loading of wounded and dead teammembers. He then threw smoke canisters to direct the aircraftto the team’s position. Despite his severe wounds and underintense enemy fire, he carried and dragged half of the woundedteam members to the awaiting aircraft. He then provided protectivefire by running alongside the aircraft as it moved to pickup the remaining team members. As the enemy’s fire intensified,he hurried to recover the body and classified documentson the dead team leader. When he reached the leader’s body,Sergeant Benavidez was severely wounded by small arms firein the abdomen and grenade fragments in his back. At nearly
the same moment, the aircraft pilot was mortally wounded, andhis helicopter crashed. Although in extremely critical conditiondue to his multiple wounds, Sergeant Benavidez secured theclassified documents and made his way back to the wreckage,where he aided the wounded out of the overturned aircraft, andgathered the stunned survivors into a defensive perimeter. Underincreasing enemy automatic weapons and grenade fire, he movedaround the perimeter distributing water and ammunition to hisweary men, reinstilling in them a will to live and fight. Facing abuildup of enemy opposition with a beleaguered team, SergeantBenavidez mustered his strength, began calling in tactical airstrikes and directed the fire from supporting gunships to suppressthe enemy’s fire and so permit another extraction attempt.He was wounded again in his thigh by small arms fire whileadministering first aid to a wounded team member just beforeanother extraction helicopter was able to land. His indomitablespirit kept him going as he began to ferry his comrades to thecraft. On his second trip with the wounded, he was clubbedwith additional wounds to his head and arms before killing hisadversary. He then continued under devastating fire to carrythe wounded to the helicopter. Upon reaching the aircraft, hespotted and killed two enemy soldiers who were rushing thecraft from an angle that prevented the aircraft door gunner fromfiring upon them. With little strength remaining, he made onelast trip to the perimeter to ensure that all classified materialhad been collected or destroyed, and to bring in the remainingwounded. Only then, in extremely serious condition fromnumerous wounds and loss of blood, did he allow himself to bepulled into the extraction aircraft. Sergeant Benavidez’ gallantchoice to join voluntarily his comrades who were in criticalstraits, to expose himself constantly to withering enemy fire, andhis refusal to be stopped despite numerous severe wounds, savedthe lives of at least eight men. His fearless personal leadership,tenacious devotion to duty, and extremely valorous actions inthe face of overwhelming odds were in keeping with the highesttraditions of the military service, and reflect the utmost crediton him and the United States Army.Quitters Never Win and Winners Never QuitWe are fortunate to live in a time where we have so much technology.We are fortunate that we can actually hear from SergeantRoy Benavidez himself on You Tube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oUtJxE4sjs&feature=related. I highly recommendthat each of you go to this link and listen to this hero. Withoutquestion, Roy was a great American and an inspiring patriot,he died in 1998.We defense lawyers ought to have the same “love of country”as Roy did. We need to remember that our work gives meaningto the sacrifices he and our other military men and women havemade for us—the American People. Indeed, we also need toremember that no one is shooting at us when we do our work,meaning that we have to have courage to do the right thing!TCDLA is an Association of constitutional heroes. We are anAssociation of freedom fighters. We are an Association that caresabout Unalienable Rights. Although we do not face the samedangers that Roy and are military do, we do stand as a bastionagainst those who would attack our God given rights. I am veryproud to stand with each of you in our work as constitutionaldefenders. Thank you for doing what you do!Your President,J. Gary TrichterRusty Duncan ScholarshipsThe Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Educational Institute is providing scholarships for seminar tuition,available to deserving attorneys actively engaged in the defense of criminal cases who can demonstratefinancial need. Scholarship requests must be in writing and state that the applicant is a TCDLAmember and has not received a scholarship within the last two years (Trial College does not count as ascholarship).Scholarship applicants must send in the following to be considered:1. Registration form;2. Letter of request;3. Letter of recommendation from a Texas or federal judge;4. Letter of recommendation from a TCDLA member.Scholarships recipients will receive materials on CD. Course books may be purchased for a $50 fee.Scholarships are awarded to qualified applicants in order received.
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