Pentagon to set up database for military medals
he Pentagon said Tuesday that it would establish a database for military awards and medals so that claims of meritorious service could be verified in the future.
The decision was announced in a briefing by Pentagon Press Secretary George Little.
“We are exploring options to stand up a database of valor awards and medals,” Little said. “We haven’t arrived at a final conclusion yet, but that process is ongoing and the goal is to stand up such a database.”
Last month, the Supreme Court struck down a federal law called the Stolen Valor Act which prohibits a person from falsely claiming that he has been awarded a military honor.
That law had been considered by its supporters to be a deterrent to false claims.
The Supreme Court case involved Xavier Alvarez, who claimed in 2007 that he was a retired Marine, had been “wounded many times,” and had been “awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor” in 1987. In fact, he never served in the United States armed forces.