Specialist Richard Thomas Davis (March 14, 1978 – July 15, 2003) was an

Infantryman Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marin ...

in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

. The son of two US Army veterans, Lanny and Remy Davis, he was born on an Army base in Germany. Davis enlisted in the Army in 1998 and served in

Operation Joint Forge The Stabilisation Force in Bosnia and Herzegovina (SFOR) was a NATO-led multinational peacekeeping force deployed to Bosnia and Herzegovina after the Bosnian war. Although SFOR was led by NATO, several non-NATO countries contributed troops. I ...

in Bosnia and later in the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...

, where he and his comrades participated in the April 11, 2003, "Midtown Massacre," a five-hour firefight in downtown

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon. I ...

. On July 15, 2003, less than two days after returning from deployment to Iraq, Davis was murdered outside Fort Benning, Georgia by a fellow soldier from Baker Company, Alberto Martinez. Three other soldiers were also present and involved in the events that led up to the killing and followed the killing. Initially, the Army concluded that Davis deserted and despite pleas from Davis' father, would not initiate an investigation into his son's disappearance for nearly two months. Davis' remains were not found until November 2003. He had been stabbed in the head, neck, and chest at least thirty-three times. His body was later dismembered, doused in lighter fluid, and burned. Unnamed sources have suggested that Davis was killed because he had planned to make a complaint about a rape of an Iraqi woman by US troops. On February 17, 2004, Mario Navarette, Alberto Martinez, Jacob Burgoyne, and Douglas Woodcoff were indicted by Georgia authorities for the murder. Burgoyne pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Woodcoff pleaded guilty to concealing the death of another and was sentenced to probation. At trial, Navarette was convicted of felony murder while in the commission of an aggravated assault, aggravated assault, possession of a knife during the commission of a crime, and concealing the death of another. Martinez was convicted of the same charges and

malice murder Malice murder is a criminal offense in the U.S. state of Georgia, committed when a homicide is done with express or implied malice. Definition According to Georgia law, express malice is "that deliberate intention unlawfully to take the life of ...

. Navarette and Martinez were both sentenced to life plus fifteen years in prison. The story of Davis's murder garnered national attention because he was killed by fellow soldiers and because of the possible role of post traumatic stress disorder as a factor in the crime. Davis's murder was the inspiration for the 2007 Academy Award-nominated film ''

In the Valley of Elah ''In the Valley of Elah'' is a 2007 American crime drama film written and directed by Paul Haggis. The film stars Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, and Susan Sarandon. Its title refers to the Biblical valley where the battle between David and Go ...

''.

References

External links

Richard T. Davis Foundation for PeaceRichard T. Davis Memorial Page by Davis' Cousin Jen Lapuz
(mentioned by Boal) * - A son, a brother, a cousin, a friend, a fallen hero {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Richard T. 1978 births 2003 deaths United States Army personnel of the Iraq War United States Army soldiers People murdered in Georgia (U.S. state) Deaths by stabbing in the United States

See also

References

External links