Pat Tillman

November 6, 1976 - April 22, 2004
Killed by Friendly Fire - Died Defending Freedom
Afghanistan Theatre - War on Terror

Pat was born in San Jose, California to Mary and Patrick Sr. Tillman. He was the oldest of three brothers (Kevin and Richard). Pat pushed himself hard in both his physical and scholastic careers and had a reputation for being a defender of the weak when during his senior year in High School he spent time in a juvenile institution for defending a friend that was bullied by an older and more aggressive man. He later reflected on this life lesson and stated firmly

"I learned more from that one mistake than all of the good decisions I have made."

How remarkable are the words of wisdom for one so young?

Pat was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the seventh round in 1998 and spent the next few years developing his skills as an "up and coming" professional football player in the NFL.

Pat Tillman had a promising career in the NFL making potentially millions of dollars. This is and was every young boys dream - to make it big in the NFL.

He had made it to "Primetime" - Yet, Pat heard a different calling.

After September 11, 2001, Pat made a conscious decision to "make a difference" and do something. His media quotes speak for themselves -

"At times like this you stop and think about just how good we have it, what kind of system we live in, and the freedoms we are allowed". A lot of my family has gone and fought in wars and I really haven't done a damn thing"

Dave McGinnis, Pat's head coach at the Arizona Cardinals was reported as saying "Pat knew his purpose in life, he proudly walked away from a career in football to a greater calling."

Pat joined the US Army and eventually made his mark by being promoted into the elite troops of the 23rd Battalion, 75th Ranger Division of the US Army.

President and Mrs. Bush stated proudly that "Pat Tillman was an inspiration on and off the football field, as with all who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the war on terror.”

Pat was a not-so average Joe that gave his life to defend our Freedoms. Pat's memory is shrouded in mystery as he was killed by belatedly acknowledged "friendly fire".

To this day there have been 4 investigations into the death of Pat Tillman by the US Army - and yet none can find out whom is responsible for his death or why there was an international conspiracy by the US Army to cover it up.

Wikipedia Entry - Pat Tillman

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Patrick Daniel Tillman (November 6, 1976 – April 22, 2004) was an American football player who left his professional sports career and enlisted in the United States Army in May 2002. He served in Iraq and, later, in Afghanistan where he was killed. Reports in the media of his death and the background of his sacrifice symbolized a heroic image in the minds of many Americans.

Subsequently, Tillman's death became a national controversy after The Pentagon disclosed to the Tillman family over a month after his death, on May 28, 2004, that he died as a result of a friendly fire incident. The family and other critics allege the Pentagon delayed the disclosure for weeks after Tillman's memorial service out of a desire to protect the image of the U.S. armed forces.

Born in San Jose, California, Tillman started his college career at the linebacker position for Arizona State University in 1994, when he secured the last remaining scholarship for the team. Tillman excelled as a linebacker at Arizona State, despite being relatively small for the position at 5-feet 11-inches (1.80 m) tall. As a senior he was voted the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year. Academically, Tillman majored in marketing and graduated in three and a half years with a 3.84 GPA.

In the 1998 NFL Draft, Tillman was selected as the 226th pick by the Arizona Cardinals. Tillman moved over to play the safety position in the NFL, and started 10 of 16 games in his rookie season. Pat Tillman after graduating from the U.S. Army Basic Combat Training. AP Photo. Enlarge Pat Tillman after graduating from the U.S. Army Basic Combat Training. AP Photo.

In May 2002, eight months after the September 11, 2001 attacks, and after completing the fifteen remaining games of the 2001 season which followed the attacks (at a salary of $512,000 per year)[4], Tillman turned down a contract offer of $3.6 million over three years from the Cardinals to enlist in the U.S. Army. He enlisted along with his brother Kevin, who gave up the chance of a career in professional baseball. The two brothers completed training for the elite Army Ranger school in late 2002, and were assigned to the second battalion of the 75th Ranger Regiment in Fort Lewis, Washington. Both Pat and Kevin were deployed to the Middle East as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Tillman was subsequently redeployed to Afghanistan, where, on April 22, 2004, he was killed in action by friendly fire while on patrol. His unit, according to the Army, was attacked in an apparent ambush on a road outside of the village of Sperah about 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Khost, near the Pakistan border. An Afghan militia soldier was killed and two other Rangers were injured as well. The U.S. Department of Defense concluded that Pat Tillman's death was due to friendly fire aggravated by the intensity of the firefight. It was later learned that in fact, no hostile forces were involved in the firefight, and that two allied groups fired on each other in confusion over an exploded mine or remote controlled bomb. U.S. Army Special Operations Command, however, initially claimed there was an exchange with hostile forces. A later investigation conducted by Brigadier General Jones found that the Army was slow to correct the story of a hostile exchange of fire after learning that it was false.

Tillman was the first professional football player to be killed in combat since the death of Bob Kalsu of the Buffalo Bills, who died in the Vietnam War in 1970. Tillman was posthumously promoted from Specialist to Corporal. He also received posthumous Silver Star and Purple Heart medals. He is survived by his wife, Marie.

Controversy regarding circumstances of death

A report described in the Washington Post on May 4, 2005 (prepared upon the request of Tillman's family) by Brig. Gen. Gary M. Jones revealed that in the days immediately following Tillman's death, U.S. Army investigators were aware that Tillman was killed by friendly fire. Jones reported that senior Army commanders, including Gen. John Abizaid, knew of this fact within days of the shooting, but nevertheless approved the awarding of the Silver Star, Purple Heart, and a posthumous promotion. The citation report accompanying these awards said that Tillman was killed by enemy forces and contained a detailed account of the alleged battle which Army leadership knew had never taken place.

Jones reported that members of Tillman's unit burned his body armor and uniform in an apparent attempt to hide the fact that he was killed by friendly fire. Several soldiers were subsequently punished for their actions by being removed from their Ranger unit. Jones believed that Tillman should retain his medals and promotion, since he intended to engage the enemy, and, in Jones's opinion, behaved heroically.

Tillman's family was not informed of the finding that he was killed by friendly fire until weeks after his memorial service, although at least some senior Army officers knew of that fact prior to the service. Tillman's parents have sharply criticized the Army's handling of the incident; they charge that the Army was more concerned about protecting its image and its recruiting efforts than about telling the truth. His mother, Mary Tillman, told the Washington Post:

The fact that he was the ultimate team player and he watched his own men kill him is absolutely heartbreaking and tragic. The fact that they lied about it afterward is disgusting.

Tillman's father Patrick Tillman Sr., was incensed by the cover-up of the cause of his son's death, which he attributed to a conscious decision by the leadership of the U.S. Army to protect the Army's image:

After it happened, all the people in positions of authority went out of their way to script this. They purposely interfered with the investigation, they covered it up. I think they thought they could control it, and they realized that their recruiting efforts were going to go to hell in a hand basket if the truth about his death got out. They blew up their poster boy,"

He also blamed high-ranking Army officers for presenting "outright lies" to the family and to the public.

Later, Tillman's father suggested in a letter to the Washington Post that the Army hierarchy's purported mistakes were part of a pattern of conscious misconduct:

With respect to the Army's reference to 'mistakes in reporting the circumstances of [my son's] death': those 'mistakes' were deliberate, calculated, ordered (repeatedly) and disgraceful -- conduct well beneath the standard to which every soldier in the field is held."

He also alleged that the soldiers who had burned Tillman's body armor had done so on the direct orders of their superiors.

These complaints and allegations led the Pentagon's Inspector General to open a further inquiry into Tillman's death in August 2005.

On March 4, 2006 the U.S. Defense Department inspector general directed the Army to open a criminal investigation of Tillman's death. The Army's Criminal Investigative Division will determine if Tillman's death was the result of negligent homicide.

Legacy

After his death, the Pat Tillman Foundation was established to carry forward Tillman's legacy by inspiring and supporting those striving for positive change in themselves and the world around them. A highway bypass around the Hoover Dam will have a bridge bearing Tillman's name. When completed in 2008, the Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge will span the Colorado River between Nevada and Arizona.

The Cardinals retired his number 40 and Arizona State did the same for the number 42 he wore with the Sun Devils. The Cardinals said they will also name the plaza surrounding their new stadium, currently under construction in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, "Pat Tillman Freedom Plaza."

Pat Tillman's high school, Leland High School in San Jose, California, also renamed their football field after him.

Media Reports

Pat Tillman Links

The Circumstances Surrounding his Death

Speak out about Pat Tillman's Death in our Freedom Blog