Navy SEAL admits he wasn’t really a Coastie
Oh, wait I got that wrong – he was Coastie who claimed he was a SEAL. Funny it almost never happens that way, though, so you understand my confusion. From the Navy Times;
Barnhart served a combined 21 years in the Navy and the Coast Guard. He joined the Navy in 1969, then moved to the Coast Guard 10 years later, retiring in 1990. He entered the Coast Guard claiming to be a SEAL who had completed diving school and High Altitude-Low Opening parachutist school, according to court records.
He also claimed to have earned the Silver Star, Bronze Star with “V” for valor, Purple Heart with four stars, a Combat Action Ribbon and Vietnam War-era awards. The Coast Guard clerk bought the story and added the awards to Barnhart’s DD 214. Later DD 214 alterations would add a Navy Commendation with “V” device, Presidential Unit Citation with three stars, and Vietnamese Medal of Honor First and Second Class.
He fooled the Navy, the Coast Guard and the VA, but he didn’t fool our pals at POW Net.
The case against him began when Mary Schantag of the POW Network got wind of the bogus claims. She began an exhaustive investigation that ultimately led to the state’s attorney’s office looking into the matter.
Good shootin’, Mary.
Category: Phony soldiers
I’m surprised this guy isn’t in IVAW. lol
Or Veterans for Peace. Or VVAW.
To the end of my days, I will not understand why these guys do what they do. I just don’t get it.
Or, VoteVets. I agree, Tim, and I don’t get it either.
Very good shooting indeed, Mary!
I have to ask why is it that these people never seem to get caught by their respective branches?
Mary ROCKS 🙂
Wait, what you guys are saying is that the navy isn’t made of 90% SEALs?
We had a guy in my unit while I was in Iraq who was wearing a ranger tab, pathfinder wings, jump wings, and an 82nd combat patch. Our BC asked what class he was in and they guy had no clue. Turns out he was a part of a ring of guys in the KS national guard who had been falsifying their military records.
Good grief, honorable service just isn’t enogh for some people. It’s bad enough when a civilian does it, but worse when a veteran does.
This Coastie personnel hack BOUGHT the story? Christ, I remember trying to get a Navy “E” put into my record by the PN on the tender after I left and came back a year later. It never got put in, despite the fact SHE WAS ON THE TENDER AT THE SAME TIME I WAS, and we knew each other! Don’t even get me started on pay issues….
In the Marine Corps, any changes to the DD-214 must be signed and verified by the Admin Officer. We are very suspicious when someone asks to have things included without any backup documents to prove.
As a senior officer, I have a real problem with fraud like this and react very strongly against the individuals concerned if it’s in fact done to also receive VA benefits. I file charges and convene a Court Martial.
It’s in insult against those who really earned the medals by the ones who did not. Maybe John Kerry trained them!!
The really sad part about the guy in my unit that was caught is that he was a really good guy. He didn’t need anything like that to get people to like him. I wasn’t surprised when I found out that he was fake, more disappointed than anything.
The clerk should be looked up and charged as well. I don’t give a darn if he is still serving or inactive.
Run him down and press charges for “falsification of a government document.”
Jarhead John
Think about this: It’s almost certain he was selected for both CPO and WO based on his fraudulant DD 214. He owes more than a fine for the issue. He owes backpay for fraudulant promotions as well.
To Steve A, you can rest assured his fake awards helped in his enlisted promotions because they received points that went into calculating his multiple score – this determined his final position on an advancement list. Guys/gals usually make do with a point from receiving an achievement medal or commendation medal, rarely anything above that.
As for selection to CWO – undoubtedly it would play a role. He would still have other elements to consider such as his test score, and recommendation for appointment. Still, such an “obvious” record would have to impress any selection panel.
No excuse for anyone accepting his word of his exploits without proof.
Wow! Tom Barnhart and I made Chief and were initiated on the same day (August 1, 1986), and we both made CWO2 on the same day (June 1, 1987) (Portsmouth, VA). He was a gunner’s mate and I was a boatswain’s mate. On the day of our chief’s initiation, the CPOA Chapter exempted him from parts of the initiation (lock & load, etc.) because he told them he still had shrapnel in his ass from Vietnam. There was also a story going around that he had to have his trop shirt (short-sleeve uniform shirt) pockets lowered by a tailor to enable him to display all of his ribbons. The Coast Guard reportedly wouldn’t allow him to wear his SEAL Trident (Budweiser), since it was not a CG insignia. I have to admit that I was taken in by his stories. I guess because they were so outrageous, and that the USCG bought them too.
Hey jfreddick13! I too remember CPO and then CWO Barnhart from the USCG Support Center in Portsmouth, VA. Although I had no direct contact with him, he was easy to spot around the place. I remember he drove a Ford pickup truck of that era and saw him in the dispensary once with his wife. I could swear I saw him wearing the SEAL Trident, but my memory is hazy from that time now. This is all very disappointing though; a lot of people looked up to him. I am surprised he got off with relatively little punishment. Barnhart deserves to have his retirement stripped in my view.