D Magazine
Subject: The Truth about Viet Nam Vets
The morning of Friday, April 18, 1997, Daniel Wells of McKinney
took the stand in his own defense. Charged with aggravated sexual assault for fondling his
girlfriend's 8-year-old daughter, Wells explained it was all a misunderstanding. Wells was
a decorated Vietnam war hero, with two Purple Hearts and two Bronze Medals for valor. On
cross-examination, testimony revealed that even the mother initially hadn't believed the
little girl. It was the war hero's word against the child's. In
desperation the prosecutor's office tracked down B.G. Burkett, a silver-haired Dallas
financial adviser who has obtained a national reputation as a military researcher and
historian of the Vietnam War.
Within an hour, Burkett had obtained Wells' military record. That afternoon, Burkett drove
to McKinney, was sworn in as an expert witness, and testified that Daniel Wells was a
fake. He had a mediocre military career as a Navy cargo handler; he had never served in
combat, nor had he ever received any valorous decorations. Wells' story fell apart. He was
sentenced to 20 years.
Like the nationally infamous Larry Lawrence, the big Democratic
donor who invented a story of heroic action in the merchant marine and was briefly
interred in Arlington National Cemetery, Daniel Wells had concocted his Vietnam war
stories from true-life accounts in books and magazine articles.
Wells' lies were no surprise to B.G. Burkett. Whenever a media
story portrays a troubled Vietnam vet who relies on the war to explain or excuse himself,
Burkett investigates. In most cases, the purported vet is an exaggerator or an outright
fake.....
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Adapted from Stolen Valor: How the Vietnam Generation was Robbed of Its Heroes and
History, by B.G. Burkett and Glenna Whitley, published by Verity Press Inc.
For orders, call 1-800-253-6789. Or check the D Magazine web site
or http://www.stolenvalor.com.
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