The U.S. Army has not yet determined whether Reserve Capt. Antonio Brown, killed in the Orlando, Fla., nightclub terrorist attack, will receive the Purple Heart award.
According to a report, Congress enacted a change in 2014 that allows service members injured by a terrorist-inspired attack inside the U.S. to be eligible for the Purple Heart. Traditionally, the award was given only to service members wounded in combat.
Since enactment, victims of the Chattanooga, Tenn., and Fort Hood, Texas, shootings received Purple Hearts.
Both the White House and Justice Department labeled the Orlando shooting a terrorist attack, leaving open the possibility that Brown could receive the award posthumously. Army spokesman Lt. Col. Jerry Pionk said the service “will need the facts and clarifications from law enforcement to make future determinations.”
It is likely such a determination won’t be made until official investigations on the terror rampage close.
