Outrage at those posing as troops prompts bill

A bill that would make it a crime to pose as an active-duty service member or a veteran for financial gain is drawing the support of veterans groups, who say those who make such false claims are an insult to those who have served, and died, for their country.

The bill introduced by Westfield state Rep. John Velis, a U.S. Army Reserves captain who served in Afghanistan, would make such misrepresentations punishable by up to a year in jail and/or a $1,000 fine.

"When you're doing it for financial gain, whether it's a veteran's discount at a store or a special rate on a loan, that should be a crime," Velis said.

The bill -- one of the strongest versions of the federal c in the nation -- is gaining the support of local veterans, who say it addresses a growing problem documented in YouTube videos of veterans outing wannabes seeking discounts and attention.

"The blood and sweat that we spent to protect our country and our freedom should not give folks the right to lie about what they did or didn't do," said Dan Magoon, an Army sergeant who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and co-founder and executive director of Massachusetts Fallen Heroes. "I think it's a slap in the face to the men and women who've actually served in that capacity."

Shortly after he returned home from Afghanistan in 2013, Velis said he was waiting to buy some popcorn at the movies when he overheard someone who wasn't in uniform ask for a veteran's discount.

"I struck up a conversation with him, and he said he had served in Afghanistan, but his answers clearly indicated to me he had never been there in his life," he said. "I lost three friends over there, and another lost his leg. So to lie about something like that for financial gain is just morally repugnant."

The federal Stolen Valor Act, passed in 2006, barred anyone from falsely claiming they had been awarded a medal, but the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the law on the grounds that it violated free speech.

In 2013, President Obama signed into law a new version prohibiting the same behavior if it was done for financial gain.

Velis' bill is broader in that it would apply to anyone fraudulently claiming to be a service member or veteran -- medals or not -- for financial gain.

"If it prevents one person from stealing the valor of another, it's done its job," said Eric Segundo, president of the Massachusetts Veterans' Service Officers Association. "More states should follow suit."

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