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Marine's mother pleads to Bush
By TIM GRANT and MARY JACOBY
In an e-mail sent Thursday to the president, Norma Figueroa appealed to Bush as the father of twin daughters. She asked him to intervene and have her other son, also a Marine, reassigned to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa. "Can it be possible that you can help me to achieve my goal -- to save the last blood line of our family?" asked Mrs. Figueroa, who lives with her husband in northern Hillsborough County.
Members of the president's staff said Thursday they are trying to arrange his schedule so he can attend. They said they could not guarantee Bush's attendance, but a spokeswoman confirmed the White House received Mrs. Figueroa's e-mail. "The president's thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Lance Cpl. Antonio Sledd," said Jeanie Mamo, a White House press aide. "He died in service to his country and the nation is grateful." Mamo said the White House has asked the Pentagon to review Mrs. Figueroa's request to have her son transferred to Tampa. Sledd, a graduate of Gaither High School in Tampa, was killed and another Marine wounded by two Kuwaiti gunmen who opened fire on Marines training on Failaka, an island 10 miles east of Kuwait City. The attackers then drove to a second location and again began shooting. Those Marines fired back, killing both men. The Defense Department said Sledd's remains left Kuwait for the U.S. early Thursday on a commercial aircraft. Mrs. Figueroa said she was told her son's body would be arriving at MacDill Air Force Base late Thursday. His twin brother, Michael, was expected to arrive from Japan about the same time. In her e-mail to the president, she shared memories of her son "Tony," whom she described as a "very outgoing and wonderful person." She recounted their last conversation, two weeks ago, and expressed dismay over what she called the "mistake" that caused his death. "Tony promised me that he would return home soon and not to worry about him," Mrs. Figueroa wrote. "He told me that they were doing their best to protect our country and I wonder, did the military do their best to protect our Marines while they were training?" She asked why terrorists were allowed to approach the Marines, whom she said "were practicing with blank bullets." "He did not have a way to defend himself," Mrs. Figueroa wrote. Lt. Chris Davis, a Defense Department spokesman for the U.S. Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, said the government is investigating. "Other than that, all I can say is my superiors at the Department of Defense are trying to get to the bottom of what happened. I know we'll seek justice for the death of Lance Cpl. Sledd," Davis said. He noted that Sledd's fellow Marines responded to the attack. "They shot and killed the two gunmen who were responsible for his death. They did the best they could," Davis said. As for the transfer request regarding Sledd's brother, a spokesman at Marine Headquarters in the Pentagon said no formal decision has been made, but he expects the transfer to be granted. Capt. Stewart Upton said it could happen within days. "This type of request is not unheard of in these circumstances," Upton said. "The request will be expedited." A Defense Department directive insures that "a sole surviving son or daughter may not be assigned to ... duties involving actual combat with the enemy if he or she or one of his or her parents submits a written request for noncombat duty." The regulation also states that "on approval of such a request, a sole surviving son or daughter shall not be assigned to any overseas area designated as a hostile-fire or imminent-danger area." The regulation is a humane measure for parents of service members killed in the line of duty who want to protect any other children also serving in the armed forces. It was inspired by the famous case of the five Sullivan brothers of Waterloo, Iowa, who were serving together on the USS Juneau when it was sunk off Guadalcanal in November 1942. All five brothers died. In this case, Michael Sledd is an infantryman stationed in Okinawa, Japan. Upton said the reassignment will likely be granted while he is still on leave for his twin brother's funeral, but he will have to go back to Japan to retrieve his belongings. Officials at MacDill Air Force Base said Thursday they hadn't heard whether the government would honor Mrs. Figueroa's request to transfer her remaining son to Tampa. Staff Sgt. Sonny Cohrs said MacDill primarily houses members of the Air Force, and Mike Sledd is a Marine. But he said members from each branch of the armed forces are stationed on the base as part of joint service units, so it would be possible. -- Times staff writer Brady Dennis contributed to this report. Tim Grant can be reached at (813) 269-5311. An open e-mail to the presidentThe following is the text of the e-mail that Norma Figueroa, mother of Marine Lance Cpl. Antonio Shedd, sent to President Bush on Thursday: * * * To: president@whitehouse.gov cc: fl governor@eog.state.fl.us Sent: Thursday, October 10, 2002 8:10 AM Subject: Requesting your intervention for military reassignment * * * Dear Mr. President Bush My name is Norma Figueroa, the mother of Antonio James Sledd, the 20-year-old Marine who was murdered in Kuwait on Tuesday, October 8, 2002. My son paid the ultimate price for the mistake made by the person in charge for setting security perimeter where Tony was exercising. To lose a loving kid like Tony has been my worst nightmare. I always watched the news and prayed to God that I would never be one of the mothers shown on TV receiving the body of their son. Tony was very unique in his way, was a very outgoing and wonderful person. Sometimes I wonder why his life had to be cut so short. I also want to know why terrorists were allowed inside the island while the Marines were practicing with blank bullets. He did not have a way to defend himself. Last time I talked to Tony was two weeks ago. Tony promised me that he would return home soon and not to worry about him. He told me that they were doing their best to protect our country and I wonder, did the military do their best to protect our Marines while they were training? I have Tony's twin brother, Michael Hiram Sledd, stationed in Okinawa and he is coming home for his brother's funeral. Our family is devastated about losing Tony and we are worried that we may go into a war and my only son left may face danger. I know you have twin daughters and I want you to put yourself in my place. Can you help me to make sure I do not lose my only son by requesting that the Marines reassign Mike to a base close to Tampa, Florida? Maybe he could be assigned to MacDill Air Base here in Tampa for the rest of his tour of duty where he cannot be deployable. My husband, Thomas D. Sledd, and myself strongly support you, and like all other Americans we want our country to be protected from terrorist attack. We already sacrificed one of our sons for our country. Can it be possible that you can help me to achieve my goal -- "To save the last blood line of our family."? You are welcome to attend our son's funeral. I would like to see you there. If Tony's body arrives today, we are planning to do the honors and ceremony on Saturday, October 12, 2002. Thank you in advance for anything you can do for our family. Our phone number is (withheld). Respectfully yours, Norma Figueroa
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