Army Sgt. Tommy Rieman

Army Sgt. Tommy Rieman
Sgt. Rieman and his team were sent on a reconnaissance mission near the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq on Dec. 3, 2003. Before reaching its destination, the three-vehicle convoy came under heavy enemy fire. Rieman moved into position, using his own body to protect his gunner and began returning fire. The Humvees they were traveling in did not have doors, so Rieman was directly exposed to the enemy fire. He suffered two bullet wounds and 11 shrapnel wounds. After refusing medical help several times, Rieman took charge and moved the convoy off the main road, out of the line of fire, but encountered a smaller group of insurgents. He directed his men to return fire and eventually they suppressed the attack. Rieman set up a defensive perimeter so that a medical evacuation team could extract the wounded. For his efforts, Rieman was awarded the Silver Star in August 2004. Rieman was chosen as one of the faces of the U.S. Army's "America's Army: Real Heroes" program.