Howard “Skip” Archer – US Marine Corps Captain, Navy Cross, Two Silver Stars, Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Vietnam POW, Blog of Shame

militaryphonies

5 years ago

BACKGROUND

Howard “Skip” Archer comes to us from Centerville, Pennsylvania but also shows current addresses in Flemington, Missouri as well as Ashtabula, Ohio. Archer is 72 y/o at the time of this writing – Aug 2021. He prefers the nickname “Skip” and most people call him that.

Archer has claimed to people around him that he was a POW in Vietnam. He also sports two Silver Stars, a Bronze Star, a Purple Heart and a POW medal with “V” device in the below photo – in addition to displaying the rank of USMC Captain (O-3). Also of note is the Vietnam Service Medal.

Skip Archer – Facebook

In the following photo, he also has the rank of Captain on his USMC service cap.

Skip Archer – Facebook

Archer’s claims are reinforced by presenting a DD-214 with the “Vietnamise [sic] Service Medal, Navy Cross, Good Conduct and Purple Heart. As with all documents supplied to us via a 3rd party, in this case a relative – we cannot attest to their authenticity.

Oddly enough – on this DD-214 there is no mention of the two Silver Stars or Bronze Star. Also odd is the alleged Admin Clerk’s misspelling of “Vietnamese Service Medal” and the obvious darker typeface of the last four medals – almost as if those medals were an afterthought.

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ACTIONS CONDUCTED BY MILITARY PHONIES

Howard “Skip” Archer’s military records were ordered through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

We also checked the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) listing of POWs and did not find ‘Howard Roy Archer’ listed for Vietnam.

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FOIA RESULTS

NATIONAL PERSONNEL RECORDS CENTER (NPRC)

FOIA – NPRC – Howard “Skip” Archer – Assignments

FOIA – NPRC – Howard “Skip” Archer – Photo

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DISCUSSION and SUMMARY

Looking at the FOIA results – the NPRC summary sheet states that Archer’s records show he was in during the time of the Vietnam War, but did not travel overseas except to Hawaii. He got into some trouble with being AWOL/UA and spent some time in the Brig. This was probably why he was discharged as an E-1 Private. There are no awards for Navy Cross, two Silver Stars, a Purple Heart nor a POW medal. There is also no Vietnam Service Medal. If Archer has used these claims to leverage anything of value he could be in violation of Stolen Valor laws.

Altering a DD-214 – which appears likely here – is also problematic, especially if he used it for leverage.

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