Biography
Roman Catholic Army chaplain in Vietnam, awarded the Medal of Honor for carrying 20+ wounded soldiers through fire to evacuation on December 6, 1967 near Phuoc Lac. Left the priesthood 1975; married former nun Judy Balch 1983. On July 29, 1986 became the first and only Medal of Honor recipient to renounce his medal, placing it in an envelope addressed to President Reagan near the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. With George Mizo, began the Veterans Fast for Life on the U.S. Capitol steps September 1, 1986 — a 47-day water-only fast against Contra aid. Repeatedly arrested at the School of the Americas; in June 2000 sentenced to 1 year at Lompoc (with 70 days solitary) plus $10,000 fine for trespassing at Fort Benning. Charles Liteky was an United States Army chaplain who served in Vietnam and received the Medal of Honor for battlefield heroism. After leaving the priesthood, he became a nationally visible peace activist who argued that his wartime experience imposed a moral duty to oppose U.S. militarism, especially in Central America and in U.S.-backed security training linked to repression.
In 1986 he renounced his Medal of Honor by leaving it at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial as a political act. He became a leading figure in protests against the School of the Americas at Fort Benning, repeatedly accepting arrest for nonviolent civil disobedience and trespass during demonstrations. Courts imposed prison sentences and significant fines for those actions, including a one-year sentence in 2000 for repeated base trespass. He spent his later years in San Francisco, continuing public opposition to war and state violence.
