Pryor questions why no Purple Hearts for 2 soldiers

Father of one says faith in government diminished

— Several lawmakers say two soldiers who were shot outside a military recruiting station in Arkansas two years ago should be awarded the Purple Heart.

Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut, along with several other legislators, voiced support for the soldiers after one of the soldiers’ father testified during a hearing on homegrown terrorism in Washington on Wednesday.

Sen. Mark Pryor questioned a U.S. Army official about why the two soldiers were denied Purple Heart medals.

Pryor told Army advisor Jim Stuteville during a congressional hearing on terrorism Wednesday that it’s a “sore spot” why Pvt. William Andrew Long and Pvt. Quinton Ezeagwula were denied Purple Hearts.

Daris Long, the father of Pvt. Long, told lawmakers that his faith in government has diminished.

Long said the government considers the Little Rock shooting that killed his son a drive-by shooting and the attack that killed 13 soldiers at Fort Hood, Texas, a case of workplace violence rather than a terrorist attack.

Long has been fighting for the military award for his son and Ezeagwula, but so far, he’s been unsuccessful.

Abdulhakim Muhammad told The Associated Press he shot the soldiers because of U.S. military action in the Middle East. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Stuteville said the shooting is considered a criminal act — not an attack by the enemy or an act of international terrorism.

Stuteville said he’ll take Pryor’s concerns to Army leadership.

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Sonja Ezeagwula watches as her son, Army Pvt. Quinton Ezeagwula, points to the spot where a bullet grazed his head when he was shot outside a military recruiting office in Little Rock on June 1.

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GAVIN LESNICK / ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE Daris Long, left, and Janet Long talk to reporters Monday after Abdulhakim Muhammad was sentenced to life in prison without parole. The Longs' son, Pvt. William "Andy" Long, was killed in a June 1, 2009 shooting attack perpetrated by Muhammad.

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