The Wall › Panel 6E › California › Richard Lee Laws
RICHARD LEE LAWS
Lieutenant · U.S. Navy
March 25, 1940 – April 3, 1966
Service recordRichard Lee Laws, of Sacramento, California, served as a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy. He died on April 3, 1966, in North Vietnam, at age 26. His name is inscribed on Panel 6E, Line 80 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 6E · Line 80
Names are inscribed in the order of loss, starting at Panel 1E at the apex and ending at Panel 1W. At the Memorial, find the panel number at the base and count down from the top line.
Remember
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Service
- Branch
- U.S. Navy
- Rank
- Lieutenant (LT)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Url Pilot (1310)
- Unit (as recorded)
- VF 24 USS HANCOCK CVA 19
- Born
- March 25, 1940
- Home of record
- Sacramento, California (Sacramento County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- April 3, 1966
- Age
- 26
- Country
- North Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Aircraft Crash — crew
- Remains
- Not recovered as of the 2008 DoD record
Context · from the records
What was happening
16 names on the Wall carry the date April 3, 1966. In April 1966, 406 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
He died in North Vietnam while Operation Rolling Thunder was under way. Operation Rolling Thunder (March 1965–November 1968) was the sustained U.S. bombing campaign against North Vietnam, flown by Air Force fighter-bombers from Thailand and Navy aircraft from carriers in the Gulf of Tonkin against some of the densest air defenses in the world.
His remains had not been recovered when the 2008 record was compiled. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency continues to search for Americans still missing from the war; families can find case information through dpaa.mil.
Read the history
On the Wall
Also on Panel 6E, Line 80
- DAVID EUGENE HORNBYLance Corporal · April 3, 1966
- ROGER DALE JARRELLPrivate First Class · April 3, 1966
- MARTIN JAMES LACHERStaff Sergeant · April 3, 1966
- GARY DEAN NAILCorporal · April 3, 1966
From Sacramento
- IRVING ALBERT SELFSergeant · May 19, 1964
- LEONARD PAUL HUDSONFirst Lieutenant · November 19, 1964
- CRAIG LOUIS HAGENSergeant · June 10, 1965
- DAVID LEVANT FELTPrivate First Class · August 17, 1965
- RICHARD GRIFFITH PHILBINPrivate First Class · February 2, 1966
- PHILLIP ANTHONY LOTTAPrivate First Class · February 25, 1966
- MICHAEL ANTHONY GILSONPrivate First Class · March 4, 1966
- ROBERT LEE FOSTERPrivate First Class · May 17, 1966
- GERALD C HUNSBARGER IIIPrivate First Class · June 2, 1966
- EDWARD WAYNE BUTLERPrivate First Class · July 22, 1966
Source. U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Casualty Analysis System, Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File (as of April 29, 2008), Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Record Group 330, National Archives (NAID 2240992). Panel and line as recorded in that file. This page presents the official record and its historical context; no biography has been written for him yet. See something wrong? Report a correction.