DENVER - A federal judge dismissed the criminal case against admitted veteran imposter Rick Strandlof, also known as Rick Duncan, and said the law that prohibits lying about military honors is unconstitutional.
The decision, issued Friday morning by US District Court Judge Robert Blackburn, ends the prosecution of Strandlof, who admitted to 9Wants to Know Investigator Jace Larson that he lied about receiving military decorations.
The Stolen Valor Act makes it a crime to falsely represent such service honors.
Blackburn wrote in his opinion that the Act "is unconstitutional as a content-based restriction on First Amendment speech that is not narrowly tailored to serve a compelling government interest."
Strandlof did not serve in the military but he duped politicians, veterans and the news media into believing that he served several tours in Iraq and was awarded the Purple Heart and Silver Star.
Strandlof, who founded Colorado Veterans Alliance in 2007, faced five misdemeanor charges.
His anti-war views made him the darling of sympathetic advocacy groups and Democratic politicians.
Strandlof's attorney, and civil liberties groups that filed supporting briefs, argued successfully that Strandlof's lies were protected speech. Federal prosecutors disagreed.
A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Denver said the matter is being reviewed and a decision on an appeal will be made by the Department of Justice in Washington.
"I acknowledge that there is much irony, to put it gently, in concluding that the core values of our system of governance, which our military men and women serve to defend with their very lives, are here invoked to protect false claims," Blackburn wrote in his decision. "I have profound faith - a faith that appears to be questioned by the government here - that the reputation, honor, and dignity military decorations embody are not so tenuous or ephemeral as to be erased by the mere utterance of a false claim of entitlement."
In an exclusive interview with 9NEWS in 2009, Strandlof hedged, blaming his deceit on mental illness.
"People are alleging that some of the information on the [Colorado Veterans Alliance's] website was not true, some of the background info was not true and some assertions made in public were not true," Strandlof said at the time. "I guess it depends on how true you want them to be."
Strandlof's attorney, Bob Pepin, said he was pleased by the ruling but he respected the right of those opposed to it to speak out.
"They have an absolute right to feel that way," Pepin said. "That is illustrative of the point of this case... Everyone can make their own choices and think how they want."
Doug Sterner, a former Pueblo resident now living in Virginia, who runs a website devoted to exposing fake war heroes says it's ironic a law birthed in Colorado was overturned by a judge in Colorado.
Sterner and his wife, Pamla, who helped design the law, both said they're confident that the fight will end up in the United States Supreme Court.
"We believe that the Stolen Valor Act is constitutional and we will believe that it will be upheld in the end," Doug Sterner said.
Congressman John Salazar, a Democrat from Colorado and an early supporter of the Stolen Valor Act, was equally confident.
"This is an issue of fraud plain and simple. The individuals who violate this law are those who knowingly portray themselves as pillars of the community for personal and monetary gain," Salazar told 9Wants to Know. "I am confident this decision will be overturned on appeal."
The decision, issued Friday morning by US District Court Judge Robert Blackburn, ends the prosecution of Strandlof, who admitted to 9Wants to Know Investigator Jace Larson that he lied about receiving military decorations.
The Stolen Valor Act makes it a crime to falsely represent such service honors.
Blackburn wrote in his opinion that the Act "is unconstitutional as a content-based restriction on First Amendment speech that is not narrowly tailored to serve a compelling government interest."
Strandlof did not serve in the military but he duped politicians, veterans and the news media into believing that he served several tours in Iraq and was awarded the Purple Heart and Silver Star.
Strandlof, who founded Colorado Veterans Alliance in 2007, faced five misdemeanor charges.
His anti-war views made him the darling of sympathetic advocacy groups and Democratic politicians.
Strandlof's attorney, and civil liberties groups that filed supporting briefs, argued successfully that Strandlof's lies were protected speech. Federal prosecutors disagreed.
A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's office in Denver said the matter is being reviewed and a decision on an appeal will be made by the Department of Justice in Washington.
"I acknowledge that there is much irony, to put it gently, in concluding that the core values of our system of governance, which our military men and women serve to defend with their very lives, are here invoked to protect false claims," Blackburn wrote in his decision. "I have profound faith - a faith that appears to be questioned by the government here - that the reputation, honor, and dignity military decorations embody are not so tenuous or ephemeral as to be erased by the mere utterance of a false claim of entitlement."
In an exclusive interview with 9NEWS in 2009, Strandlof hedged, blaming his deceit on mental illness.
"People are alleging that some of the information on the [Colorado Veterans Alliance's] website was not true, some of the background info was not true and some assertions made in public were not true," Strandlof said at the time. "I guess it depends on how true you want them to be."
Strandlof's attorney, Bob Pepin, said he was pleased by the ruling but he respected the right of those opposed to it to speak out.
"They have an absolute right to feel that way," Pepin said. "That is illustrative of the point of this case... Everyone can make their own choices and think how they want."
Doug Sterner, a former Pueblo resident now living in Virginia, who runs a website devoted to exposing fake war heroes says it's ironic a law birthed in Colorado was overturned by a judge in Colorado.
Sterner and his wife, Pamla, who helped design the law, both said they're confident that the fight will end up in the United States Supreme Court.
"We believe that the Stolen Valor Act is constitutional and we will believe that it will be upheld in the end," Doug Sterner said.
Congressman John Salazar, a Democrat from Colorado and an early supporter of the Stolen Valor Act, was equally confident.
"This is an issue of fraud plain and simple. The individuals who violate this law are those who knowingly portray themselves as pillars of the community for personal and monetary gain," Salazar told 9Wants to Know. "I am confident this decision will be overturned on appeal."
