William Calley
US Army officer convicted for massacre at My Lai, Vietnam (1943–2024) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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William Laws Calley Jr.[1] (June 8, 1943 – April 28, 2024) was a convicted American war criminal who was found guilty of some of the killings of the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War.
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Early life and education
Calley was born in Miami, Florida.[2] His father was a United States Navy veteran of World War II. Calley graduated from Miami Edison High School in Miami and then went to Palm Beach Junior College in 1963. He dropped out in 1964, after having failed (most or) a majority of his classes.[3]
Calley then had (some jobs or) a variety of jobs before enlistment in 1966;[4] He worked as a bellhop, dishwasher, salesman, insurance appraiser, and train conductor.[5]
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Education in the military
Calley had eight weeks of basic combat training at Fort Bliss, Texas,[6] followed by eight weeks of advanced individual training as a company clerk at Fort Lewis, Washington. He scored high enough on (some test,) his Armed Forces Qualification tests; He applied for and got into Officer Candidate School (OCS).[5]
He then began 26 weeks of [ officer training or] junior officer training at Fort Benning in mid-March 1967. He graduated in September 1967.[5] He became a second lieutenant in the infantry. He was put in the 23rd Infantry Division "The Americal Division" ,[1] and began training at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, as preparation for getting sent to South Vietnam.
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My Lai massacre
He was held responsible and found guilty[7] of some of the killings of the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam War. Of the 26 officers and soldiers that were charged for their part in the My Lai Massacre or the cover-up, only Calley was convicted. He was sentenced to a life in prison, but that was changed to 20 years in prison, and later to 10 years in prison. He was put on house arrest instead. Calley only spent three years on house arrest, and was then released.
After punishment
In 2009, Lieutenant Calley was speaking (at a Kiwanis Club in Georgia, USA) and said that (he feels remorse, and that) "There is not a day that goes by that I do not feel remorse for what happened that day in Mỹ Lai. I feel remorse for the Vietnamese who were killed, for their families, for the American soldiers involved and their families. I am very sorry."[8]
Later life and death
In 1976 he got married in a church in the United States.[9]
Calley died on April 28, 2024 under hospice care in Gainesville, Florida at the age of 80.[10] His death was not reported until three months after his death on July 29, when public records of him revealed his death.[10]
References
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