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Weaver guilty of wearing unearned medals

An Arab man accused of wearing military medals he didn’t earn pleaded guilty Friday in federal court.Douglas Lee Weaver, 35, of Shoal Creek Road pleaded guilty to violating the Stolen Valor Act and illegally possessing firearms. He had pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in April but changed his plea Friday in court.According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Birmingham, Weaver knowingly wore the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star and the Combat Infantry Badge of U.S. Armed Forces, although he had not been awarded the badges or decorations and was not authorized to wear them.Also in September 2009, Weaver, who was previously convicted of a felony, was caught with a .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol and a 12-gauge shotgun in his possession.”It is a criminal act to claim military honor and decoration that one did not earn, and it deserves prosecution and punishment,” U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance said. “The honor of our military personnel, who sacrifice so much to serve and defend our country, must be protected.”Vance praised the work of the Arab Police Department and special agents of the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Army Criminal Investigative Division, whose collaborative efforts led to charges in the case.

Arab police found the guns at Weaver’s residence when they entered it in September 2009 with a search warrant. They were looking property that had been reported stolen in Louisiana last August.In November 2009, an agent of the defense department’s Office of Inspector General and an Arab Police investigator interviewed Weaver about him wearing a military uniform and medals.Weaver had been wearing a uniform for some time, including to a Veteran’s Day event Arab Elementary School in November 2008. He admitted he never had been in combat and had not been awarded any of the medals he wore.The felon in possession of a firearm charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The two charges of unauthorized wearing of the Distinguished Service Cross and the Silver Star each carry a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine. The charge of unauthorized wearing of the Combat Infantry Badge carries a maximum punishment of six months in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Weaver was charged last September with receiving stolen property after he allegedly brought to Arab thousands of dollars worth of four-wheelers and a utility trailer that were stolen from a residence in Louisiana.According to the Arab police report on that incident, Weaver worked construction in Mississippi and Louisiana. He was staying in a camper at the home of the victims of the theft.”On Sept. 9, the victims drove from Louisiana to Arab to see if their stolen property could be located at the suspect’s residence,” the police report said. “They located their trailer sitting on the edge of the suspect’s property and called Arab police.”After getting a search warrant, Arab police allegedly found the victims’ four four-wheelers, weed trimmer, air compressor, utility trailer and hunting bow and case. Other stolen items found at the residence were another trailer, a load of lumber, camper, handgun, shotgun, scope and a hunting bow.Weaver’s sentencing date in federal court hasn’t been set.

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