“A congressman has forwarded new witness statements that he says bolster the case of Marine Sgt. Rafael Peralta, whose nomination to receive the nation’s highest award for valor was denied by previous Defense secretaries,” USA Today reports.

“Peralta was nominated for a Medal of Honor by the Marine Corps for acts of heroism in Fallujah, Iraq, in November 2004. Peralta was killed during the fighting… In a rare move, then-Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in 2008 that he did not approve the nomination.”

“A review Gates ordered had concluded that medical evidence suggested Peralta was killed by a bullet to the head during a firefight, raising doubts about whether he could voluntarily have reached for a grenade and pulled it toward his body.”