Military

Nick Grimes /  by Justin Merriman

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Nick Grimes, who keeps an arsenal of firearms in his Oakmont, Pa., home, sees a practical line between his right to own those weapons and the federal government’s right to ban so-called “bump stocks,” which allow semi-automatic weapons to fire like machine guns.

Guantanamo Bay /  by Justin Merriman

The sun rises above empty guard towers, above part of camps that are no longer used at Guantanamo Bay's Camp Delta on Aug. 13, 2016.

Detainees pray in a communal area of Camp 6, one of the detention facilities at Guantanamo Bay on Aug. 13, 2016. Camp 6 holds the majority of the remaining 61 detainees at the detention facilities on the U.S. Naval base Guantanamo.

A couple of images from my visit to Guantanamo Bay detention camp in August of 2016.  You can read more about my visit in my stories "An inside look at Gitmo as detention facility faces uncertain future" and "GITMO procedures challenge military 'transparency.'"

USS Requin /  by Justin Merriman

TOP: Korean War veteran Joe Kobus, 84, of Shaler, a member of the Shaler VFW Post 9199, stands near the USS Requin during a memorial service at the submarine on the North Shore on Sunday, May 29, 2016. BOTTOM: Ron Luniewski, a member of the Shaler VFW Post 9199, posts the colors during the memorial service at the USS Requin submarine.

Finally At Rest /  by Justin Merriman

Commander Michael Freynik, a member of a Navy Honor Guard from the Navy Operation Support Center (NSOC) Pittsburgh, prepares to present the folded American flag for Navy veteran William Rodgers during his funeral at the Cemetery of the Alleghenies in Bridgeville on Thursday, May 19, 2016.  Rodgers burial was conducted through the Missing in America Project, which assists in location, identification and burial of unclaimed American veterans.

Members of a Navy Honor Guard from the Navy Operation Support Center (NSOC) Pittsburgh, (left to right) Seaman Falon Jones, Commander Michael Freynik and First Class Petty Officer Lewis Dean process with the cremains of Navy veteran William Rodgers during his funeral the Cemetery of the Alleghenies.

First Class Petty Officer Lewis Dean, a member of the Navy Honor Guard from the Navy Operation Support Center (NSOC) Pittsburgh, plays taps during the funeral of Navy veteran William Rodgers.

14th Quartermaster: A Son's Loss /  by Justin Merriman

Matthew Wukovich, 27, wears his father's Army field jacket at his home in Coraopolis on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016.  Wukovich's father, John Boliver served in the14th Quartermaster Detachment, a United States Army Reserve water purification unit based in Greensburg, PA. Boliver died along with 12 other soldiers in his unit when a SCUD missile hit the unit's makeshift barracks while in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm on Feb. 25, 1991. The 14th suffered the greatest number of casualties of any allied unit during Operation Desert Storm.

NSA Director /  by Justin Merriman

Admiral Michael S. Rogers, commander of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency (NSA), addresses Univ. of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs students, faculty, staff and others at Wesley W. Posvar Hall on the University of Pittsburgh campus on Monday, Oct. 26, 2015.

Veteran's Day /  by Justin Merriman

Dean McMillen, 84, a U.S. Navy veteran who served during the Korean conflict, rides on a motorcycle in the  Veteran's Day parade in Butler, PA on Nov. 11, 2014.
Alex Ditch, 9, stands along the parade route dressed in his father's Marine coat during the veteran's parade in Pittsburgh on Nov. 8, 2014.
A young boy holds his flag as he rides along the Veteran's Day parade route.
Dean McMillen, 84, a U.S. Navy veteran who served during the Korean conflict, sits at the Veteran's Day service at the Butler VA Healthcare in Butler, PA on Nov. 11, 2014.
Members of the Marine Corp League's Bantam Jeep Detachment #743 perform a twenty-one gun salute at the Veteran's Day service at the Butler VA Healthcare.
United States Marine Corp veteran Larry Heade, 78, of Saxonburg salutes as the color guard presents the colors during the Veteran's Day service at the Butler VA Healthcare in Butler, PA.

Navy Week /  by Justin Merriman

Sailor Kidus Befekadu, 20, an E3 on the USS Constitution watches as the Navy Band Northeast perform as part of Navy Week in Pittsburgh at the Steel Plaza, Downtown on Tuesday. 

D-Day Veteran /  by Justin Merriman

James Harper Jordan, 92, is reflected in the glass of a shadowbox that holds his medals from World War II including the Bronze Star, the Silver Star, and the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster in his Greenfield home on Thursday, May 29, 2014. Jordan was part of the first wave that pushed onto Omaha Beach on D-Day. 

Laid to Rest /  by Justin Merriman

Twenty-six unclaimed veterans, representing all branches except the Coast Guard, were buried with military honors at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies in Cecil on Thursday.   The veterans were identified as part of The Missing in America Project, a national program, that identifies veteran remains.