Army MSG Jefferson D. Davis
Army MSG Jefferson D. Davis, 39, enlisted as a Medical Specialist in August of 1984 and served in Korea for three years. After graduating from the Special Forces Qualification Course, JD was assigned to the 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He served as a Medical Team Sergeant on both ODA 562 and ODA 564. After completing a tour as a Senior Instructor at the Special Warfare Center, Fort Bragg, North Carolina, he returned to 5th Group where he was selected to be a Team Sergeant of ODA-574, Company A, 3rd Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne). He was killed in action on December 5, 2001 during Operation Enduring Freedom. Davis was one of three U.S. Special Forces soldiers and five Afghan opposition fighters who were killed when a 2,000-pound satellite-guided bomb from a U.S. B-52 (friendly fire) missed its intended target north of Kandahar.
His awards and decorations include: The Purple Heart Medal, Two Meritorious Service Medals, Two Army Commendation Medals, The Defense of Saudi Arabia Medal, The Liberation and Defense of Kuwait Medal, The Special Forces Tab, The Ranger Tab, The Combat Infantryman’s Badge, The Combat Medic Badge, The Master Parachutist Badge, The Military Freefall Parachutist Badge. Capt Jason Amerine commanded the team that was hit and said that he didn’t want his men remembered as a detachment that was taken out by an errant bomb. “They cannot be remembered that way. They are the best that America has to offer.”
