Miami

Veterans Nonprofit Members to No Longer Collect in Military Uniforms After Miami ‘Stolen Valor' Confrontation

What to Know

  • A former U.S. Marine confronted men collecting money in military-style uniforms at an intersection in Miami.
  • The veteran, who saw combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, recorded the heated verbal exchange that transpired.
  • The related nonprofit group said it will no longer allow members to collect in military uniforms.

The nonprofit at the center of a recent "Stolen Valor" confrontation in Miami said its license has been restored but will no longer allow group members to collect donations in military uniform.

"We will not be wearing uniforms anymore. This is a change we have made. A change of policy. We are not out there to upset anyone. We are out there to help!" Veterans and Patriots Citadel Incorporated told NBC 6 in a statement.

The change comes after the Miami-Dade County Commissioner's Military Affairs Board sent a warning to the public, urging them to help veterans organizations but to also properly vet people collecting funds.

The move comes after a former U.S. Marine confronted men in military-style uniforms asking for money at a Miami intersection in an alleged case of "Stolen Valor."

The incident occurred recently at the intersection of Bird Road and 67th Avenue.

"This is stolen valor – stolen valor – that’s what this is. Asking people for money when you’re not a [expletive] veteran," former U.S. Marine Jose Pazos said in the heated exchange.

However, Veterans and Patriots Citadel Incorporated said its members did serve the military.

In 2016, a federal appeals court ruled the First Amendment allows people to wear unearned military honors. A man from Idaho was convicted in 2007 of violating the Stolen Valor Act, which made it a misdemeanor to falsely claim military accomplishments.

President George W. Bush signed it into law in 2006, but the U.S. Supreme Court struck it down in 2012 as a violation of free speech protections.

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