A U.S. Special Operations Command major who saved a comrade from being dragged away by enemy fighters in Afghanistan in 2012 has been authorized by the U.S. House and Senate to receive the nation’s highest combat valor award.
A bill that would authorize the president to award the Medal of Honor to Maj. Nicholas Dockery received unanimous approval in the Senate Tuesday night after Sen Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, brought it up for a vote along with bills to award two other Medals of Honor.
Dockery, 41, who works at U.S. Special Operations Command’s office in the Pentagon, was recognized as Military Times’ Soldier of the Year in 2022.
At the time, he was the only Army officer to have been awarded two Silver Stars for valor in the post-9/11 era, and the only living military officer to have done so.
This congressional authorization, first introduced in the House, would upgrade one of those Silver Stars by two awards.
Dockery, then a lieutenant, had been deployed to Afghanistan’s Kapisa province as a platoon leader with 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Light).
While working closely with an Afghan platoon to provide security for the provincial governor’s compound on Oct. 2, 2012, Dockery’s unit was ambushed by Taliban forces armed to the teeth with rocket launchers, grenades and machine guns.
According to his medal citation, Dockery risked open ground to move back and forth multiple times as his troops engaged the enemy, helping to rally them and reinforce Afghan allies.
When word came to him that one U.S. soldier, Staff Sgt. Eric Mitchell, had been wounded, Dockery immediately went to their defense, killing one enemy soldier with his carbine rifle as he moved deeper into the compound.
Having gathered the four soldiers inside the courtyard, Dockery worked to organize a counter-attack to clear the space, even as the enemy countered with heavy fire and called in reinforcements. At one point, Dockery used his own body to shield another soldier from the blast of an enemy grenade. Every soldier in the group sustained wounds in the onslaught.
As Dockery took stock of things, he realized that one soldier, Sgt. Jack Hansbro, was missing.
In a nearby alley, he found the sergeant being dragged away, unconscious, by two Taliban fighters. He charged at the fighters and killed them both, then turned his attention to Hansbro, providing CPR and life-saving first aid.
As the fight continued, Dockery risked the open roof of the compound to signal with smoke grenades to the gunships that would ultimately lay down suppressive fire and save the men.
Dockery, who would earn a second Silver Star for heroism during that same deployment, would go on to complete Special Forces deployments to Costa Rica and Colombia, among other places, leading an Operational Detachment-Alpha and serving as aide-de-camp to the leader of 1st Special Forces Command.
Beyond the field, he completed Yale University’s global affairs graduate program, a prestigious and exclusive White House fellowship, and the Douglas MacArthur Leadership award, recognizing top company-grade officers.
The question of upgrading his valor award was first raised around 2019 by retired Lt. Gen. Robert Caslen, who had just completed a tenure as superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York — Dockery’s alma mater.
The recommendation kicked off an Army chain of command review process that would take the better part of seven years.
Rep. Jim Baird, R-Ind., introduced the House bill on Jan 21 to award the Medal of Honor to Dockery, an Indianapolis native.
“Maj. Dockery demonstrated extraordinary heroism, going above and beyond the call of duty, while serving in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom, and selflessly risked his own life many times to save his soldiers,” Baird said in a statement.
Sen. Todd Young, the senior U.S. Senator from Indiana, heartily endorsed the award.
“Maj. Nicholas Dockery is very deserving of the Medal of Honor,” he told Military Times in a statement. ”He demonstrated sacrifice and unwavering commitment to our nation and his fellow soldiers during his time in Afghanistan, and I am glad that Congress recognizes this incredible Hoosier for exactly what he is — a hero.”
The Army Decoration Board must next make a recommendation about whether to award Dockery the medal, which will then require approval at every level of the chain of command up to the president.
While SOCOM declined to make Dockery available for comment Wednesday, he shared some of his feelings about service in a 2023 Purple Heart commemoration speech at Mount Vernon, in which he also reflected on the 2012 firefight.
“In every humbling moment leading America’s finest warriors, I’ve perpetually felt the challenge of living up to the standards they so rightfully deserve,” Dockery said at the time. “Honoring their trust, recognizing their sacrifices and matching the courage of those beside me demanded a deeper and more profound commitment than I ever envisioned.
“To sacrifice, confront adversities with unyielding determination, and deeply understand the ripple effect of our decisions are the burdens carried by our nation’s sons and daughters. Yet, it is the very cost we shoulder to defend and celebrate American values.”
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