'Tillman Story' provides inspiration, fuller picture

Video: Film chronicles Tillmans’ parents fight for truth

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   >>> there's a new documentary out next friday about the death of national football star turned army ranger pat tillman . here's a clip of the film.

   >> the reporter received an anonymous leak. it was a copy of a top secret personal notice. a full month before the family learned.

   >> the p4 memo states they must warn the president about this, because they'll be giving speeches, and they shouldn't be embarrassed if the circumstances of pat's death become public.

   >> he set aside a career in athletics.

   >> the warnings seemed to work. in a speech given two days before the memorial service , the president avoided the very details of pat's death that his speech writers requested.

   >> our suspiciouses were very much validated by that p4 memo. these generals had plenty of time to make sure that we as a family were told the truth. but they chose not to tell us.

   >> the p4 memo showed that while america was being told about his death, the entire chain of command not only knew it was a lie but were concerned about the implications should the truth get out.

   >> today more than six years after his death, are there more answers or questions about what happened? we're joined now by pat tillman 's mother mary . she joins us from san jose , california. i have to ask you this simple question, do you know how your son was killed in afghanistan?

   >> not really. we have several stories, several versions. there's several scenarios that we can imagine. but no, we don't know exactly what happened to him.

   >> why do you think you don't have the real story ? you think he was a political pawn?

   >> well, i think he was used for propaganda purposes. and i think that's kind of a frightening, frilgt anything thing to use a soldier and lie about his death to the family and to the country to propoet a patriotic feeling about a war. i think that's outrageous.

   >> here's more from the film which has to do with how the military was trying to push for a specific tone of his funeral.

   >> today three men from ft. lewis walk slowly to the house to tell his wife marie they care. in fact, the casualty assistance officers were there to compel marie to sign off on a funeral at arlington national cemetery with full military honors .

   >> they were sort of pushing for a military funeral . which was not what his wishes were.

   >> during basic training pat had a premonition if he died he may be used as a public relations stunt. so he smuggle ad copy of his final wishes home to marie .

   >> i really had to push back on them. they were just sort of preceding as if this were the way things were going to happen. probably thinking that, you know, i was so grief stricken that i wouldn't -- that i would just go along with it.

   >> this is the first episode in a way before his body is even -- the death didn't just affect the family. this is bigger than the family.

   >> in his own handwriting he said i do not want a military funeral . he was asked specifically about being buried at arlington.

   >> right. all the soldiers are supposed to plan for their, you know, their funerals and what they wish. his wishes were to not have a military funeral . he didn't consider himself, you know, that wasn't his identity. so that's not what he chose.

   >> you spent a lot of time on this trying to figure out what happened. in the best way that you can explain, what do you believe happened? what do you think happened on the battlefield to your son? and what do you think happened behind the scenes at the the pentagon, at the white house , from what you understand after all this research you've done.

   >> i think it needs to be clear there was really no criminal investigation . the medical examiner in maryland was told before pat's body arrive that had he was killed in an ambush. the medical examiner was suspicious as soon as he saw the wounds. he did not believe pat was killed by the enemy. me said you can't shoot that accurate will with an ak-47. he was suspicious at that point. he asked for a criminal investigation . and the general refused, saying that they were satisfied with the information that they had. there was really no criminal investigation . so it's hard to say what happened. all the evidence was destroyed. his uniform was destroyed. they tried to burn the vest, which could not be burned. but they did try. this is evidence. rumsfeld himself sent a memo in december of 2003 .

   >> defense secretary at the time.

   >> absolutely. that he -- that the uniforms and equipment of the fallen soldier should go back to maryland, back to the medical examiner, especially in cases of suspected homicide or suicide. so the fact they destroyed the evidence is very disturbing. and the fact that the medical examiner asked for a criminal investigation and it was turned down, that's very upsetting. we don't know what happened to him exactly. but we do know that the soldiers that were in this canyon were being shot at by -- it was kind of an ambush. i believe once the soldiers in the vehicles got out of the canyon, they were no longer afraid and frightened. i think they were simply excited and they wanted to be in a fire fight, and they wanted to shoot. and they shot up that ridge hin. they could have potentially killed all of the soldiers on the ridge line, along with civilians. i think it was probably a lust to fight, absolutely pure negligence, and no one in that situation was ever held accountable.

   >> have you spoken with any of the other soldiers that were with your son that day?

   >> yes, i have. they're all appalled. there's statements in the some of the investigations, the vehicle behind this particular vehicle, that shot at pat and the others. they were shooting so irresponsibly and so wildly they nearly shot the soldiers in the vehicle behind them. and one of the soldiers that was shot, he was the radio operator . he was wounded, seriously wounded. and he saw them shooting at them. and he tried to get them to stop by waving his arms and, you know, to no avail. armed guards were put around him after he was taken to the hospital so he wouldn't talk because he saw he was shot at by his own

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