TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - A local man, injured in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting will be receiving a purple heart.
This announcement comes after a change in the rules for who can receive the award.
For years Congress and the families of the victims in the shooting have been pushing for eligibility for the Purple Heart Award. 13 people died and 32 others were injured in that attack.
The shooting was originally deemed a workplace violence incident, which did not make those affected eligible for the award.
However, the 2015 National Defense Authorization Act has been broadened to include contacts the perpetrator possibly had with foreign terrorist organization prior to the attack and “if the attack was inspired or motivated by the foreign terrorist organization.”
Evidence shows the shooter, Major Nadal Hasan, was in communication with a foreign terrorist organization before the shooting, meaning the victims are now eligible.
That includes Army Reserve Sergeant First Class Paul Martin.
The South Georgia native was wounded in the Fort Hood shooting.
Sgt. Martin was going through medical processing about to deploy to Iraq when Hasan started shooting.
Sgt. Martin will receive his Purple Heart on April 10.
