The State : Convict Gets Bravery Medal

A San Quentin prison inmate convicted 10 years ago of shooting his wife, son and niece to death has been belatedly given a Bronze Star for bravery while serving in Vietnam. Inmate Ralph Coleman said he did not know he had been awarded the military honor until recently. Coleman was a 23-year-old sergeant in the Marines when his squad came under intense fire during Operation Prairie in 1966. He hurled grenades and directed machine gun teams, called for help and supervised the evacuation of five wounded men. “I was just doing my job, what I had been trained to do in the Marines,” he said. Coleman received the Bronze Star during a prison ceremony arranged by the Vietnam Veterans of San Quentin. He refused to discuss the killings for which he is serving time.