Elliott Ruiz was guarding a Marine checkpoint on April 4, 2003, part of a mission to rescue seven America POWs from an Iraqi camp. On his watch, a vehicle came barreling toward a barbed-wire fence that U.S. troops had erected, the driver’s side tires caught it, popped it off its stakes, and dragged the wire from its place.
Ruiz bolted, but not fast enough. The wire caught on his right leg, wrapped around it, and, bearing his body weight, ripped it wide open.
Ruiz’s life would never be the same. He suffered nerve damage and needed multiple surgeries, which led to Charlie horses that caused muscle spasms, which in turn necessitated back surgeries.