- SURNAME
Binns
- FORENAME
Ricardo C.
- UNIT
1 Recon Bn (1 MarDiv) (C Company)
- RANK
Lance Corporal
- NUMBER
2031505
- AWARD
Navy Cross
- PLACE
South Vietnam 1966
- ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Binns was born in The Bronx, New York on 25 December 1945. In 1963, he enlisted in the Marine Corps and attended recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island. He was subsequently trained in an infantry specialty as an anti-tank assaultman, assigned the Military Occupational Specialty code of 0351. He was then assigned to 1st Battalion 8th Marines at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune until he volunteered for duty in the Vietnam War. There, he served with a military police unit until assigned to 2nd Battalion 9th Marines. He was reassigned to Company C of 1st Reconnaissance Battalion after volunteering for training as a reconnaissanceman and was awarded a meritorious promotion to Lance Corporal.
On the evening of 13 June 1966, Binns's platoon of 18, under the leadership of then-Staff Sergeant Jimmie E. Howard were dropped behind enemy lines atop Hill 488, known to locals as Nui Vu, near Chu Lai and Tam K?, with a mission to observe enemy troop movements in the Hi?p ??c Valley, and call in artillery and airstrikes. Within two days, the North Vietnamese Army detected the observation post and descended on them in force. On the night of the 15th, a nearby Army Special Forces team radioed warning that a full battalion of about 200 to 250 regulars and several Viet Cong were closing in. At 2200 that night, Binns fired the first shots from his M14 rifle, and the enemy soon engaged the Marines too close for their fire support to assist, though a C-47 did deploy flares for illumination. Binns exposed himself numerous times to recover wounded personnel despite his own wounds, as he was distributing ammunition and taking charge when Howard was wounded or busy on the radio. Late into the night of the 15th, as Marines traded taunts with the enemy, desperate pilots began dangerously close close air support missions By dawn on the 16th, the beleaguered platoon held their position, killing approximately 200 enemies at a cost of 6 of the platoon in the 12 hours of intense fighting. Binns was one of four Navy Cross recipients during the battle, while Howard would be awarded the Medal of Honor and the remaining thirteen received Silver Stars.
Wounded in the battle, Binns refused assistance once a company from 1st Battalion 5th Marines arrived to relieve the Marines. Awarded his second Purple Heart, he was unable to fully recover, placed on a temporary retirement list and eventually medically discharged 1971. He currently resides in Bonners Ferry,Idaho (1990)
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