“These families have waited long enough for answers and accountability.”
Escondido, CA – Congressman Darrell Issa (CA-48), senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, is convening a public hearing on August 7, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. PT in Escondido, CA to receive testimony from the Gold Star Families of the 13 U.S. servicemembers killed in Afghanistan on August 26, 2021.
For the first time, these family members testify in public as they still search for the truth and closure for the disastrous withdrawal that cost these men and women their lives.
“For almost two years, the Gold Star Families of the fallen in Afghanistan have waited for answers and accountability for the loss of their loved ones – and they have waited long enough,” said Rep. Issa. “At every turn, they’ve been shut out and ignored by the Biden Administration that prefers to turn the page on its disaster. That stops now.
It’s time that the public hears the stories of these heroes and learns of negligence and breakdown of leadership that led to the loss of life that day two years ago.”
The majority of the servicemembers killed in the August 2021 Kabul airport attack were from the 2nd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment assigned to Camp Pendleton.
Marines who were killed were Lance Cpl. David L. Espinoza, 20, of Rio Bravo, Texas; Sgt. Nicole L. Gee, 23, of Roseville, north of Sacramento; Staff Sgt. Darin T. Hoover, 31, of Salt Lake City, Utah, who was living in Aliso Viejo; Cpl. Hunter Lopez, 22, of Indio; Lance Cpl. Rylee J. McCollum, 20, of Jackson, Wyoming; Lance Cpl. Dylan R. Merola, 20, of Rancho Cucamonga; Lance Cpl. Kareem M. Nikoui, 20, of Norco; Cpl. Daegan W. Page, 23, of Omaha, Nebraska; Sgt. Johanny Rosario Pichardo, 25, of Lawrence, Massachusetts; Cpl. Humberto A. Sanchez, 22, of Logansport, Indiana; and Lance Cpl. Jared M. Schmitz, 20, of St. Charles, Missouri.
Also, Navy Corpsman Maxton W. Soviak, 22, of Berlin Heights, Ohio, and Army Staff Sgt. Ryan C. Knauss, 23, of Corryton, Tennessee.
The hearing will be held in the Main Council Chambers of the Escondido City Hall and is open to the public.
Public parking is available on the corner of North Escondido Blvd and Woodward Ave.
RSVPs are kindly requested, but not required.
Event details:
Afghanistan Gold Star Families Public Hearing
August 7th, 10-11:30 AM
Escondido City Hall, Main Council Chambers
201 North Broadway, Escondido, CA 92025
Darrell Issa is the Representative of California’s 48th Congressional District. The District encompasses the central and eastern parts of San Diego County and a portion of Riverside County, including the communities of Fallbrook, Valley Center, Ramona, Escondido, Santee, Lakeside, Poway, Temecula, Murrieta, and the mountain and desert areas of the San Diego-Imperial County line. Issa served as the Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform from 2011-2015.
