Jerome Ticker, dressed in a captain's Navy whites complete with prestigious Navy Cross, Silver Star and Purple Heart decorations, was quite the striking figure at his wedding in Slidell. The problem is, he never served in the Navy, or in any branch of the military.
Yes, well...that could be a minor problem.
Ticker, 42, of the Holden community in Livingston Parish, had convinced his fiancee that he was a war hero, a Navy Seal festooned with medals, and so it was only fitting for him to decorate himself to a T in his deceit for their April 12 nuptials.
Geez, they're always friggin Navy SEALS...
... and always a Navy Cross ...
While the bride may have fallen for Ticker's tale, at least one person at the ceremony didn't buy it, and notified authorities.
One's all it takes...
On Tuesday, Ticker pleaded guilty in New Orleans to a federal charge of illegally wearing the medals and was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jay Zainey to 12 months of home confinement, followed by two years of supervised release and a $500 fine. "He said he was motivated as a desire to impress his wife," U.S. Attorney Jim Letten said.
Should've sent him away. Then he could impress her with PMITA prison stories...
The Stolen Valor bill, passed into law in 2006, expanded and increased federal penalties for falsely claiming to have earned any decoration or medal authorized by Congress for the armed forces.
Ticker bought the uniform online and the awards from a local military surplus store, according to Special Agent D'Wayne W. Swear, the New Orleans investigator for the U.S. Naval Criminal Investigative Service. Ticker, who works for a building maintenance company in Gonzales, posed as a Navy captain, the rank just below rear admiral. Previously, with his first wife, he had played the part of a lieutenant commander in the Navy, Swear said.
Oh, good. He got promoted.
For his April wedding, Ticker mistakenly wore his lieutenant commander's hat with his captain's uniform. The proper captain's hat has gold leafing on the bill, leafing that Navy men call "scrambled eggs."
Oh...yeah. It's a new rank we're trying. Lieutenant commander captain.
Swear tracked Ticker down after Swear received an anonymous tip from someone at the wedding. The tip directed him to online wedding photographs that showed Ticker in his full, illegal and improperly configured regalia.
But I'll bet he looked...dashing.