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By Nicole Mooradian Email the author December 9, 2012
Coast Guardsman Hailed as Hero
Nearly 1,000 people gathered at Redemption Point in San Pedro on Saturday to honor Senior Chief Petty
Of f icer Terrell Horne III, a Redondo Beach resident and a member of the U.S. Coast Guard who died af ter the
inf latable boat he was on was rammed by a small panga boat.
Members of the law-enf orcement community; U.S. Coast Guard and other armed services; Canadian Mounted
Police; local, state and f ederal of f icials; and f amily and f riends of Horne attended the ceremony.
Horne, 34, was killed last Sunday near Santa Cruz Island while conducting law-enf orcement operations aboard
the Marina del Rey-based Coast Guard Cutter Halibut, which was struck by a panga-style vessel suspected of
illicit activities, Eggers said. The panga boata small craf t of ten used f or smugglinghad been running
without any lights.
"This tragic attack reminds us of the unique dangers the men and women of the Coast Guard f ace and their
willingness to meet them on a moment's notice, with great valor and self lessness," said Homeland Security
Secretary Janet Napolitano, who also attended the ceremony. The Coast Guard is overseen by the Department
of Homeland Security.
The f leeing panga boat was stopped, and two suspects were detained, of f icials said. A criminal complaint
related to Horne's death was f iled against Jose Meija-Leyva and Manual Beltran-Higuera, both Mexican
nationals, on Monday.
Saturday's ceremony included multiple aircraf t f lyovers, a 21-gun salute by the Coast Guard Honor Guard,
music by the Coast Guard band, and the presentation of the Coast Guard Medal, a posthumous honor f or
Horne.
"Senior Chief Horne lived the Coast Guard ethos and was an example to all," said Coast Guard Commandant
Adm. Robert Papp, Jr. "We will f orever remember him f or his self less leadership and his courage. He made the
ultimate sacrif ice in service to his shipmates and the nation, just as he served others throughout his 14-year
career.
"Senior Chief Horne's legacy as a shipmate, leader, and Coast Guardsman is now indelibly stamped in our
service history. And this nation is more secure because of him."
Horne is survived by his expectant wif e, Rachel, and two sons, Kade and Miller.
'He put his crew before himself'
"Sr. Chief Horne was in the true sense of the word, a hero," said Papp as he described Horne's actions to save
a f ellow guardsman on the night of his death. "He did what leaders do instinctively, ref lexivelyhe put his crew
bef ore himself ."
According to reports f rom the Coast Guard and U.S. Attorney's Of f ice, the Halibut and its crew had boarded a
suspicious boat spotted by a Coast Guard airplane late Dec. 1. The aircraf t spotted a second panga boat near
the island's Smuggler's Cove, so guardsmen aboard the Halibut launched the cutter's small, rigid inf latable
boat.
The f our guardsmen in the boat located the panga boatdescribed as a 30-f oot-long, open-bowed f ishing
vesselshortly af ter 1:20 a.m. Dec. 2. The panga boat was running without lights, so the Coast Guard of f icers
activated their boat's lights and identif ied themselves as law enf orcement.
The two crew members aboard the panga boat, believed to be Meija-Leyva and Beltran-Higuera, throttled the
engine and steered the boat directly toward the Coast Guard vessel.
Despite attempts to steer the Coast Guard boat out of the wayone of f icer f ired multiple shots f rom his
service weapon at the panga boatthe other vessel rammed the Coast Guard boat, tossing Horne and
another guardsman into the water.
"When impact with the oncoming vessel became unavoidable, Senior Chief Petty Of f icer Horne, disregarding
his own saf ety in order to protect a f ellow crewmember, f orcibly pushed the coxswain f rom the helm, directly
exposing himself to the oncoming vessel," Coast Guard of f icials wrote in the citation to accompany the Coast
Guard Medal. "Senior Chief Petty Of f icer Horne demonstrated remarkable initiative, exceptional f ortitude and
daring in spite of imminent personal danger.
"His courage and devotion to duty were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Coast
Guard."
While the other guardsman suf f ered a minor laceration to his knee, Horne sustained a traumatic head injury
f rom the boat propeller. He was pronounced dead upon arrival at Port Hueneme.
"He self lessly put his own lif e at risk in the service of others," Napolitano told mourners.
Meija-Leyva and Beltran-Higuera were arrested several hours later by another Coast Guard crew. The panga
boat had multiple bullet holes.
'He is a hero, and we're going to miss him'
A f amily man f rom Merritt Island, Fla., Horne entered basic training f or the Coast Guard in 1999, according to
Coast Guard records. He served on both coastsat the station and aboard the cutter Dallas in Charleston,
S.C.; at the station in Humboldt Bay, Calif .; at the station in Emerald Isle, N.C.; and f inally, on the cutter Halibut
in Marina del Rey.
Rachel Horne's cousin, Rev. Dave Carpenter of Brentwood Presbyterian Church, described Terrell Horne III as a
"head-over-heels smitten dad" and the "epitome of what a good Coast Guard of f icer should be."
Though Horne was dedicated to his work, he spent "absolutely every minute he could with his wif e and
children," Carpenter said.
Lt. Stewart Sibert, who skippers the Halibut, called Hornethe boat's executive petty of f icer, or second-in-
command, the crew's "guardian angel."
"I truly f eel that the world is a dimmer place without him," Sibert said as he compared Horne to the "kind of chief
petty of f icer that you see in the old war movies: He was a tireless advocate f or the crew."
"He did live up to his charge as chief petty of f icer, and he gave his last f ull measure of devotion by taking care
of the crew that night," Sibert said, his voice catching.
Even during of f times, when the Halibut was moored of f Catalina Island, Horne was an inf luence on others.
"We would just listen to each other solve the world's problems," Sibert said. "There was never a problem that
(Horne) did not have the answer to."
Master Chief Petty Of f icer Michael Leavitt, who served with Horne in Humboldt Bay, recalled the senior chief
petty of f icer as a "great Coast Guardsman who made the ultimate sacrif ice."
"He was a big, big man who gave so much to everybody," Leavitt said. "He was a great leader and a great
person Senior Chief Horne has touched so many of us in so many dif f erent ways, leaving a legacy that will
never be f orgotten."
In addition to the posthumous Coast Guard Medal and promotion to senior chief petty of f icer, Horne received
the Coast Guard Commendation Medal, a Commandant's Letter of Commendation and a Humanitarian Service
Medal. He received the Coast Guard Achievement Medal three times and the Coast Guard Good Conduct Medal
f our times.
"He would have been a legendary of f icer-in-charge," said Sibert. "Senior Chief Horne's legacy will live on in the
men and women he trained over the years."
Leavitt echoed the sentiment.
"I don't think I've ever been so sad and so proud at the same time," he said. "(Horne) is a hero, and we're going
to miss him."
In lieu of flowers, the Coast Guard Foundation urged people to contribute to a Fallen Heroes Scholarship fund for
Horne's children. Information is available by calling the foundation at 860-535-0786; or via the website. Donors
should select "Fallen Heroes Scholarship" from the "where it is needed most" box, and type "Chief Terrell Horne
III" in the "in memory of" box.
Also, checks can be made payable to "Coast Guard Foundation," with "In memory of Chief Terrell Horne III" in the
memo line, and sent to the Coast Guard Foundation at 394 Taugwonk Road, Stonington, CT 06378.
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