The Louisiana Legislature passed a bill that makes it a crime to lie about military service or to claim unearned military awards, sending the measure to Republican Gov. Jeff Landry for his signature.
Senate Bill 51 earned unanimous support in both chambers, clearing the state House of Representatives last Monday after passing the state Senate in March in a 35-0 vote. The bill was authored by State Sen. Caleb Kleinpeter, a Marine Corps veteran who served as an infantry rifleman in Iraq and Afghanistan before his honorable discharge in 2005 with the rank of sergeant.
Stolen valor has been a federal offense since President George W. Bush signed the original Stolen Valor Act of 2006. In 2012, the U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 ruling struck that law down in United States v. Alvarez on grounds of violating the First Amendment because it criminalized false claims, regardless of whether the speaker gained anything from the lie.
Congress responded in 2013 with a narrower version, signed by President Barack Obama, that requires prosecutors to prove the false claim was made with intent to obtain money, property or another tangible benefit.
That statute, 18 U.S.C. § 704, remains on the books but is difficult to enforce at the local level, Kleinpeter told the chamber, adding that veterans in his district pushed him to file the measure after encountering fraudulent military claims in their communities.
Three-Tier Penalty Structure
The legislation establishes a three-tier penalty structure based on the severity of the offense.
A civilian or service member who falsely claims to have served in the armed forces, or claims unearned actions, achievements, rank or insignia, could face up to $1,000 in fines and up to six months in jail.
Anyone who falsely claims or wears certain high-value decorations—including the Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, Navy Cross, Air Force Cross, Silver Star or Purple Heart—could face up to $5,000 in fines and up to a year behind bars.
Kleinpeter amended the bill on the Senate floor to extend that tier to other combat citations as well, including the Combat Action Ribbon and Combat Action Badge.
The heaviest penalties target fraud. Anyone who uses a fabricated military record to obtain benefits reserved for veterans or active-duty troops could face up to $10,000 in fines, up to five years in prison and full restitution of whatever benefits they received.
How One Case Spurred New Legislation
Federal prosecutors have brought similar cases under the existing federal statute, though state-level enforcement has lagged.
Louisiana Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Charlton Meginley told a Senate committee that the bill was partly a response to the case of former Baton Rouge Judge Tiffany Foxworth-Roberts.
The Louisiana Supreme Court removed Foxworth-Roberts from the 19th Judicial District bench in December 2025 by a 4-3 vote after finding she had lied about her military record. She ran for office in 2020, advertising herself as a U.S. Army captain and veteran of Desert Storm, Iraq and Afghanistan.
Her military records showed that she was 16 years old during Desert Storm, never deployed overseas, and never reached the rank of captain. She was discharged as a first lieutenant after being twice passed over for promotion.
Chief Justice John Weimer wrote that her conduct was “serious and not isolated” and that she “displayed a pattern of dishonesty.” It was the first time the state’s high court had removed a judge since 2009.
Meginley said the court’s ruling had specifically identified the case as a stolen valor issue, “which was kind of odd because we didn’t have a stolen valor case or bill on the books,” he told the committee.
State and Federal Law
Kleinpeter’s bill gives state prosecutors the authority to bring stolen valor cases to Louisiana courts without relying on federal resources.
The legislation also goes further than federal law in one key respect. The federal statute only applies when someone falsely claims a specific decoration with the intent to obtain money, property or another tangible benefit. Louisiana’s base tier criminalizes the act of falsely claiming military service itself, with no requirement that prosecutors prove a financial motive.
Louisiana was one of roughly 15 states without its own stolen valor statute, Meginley said. Massachusetts, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Texas all passed state-level legislation in the years after the 2012 Supreme Court decision, while the rise of AI-driven digital impersonation has only expanded the scope of the problem.
In the first four years after the 2013 federal law took effect, only two prosecutions were brought under it. Investigators at the National Archives have said they believe fraudulent military claims increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly identity theft schemes targeting veterans’ records to obtain benefits.
The growth of social media has made it simpler to fabricate a military identity but has also made it easier for veterans and watchdog groups to expose fraudulent claims, leading to more referrals and more prosecutions in multiple states between 2020 and 2025.
“As a veteran, you stand by your record, you stand with your record and on your record, and you live with what you did in the military,” Meginley told lawmakers. “I’m very proud of my record. I know the 252,000 veterans of the state of Louisiana are very proud of their record. And my service means something and their service means something.”
The bill, if signed by Landry, takes effect Aug. 1, 2026.
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