Odie's Adopted Hero
SFC Deverton C. Cochrane, U.S. Army

California Dreamin'

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OUR COUNTRY DESERVES A FULL ACCOUNTING FOR ALL POW's/MIA's!
I will maintain this page until our government achieves that goal.

"As an American asked to serve, I was prepared to fight, to be wounded,
to be captured and even prepared to die, but I was not prepared to be abandoned."
(Former POW Eugene "Red" McDaniel - Source: VVnW POW/MIA Page)

SUMMARY

Photograph provided by Craig.  Thank You!

	Name: Deverton Carpenter Cochrane
	Rank/Branch: E6/US Army (Promoted to E7 while in Missing status.)
	Unit: 75th Infantry, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division
	Date of Birth: 15 December 1948 (Boston MA)
	Home City of Record: Brookline MA
	Date of Loss: 17 June 1970
	Country of Loss: Cambodia
	Loss Coordinates: 121833N 1071134E (YU386618)
	Status (in 1973): Missing In Action
	Category: 2
	Aircraft/Vehicle/Ground: Ground
	Other Personnel in Incident: Carl J. Laker (missing)

Can he still be alive?  Did we leave men like him behind?

You be the judge, but before you make up your mind please do the following:

Read his Case Synopsis on this page.  You will see that "there was the possibility of survival and ultimate capture". Read "The Quang 1205 Document" to assess whether or not we left men behind. If you still need convincing, visit each of the other POW/MIA Links listed at the bottom of this page.

	Now consider this! Let's assume he is still alive.
Is his memory of America fading? Is he wondering why he is still a prisoner? Does he speak better Vietnamese than English? Does he still think of home and family? Does he still hope for repatriation or has he given up all hope of ever coming home? Well, I, for one, will continue to pursue his case until he is either located or I can no longer "fight the fight"!

SYNOPSIS

On June 16, 1970, SSgt. Deverton C. Cochrane was team leader and SP4 Carl J. Laker the assistant team leader of a reconnaissance team from Company H, 75th Infantry, 1st Cavalry Division on an area search mission in Cambodia. 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry was an aerial reconnaissance cavalry squadron operating with an aero-scout ("white") platoon; aero-weapons ("red") platoon, and an aero-rifle ("blue") platoon.  The squadron also had a ground cavalry element.  Cochrane is listed as attached to "75th Infantry, 1st Squadron, 9th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division".  Laker, however, is listed as assigned to Company H of the 75th Infantry, 1st Cavalry Division, which is a Ranger unit.  If these unit designations are accurate, then Laker was a Ranger while Cochrane was probably a "blue" assigned to the Company H mission.  In 1970, the Company H strength was 198 men.  The 75th Infantry ("Merrill's Marauders") had only been organized the beginning of 1969 to provide a parent unit for the separate long-range reconnaissance patrol companies (LRRP).  Ranger companies in Vietnam were particularly elite. The team was operating just inside Cambodia in Mondol Kiri Province due east of the South Vietnam city of Dak Song.  After a successful infiltration, the team set up in the vicinity to conduct a trail watch and to establish a night defensive position. The next morning, the team moved out to conduct reconnaissance until 1535 hours when, upon entering a wood line, the team leader was fired upon by enemy troops.  Members of the team saw the team leader fall holding his neck and loin.  SP4 Laker tried to crawl forward to assist, and fell on top of another member of the team who later reported that Laker had been hit above the left eye, gravely wounded. The team finally managed to break contact and one member was able to evade the enemy and return to friendly lines.  An extensive search was made of the battle area for several days, but only 2 wounded members of the team were rescued.  There was no trace of Cochrane or Laker. Although the Ranger missions were hazardous, few remain missing from them.  Laker was classified as Killed in Action, Body Not Recovered because the extent of his injuries were known, and they were serious.  Cochrane's injuries, on the other hand, could not be assessed, and it was felt there was the possibility of survival and ultimate capture. Cochrane was classified Missing in Action. Laker and Cochrane are among nearly 2500 Americans still prisoner, missing or unaccounted for from the Vietnam war.  Some, like Carl Laker, are undoubtedly dead. Others were certainly not dead, but in good health the last they were seen.  Still others were seen as prisoners or even photographed, only to disappear from the prison system. Unlike MIA's from other wars, most of the missing from Vietnam can be accounted for, if Vietnam chooses to do so.  Based on thousands of refugee reports, most authorities now believe that hundreds of Americans are still alive today, held against their will.  For the honor of those who died, and for the honor of our country, these men must be brought home.

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E-MAIL LINKS

Use the following links to send E-Mail to the White House and Congress.

The President of the United States	The Vice-President of the United States
The First Lady of the United States	The United States Senate
The Senate Democratic Policy Committee	The Senate Republican Policy Committee
The United States House of Representatives
Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs	House Committee on Veterans' Affairs
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs	The VA Office of Inspector General

POW/MIA INFORMATION

Please visit these sites to learn more about the POW/MIA Issue.

National Alliance of Families for the Return of America's Missing Servicemen
The Meadow Years		POW MIA Forum
Col. Ted Guy Remembered		Hawk's Page
POW Camps In North Vietnam		POW-MIA Books
The P.O.W Network Operation Smoking Gun		Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency - Our Missing
The Library of Congress Vietnam-Era Prisoner-of-War/Missing-in-Action Database

Let's help make this year the year we bring them all home! If you care, click here and join the cause.

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