Loren Dallas Lebeau

On May 16, 1971, a New York Times article described heroin use by American troops in Vietnam had reached epidemic proportions. The piece reported that 10 to 15 percent of lower-ranking enlisted men were heroin users, and military officials working in drug‐suppression estimated that as much as a quarter of all enlisted personnel, more than 60,000 men, were hooked. They added that some field surveys reported units with more than 50 percent of the men on heroin. In Vietnam, the drug was plentiful, cheap, and 95 percent pure. Its effects could casually be achieved through smoking or snorting, as compared to the U.S., where the drug was impure, only about five percent heroin, and had to be main-lined or injected into the bloodstream to achieve a comparable high. The habit, which cost $100 a day to maintain in the U.S., cost less than $5 a day in Vietnam. SP4 Loren D. Le Beau was an armor crewman serving with A Troop, 1st Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment. Between July 1970 and March 1971, the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment's headquarters in Vietnam were located at Di An Base Camp in Bien Hoa Province, RVN. On the morning of February 1st, Le Beau was found dead in his bunk at Di An by his platoon sergeant who had come to awaken him for duty. A subsequent autopsy determined Le Beau had died “as a result of acute narcotism.” A memorial service conducted by the squadron chaplain was held in his memory on February 3rd. All members of A Troop were present for the service. Le Beau, who had less than 60 days left in his tour of Vietnam, had seen significant combat with his unit, participating in various campaigns including the Cambodian incursion, earning the Combat Infantry Badge. He had also been awarded both the Silver Star medal for bravery and a Purple Heart for wounds received in action