Richards, William Taylor
Male
Verified Lance Cpl. William Taylor Richards, 20, of Trenton, Georgia, served with the U.S. Marine Corps' 1st Battalion, 2nd Marines during Operation Enduring Freedom. He died on June 26, 2010, at Camp Bastion, Afghanistan.
Their Story
Lance Cpl. William Taylor Richards was a 20-year-old Marine from Trenton, Georgia. He served as an active-duty infantryman with the 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, part of Regimental Combat Team 2, I Marine Expeditionary Force Forward, based out of Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. His unit was deployed to Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan.
On June 26, 2010, Richards was killed during operations in the vicinity of Camp Bastion, a major British-run airbase adjacent to Camp Leatherneck, the main U.S. Marine Corps base in Helmand. The area was a focal point for coalition operations in one of Afghanistan's most contested regions.
According to U.S. Department of Defense records, his death was the result of hostile action. No further operational details of the incident were publicly released by the military. His death was recorded in the Defense Casualty Analysis System on the day it occurred.
Richards was one of 499 U.S. service members killed in Afghanistan in 2010, the deadliest year of the war for American forces. Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, began in October 2001 and concluded in December 2014.
Explore Further
Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, concluded in December 2014 after 13 years. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.
Among those documented in the same conflict: Andrews, Evander Earl, Edmunds, Jonn Joseph, Stonesifer, Kristofor Tif, Davis, Bryant Leroy.
