Danny Dietz Gunner ' s Mate 2nd Class Danny Phillip Dietz Jr . ( January 26 , 1980 – June 28 , 2005 ) of Littleton , Colorado was a U . S . Navy SEAL who was posthumously awarded the United States ' second highest citation for valor , the Navy Cross , on September 13 , 2006 . Biography . Danny Dietz Jr . was born on January 26 , 1980 in Aurora , Colorado , the son of Danny Phillip Sr . and Cindy Dietz , and brother to Tiffany Bitz and Eric Dietz . He was a 1999 graduate of Heritage High School . He earned his black belt in Taekwondo from the Korean Academy of Taekwondo . Dietz enlisted in the Navy on August 31 , 1999 . Following his graduating from Recruit Training Command , Naval Station Great Lakes , on November 27 , 1999 , he completed Gunner ' s Mate " A " School at the Naval Air Technical Training Center in Pensacola , Florida . From there he transferred to Basic Underwater Demolition / SEAL training and graduated with Class 232 in 2001 . Dietz went on to attend the Basic Airborne Course at Fort Benning in Georgia , then SEAL Qualification Training and SEAL Delivery Vehicle Training . Immediately upon checking in at SEAL Delivery Vehicle Team 2 in Virginia Beach , Virginia , on November 8 , 2001 , he was assigned to Task Unit Bravo as the secondary SDV pilot and the Ordnance and Engineering Department head . In Virginia Beach , Dietz met and married his wife , Maria L . Dietz , in March 2003 . In April 2005 , Dietz deployed with his Special Reconnaissance element to Afghanistan to support Naval Special Warfare Squadron TEN in the prosecution of the Global War on Terrorism . His larger than lifesize bronze memorial was created by sculptor Robert Henderson of Canon City , Colorado . The South Wing of the Pacific Beacon Apartments at Naval Station San Diego is named Dietz Hall as well . Operation Red Wings . Dietz was part of an elite team of four SEALs on a reconnaissance mission " tasked with finding a key Taliban leader in mountainous terrain near Asadabad , Afghanistan , " according to a Navy news release . On June 28 , 2005 , SEAL Team 10 was assigned to kill or capture a high ranking Taliban leader in the Hindu Kush mountains . The SEAL team was made up of Michael P . Murphy , Marcus Luttrell , Danny Dietz and Matthew Axelson . Luttrell and Axelson were the team ' s sniper s while Dietz and Murphy were the spotter s . " They were spotted by anti - Coalition sympathizers , who immediately reported their position to Taliban fighters . A fierce gun - battle ensued between the four SEALs and a much larger enemy force with superior tactical position , " the Navy release said . The SEALs radioed for help , and a responding Chinook helicopter was shot down by a rocket - propelled grenade , killing eight more SEALs and eight Army NightStalkers . It was the second worst single combat loss for the SEALs in SEAL history . Posthumous awards . The location of Dietz ' s body was unknown for seven days . His remains were recovered during a combat search and rescue operation on July 4 , 2005 . Dietz was returned to the United States , where he was interred with full military honors . His hometown of Littleton , Colorado honored his memory by erecting a statue of Dietz in uniform holding his rifle , which was unveiled on July 4 , 2007 . This was not without controversy however . Local parents , suggesting that the statue of Dietz glorified violence , tried to have the statue altered . The statue , they argued , was three blocks from a school . The Littleton city council stated that 150 emails and letters were received in support of keeping the memoral as is , there was only one in favor of changing it . http : / / www . washingtontimes . com / news / 2007 / apr / 6 / 20070406 - 115248 - 9955r / print / After an even larger backlash against the parents group , the monument was erected with Dietz holding his service weapon as intended . A section of Santa Fe Drive ( US Highway 85 ) between I - 25 and C470 has been named the " Navy Seal Danny Phillip Dietz , Jr . Memorial Highway . "