SF Soldier Killed In Iraq

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (CBS 5/KCBS)  -- The Department of Defense has identified a U.S. soldier who died in Baghdad over the weekend as Pfc. Keith Moore of San Francisco.

Moore did not die in combat, but from “non-combat injuries,” according to his mother, Susan Turley. She said the military has not disclosed any details surrounding her 28-year-old’s death. He was one of 14 Americans killed in Iraq over the weekend.

Turley joined the Army this year and shipped out to Iraq before the rest of his unit, said Turley, speaking to CBS 5 television in her Sunset District home. Moore had spent only two months stationed in Iraq when he was killed.

“He talked the officers into letting him go early. He didn't want to just hang around the base. He wanted to do his job and serve his country,” Turley said.

During his frequent e-mails to Turley and her husband Cliff Moore, the soldier wrote of going out on patrol for days at a time.

The e-mails were filled with disturbing details, “having the IED's and the RPG's shot at him,” Mr. Moore said, referring to the improvised explosive devices and rocket propelled grenades that have fueled the insurgency.

Without full disclosure from the military, the family can only speculate about how their son died. Turley wonders if her son's weapon was to blame. She says when he got to Iraq, his gun was so rusty, he had to clean it out, and a part on it was broken.

“It was problematic, and we don't know if that had something to do with his death or not,” Turley said.

An Army representative told her it could take up to two months to complete an investigation into her son's death.

Moore was an only child, and did not marry.

His funeral is scheduled for October 29th at Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno.

(jro)