Wershow, Jeffrey Mattison
Male
Verified U.S. Army Specialist Jeffrey Mattison Wershow, 22, of Gainesville, Florida, was killed in a hostile incident in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 6, 2003.
Their Story
Jeffrey Mattison Wershow was a 22-year-old specialist in the Florida Army National Guard. He served with Company C, 2nd Battalion, 124th Infantry Regiment, based in Orlando. Wershow was from Gainesville, Florida.
On July 6, 2003, Wershow was providing security for a group of visiting dignitaries at Baghdad University. According to U.S. military reports, an assailant dressed in an Iraqi police uniform approached Wershow and shot him at close range. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Wershow's death occurred during Operation Iraqi Freedom, a conflict that began with a U.S.-led invasion in March 2003. By July, major combat operations had been declared over, but a lethal insurgency targeting coalition forces and nascent Iraqi institutions was intensifying. Attacks in the capital were becoming frequent.
Wershow's death was reported by major news outlets, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, which noted the assailant's use of a police uniform. His father, Jon Wershow, a Vietnam War veteran, spoke publicly about his son's service and loss.
Jeffrey Wershow is memorialized on the Iraq War Memorial in Washington, D.C., and by his unit. His name is included in official Department of Defense casualty lists and databases documenting U.S. military fatalities in Iraq.
Explore Further
Jeffrey Wershow was killed during Operation Iraqi Freedom (2003–2010). The conflict concluded in August 2010. See the full roster of those killed in this conflict.
Among those documented in the same conflict: Kennedy, Brian Matthew, Beaupre, Ryan Anthony, Gutierrez, Jose, Waters-bey, Kendall Damon.
