Military deaths

The Defense Department last week identified the following American military personnel killed in Afghanistan, Kuwait and Iraq:

Jessie A. Cassada, 19, of Hendersonville, N.C.; lance corporal, Marine Corps. Cassada died Tuesday while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Anthony D. Davis, 29, of Daytona Beach, Fla.; staff sergeant, Army. Davis died Tuesday in northern Iraq of wounds suffered when he was shot by enemy forces. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment at Hunter Army Airfield, Ga.

Alberto Francesconi, 21, of Bronx, N.Y.; lance corporal, Marine Corps. Francesconi died Jan. 1 while supporting combat operations in Helmand province, Afghanistan. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Chadwick A. Gilliam, 29, of Mayking, Ky.; lance corporal, Marine Corps. Gilliam died Jan. 3 at a U.S. military base in Kuwait. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marines, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

Christopher W. Lotter, 20, of Chester Heights, Pa.; private first class, Army. Lotter died Dec. 31 in Balad, Iraq, of wounds suffered when he was shot by enemy forces in Tikrit. He was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 7th Field Artillery Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 25th Infantry Division at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii.

Sources: Department of Defense