Victim of fatal Dallas crash was decorated Marine preparing for fourth deployment

Victim of fatal Dallas crash was decorated Marine preparing for fourth deployment

12:00 AM CDT on Thursday, April 1, 2010
By STEVE STOLER WFAA-TV (Channel 8) sstoler@dallasnews.com

A Dallas man who died Tuesday when he drove his pickup into the back of an 18-wheeler was a highly decorated Marine Corps veteran who was preparing for deployment to his fourth tour of overseas duty.

Joseph Rodriguez, 38, was killed when his Ford F-150 ended up underneath the tractor-trailer.

His parents recalled their son as a man who loved to serve his country. Rodriguez joined the Marines right after graduating from W.T. White High School. He fought in Operation Desert Storm.

After serving with the Marines four years, he came back home and joined the Texas National Guard, with which he completed two tours in Iraq.

Rodriguez was getting ready to deploy to Afghanistan when he was killed in Tuesday's crash.
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Victim of fatal Dallas crash was decorated Marine