List of people executed by the United States military

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The following is a list of people executed by the United States military. The list separates executions by branches; the Uniform Code of Military Justice did not exist until 1950.[1]

Executions after the enactment of Uniform Code of Military Justice[edit]

A total of ten military executions have been carried out by the United States Army under the provisions of the original Uniform Code of Military Justice of May 5, 1950. Executions must be approved by the president of the United States.[2] Executions require a Summary courts martial, they are therefore subject an automatic process of review.[3] The first four of these executions, those of Bernard John O'Brien, Chastine Beverly, Louis M. Suttles and James L. Riggins, were carried out by military officials at the Kansas State Penitentiary near Lansing, Kansas. The remaining six executions took place in the boiler room of the United States Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Currently, military executions are to take place at the United States Penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana. Hanging and not shooting was the method employed in these ten executions. Electrocution was also made an authorized method, but was never used.[4] Currently, lethal injection is the only available method.[5]

No. Name Race Age Sex Date of execution Location of crime Method Victim(s) President
1 Bernard John O'Brien White 34 M July 31, 1954 Bad Aibling, Bavaria, West Germany Hanging Dorothy Lucia O'Brien Dwight D. Eisenhower
2 Chastine Beverly Black 25 M March 1, 1955 Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, United States Harry Langly
3 Louis M. Suttles Black 26 M
4 James L. Riggins Black 28 M
5 Thomas J. Edwards Black 23 M February 14, 1957 West Germany Unnamed victim
6 Winfred D. Moore Black 23 M Fort Bragg, North Carolina, United States Charles Pettit
7 Ernest L. Ransom Black 26 M April 3, 1957 Incheon, SCA, Korea 2 unnamed victims
8 Abraham Thomas Black 29 M July 23, 1958 Gersthofen, Bavaria, West Germany 4 murder victims[a]
9 John E. Day, Jr. Black 30 M September 23, 1959 Seoul, SCA, Korea Lee Mak Chun
10 John Arthur Bennett Black 25 M April 13, 1961 Siezenheim, Salzburg, Austria Unnamed victim John F. Kennedy

Demographics[edit]

Race
Black 9 90%
White 1 10%
Age
20–29 8 80%
30–39 2 20%
40–49 0 0%
50–59 0 0%
60–69 0 0%
Sex
Male 10 100%
Date of execution
1950–1959 9 90%
1960–1969 1 10%
1970–1979 0 0%
1980–1989 0 0%
1990–1999 0 0%
2000–2009 0 0%
2010–2019 0 0%
2020–2029 0 0%
Method
Hanging 10 100%
President (Party)
Harry S. Truman (D) 0 0%
Dwight D. Eisenhower (R) 9 90%
John F. Kennedy (D) 1 10%
Lyndon B. Johnson (D) 0 0%
Richard Nixon (R) 0 0%
Gerald Ford (R) 0 0%
Jimmy Carter (D) 0 0%
Ronald Reagan (R) 0 0%
George H. W. Bush (R) 0 0%
Bill Clinton (D) 0 0%
George W. Bush (R) 0 0%
Barack Obama (D) 0 0%
Donald Trump (R) 0 0%
Joe Biden (D) 0 0%
Total 10 100%

People currently awaiting execution under the UCMJ[edit]

Four people are currently awaiting execution under the UCMJ. All executions, if carried out, will be by lethal injection.

Name Date of sentencing Crime
Ronald A. Gray April 12, 1988 Two specifications of premeditated murder, one specification attempted premeditated murder, and three specifications of rape
Hasan Karim Akbar April 28, 2005 Two specifications of premeditated murder and three specifications of attempted premeditated murder
Timothy B. Hennis April 15, 2010 Three specifications of premeditated murder
Nidal Malik Hasan August 28, 2013 Thirteen specifications of premeditated murder

Executions by the Army (WW2 and Post War)[edit]

The United States Army carried out 141[6] executions over a three-year period from 1942 to 1945 and a further six executions were conducted during the postwar period, for a known total of 147.[7] These figures do not include individuals executed by the US Army after being convicted by US Military Courts for violations of the laws of war, including German soldiers who were shot after being caught in American uniform as part of Operation Greif during the Battle of the Bulge.[8]

Of these 141 wartime executions, 70 were carried out in the European Theatre, 27 in the Mediterranean Theatre, 21 in the Southwest Pacific Area, 19 in the contiguous United States, two in Hawaii, one in Guadalcanal and one in India; of the six postwar executions, one took place in Hawaii, one in Japan, two in France and two in the Philippines. An execution was also carried out by the United States Air Force in Japan in 1950.

All executions carried out by the Army from 1942 to 1948 were performed under the authority of the Articles of War of June 4, 1920, an Act of Congress which governed military justice between 1920 and 1951.

This list includes members of the United States Army Air Forces, which was a part of the Army until September 18, 1947, when it became independent. Executions by the United States Air Force after 1947 are listed separately.

With the exception of Eddie Slovik, who was shot for desertion, all of these soldiers were executed for murder and/or rape. Several of the soldiers listed as convicted and executed for murder and/or rape had also been convicted of other charges, including those of a military nature such as desertion and mutiny, plus lesser crimes that would not have been considered capital unless combined with more serious offenses which carried the death penalty.

Sources for list in References section.

Name Date of execution Location Method President
James Rowe November 6, 1942 Fort Huachuca, Arizona Hanging Franklin D. Roosevelt
Edward J. Leonski November 9, 1942 Pentridge Prison, Melbourne, Australia, Southwest Pacific Area
Jerry Sykes January 19, 1943 Fort Huachuca, Arizona
David Cobb March 12, 1943 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater
George S. Knapp March 19, 1943 Bastrop, Texas
Francis A. Line March 26, 1943 Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona
Harold A. Smith June 25, 1943 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater
James E. Kendrick July 17, 1943 Oran, Algeria, North African Theater of Operations **
Levi Brandon July 26, 1943 Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Walter J. Bohn August 6, 1943 Camp Claiborne, Louisiana
Willie A. Pittman August 30, 1943 Sicily, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
Harvey Stroud
Armstead White
David White
Charles H. Smith September 6, 1943 Algiers, North African Theater of Operations **
Lee A. Davis December 14, 1943 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Edwin P. Jones January 5, 1944 Oran, Algeria, North African Theater of Operations
John H. Waters February 10, 1944 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
J.C. Leatherberry March 16, 1944
Charles A. Spears April 18, 1944 Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
Wiley Harris, Jr. May 26, 1944 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Alex F. Miranda May 30, 1944 Firing squad
Robert L. Donnelly May 31, 1944 Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II ** Hanging
Eliga Brinson August 11, 1944 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Willie Smith
Clarence Whitfield August 14, 1944 Normandy, France, European Theater **
Ray Watson August 29, 1944 Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
James W. Peoples September 2, 1944 Oro Bay, New Guinea, Southwest Pacific Area
Harry Bever September 26, 1944 Fort Sill, Oklahoma
Arthur T. Brown October 2, 1944 Oro Bay, New Guinea, Southwest Pacific Area
Andrew Gibson
Leroy E. Greene
Charles A. Horne
Eugene A. Washington, Jr.
Lloyd L. White, Jr.
Madison Thomas October 12, 1944 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
James B. Sanders October 25, 1944 European Theater **
Ray W. Anderson
Paul Kluxdal October 31, 1944
Willie Wimberly, Jr. November 9, 1944
Joseph Watson
Avelino Fernandez November 15, 1944 Oro Bay, New Guinea, Southwest Pacific Area
Curtis L. Maxey November 16, 1944 Aversa, Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
Richard Scott November 18, 1944 European Theater **
William D. Pennyfather
Theron McGann November 20, 1944
Arthur E. Davis November 22, 1944
Charles H. Jordan
James E. Hendricks November 24, 1944 Normandy, France, European Theater **
Benjamin Pygate November 28, 1944 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater ** Firing squad
Oscar N. Newman November 29, 1944 European Theater ** Hanging
Leo Valentine, Sr.
Charles Williams December 18, 1944 United States
William E. Davis December 27, 1944 European Theater **
Sylvester Davis January 5, 1945 Randolph Air Force Base, Texas
Augustine Guerra January 8, 1945 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Ernest L. Clark
John D. Cooper January 9, 1945 European Theater **
John R. O'Connor January 15, 1945 Fort Benning, Georgia
Waiter J. Baldwin January 17, 1945 European Theater **
Arthur J. Farrell January 19, 1945
James W. Twiggs January 22, 1945
Samuel Hawthorne January 29, 1945 Oro Bay, New Guinea, Southwest Pacific Area
Marvin Holden January 30, 1945 Lemur, Belgium **
Elwood J. Spencer
Eddie Slovik January 31, 1945 Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines, France, European Theater ** Firing squad
J.P. Wilson February 2, 1945 European Theater ** Hanging
Robert L. Skinner February 10, 1945
Yancy Waiters
William Mack February 15, 1945
Otis B. Crews February 21, 1945 Mediterranean Theater **
Williams C. Downes February 28, 1945 European Theater **
Amos Agee March 3, 1945
John C. Smith
Frank Watson
Olins W. Williams March 9, 1945
Lee A. Burns March 11, 1945 Aversa, Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
General L. Grant Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
Herman Perry March 15, 1945 Ledo, Assam, India
Robert L. Pearson March 17, 1945 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Cubia (Parson) Jones Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Henry Baker March 18, 1945 Philippines
John M. Mack March 20, 1945 Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
John W. Taylor
Kinney Jones
Robert A. Pearson Guadalcanal
Abraham Smalls March 27, 1945 Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
Tommie Davison March 29, 1945 European Theater **
William Harrison, Jr. April 7, 1945 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Curn Jones April 10, 1945 Fort Benning, Georgia
Benjamin F. Hopper April 11, 1945 European Theater **
Dan Boswell April 16, 1945 Camp Bowie, Texas Harry S. Truman
James L. Jones April 19, 1945 European Theater **
Mileert Bailey
John Williams
William T. Curry April 20, 1945 Oro Bay, New Guinea, Southwest Pacific Area
Shelton McGhee, Sr. May 4, 1945 Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
George E. Smith, Jr. May 8, 1945 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
George Green, Jr. May 15, 1945 European Theater **
Haze Heard May 21, 1945
William McCarter May 28, 1945
Clete O. Norris May 31, 1945
Alvery R. Rollins
Matthew Clay, Jr. June 4, 1945
Werner E. Schmiedel June 11, 1945 Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
Ancieto Martinez June 15, 1945 Shepton Mallet, United Kingdom, European Theater **
Victor Ortiz * June 21, 1945 European Theatre
Willie Johnson June 26, 1945 European Theater **
Fred A. McMurray July 2, 1945 Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II **
Louis Till
Charles H. Jefferies July 5, 1945
John T. Jones
Henry W. Nelson
Tom E. Gordon July 10, 1945 European Theater **
Harold Crabtree July 31, 1945 Philippines Firing squad
Cornelius Thomas August 1, 1945 Schofield Barracks, Hawai'i Hanging
Jesse D. Boston Firing squad
Robert Davidson August 6, 1945 Green Haven Correctional Facility, New York
Ernest J. Harris August 9, 1945 Philippines Hanging
Lee R. Davis August 14, 1945 Fort Sill, Oklahoma
Herbert W. Reid Camp Beale, California
Clinton Stevenson
Ellis McCloud, Jr. August 20, 1945 Philippines
Robert Wray European Theater **
Edward J. Reichl August 22, 1945 United States Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Harvey W. Nichols August 28, 1945 Philippines
Albert Williams
Bradley Walters, Jr. August 31, 1945
Henry C. Philpot September 10, 1945 European Theater **
Fred Hurse September 20, 1945 United States
Clarence Gibson September 24, 1945 Firing squad
James C.Thomas September 25, 1945 Philippines Hanging
Charles M. Robinson September 28, 1945 European Theater **
Blake W. Mariano October 10, 1945
Sidney Bennerman October 15, 1945 Firing squad
Woodrow Parker
Ozell Louis Philippines Hanging
Charlie Ervin, Jr. October 19, 1945 Italy, Mediterranean Theatre of World War II ** Firing squad
Mansfield Spinks
Dan J. Lee November 9, 1945 Philippines
Ellsworth Williams January 5, 1946 Germany, European Theater ** Hanging
Solomon Thompson September 11, 1946 European Theater
Garlon Mickles April 22, 1947 Schofield Barracks, Hawai'i
James Norman April 25, 1947 Philippines
William Abney December 1, 1947 Mandaluyong, Philippines
Manuel Martinez April 23, 1948 Landsberg Prison, Germany, European Theater
Stratman Armistead December 16, 1948 Nakano, Japan, Far East Command

Plot E[edit]

Main article: Oise-Aisne American Cemetery Plot E

The US Army executed 98 servicemen following General Courts Martial (GCM) for murder and/or rape in the European Theater of Operations during the Second World War. The remains of these servicemen were originally buried near the site of their executions, which took place in countries as far apart as England, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy and Algeria. In 1949 the remains of these men and a few others were re-interred in Plot E, a private section specifically built to hold what the Graves Registration referred to as "the dishonorable dead", since (per standard practice) all had been dishonorably discharged from the US Army just prior to their executions.

Plot "E" is detached from the main four cemetery plots for the honored dead of World War I at the Oise-Aisne American Cemetery and Memorial.[9] It is located across the road, and deliberately hidden from view, inside a 100 x 50-foot oval-shaped clearing surrounded by hedges and hidden in thick forest. It is not mentioned on the ABMC website or in any guide pamphlets or maps. The plot is accessible only through the back door of the superintendent's office.[10] Access is difficult and visitors are not encouraged, though the section is maintained by cemetery caretakers who periodically mow the lawn area and trim the hedges. One cemetery employee described Plot E as "a house of shame" and "a perfect anti-memorial".[11] Today Plot E contains nothing but 96 flat stone markers (arranged in four rows) and a single small granite cross. The white grave markers are the size of index cards and have nothing on them except sequential grave numbers engraved in black. Two bodies were later disinterred and allowed to be returned to United States for reburial.

No US flag is permitted to fly over the section, and the numbered graves lie with their backs turned to the main cemetery on the other side of the road.[12]

Three of the people buried in Plot E were not executed: Willie Hall, Joseph J. Mahoney and William N. Lucas, who all died while in military custody.

The only person interred who was not convicted of rape and/or murder was Eddie Slovik, who was executed for desertion on January 31, 1945. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan gave permission for Slovik's remains to be exhumed and returned to the United States for reburial.[13] The remains of Alex F. Miranda were exhumed and returned to the United States in 1990.

Executions of German POWs during World War II[edit]

In 1945, the United States Army executed fourteen German prisoners of war by hanging at the United States Disciplinary Barracks, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. The 14 POWs, members of the German armed services, had been convicted by general court-martial for the murders of fellow Germans believed by their fellow inmates to be collaborating as confidential informants with the United States military authorities. While the murders had been committed in 1943 and 1944, the executions were delayed until after the end of hostilities in Europe due to fears of German retaliation against Allied POWs.

The hangings were carried out in a warehouse elevator shaft which had been converted into a temporary gallows, and the fourteen Germans were buried in the Fort Leavenworth Military Prison Cemetery.[14]

Name Age Date of Execution Crime President
Walter Beyer 32 July 10, 1945 Murder of Johannes Kunze Harry S. Truman
Hans Demme 23
Hans Schomer 27
Willie Scholz 22
Berthold Seidel 30
Erich Gauss 32 July 14, 1945 Murder of Horst Günther
Rudolph Straub 39
Helmut Fischer 22 August 25, 1945 Murder of Werner Drechsler
Fritz Franke 21
Günter Külsen 22
Heinrich Ludwig 25
Bernhard Reyak 21
Otto Stengel 26
Rolf Wizny 23

Executions by the United States Air Force[edit]

The United States Air Force executed three airmen by hanging between 1950 and 1954. The execution of Robert E. Keller was conducted under the authority of the 1920 Articles of War, and those of Burns and Dennis Jr. were carried out under a short-lived revised version of the Articles of War popularly known as the Elston Act of 1948.[citation needed]

Name Date of execution Location Crime President
Robert E. Keller March 11, 1950 Nakano, Japan Premeditated murder Harry S. Truman
Robert W. Burns January 28, 1954 Guam Premeditated murder and rape Dwight D. Eisenhower
Herman P. Dennis, Jr.

Executions by the United States Navy[edit]

Main article: USS Somers (1842)

The United States Navy has executed seventeen sailors and Marines for various offenses; the most famous of these were three crew members of the USS Somers who were hanged for conspiracy to mutiny in 1842.

As of 2021, no member of the U.S. Navy has been executed since October 23, 1849, when brothers John and Peter Black were simultaneously hanged at the yardarm for leading a mutiny on board the schooner Ewing.[15]

The United States Navy hanged 14 Japanese people for war crimes committed on Guam during the Second World War.[16]

Name Date of execution
Kōsō Abe June 19, 1947
Shigematsu Sakaibara
Kikuji Ito
Noboru Nakajima
Koju Shoji
Kiyoshi Takahashi
Yoshio Tachibana September 24, 1947
Masaharu Tanaka
Shizuo Yoshii
Sueo Matoba
Tadao Igawa
Hiroshi Iwanami January 17, 1949
Shimpei Asano March 31, 1949
Chisato Ueno

Executions by the United States Coast Guard[edit]

The United States Coast Guard has only executed one person since its reorganization as a member of the Armed Forces in 1915. James Horace Alderman was a bootlegger and gangster during Prohibition, active off the eastern coast of Florida. During a Coast Guard boarding by the 75-foot patrol boat CG-249, Alderman and accomplice Robert Weech shot and killed the boat's commanding officer and a Secret Service agent and wounded two other coast guardsmen, one of whom later died of his injuries.

Alderman was tried by a federal judge, Henry D. Clayton, and convicted on two counts of murder on the high seas. He was sentenced to death and denied clemency by President Calvin Coolidge. While the federal government requested the Broward County authorities conduct the execution, upon their refusal the execution was moved to the nearest federal facility: Coast Guard Base 6 (now Station Fort Lauderdale) on Bahia Mar. Alderman was hanged at 6:04 am on August 17, 1929 and was buried in an unmarked grave in lot 5, section C of Miami Memorial Park cemetery. The gallows were purpose-built by Base 6 personnel in the base seaplane hangar and were only used for this single execution. It remains the only execution by the Coast Guard and the only federal execution of a smuggler during the enforcement of Prohibition [17]

See also[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ The 4 victims were: Walburga Wenderoth, Anna Wiegel, Corporal Edward Peters, and Sergeant Bennett.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Truman Signs Code of Service Justice". The New York Times. May 7, 1950. p. 82. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
  2. ^ Army Regulation 190-55, Washington, DC: United States Army Publishing Directorate, 2019, 1–4, 1006220
  3. ^ "Chapter XII: Appeals and Review", Manual for Courts Martial, United States Department of Defense, Rule 1201. Review by the Judge Advocate General, 2019
  4. ^ Baldor, Lolita C. (June 29, 2006). "Iraq murder charges raise specter of rarely used military death sentence". Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 13, 2010. Retrieved May 12, 2024.
  5. ^ Browne, Ryan (2016-12-28). "US military could carry out first execution in over 50 years". CNN. Retrieved 2024-05-12.
  6. ^ Investigations of the National War Effort, June 1946
  7. ^ US Army deserter Karl Hultén was executed 8 March 1945 for the 1944 murder of an English cab driver. He was tried and executed under English law.
  8. ^ "German commandos captured in American uniform are prepared for execution, 1944 - Rare Historical Photos". 27 January 2017.
  9. ^ American Battle Monuments Commission: Oise-Aisne American Cemetery Official Website, As of June 22, 2009
  10. ^ "Bing Maps – Driving Directions, Traffic and Road Conditions". Binged.it. 2015-03-04. Retrieved 2015-04-24.
  11. ^ Kaplan, Alice. The Interpreter. Free Press: New York, 2005. 172–3.
  12. ^ Huie, William Bradford.The Execution of Private Slovik. Westholme: Yardley, 1954. 4–7.
  13. ^ Huie, William Bradford. "The Execution of Private Slovik". Westholme Publishing, 2004. ISBN 1-59416-003-1
  14. ^ Fort Leavenworth Military Prison cemetery
  15. ^ Details of the mutiny
  16. ^ "» US Navy War Crimes Trials in Guam". October 2009.
  17. ^ "The Gallows and the Deep".

Sources[edit]

Information on listed military executions between 1942 and 1961 has been primarily derived from the following sources. Research on these executions continues.

  1. A handwritten list, Executed Death Cases Before 1951 Archived 2008-08-08 at the Wayback Machine, discovered at The Pentagon in December 2003. The list is only partially legible and must therefore be used with some caution. The linked public version of this list is quite truncated, thereby omitting a great deal of useful information about these cases. The supplemental addendum, Death Sentence Ledger, tracks military capital cases between 1950 and 1967.
  2. Two tables of U.S. Soldiers executed during World War II's European Theater and Pacific Theater may be found on Before the Needle
  3. The U.S. Rosters of World War II Dead, 1939–1945 (payment required) contains the names of many American servicemen executed by military authority overseas. These people are generally identified in the Rosters as GP (or General Prisoners) and were interred under the category of Administrative Decision.
  4. The Nationwide Gravesite Locator Archived 2019-05-17 at the Wayback Machine contains the names of numerous executed soldiers, many of them listed as being General Prisoners.
  5. The U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca. 1775–2006 (payment required) contains the names of numerous executed soldiers, many of them listed as being General Prisoners.
  6. Historical archives of the Stars and Stripes Newspaper, WWII Europe and North Africa Editions, 1942–1958 (payment required) contain numerous contemporary references to military executions.
  7. Death Penalty Cases in WWII Military Courts: Lessons Learned from North Africa and Italy, a paper written by Professor J. Robert Lilly of the School of Law, Northern Kentucky University, and Associate Professor J. Michael Thomson of the Political Science Department Northern Kentucky University, and presented at the 41st Annual Meeting of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences March 10–13, 2004. Las Vegas, NV, contains statistical information on 97 executions carried out in the European Theatre and the Mediterranean Theatre of World War II. It does not appear to be available online at this time.
  8. Taken by Force, by J. Robert Lilly, (ISBN 0-230-50647-X) published by Palgrave Macmillan in August 2007, discusses crimes of sexual violence committed by American soldiers in the Second World War. It contains numerous references to military capital cases during this period.
  9. Official File, Court Martial Cases, Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, contains information on sentence confirmation dates of soldiers executed for capital crimes within the continental United States between 1942 and 1945.
  10. Official File, Court Martial Cases, Harry Truman Museum and Library, contains information on sentence confirmation dates of soldiers and members of the Air Force executed between 1945 and 1954.
  11. History of the JAG Branch Office, U.S. Forces, European Theater, 18 July 1942 to 1 Nov. 1945: n.a., Vol. 1–2, prep. by the Branch Office of the JAG-ETO, n.p ., n.d. (1946?), contains a summary on 70 military executions carried out in the European theater between 1943 and 1945.
  12. Ted Darcy Casualty Database
  13. Subchapter X, "Punitive Articles" of the Uniform Code of Military Justice
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