Isn't that an automatic CMH?

Sergeant Rafael Peralta, a Marine (of course), fell on a grenade in Fallujah in 2004, saving his buddies. Admittedly, he was already wounded by gunfire, but still... For reasons undisclosed, they only awarded him the Navy Cross, rather than the Congressional Medal of Honor. A letter from some congresspeople to the president said that "Intentionally absorbing a grenade blast to protect one's comrades in arms has been traditionally recognized by awarding the Medal of Honor. The sacrifice of Sergeant Peralta manifests the same devotion to one's comrade's and country as that displayed by Jason Dunham." Marine Corporal Jason L. Dunham, who was killed in 2004 after covering a grenade with his helmet, got the CMH for his act.
The bipartisan delegation was formed after Peralta's mother said publicly this week that she was told her son would be awarded the Navy Cross, rather than the Medal of Honor, because the nomination was 'tainted' by reports he was accidentally shot by a fellow Marine shortly before an insurgent lobbed the grenade. The White House had no immediate comment.
The question of whether to award Peralta the Medal of Honor centers on whether the mortally wounded Marine, who had been shot in the head and upper body during a house-to-house search, could have intentionally reached for the grenade and covered it with his body.
The initial recommendation that he receive the Medal of Honor went through reviews by the Marine Corps, U.S. Central Command, the Department of the Navy and, ultimately, Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
After all the evidence was scrutinized, officials determined the nomination did not meet the standard necessary to support the Medal of Honor, said Capt. Beci Brenton, spokeswoman for Navy Secretary Donald Winter.
Defense Department officials have said that because there was some contradictory evidence, Gates took the extra step of asking for a review by a panel consisting of a former commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, a Medal of Honor recipient, a civilian neurosurgeon who is retired from the military and two forensic pathologists who also are military retirees.
The panel recommended against the Medal of Honor, and Gates made the decision this month, officials said.
Sergeant Peralta, 25 years old when he died, was assigned to Hawaii's 1st Battalion of the 3rd Marine Regiment. He had moved to San Diego from Tijuana as a teenager.

Rico says it seems only fair to him... ("Moved to San Diego from Tijuana as a teenager." Is that a euphemism for 'illegal alien that joined the Corps'?)