James Lewis

James Foley Lewis (29 February 1944—18 April 1983) was an American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer killed in the 1983 United States embassy bombing in Beirut, Lebanon.

Early life He was born in Coffeeville, Mississippi on 29 February 1944 to James Forrest Pittman and his wife Antoinette as James Forrest Pittman Jr. His father was serving as a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division at the time of his birth. In 1952 Forrest Pittman abandoned his wife and their 4 children who subsequently moved to Gulfport, Mississippi.

CIA career Due to his experience in covert paramilitary operations, Lewis was recruited into the CIA in 1970. He was then transported north to Sơn Tây prison camp where he underwent repeated interrogation, sleep deprivation and malnutrition. As author Kai Bird notes, he was "the last American prisoner of war to come home." He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery with his wife Monique. He and his wife were only acknowledged as CIA employees in 2012, they are memorialized on the CIA Memorial Wall.