Chris Kyle, fallen US Navy SEAL sniper, challenge coin, 2016 memorial. Christopher Scott Kyle (April 8, 1974 – February 2, 2013) was a United States Navy SEAL sniper. He served four tours in the Iraq War and was awarded several commendations for acts of heroism and meritorious service in combat. He has 160 confirmed kills and was awarded the Silver Star, three Bronze Star Medals with “V” devices for valor, a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with “V” device, as well as numerous other unit and personal awards. Kyle was honorably discharged from the U. Navy in 2009, and published his bestselling autobiography, American Sniper, in 2012. An eponymous film adaptation of Kyle’s book, directed by Clint Eastwood, and starring Bradley Cooper as Kyle, was released two years later. In 2013, Kyle was murdered by Eddie Ray Routh at the Rough Creek Lodge shooting range near Chalk Mountain, Texas. [8] Routh, a former Marine with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole.