UNREPENTANT SINNER

Charles Askins aka Colonel Charles 'Boots' Askins (28th October 1907-2nd March 1999) was an American lawman, US Army officer and writer. He served in law enforcement (US Forest Service and Border Patrol) in the American Southwest prior to the Second World War. During his service in the Border Patrol, Askins won many pistol championships, and was made the leader of the Border Patrol's handgun skills program. He served in the US Army during the Second World War as a battlefield recovery officer, making landings in North Africa, Italy, and D-day. After Second World War, he spent several years in Spain, as an attache to the American embassy there, helping Franco rebuild Spain's munition plants. After his assignment in Spain, he was moved to the Vietnamese front, where he trained South Vietnamese soldiers in shooting and paratrooping. Throughout his military career, he also indulged in big game hunting at every chance, and continued to do so after his retirement. He held several records in his lifetime in big game, on top of his two national pistol championships, American Handgunner of the Year award, and innumerable smaller titles in competitive shooting. Colonel Askins retired to San Antonio, Texas after his final years in the military at Fort Sam Houston. Colonel Askins is an adventurer. Whether it be fighting his way out of an ambush, hunting tiger in Asia or sniping along the Rhine, Askins has done it with gusto. Here he recounts his early days as a forest ranger, his decade of slinging lead on the Mexican border, his astounding success as a competitive pistol shot, his combat participation in World War II, his adventures as a paratrooper in Vietnam and his career as one of the world's leading big-game hunters.