From the Associated Press

LAFAYETTE — Organizers of a politically charged war memorial said they will remove the names of more than 200 dead U.S. soldiers from white wooden crosses covering a highly visible hillside.

Memorial organizers said all but a dozen names will be removed Sunday unless a dead soldier’s family gives permission for the name to remain. The names have prompted protest from some family members and war supporters.

Scott Conover of Tracy, whose stepson Brandon died in Iraq in January 2006, said memorial organizers “shouldn’t be using the dead soldiers to voice their opposition” to the war. Conover welcomed the decision to remove the names, but said he and others will trek to the site Monday to ensure the organizers’ keep their promise.

“We didn’t intend to cause any grief to the families of soldiers that died,” said organizer Jeff Heaton. “We don’t want to turn the memorial into a battleground.”