No Need to Prosecute Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl

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Katrina vandenHeuvel ?@KatrinaNation 44m44 minutes ago
No Need to Prosecute Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl http://nyti.ms/1D3zgFh

It won’t be hard for military lawyers to argue that Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl violated military regulations when he slipped out of a remote outpost in Afghanistan in 2009 and became a Taliban prisoner for five years.

They would have a tougher time explaining why it’s worthwhile to prosecute a soldier the Army recruited despite significant concerns about his psychological state and who endured years of torture and privation during his captivity. As a general matter, the American military has good reason to punish service members who desert. However, it should exercise discretion in extraordinary cases. Sergeant Bergdahl’s is certainly one.

Sergeant Bergdahl, who joined the Army in 2008, was among the legion of recruits who were granted eligibility waivers to join the military during a period when it was struggling to attract applicants because of the multiple lengthy deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan that were common. His attempt in 2006 to join the Coast Guard was short-lived; he was discharged 26 days into basic training because of concerns about his psychological state. Before Sergeant Bergdahl walked out of his base in Paktika Province on June 30, 2009, it was clear to some of his family members back home, and some of his comrades in Afghanistan, that he was emotionally distressed and at times delusional. Citing an Army investigative report, his lawyer, in a letter to the military, describes his client as “naïve and at times unrealistic.”

...trying him for desertion and misbehaving before the enemy — for allegedly engaging in misconduct that endangered his unit — stands to accomplish little at this point. A conviction would most likely deprive a traumatized veteran of benefits, including medical care, which he will probably need for years. A dishonorable discharge would make it harder to rebuild his life as a civilian.

A trial would publicly raise important questions about how Sergeant Bergdahl was allowed into the Army and whether there were missed opportunities to avert the crisis his capture created. Those questions, however, should be addressed outside of a courtroom.


read: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/27/opinion/no-need-to-prosecute-sgt-bowe-bergdahl.html

related:

Bergdahl Reportedly Didn’t Trust Commanders, Tried to Walk to Nearest U.S. Outpost

Two days after Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl was charged with desertion for walking off his U.S. military base in Afghanistan in 2009, CNN has reported a potential bombshell in the case. According to unnamed military sources, an Army report is expected to reveal that Bergdahl intended to “walk to the nearest U.S. military outpost to report wrongdoing, believing he could not trust his own commanders to deal with his concerns.”
http://www.mediaite.com/tv/bergdahl-reportedly-didnt-trust-commanders-tried-to-walk-to-nearest-u-s-outpost/

[TwilightGardener]

1. They do need to conduct legal proceedings, because walking off your

base without permission is wrong under any circumstances, especially in a combat zone, with no weapon. But there are most likely clear mitigating factors that must be taken into account before conviction and sentencing (if a deal isn't struck before the court martial goes forward). I truly feel bad for Bergdahl and his family, needless to say. Getting him home only relieved some of his troubles, he still has a rocky road ahead in many respects.

[catnhatnh]

3. You're close...

but facts cannot be mitigated. AFTER trial and IF convicted mitigating factors may be considered before sentencing.

[doc03]

2. The Republicans thought he should have been left over there to be beheaded. The same Republicans

that evaded the draft for Vietnam.

[Abouttime]

4. Pardon him

President Obama should pardon him and put a stop to this nonsense. Bergdahl like many other veterans has mental issues, what good will it do anyone to incarcerate him?
Bergdahl was put into a situation by the Bush led military where he never should have been, he was a sick young man not fit for combat, another causality of the Bush wars.

[Yupster]

5. My guess is a plea bargain

He pleads guilty to a lesser crime and gets to keep his benefits. The military sweeps the whole thing from the news.