Bergdahl Charged With Desertion

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, the soldier who disappeared from his unit in Afghanistan in 2009 and held captive by Taliban fighters until released in a prisoner swap last May, has been charged with desertion. Formal charges include desertion with intent to shirt important or hazardous duty, and misbehavior before the enemy by endangering the safety of a command, unit or place. His case will be referred to a hearing under Article 32 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice – the military equivalent of a civilian grand jury hearing. The decision to charge Bergdahl came after U.S. Army Forces Command reviewed an investigation into his case, which determined that there is sufficient evidence to support the allegations. The Article 32 panel that will hear his case could decide to dismiss the charges, or request that the soldier face a general court martial. If convicted at trial, he could face life in prison, reduction in rank to E-1, total forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and a bad conduct discharge. According to numerous media reports, Bergdahl’s lawyers are portraying the soldier as a “whistleblower” intent on reporting his comrades for wrongful behavior, who was tortured by his captors and tried to escape numerous times. Members of that unit have since came forward to refute those contentions.