ptsd Iraq Veteran

[Guest terrysturgis]

During my visit to the dentist yesterday I noticed a picture of a soldier on the wall. It was the son of the dental assistant. I asked her what his MOS was. She did not know what that meant, then I said what was his occupation in the Army. Infantry. I asked her if he served overseas. That's when she opened up.

He served 8 months in Iraq as an Infantry soldier. Came home for a two week leave and went Awol for 30 days. We all know that's a bad decision. He served some jail time and his attorney has bargained for a Bad Conduct Discharge. In the discharge process he has been diagnosed with PTSD and ADD. He has been advised that if he accepts the BCD that after waiting 30 days he can go to the VA, get the BCD upgraded to honorable and receive care for the PTSD.

My question to the board has anyone heard of a 30 day wait and automatic upgrade to honorable? Thanks. Terry

[LarryJ]

During my visit to the dentist yesterday I noticed a picture of a soldier on the wall. It was the son of the dental assistant. I asked her what his MOS was. She did not know what that meant, then I said what was his occupation in the Army. Infantry. I asked her if he served overseas. That's when she opened up.

He served 8 months in Iraq as an Infantry soldier. Came home for a two week leave and went Awol for 30 days. We all know that's a bad decision. He served some jail time and his attorney has bargained for a Bad Conduct Discharge. In the discharge process he has been diagnosed with PTSD and ADD. He has been advised that if he accepts the BCD that after waiting 30 days he can go to the VA, get the BCD upgraded to honorable and receive care for the PTSD.

My question to the board has anyone heard of a 30 day wait and automatic upgrade to honorable? Thanks. Terry

Hell, a Bad Conduct Discharge simply for going AWOL! Heck, if that was the case, then fully 25% of my unit would have been BCD'd at one time or another, when you consider that an AWOL was handed out for being late to report off of leave, etc. Most I ever heard of anybody getting was like loss of rank, confined to quarters/base and a couple weeks in the brig and loss of pay. Of course, this was when "cannnon fodder" was in great demand, also................

[john999]

Larry

That's right! If every Vietnam Era vet who went over the hill was given a BCD just about everyone I knew would have gotten one. It was the guys who went AWOl for 6 months with no intention of coming back that got the jail time and BCD. I think Uncle is sending a message that anything that looks like resistence to the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan will be crushed. There was an officer who refused to be deployed and he did not go to jail. Being an officer they treat them differently because it hits the very core of the military. A thirty day AWOL was not that bad considering that many vets who went on leave after Vietnam did not want to come back, and had to be retrieved by the MP's. There were vets who went awol in-country in Vietnam and disappeared into Saigon. The people who got the BCD were those who were criminals not AWOL.

[JRW]

For the record, I am a strong believer in following the stated rules. It has been my nature all my life. The kid went AWOL. He broke the rules. However, even a person with my strong beliefs in following rules would say that, in this situation and barring anything else more incriminating, and assuming his record up to the point of AWOL has been satisfactory, then even I would have to say............................cut the soldier some slack! Yea, slap his hand hard for being AWOL, but a BCD is way overboard. You need to fit the punishment to the crime. A BCD is overkill, plus you have possibly marked this kid for life. I would have to wonder the kid's frame of mind 30-40 years from now with this kind of baggage on his back. This.....is...... wrong! My 2 cents worth.

[Testvet]

they gave the 3 guys that testified against the 4 guys they sent to Leavenworth for the attempted murder and robbery in Alaska on me in Feb 1975 BCDs after they gave them Field Grade Article 15s and reduced them to E1s and I think e1 getting out of Leavenworth gets a BCD 7 guys 7 BCDs 4 men spent 15 years in Leavenworth all for 80 bucks talk about dumbazzes hell I get a lot more than that from the PTSD they got the credit for and I doubt if any of the 7 can get a federal job since that happened I wonder how they split the 80 dollars?

[Testvet]

For the record, I am a strong believer in following the stated rules. It has been my nature all my life. The kid went AWOL. He broke the rules. However, even a person with my strong beliefs in following rules would say that, in this situation and barring anything else more incriminating, and assuming his record up to the point of AWOL has been satisfactory, then even I would have to say............................cut the soldier some slack! Yea, slap his hand hard for being AWOL, but a BCD is way overboard. You need to fit the punishment to the crime. A BCD is overkill, plus you have possibly marked this kid for life. I would have to wonder the kid's frame of mind 30-40 years from now with this kind of baggage on his back. This.....is...... wrong! My 2 cents worth.

again desertion in war to avoid movement is one of the worst crimes in the UCMJ it is not like he went out for a beer and did not come back one night I am sure the rules are spelled out to e1 that gets a mid tour leave from Iraq or Afghanistan what will happen if you do not return now having said that he should have checked his dumbazz into a mental health clinic first and then called the MPs and have them pick him up from the lockdown ward because of his PTSD thej it might have gotten handled differently a 1LT did that about 5 years ago he got a medical rather than a BCD

[LarryJ]

again desertion in war to avoid movement is one of the worst crimes in the UCMJ it is not like he went out for a beer and did not come back one night I am sure the rules are spelled out to e1 that gets a mid tour leave from Iraq or Afghanistan what will happen if you do not return now having said that he should have checked his dumbazz into a mental health clinic first and then called the MPs and have them pick him up from the lockdown ward because of his PTSD thej it might have gotten handled differently a 1LT did that about 5 years ago he got a medical rather than a BCD

good point!