begin quote from:
Bergen: Justice served in Bergdahl's case
Story highlights
- Peter Bergen says the sentence will not satisfy many in the military and it's been attacked by President Trump
- But given the mitigating factors that the judge had to consider, his decision was right, Bergen says
Peter Bergen is CNN's national security analyst, a vice president at New America, a professor of practice at Arizona State University and chairman of the Global Special Operations Foundation. He is the author of "United States of Jihad: Investigating America's Homegrown Terrorists."
(CNN)The
case of Bowe Bergdahl, who deserted his US military outpost in eastern
Afghanistan in 2009 and was then captured by the Taliban, stirs strong
emotions.
For many in
the military, the fact that Bergdahl deserted and subsequently
endangered the lives and the limbs of a number of soldiers who went
hunting for him meant that he should have faced a lengthy prison
sentence.
At Berghdahl's trial, prosecution witness Shannon Allen said her
husband Mark was severely wounded on a mission to find Bergdahl and is
today largely paralyzed and unable to care for himself.
The
intensity of the anger directed at Bergdahl by some in the military is
amplified by the fact that his freedom was gained by a 2014 prisoner
swap for five mid- and high-level Taliban leaders who had been
imprisoned at Guantanamo.
The
prosecution in the case asked the judge, Army Col. Jeffery R. Nance, for
14 years of imprisonment. Nance opted for no prison time and a
dishonorable discharge for Bergdahl.
Why?
Col. Nance had to weigh a number of mitigating factors as he determined
Bergdahl's sentence. (Note: I have met with members of Bergdahl's
family.)
The first factor, of course, is the five years Bergdahl spent as a prisoner of the Taliban.
Bergdahl mounted a number of escape attempts after which he spent years confined in a cage suitable for an animal.
He was also tortured, beaten with thick rubber hoses and copper wire.
The second, is Bergdahl's diagnosis of schizotypal personality disorder.
According
to the Mayo Clinic, "People with schizotypal personality disorder are
often described as odd or eccentric... the person with schizotypal
personality disorder responds inappropriately to social cues and holds
peculiar beliefs."
Given this diagnosis,
it's not clear why Bergdahl was allowed into the military in the first
place. Some evidence for Bergdahl's strange mindset is provided by his
observation to the podcast "Serial" after he was released by the Taliban
that when he had left his base in Afghanistan he believed he was embarking on some kind of
"Jason Bourne" mission. Moving around alone in Taliban areas in
Afghanistan, Bergdahl proved an easy target for Taliban foot soldiers,
not some kind of action hero.
A third factor that the judge likely weighed in his decision was that Bergdahl provided useful information about the Taliban to US intelligence agencies when he was debriefed.
Finally,
the judge said he would also weigh prejudicial statements made by
President Trump about the case as a mitigating factor. The military is
very sensitive to the issue of undue "command influence" in the military
justice system.
When he was a
candidate, Trump often called Bergdahl a traitor who should be executed,
and just last month when he was asked about Bergdahl, the commander in chief said, "I think people have heard my comments in the past."
Even
though his own comments proved to be a factor in the judge giving
Bergdahl leniency, Trump didn't hold back in criticizing the decision
Friday. On Twitter, Trump said the judge's decision is "a complete disgrace to our Country and to our Military."
Of
course the sentence will not satisfy many in the military (as it hasn't
the commander in chief who is supposed to uphold the military justice
system), but given the mitigating factors that the judge had to consider
in the case, justice was served.
No comments:
Post a Comment