Military Counseling Network The Military Counseling Network is a non profit, non military organization that provides free information and help regarding military discharges and military regulations.

VILSECK, Germany – U.S. Army conscientious objector Robert Weiss was sentenced to seven months confinement during a court martial May 13, 2008, at Rose Barracks in Vilseck, Germany.

Weiss pled guilty to charges of desertion and missing movement, which reduced the court martial’s proceedings mostly to the sentencing phase.

In early December of 2007, Weiss learned his application to be classified a conscientious objector and receive an honorable discharge was denied. Weiss was assigned non-combatant duties while deployed to Forward Operating Base Prosperity in Iraq at the time, and learned of the development immediately before travelling to the United States on leave.

As his leave expired and his Dec. 22, 2007, return flight to Iraq drew near, his C.O. beliefs compelled him to miss the flight and avoid the combat patrol duties he would be assigned upon landing.

While Absent Without Leave, Weiss lived in the Goshen, Ind., area and spent time speaking to Mennonite church groups about his experiences. He eventually turned himself in to military authorities Feb. 11, 2008, in Fort Knox, Kentucky.

“I had no intention of boarding the flight, your honor,” he said to judge Peter Masters. “… I believe they would have transitioned me to a Stryker [combat vehicle] driver position.”

The charges of desertion and missing movement can carry a maximum punishment of death by firing squad or seven years in prison, however defense lawyers for Weiss were able to secure a special court martial rather than a general court martial. A special court martial can issue a maximum punishment of 12 months in prison and a Bad Conduct Discharge, whereas a general court martial has a much higher punishment ceiling, and the possibility of a more serious Dishonorable Discharge. Both convictions are felonies.

Defense lawyers for Weiss orchestrated a pre-trial agreement with prosecutors that included guilty pleas, no out-of-country witnesses, and no jury, relying instead solely on a judge.

Though this agreement carried a prison sentence of eight months, Judge Masters issued a seven-month sentence, to be served at the U.S. Military Detention Facility Europe at Coleman Barracks in Mannheim, Germany. The sentence also included a Bad Conduct Discharge, reduction to the lowest enlisted rank, and forfeiture of $898 per month for seven months.

With good behavior, Weiss’ lawyers estimate he will be released after six months.

In his closing remarks during the sentencing portion of the trial, civilian defense lawyer David Court presented an overview of what the U.S. Military Code of Justice seeks to accomplish through criminal punishment. Court concluded most aspects – like rehabilitation and protecting society – simply did not apply to someone guilty of essentially refusing to commit an act of violence against other human beings.

“The only tenant that is relevant is to maintain Good Order and Discipline,” he said. “Those three letters [G.O.D.] that’s where Robert J. Weiss sees his command. He believes the requirements of his spirituality overcome that of a soldier.

“… He will believe he is being punished because he broke the Army’s rules, but not because he broke higher laws,” Court said.

Though shackled as he left the building, Weiss managed to rotate a wrist, flashing one last peace sign before boarding a van for Mannheim. He had only two words to say.

“God bless.”

May 5

By Avram Goldstein

(Bloomberg) – The number of suicides among veterans of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan may exceed the combat death toll because of inadequate mental health care, the U.S. government’s top psychiatric researcher said.

Community mental health centers, hobbled by financial limits, haven’t provided enough scientifically sound care, especially in rural areas, said Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, Maryland. He briefed reporters today at the American Psychiatric Association’s annual meeting in Washington.

Insel echoed a Rand Corporation study published last month that found about 20 percent of returning U.S. soldiers have post-traumatic stress disorder or depression, and only half of them receive treatment. About 1.6 million U.S. troops have fought in the two wars since October 2001, the report said. About 4,560 soldiers had died in the conflicts as of today, the Defense Department reported on its Web site.

Based on those figures and established suicide rates for similar patients who commonly develop substance abuse and other complications of post-traumatic stress disorder, “it’s quite possible that the suicides and psychiatric mortality of this war could trump the combat deaths,” Insel said.

Post-traumatic stress disorder, known as PTSD, is the failure to cope after a major shock, such as an auto accident, a rape or combat, Insel said. PTSD may remain dormant for months or years before it surfaces, and in about 10 percent of cases people never recover, he said.

Difficult to Predict

“We don’t yet know how to predict who is going to be the person to be most concerned about,” Insel said.

The Pentagon didn’t dispute Insel’s remark.

“The department takes the issue of suicide very seriously, and one suicide is too many,” said spokeswoman Cynthia Smith in an e-mail.

The department has expanded efforts to encourage soldiers and veterans not to feel stigmatized if they seek mental health treatment, Smith said.

Soldiers who’d been exposed to combat trauma were the most likely to suffer from depression or PTSD, the Rand report said. About 53 percent of soldiers with those conditions sought treatment during the past year. Half of those who got care were judged by Rand researchers to have received inadequate treatment.

Failure to adequately treat the mental and neurological problems of returning soldiers can cause a chain of negative events in the lives of affected veterans, the researchers said. About 300,000 soldiers suffer from depression or PTSD, the report said.

Treatment Options

Researchers aren’t sure whether it's appropriate to treat such patients with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, a class of medications that include Prozac, and other anti-depressants, Insel said. His institute is examining that question and novel treatments for PTSD, including using so-called virtual reality technology.

The psychiatric association reported last week that a survey of 191 military members and their spouses found 32 percent said their duty hurt their mental health, and six in 10 believed seeking treatment would damage their careers.

More than 15,000 psychiatrists are attending the professional group’s meeting.