Bergdahl Case - Trump No Factor

[Spare_change]

Judge Army Col. Jeffery Nance has tossed out arguments from Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl’s defense team that President Donald Trump’s harsh comments have prevented Bergdahl from receiving a fair trial.

According to Bergdahl’s lawyers, Trump’s rhetoric on the campaign trail ruined the ability of potential jurors to assess the case impartially, which in effect violates Bergdahl’s due-process rights, but Nance wasn’t having any of it, the Associated Press reports.

Instead, Nance said that while Trump’s comments calling Bergdahl a “dirty, rotten traitor” were “disturbing and disappointing,” they did not amount to unlawful command influence. This means that the trial will proceed in April as scheduled.

During the campaign, Trump pantomimed a firing squad taking Bergdahl out.

“The accused was merely the foil for delivering that political message,” Nance wrote. “All reasonable members of the public and potential panel members will know that was what he was doing and will not allow the rhetoric to affect their impartiality.”
However, the fact remains that the rhetoric was both aggressive and stated repeatedly while Trump was on the campaign trail, and so for Nance, this means that Bergdahl’s attorneys should at least have the right to question potential jurors about their opinions on Trump.

A memo submitted by Bergdahl’s team highlighted 40 instances, in which Trump criticized Bergdahl up to August 2016. The memo became especially salient after Bergdahl’s lawyers unsuccessfully tried to ask President Barack Obama for a pardon before Trump took over the White House. At the time, legal experts said there was zero evidence to indicate that Obama would interfere with the military judicial process and grant a pre-conviction pardon.

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Firing squad? Sure, I'll do it.

 

[S.J.]

I fully expected Obama to pardon the POS traitor. They're cut from the same cloth.

 

[yiostheoy]

DJT is right -- Bergdahl should be tried for desertion and if convicted be shot.

Obviously B. is not going to be able to count on a pardon from DJT.

My guess is that B. will be sentenced to 20 years in military prison.

What then happens after that will depend on who is in The White House. That is 5 elections from now.

Judge rules against dismissing charges against Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl - CNNPolitics.com

 

[waltky]

Lawyers for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl asked an appellate court to overturn a military judge's decision not to dismiss the court-martial...

Bergdahl Appeals Decision Not to Dismiss Case over Trump Comments
Feb 28, 2017 | WASHINGTON -- Lawyers for accused deserter Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl asked an appellate court on Monday to overturn a military judge's decision not to dismiss the court-martial against the soldier over repeated, negative comments made by President Donald Trump.

During his presidential campaign, Trump made comments that included calling Bergdahl a "dirty, rotten, no good traitor" and make it impossible for the soldier to receive a fair trial because the public could perceive that anyone involved in the case, including jurors, were influenced by the opinions of their commander in chief, Bergdahl's attorneys wrote in an appeal to the United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals. The attorneys added the appellate court should vacate the decision handed down Friday by Army Col. Jeffery R. Nance, the judge overseeing Bergdahl's court-martial, and dismiss the case entirely or limit its outcome to no punishment. "Justice cannot be done and public confidence in military justice cannot be maintained under these circumstances," Bergdahl's chief attorney, Eugene Fidell wrote in the appeal. "... President Trump's repeated public vilification of Sgt. Bergdahl must be explicitly acknowledged as apparent [unlawful command influence] and decisive remedial action taken."

Lawyers for Bergdahl, 30, who faces a maximum life in prison sentence on charges of misbehavior before the enemy and desertion, filed a motion asking Nance to dismiss the case within hours of Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20. They submitted evidence that Trump on more than 60 occasions between June 2014 and August 2016 made derogatory comments about Bergdahl at campaign rallies and in public interviews. Trump's comments included opining Bergdahl should be executed or dropped from an airplane into enemy territory. "There can be no doubt about what President Trump thinks about Sgt. Bergdahl," the attorneys wrote. "In a democratic society, it is a core premise that statements made by those who seek elected office must be taken seriously, especially when those statements are made repeatedly." But Nance declined to throw out the case in his decision Friday, nearly two weeks after Bergdahl's attorneys and prosecutors argued the motion in a Fort Bragg, N.C. courtroom.

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is seen leaving a courtroom after a pretrial hearing in Fort Bragg, NC.​

In his decision, Nance wrote the president's comments as a candidate were "disturbing and disappointing" and even potentially "problematic." However, the judge ultimately sided with the prosecutors' assertions that they were largely campaign trail rhetoric that can be avoided by carefully screening potential jurors. People familiar with Trump's comments will understand they were primarily made as a political attack on President Barack Obama's May 2014 decision to trade five senior-level Taliban members detained at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba for Bergdahl's release, Nance wrote. "All reasonable members of the public and potential panel members will know that was what [Trump] was doing and will not allow the rhetoric to affect their impartiality," he wrote.

In their appeal, Bergdahl's attorneys rejected Nance's declaration that thorough questioning of potential jurors to determine if they had been influenced by Trump's statements would maintain the integrity of the case. It is the second decision by Nance that Bergdahl's attorneys have sought to have overturned by a higher court. Last fall, they appealed to two appellate courts to have the soldier's court-martial dismissed after Nance declined to throw out the case over comments made by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. The soldier's lawyers argued McCain, who is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, improperly influenced the case by threatening to hold a hearing if Bergdahl goes unpunished. Bergdahl's trial is scheduled to begin April 18, but is likely to be pushed back, Nance has said.

MORE

 

[Spare_change]

Lawyers for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl asked an appellate court to overturn a military judge's decision not to dismiss the court-martial...

Bergdahl Appeals Decision Not to Dismiss Case over Trump Comments
Feb 28, 2017 | WASHINGTON -- Lawyers for accused deserter Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl asked an appellate court on Monday to overturn a military judge's decision not to dismiss the court-martial against the soldier over repeated, negative comments made by President Donald Trump.

During his presidential campaign, Trump made comments that included calling Bergdahl a "dirty, rotten, no good traitor" and make it impossible for the soldier to receive a fair trial because the public could perceive that anyone involved in the case, including jurors, were influenced by the opinions of their commander in chief, Bergdahl's attorneys wrote in an appeal to the United States Army Court of Criminal Appeals. The attorneys added the appellate court should vacate the decision handed down Friday by Army Col. Jeffery R. Nance, the judge overseeing Bergdahl's court-martial, and dismiss the case entirely or limit its outcome to no punishment. "Justice cannot be done and public confidence in military justice cannot be maintained under these circumstances," Bergdahl's chief attorney, Eugene Fidell wrote in the appeal. "... President Trump's repeated public vilification of Sgt. Bergdahl must be explicitly acknowledged as apparent [unlawful command influence] and decisive remedial action taken."

Lawyers for Bergdahl, 30, who faces a maximum life in prison sentence on charges of misbehavior before the enemy and desertion, filed a motion asking Nance to dismiss the case within hours of Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20. They submitted evidence that Trump on more than 60 occasions between June 2014 and August 2016 made derogatory comments about Bergdahl at campaign rallies and in public interviews. Trump's comments included opining Bergdahl should be executed or dropped from an airplane into enemy territory. "There can be no doubt about what President Trump thinks about Sgt. Bergdahl," the attorneys wrote. "In a democratic society, it is a core premise that statements made by those who seek elected office must be taken seriously, especially when those statements are made repeatedly." But Nance declined to throw out the case in his decision Friday, nearly two weeks after Bergdahl's attorneys and prosecutors argued the motion in a Fort Bragg, N.C. courtroom.

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is seen leaving a courtroom after a pretrial hearing in Fort Bragg, NC.​

In his decision, Nance wrote the president's comments as a candidate were "disturbing and disappointing" and even potentially "problematic." However, the judge ultimately sided with the prosecutors' assertions that they were largely campaign trail rhetoric that can be avoided by carefully screening potential jurors. People familiar with Trump's comments will understand they were primarily made as a political attack on President Barack Obama's May 2014 decision to trade five senior-level Taliban members detained at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba for Bergdahl's release, Nance wrote. "All reasonable members of the public and potential panel members will know that was what [Trump] was doing and will not allow the rhetoric to affect their impartiality," he wrote.

In their appeal, Bergdahl's attorneys rejected Nance's declaration that thorough questioning of potential jurors to determine if they had been influenced by Trump's statements would maintain the integrity of the case. It is the second decision by Nance that Bergdahl's attorneys have sought to have overturned by a higher court. Last fall, they appealed to two appellate courts to have the soldier's court-martial dismissed after Nance declined to throw out the case over comments made by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. The soldier's lawyers argued McCain, who is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, improperly influenced the case by threatening to hold a hearing if Bergdahl goes unpunished. Bergdahl's trial is scheduled to begin April 18, but is likely to be pushed back, Nance has said.

MORE

Ain't a chance in hell they will win the appeal .... there's no 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in the military justice system.

 

[JoeB131]

well, here's the problem. You have the guy who is potentially going to approve the possible promotions and careers of the people who will sit on that panel saying he thinks he's guilty. Which means that if they do the sensible thing and say, "This is a mentally ill young man who never should have been put into a combat zone to start with", they will be commiting career suicide.

 

[Spare_change]

well, here's the problem. You have the guy who is potentially going to approve the possible promotions and careers of the people who will sit on that panel saying he thinks he's guilty. Which means that if they do the sensible thing and say, "This is a mentally ill young man who never should have been put into a combat zone to start with", they will be commiting career suicide.

Not familiar with the military justice system, huh?

It's ok ---- study hard, do your homework, and then you can discuss this with the adults.

 

[JoeB131]

Not familiar with the military justice system, huh?

It's ok ---- study hard, do your homework, and then you can discuss this with the adults.

I was with the Army for 11 years, so I'm familiar with it.

It has nothing to do with my point. My point is, that the army lowered standards to recruit Bergdahl, put him in a war zone with poor supervision and leadership, then when he did something goofy because he wasn't quite right in the head, they lied for five years about how he was captured, and pretended he was a POW.

They even gave him promotions in abstentia. (and to think I made E-5 the old fashioned way!)

Then when he got released, and all these embarrassing stories came out about how he got captured, some of which weren't even true, the Army felt the need to ignore its own investigators and put him on trial.

That's kind of fucked up... in any system.

 

[NLT]

I served in The Navy for 22yrs and JoeB is full of shit. Bergdhal should get life for Article 99

Any member of the armed forces who before or in the presence of the enemy—
(1)
runs away;
(2)
shamefully abandons, surrenders, or delivers up any command, unit, place, or military property which it is his duty to defend;
(3)
through disobedience, neglect, or intentional misconduct endangers the safety of any such command, unit, place, or military property;
(4)
casts away his arms or ammunition;
(5)
is guilty of cowardly conduct;
(6)
quits his place of duty to plunder or pillage;
(7)
causes false alarms in any command, unit, or place under control of the armed forces;
(8)
willfully fails to do his utmost to encounter, engage, capture, or destroy any enemy troops, combatants, vessels, aircraft, or any other thing, which it is his duty so to encounter, engage, capture, or destroy; or
(9)
does not afford all practicable relief and assistance to any troops, combatants, vessels, or aircraft of the armed forces belonging to the United States or their allies when engaged in battle;
shall be punished by death or such other punishment as a court-martial may direct.

 

[JoeB131]

I served in The Navy for 22yrs and JoeB is full of shit. Bergdhal should get life for Article 99

What does that have to do with anything I just said?

Okay, here's the problem. When the "War on an Emotional State" dragged on too long, the Army had a hard time getting people to sign up for amputated legs and a lifetime of PTSD, for some reason.

So they lowered the enlistment standards and recruited guys like Manning and Bergdahl and a lot of other clowns who would have been laughed out of the recruiters office 20 years ago.

And when some of these clowns did goofy stuff because they never, ever should have been in the military to start with, the Army decided they were going to make examples out of them.

and the yahoo redneck billy-bobs, a lot of whom were nowhere to be found when the Army was recruiting, dun wants to court martial those guys.

 

[NLT]

PTSD my ass the fucker was never even in combat. He was in a combat zone but never saw any combat

 

[JoeB131]

PTSD my ass the fucker was never even in combat. He was in a combat zone but never saw any combat

Go back and read what I said. I never said he had PTSD.

I said he was psychologically unfit to be enlisted to start with. Keep in mind, he got a psych discharge from the Coast Guard, but man, the Army just signed him right up.

 

[miketx]

Not familiar with the military justice system, huh?

It's ok ---- study hard, do your homework, and then you can discuss this with the adults.

I was with the Army for 11 years, so I'm familiar with it.

It has nothing to do with my point. My point is, that the army lowered standards to recruit Bergdahl, put him in a war zone with poor supervision and leadership, then when he did something goofy because he wasn't quite right in the head, they lied for five years about how he was captured, and pretended he was a POW.

They even gave him promotions in abstentia. (and to think I made E-5 the old fashioned way!)

Then when he got released, and all these embarrassing stories came out about how he got captured, some of which weren't even true, the Army felt the need to ignore its own investigators and put him on trial.

That's kind of fucked up... in any system.

Hey Joe, what did they court marshall you for?

 

[JoeB131]

Hey Joe, what did they court marshall you for?

Not a damned thing. I did bring a Major down because he tried to fuck up an enlisted man's career for his fuckup.

Always keep a CYA file!

 

[Steelfoot]

You're not much.

Know what we mean?

 

[RetiredGySgt]

Hey Joe, what did they court marshall you for?

Not a damned thing. I did bring a Major down because he tried to fuck up an enlisted man's career for his fuckup.

Always keep a CYA file!

That is illegal under the UCMJ, if you keep a file such as you describe you can be charged and convicted of violating the UCMJ.

 

[Gracie]

Are you related to Bergdahl, Joe? Why are you keeping files?????

Bergdahl is a traitor. He should be hanged or shot via firing squad.

 

[JoeB131]

That is illegal under the UCMJ, if you keep a file such as you describe you can be charged and convicted of violating the UCMJ.

Right. Point out where it's against regulations to keep a file of all the dumb stuff officers tell you to do in case they try to deny it later.

WHich is what happened here. We had an officer who didn't want to return blank training ammunition to the depot because then he'd have to explain why we weren't using it and requisitioned so much. I knew this was going to get us into trouble, and it did. (Not me personally, but the poor schlub in another company who got caught with it.)

Now, getting back to Bergdahl... here you have a guy who was thrown out of the Coast Guard on a psych discharge, but the Army signed his ass right up. Dropped him in a war zone with a unit with poor leadership, and then when he wandered off base to go complain to a higher command, the Taliban caught him.

Not seeing a crime here.

 

[JoeB131]

Are you related to Bergdahl, Joe? Why are you keeping files?????

Bergdahl is a traitor. He should be hanged or shot via firing squad.

I kept files because the one thing I learned is that no matter how bad they fuck up, the Army protected officers no matter what they got caught doing, but would ream EM's for the smallest slights.

It's why nobody threw Nidal Hassan's ass out until he shot 13 people.

That's Officer Country, boy!!!