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July 5th, 2006: U.S. Army Files Charges Against Lt. Ehren Watada
1. MISSING MOVEMENT: 1 count of Missing Movement (Article 87) failing to get on the bus to deploy to Iraq with his unit in June.
To find Lt. Watada guilty of violating this article, the government must show that Lt. Watada was required to deploy with this unit, that he knew of the deployment, and that he missed the deployment through design (intentionally). Lt. Watada and his defense will contend that the invasion and occupation of Iraq violates both international and domestic law, and because Lt. Watada was aware of this, he was required to refuse the deployment order.
2. CONTEMPT TOWARD OFFICIALS: 2 counts (Article 88).
Contempt Toward Officials is a rarely used article of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ). The last known prosecution under this article was in 1966 (Howe v. U.S.) when Lt. Henry Howe was prosecuted for publicly calling President Lyndon Johnson a fascist. The bulk of prosecutions for this offense occurred during the Civil War and World War I. To find Lt. Watada guilty of violating this article, the government must show that Lt. Watada is a commissioned officer, that the words he used were contemptuous, that they were directed against an official named in Article 88, and that at least one person besides Lt. Watada heard these statements being made.
3. CONDUCT UNBECOMING AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN: 3 counts (Article 133).
Conduct Unbecoming an Officer and a Gentleman is a broadly defined violation, which covers private and public statements or actions that disgrace or dishonor the officer, or compromise the soldier’s standing as an officer. Examples from the Manual For Courts-Martial of violations of this article include making a false official statement, cheating on an exam, and being drunk and disorderly in a public place.
4. CONDUCT UNBECOMING AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN: On September 15th, Lt. Watada was charged with 1 additional count for statements he made during a speech at the annual Veterans for Peace conference in Seattle.
HEARING: The Article 32 hearing was held in August to determine if there are reasonable grounds for the charges against Lt. Watada, and to gather information to help determine appropriate disposition of the case (i.e. court martial, non-judicial punishment, etc…). The investigating officer recommended that the Army convene a General Court Martial and try Lt. Watada on all charges.
Lt. Gen. Dubik will make the final decision if Lt. Watada should be court-martialed, and if so on which charges.
MAXIMUM PUNISHMENT: For the first three offenses, Lt. Watada could spend 7 years in confinement, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and dismissal from the Army. Please note that officers cannot receive a bad-conduct or dishonorable discharge.. The later charge is 1 additional year of confinement.S. ARMY CHARGES AGAINST Lt. WATADA
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