Question about Military Justice

[justalurkr]

There is a plot bunny nipping at my heels, and I need to know:

Under what circumstances would a victim of don't ask, don't tell, do time in Leavenworth? Are they pursuing it that seriously, or is it usually a quick bump out on a dishonorable discharge?

Comments

[30toseoul.livejournal.com]

It would depend on what their commander wanted to do, but in my experience it's very, very rare. I never knew or heard of anyone during my service who got a dishonorable discharge for DADT reasons. (To clarify: "dishonorable" and "bad conduct" are categories that you only get after a court martial; "general" or "other than honorable" are categories that can be assigned without one.) As far as I know, it's usually just offer a paperwork discharge and it can be honorable, general, or other than honorable based on the commander's preference. When I wrote the post about my gay experience in the military, I think there were only one or two Navy people who chimed in on the comments to say that they knew people who'd been court martialed and sent to the brig, and they mentioned the 1980's and early 1990's as the timeframe. My friend Chris was Navy from 1997-2001 and his entire ship up to the captain knew that he and another guy were gay; nobody ever gave them a problem. Almost every other servicemember who commented said that their experience mirrored mine -- a good percentage of their units knew exactly who was gay and nothing ever happened.

[30toseoul.livejournal.com]

Oh, addition: I think according to regulations, homosexual conduct is *supposed* to be handled with an other than honorable discharge, but in reality some commanders might not go by the book -- they could go easier on the servicemember if they skirted the rules a bit.

Well

[justalurkr.livejournal.com]

I'm glad that idiocy isn't resulting in jailtime for real lifers, but it sort of screws my bunny up. :D

Thanks for the quick answer!

Maybe John can piss some else off...

[wanders away with "Tie a Yellow Ribbon" still stuck in head]

Re: Well

[30toseoul.livejournal.com]

Oh man, sorry for the bunny-screwing. (Hee.)

Yeah, DADT isn't quite the dragon that many people think. I mean, it sucks that the policy exists at all, but at least it isn't enforced quite as harshly as it could be. The only type of thing that I could really see going to Leavenworth for today would maybe be those paratroopers from the 82nd who got caught doing gay porn a few months ago -- but even that might just result in a court martial and a dishonorable discharge, I think. Haven't heard an update on how it's been handled.

Re: Well

[justalurkr.livejournal.com]

I am so telling seperis that you screw bunnies, naughty thing. ;)

Another question, having now read your post: appropos of the gay person's experience depending entirely on where they're posted and with whom, it crosses my mind that Sheppard is the lone Air Force boy with a bunch of Marines, one long-suffering Lorne, and a taxi-service full bird Colonel who sort of wants his job. Would it ring true to you as a fanfic reader and ex-USAF that Sheppard is in a riskier position with respect to don't ask, don't tell?

Re: Well

[30toseoul.livejournal.com]

I am a twisted bunny-screwer! :-}

It could be written that way in a plausible fanfic manner, yes -- but for me, personally? Not really. Not considering that he has personal relationships with all of those people (albeit slightly strained, with Caldwell) and that they've risked their lives for each other many times over -- that Sheppard has literally tried to throw his life down to save them. Someone on my post said it the best, that the mantra "protect your buddy" trumps DADT in real situations. Anyone who would go after Sheppard like that would just strike me as a tremendous asshole, and I don't really see any of the people in Atlantis or the SGC acting like that. The only way that I could maybe buy him being in a riskier position would be if someone way higher up (like, with enough pull to override Weir and Jack O'Neill's influence) decided that they wanted to get rid of him.

But hell, dude, if the bunny's really nipping at you? Write it anyway. Most of fandom won't know enough about the subject to nitpick-analyze the situation like I do. *g*

Re: Well

[justalurkr.livejournal.com]

:) My bunnies usually wander off and nip someone else by the time I get to them.

Leavenworth seemed more plausible to me as the only place Sheppard could get incarcerated without Atlantis mobilizing to bomb his pretty ass out of there, as they all still report to Earth. It's kind of a dumb bunny, anyway, because I can't imagine (after the events of "Epiphany" and "Common Ground") Sheppard ever having the same doubts as the guy in the "Yellow Ribbon" song.

I'll ponder it a bit more see if it morphs into something else not involving prison time.

Thanks for shedding light on the topic!