Jury Convicts 'Birther' Who Refused To Deploy

[KeepItReal]

Source: AP

A military jury has convicted an Army doctor who disobeyed orders to deploy to Afghanistan because he questions President Barack Obama's eligibility for office.

The jury in Fort Meade, Md., on Wednesday found Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin guilty of missing a flight that would have gotten him to Fort Campbell, Ky., for his eventual deployment. He was convicted of a charge of missing movement by design.
...
In videos posted on YouTube, Lakin aligned himself with so-called "birthers'' who question whether Obama is a natural-born citizen as the Constitution requires for presidents

Read more: http://www.npr.org/2010/12/15/132089251/jury-convicts-birther-who-refused-to-deploy

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. Good.

[pnwmom]

2. I wouldn't want to be treated by a doctor that dumb. n/t

[underpants]

3. You can complain but you have to follow orders first....or pay the consequences

he paid the consequences. As he should.

[Joe Bacon]

4. Bust him down to buck private!

And give that asshole a dishonorable discharge.

On top of that, make him write 10,000 times "President Obama was born in the United States".

What a fucking ignorant dick!

[LiberalLoner]

5. He's gonna get far worse than that, believe me - all of that plus 3 years or more

at the federal pen at Ft. Leavenworth - HARD time.

[qazplm]

15. actually not really

having served there for several years, I can say if I had to serve time, I'd rather do it at the USDB than a state or federal max security prison.

Obviously a min security fed prison is the place to be, but you have your own cell at the DB, the work isn't hard, and there really isn't a ton of worry about physical safety comparatively.
You don't have the freedoms you might have at another jail, but I'd trade freedom for security in that situation any day.

[24601]

6. Never served a day in you life? It shows or you would know

that officers do not receive Dishonorable Discharges but are instead Dismissed from the Service. At least you aren't as ignorant as those that say it's treason without bothering to read the Constitution.

[Judi Lynn]

7. Thank goodness they weren't all teabaggers.

http://www.wnd.com.nyud.net:8090/images/misc/100421liddy.jpg

Lt. Col. Lakin standing behind his brilliant chum, G. Gordon Asshat.

[Historic NY]

8. Do they still make gravel USDB Leavenworth?

[Swagman]

9. what a weirdo !

[Anakin Skywalker]

10. Ha ha ha! Take that, birthers (Birchers?)!

[Anakin Skywalker]

11. .

[rug]

12. Col. Lakin will have plenty of time to contemplate his navel.

[livingonearth]

13. Silly Birthers...

[drmeow]

14. A question for military experts

I think I know the answer to this but want to make sure smarter minds than mine confirm what I'm thinking - what are the key differences between this and disobeying an illegal command (if that is the correct way to refer to it)?

[qazplm]

16. actually one key difference is

that missing movement by design carries a 2 year max punishment while failure to follow a lawful order (that isn't a general order/regulation and in this case it wouldn't have been) only carries a 6 month max sentence.

Given what's come out at trial and what he pleaded to and was convicted of, I'd find it highly unlikely that he doesn't get a dismissal and some amount of jail time. The panel of Colonels are not going to like having to take three days out of their very busy lives to deal with this guy.

[drmeow]

17. My question is actually

about failure to follow an UNLAWFUL order. I'm not saying that this order was unlawful - I guess what I'm asking is what is the criteria for an unlawful order? for example, what if there was a recognized coup (as opposed to the sanctioned coup of GWB)? What if some of the enlisted men decided this was an illegal war and all orders pertaining to this war were unlawful, including deployment? Where is the line drawn in the sand between an unlawful order and something a service person just doesn't want to do?

To me this is clearly on solid ground but is it at the top of a slippery slope?