Expert: Aaron Shifferly - 3/27/2009

Question
QUESTION: my wife lied to the mp's on an investigation form and got caught and admitted it now she is being told she wont graduate BCT what will happen to her and if she gets sent home how long will they keep her at fort Jackson

ANSWER: Jeff:
I'll try to give you the best answer I can, but some information is missing from your question to give you a more detailed one.  First, lying the the MPs on an official form is bad because it is a violation of the UCMJ (military law) Article 107 - False Official Statements.  The later admission of the false statement is the proverbial nail in the coffin as far as law enforcement and punitive authorities are concerned.  The problem is that you didn't specify the circumstances surrounding the lie; was it on a security clearance paperwork, or was she witness to a suspected crime, or was the the subject of an investigation?  The differences between those three example categories are great in terms of what happens to the individual accused of lying. The most likely course of action for any 'minor incident' ( I say minor as in she is not trying to cover up involvement in a criminal enterprise that would normally lead to prosecution.) of lying would be for her unit to begin to separate her from the military under one of the provisional separation articles used for people in Initial Entry Status.  She would still have to wait for the paperwork to be complete, which could take a while, depending on waiting for the final MP reports as to her alleged criminal activity and further admission.  Once the paperwork is submitted it goes through several legal and chain of command reviews before she is finally separated from the military.  This process varies in time, mostly due to the largesse of the military bureaucracy, so it is difficult to give you a firm answer on how long it would take; but a good estimate would be 4-6 weeks. If you want to do a follow up question and give me more specifics I can try to tailor this answer more to your wife's specific case. Hope this helps.

Aaron

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: thanks aaron a little mor info she lied to protect her battle buddy who was having n affair with the drill sgt but i guess when they threatened to prosocute her she came clean

Answer
Jeff:
Ahh.. That complicates things further from a legal standpoint because she's also guilty of the crimes of obstruction, accessory after the fact, and potentially of the crime of conspiracy; depending on how actively she helped her battle buddy in her amourous endeavors.  As to what will happen to her, it is her chain of command's decision. She could be subject to a full Courts-Martial (civilian term a trial), wherein she would plead her case and, if convicted, potentially be sentenced to jail, fines, discharge or all of the three.  A second option is a non-punitive punishment referred to as an Article 15 wherein she would visit her commanding officer, either a captain or a lieutenant colonel depending on the severity of the Article 15 pursued, and she would be given a chance to refute the charges.  If found guilty she could face up to: Reduction to the lowest enlisted grade, forfeiture of 1/2 a month's pay for 2 months, and 45 days of extra duty and 45 days of restriction.  If she goes before a captain the penalty drops to: Reduction by one grade, forfeiture of two weeks' pay, and 15 days extra duty/restriction.  If she were subject to this sort of punishment her departure would not be allowed until the punishment were vacated. Most likely, though, she would simply be chaptered out of the Army and sent home as soon as the paperwork is completed.  The same advice I gave you earlier about the Chapter procedure applies.  I caution you that none of this can happen until the investigation is over and that my advice is only good for the set of facts you have given me.  If her involvement in the issue is any greater, the liklihood of punishment increases. Hope this helps.