Expert: Rod Powers - 12/3/2007

Question
What are the conseqwnces of going Awol? One of my friends has desided to go awol and he wanted to know what they were.

Answer
Hi Isabella,

The possible consequences are months or years in a Military prison, and -- even (possibly) the death sentence (although the death sentence is very unlikely).

If a person absents themselves from Military duty, they can be charged with either AWOL, under Article 86 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), or for Desertion, under Article 85.

In general, if a member "intends to return" to "military control," they are guilty of the offense of AWOL. It it can be shown that the member went absent, with the intent to stay away from the Military indefinately, they are guilty of the offense of "Desertion."

Generally, if a member is absent from duty for less than 30 days, the "burden of proof" about "intent to return" is up to the prosecution. If, however, the member is absent for more than 30 days, the military is allowed to assume they did not intend to return, and the "burden of proof" that they did intend to return is up to the accused.

Desertion is a much more serious offense than AWOL. Under Article 85, the maximum punishment for Desertion is a Dishonorable Discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement at hard labor for three years. If the prosecution can show evidence that the desertion was with the intent to avoid hazardous duty (such as if the member had orders to deploy to a combat zone), the maximum punishment would be dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement at hard labor for five years. During time of war (such as right now, with the war in Iraq and Afghanistan), the maximum possible punishment is death (although that is unlikely). For details, see Article 85 at: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/punitivearticles/a/mcm85.htm).

Now, for the offense of AWOL, the maximum punishment would be a dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement at hard labor in a Military prison for 18 months. For details, see: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/punitivearticles/a/mcm86.htm

Now, the above are the maximum punishments if your friend is tried by a General Court-Martial (see: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/justicelawlegislation/l/aacmartial1.htm).

In actuality, what will happen is pretty much up to his commanding officer. In civilian life, whether or how an offender will be prosecuted is up to the District Attorney (DA). In the Military, it's up to the commanding officer.

Your friend's commanding officer has several options: He/she may decide to handle the case via court-martial (see above), or he/she may decide to handle it with non-judicial punishment (see: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/justicelawlegislation/a/article15.htm), or he/she may decide to handle it with an administrative discharge (see: http://usmilitary.about.com/od/justicelawlegislation/l/aadischarge1.htm), or he/she may decide to impose Article 15, then follow it up immediately with an administrative discharge, after the punishment is imposed.

In my experience, the latter is the most likely consequence, but -- again -- it's up to the individual commanding officer, and some commanders are more "harsh" on offenses than others, just like some DA's are more "harsh" on offenses than other DA's.

My best advice (based on years of experience) is that he will regret going AWOL, no matter what option his commander chooses.

From experience, your friend probably will not listen to this advice. He/she will likely be one of the hundreds who email me later, saying he made a mistake, and asking me how to fix it. Unfortunately, I'll then have to tell him he can't.

For more information about the United States Military, feel free to visit my U.S. Military information site at: http://usmilitary.about.com

Hope this helps!

Rod Powers
http://usmilitary.about.com