Posted on 09/08/2003 5:41:00 PM PDT by Ed Straker
September 08, 2003
Convicted conscientious objector to seek reduced sentence
By Doug Simpson
Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS — A Marine reservist convicted of leaving his unit for 47 days without permission will formally request that his six-month prison sentence be reduced, his lawyer said Sunday.
Steve Collier, lawyer for Lance Cpl. Stephen Funk, also said another part of the sentence is too severe: a bad conduct discharge, which means Funk will lose all his military benefits. Collier said he will request that Funk receive a normal discharge and a prison term of 47 days.
"It would not be unheard of for that to be the punishment in a typical unauthorized absence case," Collier said.
A jury of four Marines found Funk guilty of unauthorized absence and innocent of a more serious charge: desertion with intent to shirk important duty. Along with the prison term and discharge, they also recommended that he be demoted to private, the Marines' lowest rank, and his pay be docked by two-thirds during his incarceration.
Collier said he will submit a formal clemency request to Lt. Gen. Dennis M. McCarthy, commander of the Marine reserves, who has authority to accept or reduce the sentence.
Funk was held in the New Orleans jail Sunday and would likely be transported to a military prison on Monday, Collier said. The prison has not been determined, the Marines said.
Funk will receive his discharge when he's released from prison.
Marine prosecutors accused Funk, 21, of being absent while his San Jose, Calif.-based unit was mobilized Feb. 13 to load ships and cargo planes bound for the Middle East.
Funk said he became a conscientious objector after months of being trained to kill. Funk, who attended anti-war rallies while absent and later announced he was gay, argued that he did not believe he would be ordered to San Diego because those who declare themselves conscientious objectors are usually separated from their unit. If so, he argued, then he would not have had to perform the "important duty."
Marine prosecutors argued that during wartime, any presidential order to report for duty is important.
There were 27 other Marines who declared themselves conscientious objectors to the Iraq war. Like Funk, all were transferred to New Orleans for processing but none of the others were prosecuted because they reported for duty on time, the Marines said.
Of the 27, 16 were granted conscientious objector status, Capt. Jeffrey Pool, a Marine spokesman, said Sunday. Five were denied and the other cases are pending.
Pool said a Marine should know that during an absence of fewer than 30 days cannot be deemed desertion or punished with jail time. Those who return within 30 days face nonjudicial punishment instead of a special court-martial, as Funk did, Pool said.
Let him serve his time in Gitmo. Idiot!
What the hell does anyone enlist in the Marines for? The education? Get real!
I entered the Marines at 17 and would have gladly accepted orders to go into combat for my country. He is a stain on the colors and tradition of the Corps and deserves serving his full sentence, imo.
The court was merciful. They could have removed all of his pay.
Maybe he's married and has an allotment for support of dependents, I dunno.
Give him some brig time to make it plain that there are consequences, shove a bad conduct discharge up his bilge pipe, and throw him out the front gate.
He is unworthy to be called Marine.
He broke the rules and wants special dispensation rather than paying the price, cause the ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOLS are too harsh and he's SEEEEEEEEEEEENSITIIIIIIIIIVE.
He deserves no sympathy.
The military allows that those beliefs they were trained in might legitimately surface AFTER they've enlisted. Generally, they allow them to get out.
I don't believe this guy because he played 2 aces instead of the one. He pulled a conscientious objector stunt AND thought he was throwing trump on it by simultaneously playing the "I'm gay" card.
The 2 combine to convince me that he just wanted out and wanted out fast for personal, selfish reasons.
Stupid freaker was AWOL for 47 days, won't fight for his country and STILL wants his military benefits? Dum bass got off easy, he should be doing multiple years!
National Lawyers Guild Military Law Task Force
Militarization
In a free and democratic society, the military protects the nation against foreign enemies and assists it domestically during emergencies. In an oligarchy or dictatorship, the military is transformed from an institution that serves its citizens into one that controls them. Indications of problematic militarization are:
· When an inordinate percent of a nation's wealth is directed away from the citizenry and its social needs, and into a military/industrial clique that saps the wealth of the nation;
· When foreign wars and incursions serve the interests of corporate wealth, and not the national well-being;
· When participation in the military becomes an unwarranted burden, and youth are coerced, forced, and manipulated to serve in institutions that do not serve their interests;
· And, when the military itself carries such influence with political/corporate leaders that the very decision-making process of democracy is threatened.
When these four conditions become the norm, rather than the exception, the citizenry of a country become servants to its own government. The Military Law Task Force monitors these aspects of military life and involvement, creates programs to counter unnecessary militiaristic involvement, and reports its finding to the National Lawyers Guild and the nation.
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