Alexis Hutchinson was not on the plane when her unit deployed to Afghanistan in November.
Posted on 02/12/2010 8:31:41 AM PST by JoeProBono
SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) -- A single-mom soldier who says she refused to deploy to Afghanistan because she had no family able to care for her young son will be discharged from the military instead of facing a court-martial, the Army said Thursday.
Spc. Alexis Hutchinson, an Army cook stationed at Hunter Army Airfield in Savannah, was arrested in November after skipping her unit's deployment flight. Hutchinson, 21, said she couldn't leave her son because her mother had backed out of plans to keep the child a few days before the soldier's scheduled departure.
The Army filed criminal charges last month against Hutchinson of Oakland, Calif., but a general at neighboring Fort Stewart chose to settle the case by granting her an administrative discharge rather than try her in a military court.....
(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...
Alexis Hutchinson was not on the plane when her unit deployed to Afghanistan in November.
call me sexist.....I just don’t think mothers should be in the military...
that does not mean that I would want the government to pass a law to enforce my opinion...but I am entitled to have one..
should be court martial...
Is that a an honorable discharge or a dishonorable discharge?
As it is, an admin discharge is the best solution. Saves time, saves money, gets her out so she can take care of her kid.
I say just let her go. So what? Like a court martial is going to help the situation.
This female is a disgrace to all the women who serve in our military. She knew when she enlisted that she would have to have a caretaker for children, power of attorney etc etc. Typical example of me, me, me, not an iota of thought to what being a solder is all about. Shame on her
She had no business signing up in the first place. She is a quitter and I don’t want punks like this in my country’s military.
what exactly is an administrative discharge?
The good news is that single parethood should become less of an issue once the military gets rid of DADT. /sarc
I hope this young ‘lady’ got an OTH discharge.
Not a dishonorable one, so she may be able to get a job somewhere. Basically it’s a backdoor “things didn’t work out” discharge, no guilt on her behalf. Joining the military but relying on mommy to take care of a situation she put herself in. And no plan B to top it all off. She should have be given a dishonorable discharge. At least another soldier won’t have to worry about this female covering her back when the lead starts flying.
Administrative Separations. Administrative separations cannot be awarded by a court-martial and are not punitive in nature. Enlisted personnel may be administratively separated with a characterization of service (characterized separation) or description of separation (uncharacterized separation) as warranted by the facts of the particular case.
“Basis” is the reason for which the person is being administratively separated (e.g., pattern of misconduct, convenience of the government for parenthood, weight control failure, etc.). “Characterization of service” refers to the quality of the individual’s military service (e.g., honorable, general, or Other Than Honorable).
Individuals who are separated with less than 180 days of continuous active military service may be separated as an “Entry Level Separation.” In these cases, there is no characterization of service at all.
Another type of administrative separation is “Order of Release from the Custody and Control of the Military Services” by reason of void enlistment or induction. This type of separation also has no characterization of service.
Characterization of Service. Characterization at separation is based upon the quality of the member’s service, including the reason for separation and guidance below. The military determines the “quality of service” in accordance with standards of acceptable personal conduct and performance of duty for military personnel found in the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), directives and regulations issued by the Department of Defense and the Military Departments, and the time-honored customs and traditions of military service.
The quality of service of a member on active duty or active duty for training is affected adversely by conduct that is of a nature to bring discredit on the Military Services or is prejudicial to good order and discipline, regardless of whether the conduct is subject to UCMJ jurisdiction. Characterization may be based on conduct in the civilian community, and the burden is on the respondent to demonstrate that such conduct did not adversely affect the respondent’s service.
The Military considers the reasons for separation, including the specific circumstances that form the basis for the separation, on the issue of characterization. As a general matter, regulations require the military to determine characterization upon a pattern of behavior rather than an isolated incident. There are circumstances, however, in which the conduct or performance of duty reflected by a single incident provides the basis for characterization.
“call me sexist.....I just don’t think mothers should be in the military...”
You are not sexist, you are speaking a truth. Women have no place in the military. The role of a woman in society is to uphold the culture,not engage in warfare. As a woman, I am absolutely opposed to women in the military. When my daughter was in high school, a recruiter called and I let him know my opinion (it is my daughter’s also). He tried to debate the issue, and I demanded he cease calling. The only option should be something on the line of the WWII WACS or WAVES, a support staff for the regular military for females looking for that kind of atmosphere. Women donning fatigues and shooting people is absurd. There is nothing more depressing than a mother engaging in deployment and leaving her children behind. Modern attitudes cite that it is just as sad when a father must leave, but tradition and history recognizes the duty of men to serve their country. I am also the kind of woman who feels that women should cultivate their homes and only work outside of them before marriage or if emergencies arise. The decline of our culture can be directly aligned to the times in history when women and men have abandoned their Biblical roles.
I don’t know the Army requirements but in the Marine Corps ( not corpse) we required our married to each other Marines or our single parent Marines to provide the information on who will be taking care of the children should the parents be deployed. If they cannot provide care for those children then they were released. The Army fell on it’s sword with this. That said, this soldier is guilty of Missing Movement and I don’t know about the Army but in the Marine Corps this would be taken very seriously and there would be a price to pay for this.
If this soldier tried to present her case before the deployment and her superiors ignored this, there is a problem there too. She is getting off easy. As to discharge, in as much as she Misses a Movement I would recommend a General Discharge for the Good of the Service.
Seems like the best solution would be to swap her with a cook that isn’t being deployed. That way she has to stay in the Army. The Army doesn’t have to find another cook or go through the hassle/bad PR/cost of kicking her out. Then just don’t ever promote or let her re-enlist so she can’t get any bennies.
amen sister!
btw— I am a woman also....
I posted this before I read the whole article..she is claiming her mom backed out of the care procedure but others say she had not intention of deploying...so..
We saw some of this with the first Gulf War..it. Thing is too many people used the Military as a haven for bennies and an income especially when they had a situation like this soldier..but when it comes to the time when the rubber meets the road they come up with “ What? we might have to actually go to war?” The military is not a country club, it is deadly serious business.
An admin discharge is not dishonorable BUT it is telling...tells anyone who would know of her service time that her discharge was under circumstances other than honorable but not to the degree of deserving a six six and a kick...it is for the good of the service or COG.
It is my understanding that it is exactly that, an admin discharge (or, rather, a General Discharge), neither honorable or dishonorable, though it can be General Discharge under honorable conditions, or just a General Discharge.
Personally, because she skipped the move, I'd say she should be up for Other than Honorable, but that costs time, and money due to her rights under the UCMJ to have a hearing.
If she'd gone ahead of time and explained her situation, the General under Honorable Conditions would have been appropriate.
“Army discharging single mom who refused deployment”
Why women should not be allowed in the military.
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