servicemembers – Page 2 – Conduct Unbecoming

072 US v. Nelson

Prior to recent legally dubious phone searches at border crossings, I have never had occasion to sweat giving someone access to my phone. Now, I fear my pure sass would have me, a U.S. citizen, extradited to a country I have no ties to. I suppose we are all fortunate that I squeaked back into the country when I did. At least now we know that, should I vacation abroad, I’ll take a prepaid phone without my usual detritus on it.

I recognize that as an adult who didn’t have a smartphone until my senior year of college, I got a lot of growing up out of the way in the pre-digital era, and, I’ve always been a total rule follower, as I suspect many middle children obsessed with fairness are. That’s all to say it’s not shocking to me that young people with access to the entire world in the palm of their hands sometimes retain incriminating evidence on their phones and might not realize that some things shouldn’t be documented for posterity. That some paper trails can only cause harm. For Lance Corporal Nelson, it wasn’t so much that he didn’t realize how closely he should safeguard his phone, but rather that he avows he did not understand what his privacy rights were.

This episode discussed substance use. If you, or someone you know is struggling with substance use, the SAMHSA National Helpline can be reached at 1-800-662-HELP and their treatment locator is available online.

I relied heavily on the NMCCA and CAAF opinions. I also referred to the information from some of the briefing.

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Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to share, rate and review it wherever you hit play today. I’m happy to receive constructive feedback or case suggestions at conductunbecomingpod@gmail.com. Join me over on Instagram @conductunbecoming!

Disclaimer: Conduct Unbecoming is a podcast where I get to talk about interesting crimes and cases that involve US military service members. I research, write, and produce the podcast myself… the opinions expressed are my own and, perhaps it’s obvious, Conduct Unbecoming is not approved, endorsed, or authorized by the Department of Defense. I am not a military JAG and have never been a military JAG. While I’m a practicing attorney, I don’t do direct criminal defense. This podcast is a passion project, not legal advice or expert opinion.

071 US v. Ohu

In the aftermath of a sexual assault, one young Marine struggled to cope with what happened, and with her underlying health conditions. It seemed for her that each place she turned, she was met with either unwillingness or inability to help. She continued to spiral until someone ended up in custody… not her assailant, but her.

For more information on intimate partner violence, I urge you to explore Alliance For Hope and their Family Justice Center Alliance. If you need help finding shelter in your area, please visit DomesticShelters.org. Last, but not least, many law schools and courthouses offer free legal assistance for people seeking protective restraining orders.

This episode contains a discussion of suicidal ideation/attempted suicide/death by suicide. If you are experiencing thoughts of self-harm, I urge you to contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988. Help is also available via chat on their website. For support specific to veterans, first dial 988, then selecting option 1. They also have veteran-specific chat support.

I relied heavily on the record of trial filed with CAAF. I also referenced articles from the Marine Corps Times (1)(2)(3), Military Times, Military.com, Army Times, Pilot Online (1)(2), and The War Horse (1)(2).

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070 US v. Soloshenko

Sometimes when I need to compose a challenging message, I rely on a council of women. It’s always women because I have many years of Taboo board game experience and a team of women will win every time.

My first council of women messaging meeting followed a weird twenty first birthday in which the young man I was dating ignored all of my friends and criticized me for consuming a single mojito with my dinner. I gathered my trusted sorority sisters and inquired how one might end things because I’d not had to do that before. It was immensely helpful to draw on one another’s experiences and find a message that was gentle, but clear. Firm, but polite.

The relationship at the heart of this episode was similarly ill fated. I have nothing to suggest that a council of women helped a young woman select her messaging. But we do know that there was a text message break up that was clear, but apparently not firm. Unfortunately, the ensuing relationship relapse was neither gentle nor polite. But much more alarmingly, it wasn’t consensual.

This episode involved discussion of sexual assault. There are a number of resources available for survivors and victim of sexual assault, including the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). They offer a free, confidential national sexual assault hotline at 800-656-HOPE as well as an online chat option.

I relied heavily on the AFCCA opinion. I also referenced a Military Times article regarding the DOD directive to cease funding SAFE exams in some circumstances.

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069 US v. Thomas

The last two times I reported for jury duty, I got kicked by the parties using peremptory challenges. The first time, I was working on post conviction record relief and it was a criminal case–a prosecutor’s least favorite kind of juror. The second time, I held a more general legal position and it was a civil case. I think both times I got kicked it was because I’m an attorney and, well, attorneys think other attorneys won’t make good jurors. But, attorneys aren’t generally a protected class, and it’s totally kosher to keep us off of juries. At least, it’s kosher as long as we’re kicked for our profession and not for our race, gender, or handful of other identifiers. In the prosecution of Sergeant Thomas, a case that implicated race, gender, and religion, the art of panel selection spawned a lot of creative interpretation.

I relied heavily on the ACCA and CAAF opinions. I also referred to the briefing, which is available on the ACCA website, and additional information about Batson.

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068 US v. Harpole; US v. Deremer

My freshman year of college, I spent a lot of time out of my dorm room. Which, given the size of the room I shared with two other women, was objectively the correct choice. My primary motivation for avoiding the room my parents lovingly and generously paid for was a roommate that was… very friendly… with members of the opposite sex. I didn’t want to sit in awkward tension while my roommate waited for me to leave or fall asleep, so I made myself as scarce as possible. Preparing the episode script and reading about roommates in tight quarters aboard a ship made me profoundly thankful that, although my roommate made it difficult to spend time in my room, at least the activities she engaged in were consensual.

I relied heavily on two CGCCA opinions (1)(2), two CAAF opinions (1)(2), and an NMCCA opinion. I also pulled details from some of the appellate briefing.

I referenced information obtained from Passagemaker, the NY Times, and NSVRC.org.

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067 US v. Swisher

Just before last call in a beachfront party area, two sets of men observed a woman that was a little too drunk. What they chose to do, having realized she was so vulnerable, proved the litmus test for them. The events of December 1, 2019 stand to show that it’s perhaps not all men that would assault women when given the opportunity, but certainly Lance Corporal Swisher.

I relied heavily on all three NMCCA opinions (1, 2, 3) and the CAAF opinion, and briefing. I also reference information from AP News, WPDE, WMBF News, and CNN.

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066 US v. Hilton

A few years back, we were at a holiday party when the host grabbed my butt. I turned in horror and he observed to his friend that what he did was “probably not good.” I scooped up my spouse, explained that I wouldn’t be in the same room with that man again, and I’m happy to report to you all my life has been blissfully unwanted buttgrab free.

The most ideal situation is not having entitled men grab women when they feel they’ll get away with it. The second best outcome was mine: a partner who believed me and respected my desire not to be around someone I’ve deemed unsafe. But I do wonder if I should have made a bigger deal out of it, or sought to learn if this was his common course of conduct. I wondered how many other women deemed him unsafe. I’ve thought about that a lot as I dug into this case.

Lieutenant Colonel Hilton seemed to have a familiarity with women that was both unearned and unwanted. Perhaps to him it was no big deal – he trained as a urologist, someone who saw sensitive areas all day. Perhaps to him a body was a body. But it sure mattered to the women whose bodily autonomy he ignored or overbore over the course of his tenure overseas.

I relied heavily on the AFCCA opinion and an article on the matter from Stripes.

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065 US v. Jenkins/Edwards

It’s been my experience that women and girls receive a lot of messaging around domestic violence. We’re coached to recognize warning signs and to get out. In hushed conferences, we advise each other to set aside a little money, just in case. We tentatively poke at the edges of relationships to try and discern whether our friends are safe. I don’t offer this to suggest that men cannot or do not suffer from domestic violence, but to highlight that we tend to focus on teaching women what to do if they find themselves embroiled in a violent dynamic. But, in the cases of Air Force Technical Sergeants Jenkins and Edwards, messaging towards men about blending families, managing anger, and having difficult conversations would have been far more helpful to the women in their lives.

I relied exclusively on the AFCCA opinions (Jenkins/Edwards) for this episode, and checked the CAAF Daily Journal for updates about further appeals.

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064 Japan v. Alkonis

There are parts of the drive up to the national park atop Haleakala that start to feel a little otherworldly. You’re angled up and climbing quickly, and you can lose sight of the horizon before you crest a hill and reacquaint yourself accordingly. The effects of altitude can be potent, and they can come on quickly. Best practice is, of course, to stop and park to avoid driving unsafely.

For Lieutenant Alkonis, pulling over simply wasn’t an option and resulted in his minivan careening into parked cars and pedestrians, killing two people.

I accessed the Congressional record and articles from the Japan Times, American Military News, KUTV, Military.com, CBS, CNN, BBC, Salt Lake Tribune, and Task and Purpose.

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063 US v. Lee

This case has a lot of moving parts, but in trying to write this introduction, I found I kept distilling it to the same point. Viewed through a relationships lens, this case highlights how far two women would go for the men they loved. One woman, grieving the loss of her beloved, vowed to work towards a more effective military justice system. The other helped hide her fugitive boyfriend and, after his arrest, tacked a sign that said “we have no comment” to her front door. But this case really isn’t about these women, but rather the reverberations from the repeated, but varied, criminal actions of Specialist Lee.

I accessed articles from Stripes (1)(2)(3), Army.mil, the Army Times, KOMO News (1)(2), KIRO 7, The News Tribune, Army CID, YouTube, King 5, and the Seattle Times.

This episode also mentions suicidal ideation. If you are experiencing thoughts of self-harm, I urge you to contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988. Help is also available via chat on their website.

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