"The prosecution played in its entirety LTC Lakins YouTube video announcing his plans to refuse to deploy. At the conclusion of the tape, the birthers in the audience stood and gave sustained applause. The military judge did not gavel the court to order; she simply let them finish. I am reasonably certain that their outburst will not count against the accused; but in no way could it have helped.
"The prosecution called Colonel Roberts, the brigade commander and MOH recipient, to the stand as their first live witness. He testified that the accuseds behavior was unprofessional and had a negative impact on the unit. Cross examination was limited and, according to Colonel Sullivan, didnt really go anywhere.
"MAJ Dobson, the doctor who had to replace LTC Lakin on short notice, testified next. He recounted how two days after arriving in theatre, the unit suffered a mass-casualty attack, with sixteen wounded. He said that he was not, in his opinion, as well-prepared to deal with the attack as he would have been had he had longer to prepare for operations at the FOB. The defense suggested on cross that the deployment was probably a good career opportunity for the major personally. Another point which will likely not go over well.
"The next witness was MAJ Dobsons wife, herself a combat veteran, who testified that she and her husband had to forego some coursework they had planned to take together, and that as a result of his short-notice deployment, he missed the award ceremony in which she was awarded the Bronze Star. She also testified about how hard it was to prepare their young son for his dads sudden and unexpected departure."
I hope that those who have attempted to label LTC Lakin as a hero read this. Lakin should have been the surgeon on the ground dealing with those mass casualties. Instead of answering the call of duty, he was staging a political stunt that was a forlorn hope from the very beginning.
I cannot say what effect this testimony might have on the panel, but I know what my reaction would have been were I sitting on that panel. In my numerous times on a Court Martial panel, I always looked for something in the sentencing phase to give me reason to reduce sentence as I tended to see redeeming virtues in the eyes of a soldier standing in the dock. I'm afraid that this would have the opposite effect.