Posted on 12/15/2010 4:47:28 PM PST by iowamark
An Army doctor who disobeyed orders to deploy to Afghanistan because he questioned President Barack Obama's eligibility for office told a jury he was wrong to do so and would now deploy if he could.
Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin of Greeley, Colo., was speaking during a court martial hearing Wednesday.
Earlier, the jury convicted Lakin of missing a flight that would have gotten him to Fort Campbell, Ky., for his eventual deployment, and Lakin has already pleaded guilty to another charge against him. Lakin gave his statement to the jury before the members decide his eventual punishment.
(Excerpt) Read more at ksro.com ...
The first part of that statement is correct. The second part is not. An order requiring the performance of a normal, military duty is presumed lawful and is disobeyed at the peril of the person receiving it. The only exception to that is an order requiring the performance of an obviously illegal act - mass murder for example. The question of whether an order is legal or illegal is a matter for a military judge to determine and not an individual.
It's an expensive point to make. He's thrown away his pension, ended his career, and is probably going to do some prison time. I hope his point was worth it to him and his family.
If he gets the maximum he's looking at 3 1/2 years. Even if he gets that I doubt he'll serve more than half of it.
Hogwash!
He deserves what’s coming to him, but I feel a little sorry for the guy. I understand wanting to take a principled stand, but I think he got some really lousy coaching and encouragement from people who were just blind to the real issues he would face. He was stupid for fall for it. Now he sees it.
The maximum prison sentence he faces is 3 years.
As a doctor, he’ll probably spend most of that time working in the prison clinic. He should anyway... no sense putting his career to waste.
What's sad is that such a conclusion was as predictable as the sun rising from the east and the moment Lakin made his intentions known, many here predicted exactly this conclusion. Lakin's own friends, family and coworkers urged him to get his head examined! And on the other side, birthers with nothing to lose cheered him on every step of the way.
Lakin ignored the advice from those who cared about him while embracing the "expert" legal opinions posted by birthers on internet blogs.
And today Lt. Col Lakin is a broken man who will likely tomorrow lose both his freedom and his hard-earned pension, an outcome predicted months ago by many on this forum who would be denigrated as "O-bots" and trolls by the very people promoting the half-baked conspiracies and dubious legal strategies that brought ruin to Lakin.
Every word you say is true. I am still perplexed why an educated man who is seemingly intelligent and with that much service time could be so gullible as to become a pawn.
The judge had the the AUDACITY to tell a superior officer who held GENERAL COURTS-MARTIAL AUTHORITY that he didn't understand the UCMJ well enough to appear!!!!!
This was something we fought about 2 centuries ago!!!
It amazing how a few words like “reverse course or get 20 years hard labor” has on someone who suddenly realizes that the “jury” ‘had convicted him before the case started. Never play against a stacked deck.
When in Rome, do as the Romans.
When ruled by a Kenyan Muslim, Salute the Kenyan Muslim.
A good lesson for the rest of the troops to learn before Hussein orders them to train their guns on us.
“If he gets the maximum he’s looking at 3 1/2 years. Even if he gets that I doubt he’ll serve more than half of it.”
He should serve at least 10. Having the audacity to confront a Communist Kenyan dictator .... most would rot in jail for a life time for that. He should get at least 10. Add to that he’s a white male, he’s damn lucky he’s not in the gallows.
I feel sorry for the guy. Someone from the eligibility movement probably sold him a bill of goods and got him into this mess. I just hope he doesn’t have to do time. What a waste. This issue needs to be decided by the SCOTUS or the Congress.
I blame Congress for this whole situation. They should have challenged Obama’s credentials when McCain was having to submit his documents.
If Lakin gets 3.5 years he may still be there when Barry arrives to start his sentence for crimes agains’t the state.
He saw it as a slam dunk. Who the hell in their right mind thinks he's qualified now? No one. He can't produce an American BC, never has, never will, because he never had one. The man is 50 years old, and not one person alive can say they have seen it. Obama could come out tomorrow and show pictures of himself being born in Kenya, and the press would fawn over it and the Army brass would smile. Hell, his wife has already stated that Kenya is his home country. Lakin failed to understand that the constitution is meaningless to these people.
Hey drew, you sure sound pleased with yourself.I wonder why that is.
We may have to do it again.
So true.
In fact, you could end up in Leavenworth for some reeducation if you don't.
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