Victor Agosto update
According to preliminary reports, Victor Agosto, the Fort Hood soldier who refused to deploy to Afghanistan, was sentenced to 30 days confinement at his Special Court Martial today (Connect.Amarillo.com link);
Spc. Victor Agosto of Miami was sentenced in an hour-long military-court hearing Wednesday at the Central Texas Army post. It was the maximum penalty specified under his plea agreement under his military prosecutors.
The judge also reduced his rank to private, the lowest rank in the Army hierarchy.
Agosto served in Iraq, but somehow linked that war to Afghanistan and decided he’d rather do jail time than deploy again after he was stop-lossed (he was scheduled to leave the service in August, I believe)
Before he was sentenced Wednesday, Agosto told the judge he believes the war violates international law. He said, however, that courts haven’t recognized soldiers’ rights to refuse an order they deem illegal.
I wonder if he bothered to tell the judge with international law the war violated.
Actually, I’d hoped he would get a year or more – just because he had an idiot for a lawyer. His lawyer, the guy who until recently lived in his grand parents’ basement, called the owner of the IVAW/VFP/VVAW-connected Under the Hood Cafe operator Cynthia Thomas to testify for some reason.
Before the trial, he was quoted by the Bryan College Station Eagle;
Agosto said he was never mistreated by his fellow soldiers or superiors. Many troops have said they support him and flash him the peace sign, and even those who disagree with him still say they respect him, he said.
“This whole experience has been pretty liberating,” Agosto said. And while he has been nervous at times, “it’s better than going to Afghanistan and serving in a war I don’t believe in.”
Yup, being a criminal is always better than doing what you promised to do in the first place.
Category: Antiwar crowd, Usual Suspects
Ok, I didn’t see anything in your story saying that he got a BCD. Did they give him the hook, also? I want to see him do his 30 days and be tossed out on his ear and receive absolutely nothing in the form of benefits. Benefits that Ranger Kopp will never see, because he made the ultimate sacrifice during his 3rd f***ing tour!!!!
This candy assed type of plea agreement just pisses me off to no end. There should be no plea deal for any of them, unless the plea deal works in favor of the military.
Sorry, I’m just a little sensitive to this right now. I’ll calm down after a couple years, or so.
I agree they should have gone further with this. I am sure that there will be stories about his “victory”.
This comment on a story about him had really got me.
“You make all of us as United States citizens really proud! You are one of the few true leaders who can change this world by standing up and acting on their conscience! You are within your rights as a citizen to do so and I for one applaude your actions against this war. You are heroic in your actions. You are of the select few, with the strength to do what they feel is right. You set a good example for those who are weak.”
http://theragblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/gi-victor-agosto-there-is-no-way-i-will.html
Also I found some thing about his discharge.
Also, Agosto cannot be discharged at a level lower than other-than-honorable conditions, an administrative discharge. A discharge was not mentioned in the hearing, but Agosto is expected to be released from the Army after completing his jail term.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/6561589.html
Oh, good, there’s still a chance his bonehead lawyer can screw him to the wall according to Sporkmaster’s link;
His attorney James M. Branum said he plans to appeal for a lesser sentence on the grounds of legal errors. Agosto gave an unsworn statement, which means cross-examination is not allowed.
Too bad Hood still doesnt have the Charlies Chicken Farm near Replacement, would have been a superb Attitude Adjuster for this cowardly punk.
We can only hope.
When the hell are they going to grow a fricken pair and give these cowards the BCD that they deserve? I mean WTF? You can dis-obey orders, refuse to do the job you voluntarily signed up to do and then get a slap on the hand and a stern warning? Did they turn into the UN behind my back!?