You’re Not a Veteran if You Deserted Boot Camp

According to an article posted by Reason.com, a Pennsylvania court decided that a man is not a veteran and not entitled to veteran benefits because he deserted boot camp.

The question of ‘what qualifies someone as being a veteran?’ has long been a debate.  It’s like adult diapers – it depends.  It depends on who is establishing the criteria.  Some say 180 days of active duty, but what if someone is wounded and discharged before 180 days.  What if a reservist does boot camp, leaves active duty and is discharged to a drilling reserve status.  Marines require completion of boot camp to earn the title ‘Marine’ but if they fall short and are discharged are they a veteran but just not a Marine?

We wrote about Chris Crawford here.

Chris Crawford

If You Deserted While Still in Boot Camp, You’re Not a “Veteran”

So holds a Pennsylvania court, affirming a conviction for fraudulently obtaining money by claims of veteran status.

EUGENE VOLOKH – 5.24.2021

In Commonwealth v. Crawford, decided last week by the Pennsylvania intermediate appellate court (in an opinion by Judge Pellegrini, joined by Judges Murray and McLaughlin),

Christopher Michael Crawford … enlisted with the United States Army in 2007. Within three months of his enlistment, Crawford had gone AWOL from boot camp and was classified as a deserter without having completed his training.

Crawford surrendered himself to military authorities on November 9, 2007, and was discharged on other than honorable conditions at that time. According to the discharge papers that Crawford signed, the lack of an honorable discharge meant that he could be deprived of “rights and benefits as a veteran under both federal and state law.” The testimony of the Director of Veterans Affairs in Lackawanna County (David Eisele) established that these discharge conditions would relegate Crawford to the status of a civilian who would not be entitled to join any American Legion posts….

Nonetheless, Crawford joined an American Legion post, apparently telling them “that he was a veteran of the Iraq War and that he had received a Purple Heart for sustaining a brain injury from an explosive device. Crawford also regularly wore a cap affixed with badges and pins which are only conferred upon military veterans for exploits that Crawford had never achieved. These unearned decorations included a Combat Infantryman Badge and a 10th Mountain Division pin.”

He later became a post finance officer, and ended up using his position “to make purchases and withdrawals [using the post’s debit cards] totaling over $17,000 for purposes that did not at all relate to the Post. For example, some of the charges on the debit cards included payments for bars, hotels, restaurants, casinos and flights to Florida.” As a result, he was prosecuted based in part on a Pennsylvania statute, 18 Pa. Cons. Stats. § 6701(b), which provides,

A person commits a misdemeanor of the third degree if, with intent to obtain money, property or other benefit, the person fraudulently holds himself out to be any of the following:

(1) A member or veteran of any branch of the armed forces of the United States or of any of the several states.

(2) The recipient of any decoration or medal authorized by the Congress of the United States for the armed forces of the United States or any of the service medals or any decoration awarded to members of the armed forces of the United States or of any of the several states.

The court concluded that the statute clearly applied to Crawford.

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