Bergdahl won’t serve time in prison
FORT BRAGG, N.C. — A military judge ruled Friday that Bowe Bergdahl should serve no prison time for endangering his comrades by walking off his post in Afghanistan.
The judge also gave Bergdahl, 31, a dishonourable discharge, reduced his rank to private and said he must forfeit pay equal to $1,000 per month for 10 months. The judge made no other comments.
Bergdahl appeared tense, grimaced and clenched his jaw. His attorneys put their arms around him and one patted him on the back.
Bergdahl pleaded guilty to desertion and misbehaviour before the enemy and had faced up to life in prison. The judge had wide leeway because Bergdahl made no deal with prosecutors to limit his sentence.
Prosecutors had sought stiff punishment because of wounds to service members who searched for Bergdahl after he disappeared in 2009. He was held captive by the Taliban for five years.
The defence sought to counter that evidence with testimony about Bergdahl’s suffering during five years as a captive of Taliban allies, his contributions to military intelligence and survival instruction and his mental health problems.
A punitive discharge deprives Bergdahl of most or all his veterans’ benefits.
In closing arguments, defence attorneys argued Bergdahl already suffered enough confinement during five years of brutal captivity by the Taliban. They asked the judge to give their client a dishonourable discharge and no prison time.
During the multi-day sentencing hearing, Bergdahl himself testified that he was sorry for the wounds suffered by searchers. He also described brutal beatings by his captors, illness brought on by squalid conditions and maddening periods of isolation. A psychiatrist testified that his decision to leave his post was influenced by a schizophrenia-like condition called schizotypal personality disorder that made it hard to understand consequences of his actions, as well as post-traumatic stress disorder brought on partly by a difficult childhood.
Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 14 years in prison.
“Sgt. Bergdahl does not have a monopoly on suffering as a result of his choices,” said Maj. Justin Oshana, a prosecutor.