Puckett & Faraj

The military has personnel policies in place to deal with family emergencies from granting emergency leave, to identifying family and friends to care for dependents in your stead, to granting humanitarian permanent duty station moves. The military member’s unit commander makes these administrative decisions. Sometimes when the commander executes one of the administrative options available, it runs afoul because of lack of good communications between the command and the military member.

Family Emergency Leave

PFC Christopher Pfeiffer came home on a mid-tour rest and recuperation leave from Afghanistan for the care of his medically ill pregnant wife who was to deliver their first child. The mid-tour leave from a combat deployment is usually only 2 weeks long. PFC Pfeiffer requested additional leave for his wife’s medical emergency and at the time, his yet unborn child.

AWOL and Desertion

In the course of the long distance communication with the command, it appears the facts were blurred and misunderstandings resulted. PFC Pfeiffer returned to Kuwait and awaited military transport to rejoin his unit. His intent was exactly that, to rejoin his unit. Yet his command classified him as a deserter, and his pay was docked beginning 30 days after his official return date. He was arrested while awaiting military airlift at the theater aerial port of embarkation. He had no intention of desertion as the Army now asserts.

Rest and Recuperation Leave

Military members accrue 2.5 days of leave for every 30 days of duty with pay and allowances. Members are encouraged to take approximately 30 days of leave a year, and can carry over a maximum of 60 days of accrued leave between fiscal years. Any excess above that is time lost. Rest and Recuperation leave is designed for use when Soldiers are in a combat zone and administered by the unit commander. Only one 2-week period is authorized per 12-month deployment.

Administrative vs. Military Legal Case

Tracking individual military members in and out of the battlefield is difficult as is managing all the requests for emergency leave. Yet there are administrative means to deal with these family medical emergencies and in this case, the Army let an administrative process unnecessarily turn into a military legal issue.

The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is supporting efforts in DoD to define the number of traumatic brain injuries or concussions military members suffer before they are pulled out of combat to recover, serve in the military camps or be returned to the US.

Multiple TBI Events Trigger Reassignment

Multiple concussive events could trigger reassignment from the front lines. COL Macedonia, the CJCS’s medical science adviser estimates that if the number of concussive events was set at three, there would be 150 – 400 of the 15,000 to 20,000 military members in Afghanistan reassigned. The Marines already have a policy in place to pull troops out of combat based on a history of multiple concussions during a tour.

Symptoms of TBI and PTSD

Patients with TBI are at increased risk for psychiatric disorders compared to the general population. Those disorders could include depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which affects behavior. Patients experience flash backs, avoid anything linked with the event including friends, have difficulty concentrating and are agitated and irritable, show signs of anger, depression, abuse alcohol or other substances. These effects on behavior can extend to criminal activity. The military courts are beginning to recognize the effects of TBI as a contributing factor to criminal activity. Several state bars and judicial systems have begun “Veteran Courts”, to manage sentencing of offenders who have demonstrated PTSD and TBI symptoms.

TBI/PTSD in the Courtroom

Recognizing and getting medical assistance for any TBI or PTSD is crucial to the well being of military members. If a family member or friend is being charged with a crime in the military, make sure their military attorney knows about any possible TBI events during their deployment and tell the military lawyer about any PTSD symptoms you’ve noticed since their return. A military member suffering with TBI and/or PTSD may not effectively assist in their military defense during a court-martial.