My experience with a deserter long ago and far away. | Eastern North Carolina Now

    The Army had a detailed method for accounting for the location and duty status of each soldier in each unit. Each unit submitted a morning report showing strength and number of soldiers in each unit as of the date of the report.

    If I remember correctly, the procedure then was to list them on the morning report as "In Transit" for a short time period and then to "AWOL" for thirty days and finally change the status to "Deserted" after thirty days. That of course assumes that there was no evidence of capture or combat related action. The Army had a daily head count on every assigned soldier and the rules for classification are clearly documented in the Field Manuals. Late reporting to duty was usually applied to GI returning from R&R or in country leave. They would be put in In transit status.

    I was reassigned from the field to the rear detachment later in my tour of duty as a company clerk and later NCOIC (Non Commissioned Officer in Charge). The job was to keep the rear detachment of a company in order and manage the coming and going of various GI to and from R&R, Sick Call and various other reasons for being in the rear with the gear. In short, I was the bad cop. Anyone who has ever been in the military knows that GI can be very creative in their efforts to get out of certain duties. We called it "Shamming" when a guy would have a phony reason to come back from the field to base camp for no reason. To board the resupply copter from the field to base camp, you had to convince the Platoon Leader or medic that you needed to be back for one reason or the other.

    My job did not make me the most popular guy in the unit, but those I spent time with in the field with understood my good fortune. The key was to remember that you were there in support of them. One of the side benefits of NCOIC was I was the one who usually made the decision on how to handle late returnees from R&R. R&R usually lasted for seven days including transit. I had the ability if not the authority to request a guy from the field to come in for his R&R, which was a scheduled event. I usually gave them a day back before they had to leave country. If they were late, I would list them as in transit for a day. I could stretch the R&R out to 10-12 days before they had to return to the field.

    Normally the First Sargent and Executive Officer did not get into the details of individual soldiers and that allowed me to have a little latitude. I must admit I used it to my maximum ability. That flexibility changed if the unit was engaged in heavy combat in which case "Every Swinging D#&k" was sent to the field.

    Long before I was in the rear, we had a guy in our unit who lost his good sense and went AWOL in country. I do not remember the exact details now but I think he just did not return from R&R. He Probably got drunk and hooked up with the underground GI's. The investigation revealed that he did return back in country but between Saigon and our base Camp in Dau Tieng he just disappeared. I knew him well, we had been in several firefights, and he never demonstrated any fear or cowardice in combat. I suspect that he just dug himself a hole and the longer he stayed AWOL, the harder it was to return voluntarily.

    Surprisingly, it was easy to blend in as rarely were anyone checking papers or orders. If you were in fatigues, you could come and go freely. This was especially true in the major cities like Saigon (I will eventually learn that it now called Ho Chi Minh City, the winners get to name it anything they want).

    One must remember that the Vietnamese are very friendly people. They are used to the presence of Foreigners as colonist, invaders, or liberators in their society. You make up your own mind into what category the US GI's fell. I do not care about your opinion on the matter.

    Getting into Vietnam was easy, moving around in the country was easy as you could get a hop on various copters and fixed wing planes from base camp to base camp if they had room. Getting out of Vietnam was a bit different. If you wanted to get on a plane bound for the good old US of A. You had to have orders and everything would be checked thoroughly. That in essence made The Nam a large prison filled with inmates who were doing their time.

    Eventually, they either caught he surrendered in Saigon and returned him to the 25th Division Brig for processing. For some reason he was assigned back to the Company while awaiting trial. He had free movement in the base camp and was now my responsibility. I asked him if he planned to take off again and he gave me his word he was ready to take his punishment and go home. My memory is that he was way past his twelve-month tour and would have already been back in the states had he stayed in the unit.

    By the time the trial came around, most of his close buddies had already DEROS'ed back to the World. Only two of us had served in the field with him and his Adjutant appointed attorney asked if we would testify on his behalf. Both of us agreed. It was a short testimony and we both vouched that he never showed any signs of cowardice and had actually been wounded in battle and received a Bronze Star and Purple Heart. That was confirmed by his military records. He performed his duties as an infantry soldier.

    We were never asked our opinion on the matter, but merely if he was a good soldier prior to going AWOL. We both agreed and testified that yes, he was. He was convicted at the general court martial and I suspect sentenced to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas to serve his time. I do not remember the exact penalty.

    I have often thought of him over the years and wondered what became of him. The veteran who maintains our website has requested most of the after action reports and rosters of the units and actions. He is the go to guy for facts about the unit operations but I have not bothered to check it out. I have tried to look up deserters and suspect it is public knowledge but just not digitized on the internet.

    I just wanted to put it behind me and never bothered to research or document any events except one on April 4, 1968. As I approach my own DEROS from this earth, I have often thought back on those days am now writing my memories of that year for my family. It is strange how the memories long buried and covered over come back with such clarity when you just scratch the surface a bit.

    Above is a picture I took of him while he was awaiting his court martial. One would wonder why he I allowed him to have possession of a weapon while under arrest. It is not loaded the magazine is empty and this is a staged picture. He was on what I guess you would call house arrest. I took this picture as a joke about him being a pseudo-enemy. Many would not understand why others and I would not look upon this guy as an enemy, but the fact is most understood that he had just lost his way and became embedded in the Vietnamese society. One thing I do know was that he was not a coward or an anti-war protester. He was just an American boy who made a tragic mistake and most likely has paid the price for the rest of his life. In some respects, he is no different than most of us. If he is alive today, he no doubt has some terrible memories and may even be second-guessing his actions during his service. In that respect, he is on the same emotional merry-go-round, albeit from going around in a different direction. I recall his name, but I cannot find him listed in my copies of the Company rosters.

    My Christian upbringing has taught me to be wary of making judgement about other people in regards to their salvation. It also teaches me to forgive others. Judgement is right and proper in the secular world but when it comes to the spiritual gatekeeper role, there is but one judge and it is not me.

    1 Judge not, that ye be not judged.
    2 For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
    3 And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Matthew 7:1-3King James Version (KJV)
    14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
    15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matthew 6:14-15King James Version (KJV)