STORY AND PHOTO BY KAREN BOSSICK
Hailey native Bowe Bergdahl was dishonorably discharged but will not have to serve any prison time for walking away from his post in Afghanistan.
Military Judge Col. Jeffrey Nance ruled Friday that the 31-year-old sergeant’s rank would be reduced to E-1 and that he will forfeit $1,000 a month for the next 10 months.
Bergdahl, who walked into the courtroom in Fort Bragg in military uniform, walked out in civilian clothes.
Bergdahl could have faced life in prison after pleading guilty to one count of desertion with intent to shirk important or hazardous duty and one count of misbehavior before the enemy.
The prosecution sought a 14-year prison sentence, arguing that the desertion in 2009 resulted in injuries for three men who searched for him. One, shot in the head, is paralyzed and unable to speak. Another’s hand was injured.
But, while Bergdahl apologized profusely for the injuries they suffered, his defense attorneys said their client couldn’t be blamed for the chain of events that included decisions by others during the searches.
President Trump immediately weighed in Friday’s ruling calling it “a complete and total disgrace.” Ironically, earlier comments by presidential candidate Trump that Bergdahl was a “dirty rotten traitor” and that he should be executed may have played a role in the judge’s sentence.
Bergdahl’s attorney Eugene Fidell said President Trump’s effort to “stoke a lynch-mob atmosphere” had cast a dark cloud over the case.
It’s unknown what Bergdahl will do now or whether he will return to Idaho that the sentencing is behind him. A woman who cares for cats said he had a job with her if he wanted, as he has a way with cats that makes him a “cat whisperer.”
Bergdahl walked away from his post in Afghanistan in 2009, saying he wanted to bring his concerns about issues in his unit to the attention of authorities. He was immediately captured and endured five years of being caged, enduring torture and near starvation. Bowe once escaped for nine days, trying to survive by eating grass before being recaptured.
During court testimony, which lasted more than a week, it was revealed that Bergdahl was eager to cooperate with government authorities upon his release, providing valuable intelligence about his Taliban captors.
An intelligence analyst involved with the lengthy debriefing called the information he shared a “gold mine” that reshaped the way the military viewed intelligence gathering in the region. Another official said Bergdahl could be helpful in training military personnel about surviving captivity.
A psychiatrist told the judge that Bergdahl suffers from schizotypal personality disorder, chronic post-traumatic stress disorder, cognitive deficits and social phobia, which likely played a role in his decision to abandon his post. The U.S. Coast Guard had dismissed Bergdahl before he joined the Army because of a panic attack that was likely related to schizotypal personality disorder, he added.
An Army doctor said the malnutrition Bergdahl endured caused permanent nerve damage, also known as neuropathy, in his legs, which can make walking difficult and painful.
Residents of the Wood River Valley largely supported the home-schooled kid who grew up hunting in the hills around Hailey following his capture. They tied yellow ribbons around street posts in Hailey and along fence posts in Sun Valley.
Bergdahl’s mother Jani met with elementary schoolchildren who chanted “Bring Bowe home!” as she told them about her soldier son and handed out plastic bracelets made up on his behalf.
And in 2012 the community held a Bowe Bergdahl Bash, which attracted 400 motorcycle riders representing various POW-MIA groups.
“We look at the flags around this park—all reminders that one of our own is missing. And that’s not okay with us,” Hailey Mayor Fritz Haemmerle told a couple thousand people who had gathered around the stage during the bash. “That’s not okay with Jani and Bob Bergdahl. And the city of Hailey wants its son back.”
But death threats from outside began streaming into the community in the wake of the bash, causing Bowe’s supporters to hunker down. And, as time wore on, some in the community began voicing their disapproval of his actions.
Many of the valley residents who championed Bergdahl in the first few years of his captivity declined to comment on the judge’s ruling Friday. Not all remained silent, however.
Myrna Oliver and Dennis Hanggi have been following the case closely since it started and were happy for the young man.
“We believe justice has been done and that he’s more than paid his due,” said Oliver. “Hopefully, he can come home and begin to heal.”