All Fired Up!, an internet talk-show, was hosted by Betty Kilbride for their Military Monday piece and our military justice system was the focus of the show, with Justin’s case being the example. Listen as she talks though all the issues and setbacks.
Justin’s case in particular starts at around the seventeen minute mark.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/allfiredup/2010/09/14/all-fired-up-military-monday-whost-betty-kilbride
Reposting this little piece right here, incase anyone hasn’t seen it yet.
Jim Hoffer from ABC News’ WABC Investigative Team takes a look at SGT Boyle’s case. Watch the video and read more:
Four tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan where as an intelligence officer, he’s credited with rounding up more than 400 insurgents. An Army career marked by medals and commendations earned by repeatedly putting his life on the line.
After about 3 hours of deliberation the panel returned. Beside me, my husband Robert, behind me rows of soldiers supporting Justin, in front of me my son, my soldier, my hero. We all sat in silence waiting and hoping and praying.
When the panel returned we heard the unthinkable, “guilty”. I burst into tears, and all my son kept saying was, “Mom are you alright?” That was just like my boy, just convicted of involuntary manslaughter, facing prison and worrying about me.
Minutes later my son’s attorney asked if I was ready to get on the stand. I asked for a few moments to compose myself and then I took the stand. It was the most heart wrenching moment of my life. Instead of pleading for leniency all I wanted to do was scream; scream at every one of those panel members. He was innocent and everyone in the courtroom knew it!
I took a deep breath walked to the stand raised my right hand, swore to tell the truth and proceeded to answer all the questions Justin’s lawyer asked. I know now that no matter what I said it would not have mattered, the panel proved that when they sentenced my son to 10 more months than the prosecution asked for. Tears were falling down my husband’s cheeks when I returned to my seat. My husband never cries…
After sentencing, my husband and I were taken to the defense room to say goodbye. The lawyers were trying to explain what would be happening in the next few days, but I didn’t hear a word they said. My head was a swirl of emotions; sorrow, anger, disbelief, fear.
I didn’t want to leave the room; I didn’t want to leave my son. I did not want to say goodbye.
I hugged my son for as long as I could and told him how very much I loved him, my husband did the same. Justin turned to us as we were about to leave and said, “I’m sorry.” My husband answered, “You have nothing to be sorry for, you did nothing wrong and we are very proud of you.”
An escort vehicle was parked in front of the courthouse, and some of the soldiers stayed behind to say their goodbyes as he was taken into custody.
So that was it. Eight years of being a military mom, 4 deployments, tearful goodbyes and returns, the waiting, the worrying, the sleepless nights, the pride, the joy, the blue star hanging in my window; it all ended that night, the night they took my son from me.
LTG Dana Chipman, the Judge Advocate General of the U.S. Army (JAG General),
Sir, I respect you as a man, as a General, but most of all I respect your position. It’s was an honor to find you on Facebook several months ago. As we both know that our new generation of soldiers and veterans do most of their networking on the web, like Facebook, MySpace or Blogs.
I want you to know that I am not here to disrespect you or your Facebook. I also know as a veteran/soldier you cannot answer questions in which we wish you could, due to your position. I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for letting us post questions on your Facebook and not deleting them. I also do understand that some posts must be deleted, because of disrespecting you or the U.S. Army.
As you are aware this weekend there will be an event for The Leavenworth Ten (L10) men who are in prison at Fort Leavenworth, KS. I know each and every case is different in its own way. There are cases I just cannot let rest in my heart and in my thoughts. One of these cases is about an Officer and another one is about a Sergeant, not taking anything away from the other eight.
I would like to take 1LT Behenna’s case. I am sure you are aware of his case. Please read the statement below and think about how this could go on in “OUR” Army. The army, I bled RED, WHITE, AND BLUE Blood many times in combat during my 22 years of service.
I have study his case inside and out, and I have talked to several soldiers in that command. As you know, soldiers who are still on Active Duty will not speak out about issues like this one. We both know why they cannot. This is why I am speaking for them. If we as people and as men and women who wear a uniform don’t stand up for those who have paid the high price for us then we are doomed.
How can this go on…? Please read…
During his 1LT Behenna’s CM the prosecution expert Dr. Herbert MacDonnell initiated contact with defense attorneys explaining his agreement with the testimony of Lt. Behenna and his presentation to prosecutors supporting Lt. Behenna’s version of events. Dr. MacDonnell is not called to testify in the case and instead is sent home.
Just before leaving the courthouse he picks up his coat from the prosecution room and says to the three prosecutors (Megan Poirier, Jason Elbert, and Erwin Roberts), ‘The explanation that 1Lt Behenna just testified to be the exact same scenario I told you yesterday. 1Lt Behenna is telling the truth.’
Now, I am not saying that this officer did not do any wrong here. Yes, he could have done a lot of things differently. I do see both side of this case, since I have sat on many CM’s in my career. I just do not understand how this officer could be sent to prison for murder. After reading all of the paperwork and reading the above case. I would like to make this clear … I do not know any of his family or friends.
Yes, I have had contact with his parents but only to give my support. I believe his family and friends have been nothing but professional in this case. They have also stated many times that we must always remain professional when it comes to the L10 men and the U.S. Army. I believe every one of these families has been nothing but professional considering what has happened to them. There is no way I can say I understand what they are going through, but I believe as a veteran I can do something, and that is speak out about their case.
What is wrong with our system when the bad guys win? We have always stood as a land of freedom. It is a sorrowful thing to learn that after over 200 years of defending our freedom and the freedom of others, we are now reneging on our promise.
I will never believe this is what our forefathers had in mind. Many courageous men have died to defend our country and its freedoms. Are we, as citizens who are affected by these actions, going to put up with another attempt to take away our basic rights? We must stand up, defend and speak out against such travesties of the law and the rights of these men, which we call L10.
The other case is Sergeant Boyle, please read the link below….
You also can find the rest of the L10 on Facebook or the link below….
RELEASE OUR WAR HEROES FROM INCARCERATION!
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=128504020525032
This weekend sir, when you are with your family. I am asking you to think about the L10’s families. Please think about what they will be doing this weekend to show their love and support for these men.
Sir, we must take action now to help and support our soldiers who are in combat and fighting for all of our families, including your family. We as Veterans Courts believe that there should not be a soldier locked away in prison due to their Combat PTSD. We cannot send our men and women off to war and let them be locked away in a prison cell for doing their job,
We are only asking that justice be done in each and every case here. I only wonder how many soldiers’ life’s we have lost due to these soldiers being locked away in a prison cell. How many soldiers could we have saved if these soldiers were kept on the battlefield doing what we as an army taught them to do, kill the enemy.
I do not give my last name below due to the fact my son is serving right now in a combat zone. I worry that one day my son could be sitting in a prison for doing his job, or buried at arlington national cemetery, because of the new ROE. This I do understand and must ask you sir, please do not cause any more heartaches for these families and men.
It’s heartbreaking to see yet another of America’s finest denied the justice that they serve to bring to other countries around the world. It is time that the government, who sends our troops to battle zones, quit worrying about special interest groups and stop using our troops as PR scapegoats
Again, sir, no disrespect here, but … PLEASE SET THESE MEN FREE!!!
Thank you for taking the time to listen.
“The last thing Michael said to us before an MP escorted him away was don’t let me be Forgotten.”
Richard
U.S. Army Retired
Rangers Lead the Way
Veteran’s Court Advocate Nationwide
August 11, 2010
Dear Major Adams:
I am in receipt of your letter dated June 23, 2010.
Having read my letter carefully, you might remember that in closing I asked a specific question of the Secretary and nowhere in your response did I read an answer.
I will reiterate…
Secretary McHugh, I am writing to request a meeting with you to discuss my son’s case. While I am sure it is highly unusual for a mother of an imprisoned soldier to make such a request, this is a highly unusual case that merits an investigation.
My son has been imprisoned for ten months as of this writing, and I trust you can find the time to meet with this military mom who has cried and prayed for his release everyday of every one of those ten months. I anxiously await your response.
Ma’am, I respectfully request an answer to my question; will the Secretary meet with me to discuss my son’s case? A simple yes or no will suffice.
Very truly yours,
Francine Boyle
My soldier is going to be moved from Fort Sill RCF to Fort Leavenworth some time in the upcoming weeks. His financial account has already been transferred, so if anyone is thinking of sending him a money order this is the new address:
Justin Boyle 88370
830 Sabalu Road
Fort Leavenworth, Kansas 66027-2315
I am guessing eventually his mail will be sent here also, but for now it still goes to Fort Sill.
-Fran Boyle
Attention Patriots, there is a new link for the Justice4Justin Petition and it can be found here:
Link: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/freesgtboyle/
If you haven’t already, join the cause on Facebook by joining the Facebook group for us as well. We’re at over 1,400 members strong and can use the help to get attention on this.
Link: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=160110042225&ref=ts
My husband stood downstairs facing my son and assured him, “Don’t worry son, I will not let your Mom come down and see this”. What they didn’t know was that I was able to hear the chains from the shackles that went from my boy’s hands, between his legs and to his feet. Jennifer, my eldest daughter and I stood motionless at the top of the stairs avoiding eye contact for fear we would burst into uncontrollable sobs.
Free SGT Boyle
Saturday, September 11, 2010 ** Tommy’s Place ** 42 Broadway ** Rocky Point ** NY** 6 to 9 PM ** buffet and open bar ** $50.00 per person ** fundraiser for SGT Boyle’s Legal Defense Fund ** a decorated combat veteran who joined the army days after the 9/11 attacks because of the 9/11 attacks ** tickets can be purchased in advance from the Boyle family ** to purchase tickets please contact Mrs. Boyle @sgtjaboyle@aol.com or 516-819-7161
© 2010 Justice 4 Justin: Short, witty copy.
WordPress theme by Develop Daly
![[del.icio.us]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/delicious.png)
![[Digg]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/digg.png)
![[Facebook]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/facebook.png)
![[Google]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/google.png)
![[MySpace]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/myspace.png)
![[Reddit]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/reddit.png)
![[Twitter]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/twitter.png)
![[Windows Live]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/windowslive.png)
![[Yahoo!]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/yahoo.png)
![[Email]](http://justice4justin.org/wp-content/plugins/bookmarkify/email.png)