[h=1]Former Taliban captive Bowe Bergdahl hit with charge that has rarely been used since WWII and could mean life behind bars[/h]
By DAILYMAIL.COM REPORTER and ASSOCIATED PRESS
PUBLISHED: 15:44, 7 September 2015 | UPDATED: 21:59, 7 September 2015
Military prosecutors have reached into a section of military law seldom used since World War II in the politically fraught case against Army Sgt Bowe Bergdahl, the soldier held prisoner for years by the Taliban after leaving his post in Afghanistan.
Earlier this year Bergdahl was charged with desertion after the deal brokered by the United States to bring him home. And now he has also been charged with misbehavior before the enemy, a much rarer offense that carries a stiffer potential penalty in this case.
'I've never seen it charged,' Walter Huffman, a retired major general who served as the Army's top lawyer, said of the misbehavior charge. 'It's not something you find in common everyday practice in the military.'
Bergdahl could face a life sentence if convicted of the charge, which accuses him of endangering fellow soldiers when he 'left without authority; and wrongfully caused search and recovery operations'.
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- Army Sgt Bowe Bergdahl was charged with misbehavior before the enemy
- Bergdahl was held prisoner for years by the Taliban after leaving his post in Afghanistan in 2009
- Earlier this year he was charged with desertion after the deal brokered by the US to bring him home
- The new charge is a much rarer offense that carries a stiffer potential penalty in this case
- Bergdahl could face a life sentence if convicted of the charge, which accuses him of endangering fellow soldiers
- Misbehavior before the enemy was used hundreds of times during World War II, but its use appears to have dwindled in conflicts since then
By DAILYMAIL.COM REPORTER and ASSOCIATED PRESS
PUBLISHED: 15:44, 7 September 2015 | UPDATED: 21:59, 7 September 2015
Military prosecutors have reached into a section of military law seldom used since World War II in the politically fraught case against Army Sgt Bowe Bergdahl, the soldier held prisoner for years by the Taliban after leaving his post in Afghanistan.
Earlier this year Bergdahl was charged with desertion after the deal brokered by the United States to bring him home. And now he has also been charged with misbehavior before the enemy, a much rarer offense that carries a stiffer potential penalty in this case.
'I've never seen it charged,' Walter Huffman, a retired major general who served as the Army's top lawyer, said of the misbehavior charge. 'It's not something you find in common everyday practice in the military.'
Bergdahl could face a life sentence if convicted of the charge, which accuses him of endangering fellow soldiers when he 'left without authority; and wrongfully caused search and recovery operations'.
.
