The sentencing hearing for Bowe Bergdahl, the US soldier who faces life in prison for desertion after being held captive by Afghan insurgents for five years, opened Monday amid accusations that President Donald Trump has prejudiced the trial.
Sergeant Bergdahl, 31, was seen in a dress uniform arriving at the military court in Fort Bragg, North Carolina one week after he pleaded guilty to charges of desertion and endangering his fellow troops.
The hearing ended after an hour after the judge, Army Colonel Jeffery Nance, heard a motion by Bergdahl's lawyer that Trump's attacks on Bergdahl meant he could not receive a fair sentence.
Nance will review the motion and give his decision when the hearing resumes Wednesday.
There was no indication how the court would treat Bergdahl, who gained his freedom in a 2014 prisoner swap with the Taliban and is said to suffer lasting nerve and psychological damage after brutal treatment and isolation by his captors, the notorious Taliban-allied, Pakistan-based Haqqani group.
His guilty plea was not part of any negotiated sentencing deal, leaving Nance full latitude to decide Bergdahl's punishment.
The desertion charge carries a maximum five years in prison but the second charge of endangering fellow troops, also known as "misbehaving before the enemy," can mean up to life in prison.
The sentencing hearing is expected to hear the testimony of two soldiers injured in missions to find and free him.
- Sentence 'inappropriate' -
But Bergdahl could also go free if the judge accepts his explanation he had left his remote Afghanistan post in 2009 in a misguided attempt to report internal problems in his unit to superiors at another base.
He could also be influenced by testimony from the head of the army's investigation, Major General Kenneth Dahl, that Bergdahl may have been delusional.
Dahl told a military court in September 2015 that putting Bergdahl in prison after all he had been through would be "inappropriate."
Supporters call Bergdahl a victim of the 16-year-old conflict.
Detractors label him a turncoat whose action led to severe injuries of fellow soldiers in his unit on search missions for him.
His case shows a history of questions about his fitness for military service. Before he joined the army, he was expelled from Coast Guard basic training after three weeks for being "psychologically unfit."
The case has been swamped in politics ever since president Barack Obama agreed to trade five Taliban prisoners for Bergdahl in 2014, earning intense criticism from Republicans and many in the military who branded Bergdahl a traitor.
During last year's presidential election Trump repeatedly suggested Bergdahl should be executed, and after winning the election promised to review the case, labelling him a "dirty rotten traitor."
In arguing that Trump has prejudiced the sentencing phase, defense lawyers cited the president's comments last week.
Asked about his past condemnations of Bergdahl, Trump replied: "I think people have heard my comments in the past.
"President Trump stands at the pinnacle of an unbroken chain of command that includes key participants in the remaining critical steps of the case," the defense said.
His comments thus raise "substantial doubt as to the fairness of the proceedings."
The sentencing hearing for Bowe Bergdahl, the US soldier who faces life in prison for desertion after being held captive by Afghan insurgents for five years, opened Monday amid accusations that President Donald Trump has prejudiced the trial.
Sergeant Bergdahl, 31, was seen in a dress uniform arriving at the military court in Fort Bragg, North Carolina one week after he pleaded guilty to charges of desertion and endangering his fellow troops.
The hearing ended after an hour after the judge, Army Colonel Jeffery Nance, heard a motion by Bergdahl’s lawyer that Trump’s attacks on Bergdahl meant he could not receive a fair sentence.
Nance will review the motion and give his decision when the hearing resumes Wednesday.
There was no indication how the court would treat Bergdahl, who gained his freedom in a 2014 prisoner swap with the Taliban and is said to suffer lasting nerve and psychological damage after brutal treatment and isolation by his captors, the notorious Taliban-allied, Pakistan-based Haqqani group.
His guilty plea was not part of any negotiated sentencing deal, leaving Nance full latitude to decide Bergdahl’s punishment.
The desertion charge carries a maximum five years in prison but the second charge of endangering fellow troops, also known as “misbehaving before the enemy,” can mean up to life in prison.
The sentencing hearing is expected to hear the testimony of two soldiers injured in missions to find and free him.
– Sentence ‘inappropriate’ –
But Bergdahl could also go free if the judge accepts his explanation he had left his remote Afghanistan post in 2009 in a misguided attempt to report internal problems in his unit to superiors at another base.
He could also be influenced by testimony from the head of the army’s investigation, Major General Kenneth Dahl, that Bergdahl may have been delusional.
Dahl told a military court in September 2015 that putting Bergdahl in prison after all he had been through would be “inappropriate.”
Supporters call Bergdahl a victim of the 16-year-old conflict.
Detractors label him a turncoat whose action led to severe injuries of fellow soldiers in his unit on search missions for him.
His case shows a history of questions about his fitness for military service. Before he joined the army, he was expelled from Coast Guard basic training after three weeks for being “psychologically unfit.”
The case has been swamped in politics ever since president Barack Obama agreed to trade five Taliban prisoners for Bergdahl in 2014, earning intense criticism from Republicans and many in the military who branded Bergdahl a traitor.
During last year’s presidential election Trump repeatedly suggested Bergdahl should be executed, and after winning the election promised to review the case, labelling him a “dirty rotten traitor.”
In arguing that Trump has prejudiced the sentencing phase, defense lawyers cited the president’s comments last week.
Asked about his past condemnations of Bergdahl, Trump replied: “I think people have heard my comments in the past.
“President Trump stands at the pinnacle of an unbroken chain of command that includes key participants in the remaining critical steps of the case,” the defense said.
His comments thus raise “substantial doubt as to the fairness of the proceedings.”
