Posted on Mar 18, 2021
Army won't return medals to Green Beret Trump pardoned for killing suspected bomb maker
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The board says he earned the medals, but refuse to re-instate them. Is this fair? Thoughts?
Army won't return medals to Green Beret Trump pardoned for killing suspected bomb maker
Posted from americanmilitarynews.com
Medals
Special Forces
Taliban
War on Terror
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 5
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Just because you earn a tab doesn't mean you get to keep it. You are expected to uphold certain standards of conduct. I earned my Ranger Tab 20 years ago and I could still be stripped of my tab today if I did something to bring disgrace to the Army. It is exactly the same for the Special Forces Tab as well. Tab Revocations happen all the time. I saw one at the last SF unit I worked at, the guy just had a history of serial misconduct. But his chain of command felt that he no longer represented the Regiment as a Special Forces Soldier.
There is no question that this team commander did what he was accused of. He admitted to it in an interview with a Fox News anchor. If the Special Forces Regiment feels that his actions are contrary to their value system then they are eligible, maybe even obligated, to strip him of his tab. Failing to strip him of his tab would be viewed as supporting his actions and could encourage other Special Forces Soldiers to believe that no harm will come if they do something similar, or at the very least that the Regiment will not treat it severely.
There is no question that this team commander did what he was accused of. He admitted to it in an interview with a Fox News anchor. If the Special Forces Regiment feels that his actions are contrary to their value system then they are eligible, maybe even obligated, to strip him of his tab. Failing to strip him of his tab would be viewed as supporting his actions and could encourage other Special Forces Soldiers to believe that no harm will come if they do something similar, or at the very least that the Regiment will not treat it severely.
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SFC Michael Hasbun
SGT Javier Silva - Pardoned doesn't mean it didn't happen. It means that it happened, but his punishment is being commuted. The act of pardoning actually confirms his guilt, as guilt is a legal prerequisite to a pardon.
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SGT Javier Silva
SFC Michael Hasbun - Pardon does not mean commuted. Manning's sentence was commuted.
https://clemency.com/pardon-vs-commutation-what-is-the-difference-between-a-pardon-and-a-commutation
https://clemency.com/pardon-vs-commutation-what-is-the-difference-between-a-pardon-and-a-commutation
Pardon vs Commutation Explained with Examples - What is the difference between a pardon and a...
In can be difficult to distinguish between a pardon vs commutation. Enjoy this free article by clemency and pardon attorney Brandon Sample.
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SFC Michael Hasbun
SGT Javier Silva I'm glad you posted that, because there's a very important section in there..
"a presidential pardon is normally granted after a person has served his or her sentence. A pardon is an expression of the President’s forgiveness and typically is granted in recognition of the pardon applicant’s acceptance of responsibility for the crime he or she committed. "
"a presidential pardon is normally granted after a person has served his or her sentence. A pardon is an expression of the President’s forgiveness and typically is granted in recognition of the pardon applicant’s acceptance of responsibility for the crime he or she committed. "
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MSG Thomas Currie
I agree with the revocation of the tab (not that my opinion matters to anyone). His dishonorable actions occurred as part of his performance as a Special Forces member, revocation of his tab is a completely reasonable decision.
His other awards COULD BE a different matter in my opinion. I have not researched his awards and the basis for those awards. The article does not give any details about the circumstances or even mention any awards other than the one silver star which apparently had been approved to be upgraded. If an act of heroism was correctly reported and recognized by an award, the only consideration after the fact should be whether that act of heroism occurred, was reported honestly, and was evaluated properly in accordance with the regulations and standards of the time. Any unrelated later actions should not impact a prior award.
These are matters that I would like to think the Army handled properly and with integrity. Unfortunately one paragraph of the article makes it difficult to see this as anything other than a political battle of wills: "USA Today reported, based on Army documents it obtained, that the Army reached its decision not to reinstate Golsteyn’s Special Forces Tab and decorations in June, but held off on announcing the decision during Trump’s final months in office." If that is true, it disturbs me greatly. Even if the decision was correct, playing politics by keeping the decision secret in the hope that the next commander might view it more favorably is not what we should expect from the board or our uniformed leadership.
His other awards COULD BE a different matter in my opinion. I have not researched his awards and the basis for those awards. The article does not give any details about the circumstances or even mention any awards other than the one silver star which apparently had been approved to be upgraded. If an act of heroism was correctly reported and recognized by an award, the only consideration after the fact should be whether that act of heroism occurred, was reported honestly, and was evaluated properly in accordance with the regulations and standards of the time. Any unrelated later actions should not impact a prior award.
These are matters that I would like to think the Army handled properly and with integrity. Unfortunately one paragraph of the article makes it difficult to see this as anything other than a political battle of wills: "USA Today reported, based on Army documents it obtained, that the Army reached its decision not to reinstate Golsteyn’s Special Forces Tab and decorations in June, but held off on announcing the decision during Trump’s final months in office." If that is true, it disturbs me greatly. Even if the decision was correct, playing politics by keeping the decision secret in the hope that the next commander might view it more favorably is not what we should expect from the board or our uniformed leadership.
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