The Land of Ozz

The Air Force has dismissed charges filed against two of its own lieutenant colonels that could have ended their careers and landed them in jail.

Charges against Lt. Col. Gary W. Brown and Lt. Col. Christopher R. Hall were dropped “after careful consideration of all the evidence in the case, to include the Article 32 report,” according to a statement. The officers, who faced lengthy jail terms and abrupt ends to their military careers, were accused of assaulting Blackwater USA contractor Jimmy Bergeron on Sept. 19 during an altercation outside the Afghan Defense Ministry in Kabul. Source: Air Force Times

This was taken from an article in the Air Force Times reported earlier this week stating that Lt. Gen. Gary North did dismiss the official charges against the two officers, but the article failed to mention that Lt. Col. Brown, a C-17 pilot stationed at Charleston Air Force Base was issued a letter of reprimand (LOR). A letter of reprimand on a lieutenant colonel’s record can be loosely compared to a bankruptcy on the average American’s credit record. Brown’s hope for advancement in the ranks of the U.S. Air Force are basically over as a result of the LOR. Lt. Col. Brown’s wife Stacey said in an email to friends and family “that at any point North can change his mind and proceed with another article 32 or court martial.” This administrative action by the general was not taken lightly by Brown’s Attorney.

“Brown’s attorney, Charles Gittins, expressed shock at the reprimand. In a letter to North Wednesday, he said, I can only assume that you failed to read the detailed, fact-filled, and thorough report prepared by Lt. Col. Leslea Pickle as her report is directly contrary to your conclusions. Frankly, if anyone is a discredit to the Armed Forces, I am constrained to conclude it is you.” Source: Examiner.com

The Examiner story goes on to point out a statement made by the investigating officer Lt. Col. Leslea Pickle that sheds light on the seriousness of the events that took place on September 19, 2006 in Afghanistan. Pickle says that Lt. Col. Brown, “demonstrated a calm, collected demeanor during the whole incident. Another person might have been ‘trigger-happy’ and shot Mr. Bergeron.” The alleged victim in this case, Mr. Jimmy Bergeron was serving a civilian “in Afghanistan under a Blackwater drug-interdiction training contract with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration” according to Hamptonroads.com. The Hammptonroads.com article includes a picture of Bergeron and along the two lieutenant colonels involved in this case.

Mr. Bergeron was not present at the article 32 hearing for the two lieutenant colonels despite the fact that he was the star witness and alleged victim in this case. Other suspicious activity noted throughout this case was highlighted in the Investigating Officer’s Report: Lt. Col. Gary Brown (***WARNING: THIS PDF REPORT CONTAINS OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE***). This report was provided to General North led to the dismissal of the charges and contains several allegations of evidence manipulation and witness tampering. Blackwater USA and Brown’s attorney are exchanging blows over over who might be behind this alleged frame job that was exposed during this case.

Lt. Col. Christopher Hall received a letter of counseling as a result of this case. This is a milder administrative action than what Brown got. Hall was the second Air Force officer involved in this case. There are no reports of administrative action or charges being filed against the Blackwater USA employee Jimmy Bergeron.