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Chapter
1
Her gavel dropped and
the boom resounded through the courtroom. "These proceedings are
closed," Judge (Captain) Waite announced.
It was the most unusual
case in U.S. Navy history. Not so much in the prosecution of it,
but as in the sentencing which twisted the Uniform Code of Military
Justice everyway legally possible. In the end the sentence was deemed
appropriate by both the prosecution and defense alike.
The press had followed
the case closely and dubbed it "The Mini-Tailhook Scandal." The
four aviators had been found guilty and were sentenced to two years
at a special rehabilitation facility. There was a great public outcry
at the apparently light punishment for the charges brought against
the men, but neither the press nor the public had any idea how special
this rehabilitation was going to be.
The actual agreement
for sentencing was worked out long before the trial began. It was,
in a sense a plea bargain, but it went far beyond that.
The four men stood accused
of sexual harassment, indecent liberties, attempted rape, conduct
unbecoming an officer, and a half dozen other charges. There were
enough witnesses and enough evidence to convict them on most of
the minor charges
When the prosecution
and the defense met behind closed doors with Captain Waite, she
was surprised by the plan they devised. Things proceeded in an extremely
cooperative manner with defense and prosecution actually taking
each other's side on some of the issues.
"Your honor," Lieutenant
Green, attorney for the defense, opened. "I've discussed this case
with my worthy opponent, Lieutenant Commander Hester, and she agrees
with me. We both believe that we have an opportunity for a landmark
legal decision here; one which will have repercussions for the entire
UCMJ."
"Yes, your honor," LTCmdr
Hester continued, "We realize that the Navy spent almost $15 million
dollars training these men to the level of proficiency they currently
possess. In these days of downsizing, and shrinking budgets we can't
afford to throw that away. In addition, two of the defendants are
Gulf War veterans with otherwise distinguished service records.
You can't buy that kind of experience."
The judge raised an
eyebrow. "Are you suggesting some sort of acquittal?"
"Oh no, your honor,"
LT Green responded, "What we are proposing is rehabilitation."
"Sending these men to
sensitivity training isn't enough, lieutenant."
"We're suggesting something
a little bit ... no ... a lot bit, more intensive," LTCmdr Hester
responded.
"OK," the judge said,
"I'll consider it. Keep talking and convince me."
For the next two hours,
the three Naval officers discussed psychological profiles, theories
and studies on human development, points of law on "cruel and unusual
punishment" and other refinements of the suggested sentencing.
In the end CAPT Waite
proclaimed, "OK, I'll consider your proposal based on two conditions:
One: I see and approve the rehabilitation plan. Commander Hester,
you will provide me with the experts to explain it to me."
"Yes, captain."
"And two: That the defendants
agree to the sentencing."
"No problem, captain"
LT Green assured. "These men will do anything not to get kicked
out of the Navy and from flying."
"Very well, then," CAPT
Waite said, "I'll speak with my secretary and let you know when
we'll have the hearing." She stood and shook hands with both officers.
"I hope this works out. It's the most irregular thing I've ever
heard of, yet it seems to be a very fair thing to do and a very
wise thing to do as well."
-=o=-
It would cost over a
half million dollars over the course of the next two years to carry
out the sentence, but compared against the price of bringing four
new people up to the convicted's level of proficiency in aviation,
it was a taxpayer's bargain.
First, an abandoned
facility had to be reconditioned. Due to its remote location, it
was difficult to provision, but once completed and stocked, it would
be relatively inexpensive to maintain.
Secondly, a staff had
to be selected and trained. Clearly, the Officer in Charge required
a degree in psychology in addition to other specialized training,
as for the other positions ... well, the Navy didn't have any billets
that corresponded to what needed to be done. After months of careful
screening, the rest of the staff was selected.
-=o=-
After several hours
of flight, the chopper settled down briefly on the remote island.
Waiting at the pad were three figures in Navy fatigues. The four
airmen stepped off the helicopter and it took off, not waiting a
moment longer than it had to on the ground. The sound of the blades
was still fading in the distance as the ex-passengers made their
way across the ramp to the waiting party.
The tallest member of
the new arrivals stepped forward and with a broad smile offered
his hand and introduced himself. "I'm Jake Parkenson, miss, my friends
and I ..." He was cut off with a sharp rebuke. "Silence!" she barked.
The woman in charge
continued, "We know who you are and why you are here. I am not `Miss,'
neither are these ladies ... I am Commander Karen Thompson. These
are petty officers Sheila Brown and Barbara Simpson. You may call
me ma'am, and since you are temporarily suspended of all rank, you
will refer to and Barbara as ma'am or Ms. also. Do I make myself
clear?"
Jake looked at the statuesque
woman before them, and her petite and all-to-young (too young to
be petty officers) standing beside her.
"Yes ma'am," Jake said
with just a slight touch of sarcasm in his voice. He gave her a
sloppy salute.
"OK," Karen barked,
"Fall in!"
The four men managed
to form a somewhat straight and evenly spaced line.
Karen paced up and down
the line,. "Let's review the facts gentlemen, and I use that term
for the last time ... Barbara, Sheila and I will come up with new
titles for you soon enough as soon as we find something appropriate
... The facts are, that you have been convicted of some very serious
crimes against women, and you are here on a provisional sentence."
"IF," she let the word
hang for a moment, "you complete the program successfully, you will
be restored to rank, and you will be returned to flying status.
Your record will be altered to reflect a two-year break in service.
This will put you slightly behind your contemporaries, but should
not seriously affect your promotion potential and future worth to
the Navy."
"However," she allowed
another pause, "if you do not meet the objectives of this program,
you will be immediately suspended from this program without any
recourse. Your sentence will revert to 10 years' hard labor, loss
of all pay and benefits, and most likely you'll be assigned to a
cell with some 250-pound, no-neck seaman named Bruce. You sissy
flyboys would be the darlings of the cell block for sure."
"Do you understand the
seriousness of this situation, boys?"
Commander Thompson got
four mumbled "yesses."
"Good. The regimen here
has been carefully crafted by a team of psychologists at Johns Hopkins.
I have been trained to observe the results and have been authorized
to use any means I deem necessary to implement the program. The
heart of this program is discipline. You will obey any order no
matter how trivial, no matter how non-sensible it may seem that
I or the petty officers give you."
"As you can see, there
is no reasonable means of escape from this facility. The only way
in and out of it is by helicopter. We are wholly within a Naval
Gunfire range as clearly marked on any navigation chart. Commercial
and private vessels do not come here. You will notice that none
of us are armed. There are weapons on the island, and we can get
to them if we need to, but we know you will obey us, so there will
be no need to resort to them.
"Facilities here are
sparse. We have latrines, a kitchen, and a laundry -- all of which
you will become familiar with. Everything, our rooms, your barracks,
the training room, and everything else is all in one building. Food,
fuel and mail is flow in once a week. Before you ask, your mail
will be censored."
"As you can see, we
have a semi-tropical climate here, so there isn't much need for
clothing, therefore, you will now remove all of yours."
There was immediate
grumbling in the ranks at that last statement, but Karen quelled
it with a simple remark, "You can remove your clothes for us, or
do it for Bruce in Leavenworth. Give your things to Barbara and
Sheila. You won't be needing male clothing for quite a while. As
you can see, we control your entire environment."
The four men looked
at each other and at some unspoken and subliminal signal slowly
stripped out of their prison clothes and handed them to the smirking
younger women. Soon they were standing naked at attention. The three
women walked up and down the line inspecting them. They met behind
the group and the men could hear muttering and giggling.
Soon they paraded back
in front of the men and Karen announced, "Your trainers and I have
come up with your new names." She walked down the line and addressed
each prisoner by his new name. "You are `shorty' -- there's certainly
no doubt as to why we chose that name." Progressing to the next
in line she said, "Your name is `sweet buns.'" as she peered around
for another look." To the third she said, "Yours is `wanker' ...
it looks like you've done a lot of that." Walking to face the last
person, she said, "And your name is `Alice' ... I don't know why,
it's just that you look like an Alice -- and you will even moreso
when we get done with you."
"OK boys, except for
the occasional helicopter and a short-wave radio, we seven people
are all that this island has. I'm sure we'll get along just fine
as long as you do exactly as you are asked."
"Barbara, get them to
their quarters."
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