Legal Question in Military Law in Oklahoma

Re: Fraternization (Sexual)

I spent 27 years as an AF JAG - 5 years AD [Twice as Defense Counsel] and 22 as an IMA JAG. My first advice is to contact the local ADC. S/he will be a young Capt with probably zero experience in handling Officer Misconduct cases, BUT they will have the ear of the Staff Judge Advocate and will know in advance what they are thinking of about your case. Your AFSC is going to factor into this - if its one with a shortage, you'll be better off than not. Your CO will not be the decision-maker here. The NAF/CC will make the decision, the Commander with General Court-Martial [GCM] authority and for officers, the GCM/CC will make the decisions. Another factor will be, is the airman in your chain of command or even squadron? Those are aggravating factors in the eyes of the AF. The worse case scenario is a GCM - for fraternization [Art. 92, AFI violation], and Conduct Unbecoming [Art. 133]. That could subject you to a federal conviction, jail time and a Dismissal. Nowdays, with the ops tempo being what it is, unless there is some other compelling reason to go to trial, e.g., other charges, the AF pretty much handles frat cases via Art 15 - which will come from either a 2 or 3 star general officer. If they do that, you will then also get a DNP and a UIF [unfavorable information file] for 2 years, and thus, depending on where you're at in the promotion cycle to Capt, could end your career. If you are not promotable to Captain, you are administratively separated. Your commissioning source is now relevant - if from the AFA, you will have a minimum of 5 years of AD service - more if you went to flight school or some other sponsored post-commissioning program with an AD commitment. If a non-AFA commission is involved, ROTC Scholarship Students will also have (generally) a 4 year AD commitment [plus any incurred due to other programs]. If you have an AD commitment due to either the AFA or ROTC, your nightmare just got worse, because they will seek a pro-rata recoupment of your education, which they are currently valuing AFA at $50,000/year. Your best case scenario is a Letter of Reprimand [which may or may not trigger a UIF]. That does not mandate a DNP but expect one for at least the first OPR after it. As you can see, there are no simple answers to your predicament. And as one of the others noted, if you get a UIF, your security clearance [especially if you have TS/SCI], will at a minimum be suspended - if it hasn't been already. If you need a clearance for the work you do, unless you can cross-train, that generally will result in your separation. I'm not meaning to scare you - just educate you on the MANY issues that a seemingly innocuous encounter can turn into. Regardless of what is about to happen to you, you need an experienced lawyer in military law, especially with officer matters. Feel free to email me if you'd like to discuss this in more detail. This forum is not secure. Good luck!

Don Rehkopf

http://www.donaldgrehkopf.com/

Re: Fraternization (Sexual)

You should call me to discuss. 2023400069

Re: Fraternization (Sexual)

This is going to be a difficult path for you.

You can expect at least they will consider an Article 15. And you may also be facing a "show cause" BOI for separation.

Re: Fraternization (Sexual)

I'm not doing Air Force cases right now, but you do need to contact another lawyer ASAP. I think you're looking at an article 15, maybe worse.

In the meantime though, I would encourage you to not make any more statements (written or oral) until you talk to an attorney. I understand you want to take responsibility for what you did and get it behind you, but it is way too easy to say the wrong thing. Under the UCMJ you have the right to remain silent and this is an occasion to exercise that right.