Well, it seems like the Administration now has a solution to resolve the problem of Americans who might be stuck in Afghanistan. https://www.duffelblog.com/p/us-offers-to-trade-back-bowe-bergdahl
I think they have a 'promotion policy' how that is no longer based on merit but based on 'time in grade'.
That is exactly how it works. If somebody is a POW or MIA, all promotions are automatic for the entire time they are in that status. That is why when Lieutenant Commander Scott Speicher was shot down over Iraq in 1991, he went on the MIA list. And in 2002 was automatically promoted to Captain. A rank he retained, even after his remains were discovered in 2009. Who once had a cenotaph with "LCDR", but now has a grave with "Captain".
He's getting another day in court. US Appeals Court to Reconsider Dismissal of Former Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl's Conviction The Justice Department is appealing a U.S. District Court judge's decision to dismiss the conviction and sentence of former Army Staff Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who abandoned his post in Afghanistan, triggered a military search and spent years in Taliban captivity. A filing May 29 puts the case in the hands of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Judge Reggie Walton ruled last July that the sentence given by the military judge in Bergdahl's court-martial -- a reduction in rank and dishonorable discharge -- must be dismissed because the judge failed to disclose a potential conflict of interest while overseeing the case.
Sounds like a legal excuse to retry the case, and try to possibly get a different verdict. I suspect they might just use this to pressure him into an agreement to forfeit the rank promotion that was automatically given to him as captain. (This would come with significant pay cuts and reduced retirement pension as well)
I think he was promoted to Sergeant E-5, not captain. But as I recall he has all of this benefits stripped. I simply think they want to reopen the case to settle with conditions more favorable to Bergdahl.
