AWOL Mom Can Stay In U.S.

[David]

A soldier who stayed home with her children during a custody battle rather than returning to Iraq was reassigned to Fort Carson, but also received a conflicting message ? that she could face criminal charges.

Spc. Simone Holcomb, a medic in the Colorado National Guard, was reassigned Monday to Fort Carson to give her time to find care for her children or get out of the Army, post spokesman Lt. Col. Tom Budzyna said.

"She's been reassigned to Fort Carson for compassionate reasons and she's in the process of being demobilized from active duty status to National Guard status," Budzyna said late Monday.

Holcomb, 30, and her husband, Sgt. 1st Class Vaughn Holcomb, 40, lived with their children at Fort Carson near Colorado Springs when both were sent to Iraq in February.

Family members were taking care of their seven children, but the couple returned on emergency leave in September when Vaughn Holcomb's ex-wife went to court to get full custody of two of the children from their previous marriage.

Simone Holcomb told a judge she would stay home with the children and refused an Army order to return to Iraq.

Her reassignment to Fort Carson was backdated Oct. 10, the day she was due back in Iraq, which means she couldn't be charged with being absent without leave, Budzyna said.

But a commander in Iraq called Holcomb on Monday, gave her an administrative punishment and read her her legal rights for possible criminal charges, Simone Holcomb's attorney, Giorgio Ra'Shadd, told The Gazette of Colorado Springs.

It was not immediately clear what the administrative punishment was or what criminal charges she might face.

Ra'Shadd and Budzyna said they were trying to sort out the conflicting messages.

"Common sense is going to prevail in this matter. We are going to take care of the soldier," Budzyna said.

Simone Holcomb referred questions to Ra'Shadd. He did not return a telephone message late Monday.

Earlier, she told CBS affiliate KCNC in Denver: "I let them know I couldn't come back. I do have this responsibility."

[David]

This woman should be dishonorable discharged, barred to reenlistment for life, and sent to Leavenworth.

I saw many women pulling stunts like this in the Gulf. I have no pity for her story whatsoever.

[Stick]

Does not compute David.
Why would the Army send both parents of minor children overseas in a combat zone where children are not allowed to go for their own well being.
I think that sometimes and in this case the Army just didn't use the brains that they were given.
Dishonorable discharge? No.
General discharge under honorable conditions? Absolutely.

[catman]

Sadly, there are too many bleeding hearts that will David, I agree with you.

Trav

[David]

I believe they were sent John because they signed a contract to go when needed. They were not complaining when they were both drawing checks from Uncle Sam and using that great free medical to birth those children in a military hospital and getting them vaccinated as they grew up.

This gets into deeper issues too. Can the military tell a woman she can not have children while serving? Can the military deny anyone but single people from enlistment. Can the military then discharge those who become married or pregnant?

The needs of the Army prevail. That is in every contract these people signed and then forgot.

Many women become almost completely useless to the military shortly before and then after giving birth. Many then go on to a service that becomes a joke to many males. They are constantly missing PT, formations and field duty because of this or that little problem with the kids. When deployed to a cz the game gets ratcheted up to new levels as seen with the story above.

Of course if I go on much more I will just receive hate mail from female service members but I have seen this all first hand and am not relying on here-say or stories in the news to condemn what I see as a group of people milking and manipulating the system then hiding behind walls of PC garbage to avoid punishment.

I will also qualify the above with the statement that many females do serve well in the armed forces. I am just tired of hearing (and seeing during my past tour) the many that ride the gravy train and then bail when the going gets tough.

The bad ones that do not fulfill their contract should be weeded out just like the men and not given special concern due to their status as females or mothers.

Remember fathers leave their children behind too. Equal rights should mean equal risks.

[nang]

Unfortunately, I agree with you. It's a sad state of affairs all the way around.

[Stick]

David, on many points you and I are in agreement including the key point of getting her off the tax BURDEN roles because she won't fulfill the obligation that she swore to.
Unfortunately in today?s economic world in many cases both parents need an income, and the easy way of getting those two paychecks is to go to the recruiter.
Will that recruiter look at the circumstances and research the enlistment enough to discover that there are several children sitting in the enlistees? home relying on both Mom AND Dad to put food on the table and both Mom and Dad might be sent to a combat zone and unable to care for their children left behind? No, all the recruiter is interested in is getting another hash mark on his monthly enlistment quota.
THROW HER OUT so she can be a Mom but if you put a Dishonorable Discharge on her dossier she?ll not be able to get a job to support those kids and become another type of tax BURDEN as she joins the welfare roles because she can?t get a job with that DD. You get welfare for NOT being gainfully employed. You get welfare and are a tax BURDEN on everyone?s wallet.
I don?t care if that General Discharge is on dishonorable conditions or not. A GD can be appealed and left up for others to decide. Left up to others to look at the whole picture. I would think that the Honorable obligations of being a parent might hold some weight in the circumstances demanding that General Discharge.

[DMZ-LT]

Do what you say and say what you do. What David said.

[MORTARDUDE]

If they don't do something soon and remain consistent and we have a another crisis somewhere in the world....the military will start to fall apart and the draft will be next.....a sad, sad situation for everybody concerned.

Larry

[Dragon Lady]

I've been following this story for sometime now. PLEASE allow me to clarify a few things... Now bear with me Alpha Males and breathe.

First of all the children involved belong to the husband from a previous marriage. Both he and his wife returned home from Iraq on emergency leave because his ex-wife (Ex) waited until he was out of country before petitioning the court for custody. She got the (civilian court now mind you) judge to rule that either one of the military members HAD to remain not only in the US but in Colorado with the children or custody would revert to the Ex.

The female soldier attempted to work something out with her commander who refused to see that she had legal obligations. And because there was already a problem with the Ex in the past with abusing the children, she and her husband decided that it would be best if one of them remained in the states while he returned to Iraq. Never mind that the kids were with their grandparents and aunts and uncles; A parent HAD to be there too.

In an earlier interview this female Soldier stated that she WANTED to be able to serve her country and fullfill her military obligations but the civilian court system would not allow that to happen.

It is easy to sit here and say she is a horrible person and should be hung out to dry, but look at the whole history. She has tried and tried to work within the system and is being attacked from all sides. Now how productive is that? Divorce is an ugly part of our society and its repercussions are starting to spill over into the modern military too.

I personally think that by allowing her to continue her military career with the National Guard is not a bad choice. By doing so we are not rewarding her for dessertion, rather we are making so compromises that are in the best interest for everyone involved.

Furthermore, I think her commander is a cold hearted A-hole who needs to cool his jets and get a real grip on the situation. She's not TRYING to get out of anything. She is trying to do the adult thing and take care of all of her obligations.

Would it have been any different if her husband stayed and she returned to Iraq?

And again, that's my two cents worth.

DL