Outspoken Marine officer who went viral blasting military leaders over Afghanistan is jailed

Michael Lee 3 hrs ago


After 5 years, Obamas to break ground on Presidential Center
Daniel Craig: 007 over and out

Marine Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller, the officer who went viral for blasting the military's leadership amid the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, has been sent to the brig, according to a report.

"All our son did is ask the questions that everybody was asking themselves, but they were too scared to speak out loud," Scheller's father, Stu Scheller Sr., told Task & Purpose. "He was asking for accountability. In fact, I think he even asked for an apology that we made mistakes, but they couldn’t do that, which is mind-blowing."

Scheller first rose to internet stardom by posting a video to Facebook blasting military leaders for the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, questioning their command decisions on the events leading up to and during the final evacuation effort.

MARINE WHO CRITICIZED MILITARY LEADERS OVER AFGHAN EXIT SAID HE WAS ORDERED TO UNDERGO MENTAL HEALTH SCREENING

Scheller would go on to release several more videos, generating praise and controversy while drawing the ire of military leadership. Eventually, he was told by superiors to stop posting to social media altogether, an order he immediately ignored by posting about the gag order.
...

Outspoken Marine officer who went viral blasting military leaders over Afghanistan is jailed: report

This is more evidence that the criminal Biden administration is a tyrannical government. No longer can people ask questions or have doubts about "experimental vaccines", and we can no longer even question our so called leaders. Because if you do you will be sent to jail, like in every socialist/communist hell hole that has ever existed...

All this officer did was ask questions and point out the errors of his leadership. But in Biden's America you can no longer question our leadership or demand accountability for massive errors, and for leaving behind an untold number of American citizens, U.S. legal residents and allies and when in fact the Biden criminal administration left them all at the hands of the Taliban...

a reply to: ElectricUniverse

Political prisoners, jailing your detractors: a classic move by socialist, Marxist, and communist #holes everywhere... now at a #hole called "home."

a reply to: ElectricUniverse

There are many channels for us military members elevate concerns through our chain of command. Heck we can even go to the IG, Legal and other available channels.

You know what channel I would never use? Social media.

a reply to: Bunch

He was asking questions about the complete disaster the Biden admin had in Afghanistan. No one is answering the questions being asked, instead they are being told they'll circle back...

It's also quite hilarious you mention chain of command, yet have previously said you approve of what Milley did while Trump was President. Some reason I'm not surprised.

originally posted by: Vector99
a reply to: Bunch

He was asking questions about the complete disaster the Biden admin had in Afghanistan. No one is answering the questions being asked, instead they are being told they'll circle back...

It's also quite hilarious you mention chain of command, yet have previously said you approve of what Milley did while Trump was President. Some reason I'm not surprised.

Actually Lt Col Scheller was being more nuanced and I don’t think he came across as trying to score a cheap political point against the Biden Administration. Still what he did is just not acceptable, it’s unbecoming, it’s detrimental to order and discipline. I’m not going to even get to the toll this has taken on his personal life.

It was all around a bad move. Hope whatever he can get from GoFundMe was worth it.

a reply to: Bunch

Yeah, we know, we know. Some people in the military would even fire at Americans if you are told so. I am a former Aircrewman in the U.S. Navy, and sorry to tell you but what the Biden administration and his socialist thugs have been doing is what is unbecoming... Of course you say nothing at all about the Americans that were purposely left behind by the same administration and military leadership you are defending... nor about the fact that Biden and democrats gave the Taliban over $28 billion in military equipment they will use against our soldiers and allies...

yep whether he was right or wrong in his content, doesn't matter much. He immediately disobeyed a direct order. As you know. I agree on all your points in this matter.

a reply to: Bunch

What a bunch of crap. the Biden Administration is looking more like Adolf's administration every day. Criminals

a reply to: ElectricUniverse

This is very sad, just so intensely aggravating that I just shake my head as I type these words.
God help us, God help us all!

I wonder if he was threatened with a death sentence, would it surprise any of us if he was?

It’s funny in a way, recently the USMC commandant General Burger was at a press conference encouraging fair criticism of the pullout. Why that’s funny, well apparently he meant for civilian think tank groups or something.

Can’t Forget the Linkie

originally posted by: vance
yep whether he was right or wrong in his content, doesn't matter much. He immediately disobeyed a direct order. As you know. I agree on all your points in this matter.

a reply to: Bunch

If it was up to people like you, we wouldn't found out at all about those soldiers and officers that spoke up when they saw the leadership giving orders which are criminal in nature...

Go ahead and start working on your nazi salute...

"But, But, they ordered us to march millions of people into gas chambers... We were ordered to do so..."

In the Nuremberg trials it didn't matter that those nazi soldiers "just followed orders." Those same nazi soldiers, and doctors were marched to their deaths even if they "just followed orders..."

BTW, in the U.S. military you have a right to refuse following an order you think is "unlawful." It is part of the uniform code of military Justice.

Article 90 states military personnel have to "obey lawful orders of his/her superior." You have a right not to follow unlawful orders such as those that go against the U.S. Constitution.

a reply to: visitedbythem

Yet they "MSM" "We have the Freedom of Speech and Democracy" the word itself "Democracy" had being overused

Since LTC Scheller submitted his resignation, and the USMC refused to accept it, and have now confined him, this action stinks of retribution. It is also IMO not well advised as it will reflect poorly upon the service.

This quote gives an idea of how else the Corps could handle this situation.

Commissioned officers
Commissioned officers cannot be reduced in rank by a court-martial, nor can they be given a bad conduct discharge or a dishonorable discharge. If an officer is convicted by a General Court-Martial, then that officer's sentence can include a "dismissal." This is considered to be the same as a dishonorable discharge. An officer convicted at courtmartial, but not sentenced to a dismissal, can be dropped from the rolls, by the service Secretary. That is an administrative separation, not punitive. See Goldsmith v. Clinton, 48 M.J. 84 (C.A.A.F. 1998), reversed Clinton v. Goldsmith, 526 U.S. 529, 119 S. Ct. 1538, 143 L. Ed. 2d 720,(1999).

Thus, the Corps has options to release him, for both the good of the service and that of LTC Scheller, that do not require confinement.

Cheers

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

Read my link above. The commandant of the marines asked for fair criticism lol.

Someone read the link from the head mother *er in charge posted above.

originally posted by: Brotherman
a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

Read my link above. The commandant of the marines asked for fair criticism lol.

Someone read the link from the head mother *er in charge posted above.

The way I see it is that LTC Scheller and the Corps have 'parted ways'. Regardless of anything else, there are ways for the Marines to deal with his situation that do not require confinement, especially seeing as how he had already submitted his resignation.

All the punitive action does is ratchet up the confrontation, and if Scheller has a good lawyer, the Corps may find its name smeared while attempting to support an administration that in any case holds them in contempt. As I said, IMO, not well-advised.

Cheers

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

Scheller was a training commander, he was never going to be a commander of marines in combat. Let’s get that out of the way.

Next. He did break the chain of command by going public on YouTube of all places, very unbecoming of a usmc officer. I am a former Marine so it’s something close to me.

And then… the head mofo in charge after this says he wants fair and critical discussion about the withdrawal of Afghanistan, it’s snafu.

I don’t agree with the LTC how he did it, but then again no one would take a training commander very seriously anyways in this regard. Using correct channels he would never have the ability to have the conversation with his superior command but because he knew that he could have waited till he was already transitioned out before he wanted to platform the internet.

It still remains though, pussy weak ass woke generals are still doing what they do, they ask for criticism and put critics of their own ilk in the brig, even go to try and discredit or compromise mental health etc etc.

It is a very strange and unique situation as a marine to watch unfold.

a reply to: Brotherman

Hello Brotherman

Yes, I am a veteran as well. A lot of wrong things going on.

In my time, I saw some military 'justice' which I strongly disagreed with on the basis that the evidence for the charges was very weak. Yet, in a fit of drug-war fueled righteousness, an NCO in the middle of his career was tossed out of the service.

The rationale was that, 'even the perception of drug use ...' justified canning his career. I smell a similar mode of thinking regarding LTC Scheller. Along the lines of, 'even the perception that we tolerate insubordination' or some such.

Scheller's actions are not being handled intelligently, but that seems to be the order of the day anymore.

Cheers

a reply to: F2d5thCavv2

Here's a little input from an actual Military Defense Lawyer on another site.

Cut and paste from a discussion on on another site:

Actual Military Defense Lawyer (AMDL):
When this whole business first started I felt really bad for this guy. I mean, he was obviously in a lot of pain, and I thought for him to throw his entire career away he must be suffering some sort of mental breakdown. This is something I see in my clients all the time.

Now I think he can go # himself.

Couldn’t get the defense counsel to sign the charge sheet? He said he wouldn’t do it “for a number of reasons.” One of those reasons is he’s a defense counsel. That’s sort of like asking the public defender to sign a criminal complaint.

According to Article 30, he has to swear the charges in front of any commissioned officer authorized to administer oaths (which, IIRC, is everyone, but that may vary by service). That means he has to find a commissioned officer willing to administer the oath and sign the charge sheet. That officer isn’t necessarily saying he agrees with the charges, but still. If you look closely, you can see the ten-foot pole between this jackass and every other commissioned officer in the military.

Other (non-military) Defense Lawyer (OL1)
Granted, I don't have experience in the military setting, and I sympathize with wanting to give this guy the benefit of the doubt. I am, however, very experienced in distinguishing and dealing with clients who are having a mental break (including some clients of mine who were veterans with very serious PTSD) as opposed to people who are just assholes who behave badly because they think rules don't apply to them. This guy has always seemed to fall in the latter category.

AMDL
I understand. I just cannot express how unusual this is. I’ve had a lot (and I mean a lot) of high-ranking asshole clients who think the rules don’t apply to them. But those rules invariably involved a different kind of crime — drugs, child pornography, or the Joint Federal Travel Regulations.

I’ve never had a high-ranking client whose misconduct involved expressing displeasure in how the military runs the military. I mean, I guess it happens, but it’s rare.

Non-lawyer No. 1 (NL1)
One of these things is not like the other

Curious about what kind of crimes involve violation of Joint Federal Travel Regulations


AMDL
Travel claim fraud. It’s rampant, and for some reason I don’t quite understand, officers are more likely to do it than enlisted people. I’ve never had an enlisted client charged with travel claim fraud, but many officer clients. It’s possible that they deal with the enlisted folks administratively rather than with criminal charges, but that’s not what my gut tells me because I would still know about those.

AMDL
Thinking about these charges as drafted…

Let’s say they go forward…

The specifications fail to state an offense because “failure to supervise,” without an allegation that he personally did or omitted to do a specific act, isn’t enough. Despite the myths surrounding command responsibility, there is no criminal liability without an allegation (and, ultimately, proof), that the commander was personally involved in the decisions of his subordinates. In other words, there’s no respondeat superior theory of criminal liability in the context of dereliction of duty (there’s caselaw on that - can’t recall the name, but it had to do with a Navy doctor’s failure to adequately supervise his subordinates and someone died as a result).

Also, the specifications are multiplicious. The elements of dereliction of duty through culpable inefficiency are (1) That the accused had certain duties; (2) that he knew or reasonably should have known of those duties; and (3) that the accused through culpable inefficiency was derelict in the performance of those duties.

There’s no fourth element “… and as a result …” Even if Gen. McKenzie was derelict (

), there was only one failure to supervise, no matter how many people died as a result. And you can’t add elements to increase punishment or criminal exposure no matter how badly you might want to (there is a #-ton of caselaw on that because the military likes to squeeze every ounce of blood from the proverbial turnip).

So even if these specifications state an offense (they don’t), there can only be one. They can save those names for the sentencing case, but seriously, even one dead Marine would result in the maximum - three months confinement and forfeiture of 2/3 pay per month for three months, and a dismissal from the service (if the case goes to general court-martial — there’s no dismissal at a special court-martial).

So, good luck with all that, Col. Scheller.

Quote from Scheller's Father
“They had a gag order on him and asked him not to speak,” the senior Scheller said. “He did, and they incarcerated him. They don’t know what to do with him.”

Non-Lawyer No. 2 (NL2)

Uh, wot? Sounds like they knew EXACTLY what to do with him.

AMDL
Some of the process to which Lt. Col. Scheller is due:

He’s entitled to be notified of the nature of the offenses, his right to remain silent, and the right to counsel. If he requests military counsel, one will be assigned (usually for the limited purpose of navigating pre-trial confinement process).

Within 48 hours a probable cause determination will be made by a “neutral and detached magistrate.” A lot of litigation at the trial level is about whether there was probable cause to hold the confinee at the time (later-developed evidence doesn’t count), or whether the magistrate was neutral and detached. It can result in extra time off the sentence.

Within 7 days there is another review, this one usually includes a hearing. Sometimes it’s better to stay in confinement if you’re guilty and expect a short sentence because time in pretrial confinement counts against the sentence, and you’re still getting paid.

This statement says he’s pending an Article 32, UCMJ hearing. They only do those if the commander is contemplating general court-martial (the most serious), which of course they would be.

Quote from Scheller's Father
“He’s asking for the same accountability that is expected of him and his men,” Scheller Sr. said.

Non-Lawqyer No. 3 (NL3)
I have trouble believing he would not come down hard on any under his command who did what he did, in regards to his command decisions. In addition, he was not just saying it once, he kept going on and on, and then upping the ante. If he had only done the one video, he may have been able to skate, possibly (probably skate all the way to being pushed out due to lack of promotion but sake nonetheless).

AMDL
Well, he likely would have been able to keep his retirement even if he failed to promote. Depending on his specific circumstances, they may have been able to push him out administratively before he was retirement eligible.

But he’s crazy with the heat if he thinks he’s going to accomplish anything other than ruining his own life.

a reply to: ElectricUniverse

Bro…I can care less what administration is in power. I don’t serve politicians I serve the USA. I’m now in a position where I need to lead by example and I understand my actions have a direct impact not only on our mission but most importantly on my team members… specially the younger ones.

I have served for 2 Republican Presidents, 2 Democrats Presidents during my almost 18 years. I can’t think of a day that I’ve mentioned Bush, Obama, Trump or Biden’s on the job or on a Facebook or You Tube post.

When I signed my contract I knew what I wasn’t getting into. You are trained and is drilled into your head about responsible use of social media.

Heck, responsible social media use is a topic that I brief my team almost on a monthly basis mainly due to OpSec but also to make sure they don’t get into trouble.

I wish well to Lt Col Scheller but he is in the wrong here. His message might not be but his actions were. This was one of my junior enlisted guys or even myself we would had been in jail the minute the first video came out.

The fact that this man is in jail is irrelevant; rules are written by those who are in power and they are often written to protect those who are in power.

Plenty of men and women who have chosen to speak truth to power have shared the distinction if being incarcerated to help protect those who are in power.

You know what's more detrimental to the chain of command than an inappropriate social media post? A chain of command that blatantly uses its subordinates as cannon fodder in war while it plays political games.