Marine who criticized handling of Afghanistan withdrawal will plead guilty, seek favorable discharge
A Marine officer whose viral videos criticizing senior officials for how they withdrew from Afghanistan created a political uproar will plead guilty to several charges and seek a discharge that allows him to keep some military benefits, one of his lawyers said Tuesday.
Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller is scheduled for court-martial at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina on Thursday, and faces charges that include disrespect toward superior commissioned officers, willfully disobeying a superior commissioned officer, and dereliction in the performance of duties. He burst into public view in August when, in the immediate aftermath of a suicide bombing that killed 13 U.S. troops and about 170 Afghans, he posted a video while in uniform questioning why no senior leader had admitted making mistakes in how the withdrawal was carried out.
One of Scheller's attorneys, Tim Parlatore, said in a phone interview that he could not yet get into the specifics of a pretrial agreement because some of the details are “still up in the air.” But he said the case began with Scheller demanding accountability from others, and it would “make him a hypocrite” if the Marine did not accept responsibility for his own actions.
The Marine hopes to avoid jail time and secure either an honorable discharge or a general discharge under honorable conditions.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/marine-scheller-to-plead-guilty/2021/10/12/ccf1be18-2b74-11ec-92bd-d2ffe8570c7d_story.html
Sounds as if he's now realized the consequences of his actions. No retirement benefits for this disgrace to the Corps.
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