View Full Version : 173rd Airborne Brigade Commander Suspended
The comments to the article made by the troops are insightful. ;)
Richard :munchin
173rd Airborne Brigade Commander Suspended
Stars&Stripes, 24 Feb 2011
The Army has formally suspended Col. James H. Johnson III as commander of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, which has about 3,300 soldiers in Italy and Germany. The Army took action Feb. 17, according to Col. Bryan Hilferty, chief of public affairs for U.S. Army Europe.
“He’s been suspended,” Hilferty said, declining to comment further since the case is under investigation.
In response to written questions, Hilferty characterized the suspension as temporary pending resolution of the probe. No one else has been suspended or relieved in connection with Johnson’s case, he said.
Col. Kyle Lear, the deputy commanding officer of the 173rd, has been named as the interim commander, Hilferty said.
Johnson took command of the brigade in October 2008 and led it through a yearlong rotation to Afghanistan that ended late last year. The unit, which traces its lineage back to World War I, includes Salvatore Giunta, the first living Medal of Honor recipient for actions in the current wars. He received the medal for events in 2007.
Before becoming brigade commander, Johnson headed up the 101st Airborne Division’s 2nd Battalion, 327th Infantry Regiment.
http://www.stripes.com/news/173rd-airborne-brigade-commander-suspended-1.135793
mojaveman
02-25-2011, 17:07
Didn't see what the accusations were.
Utah Bob
02-25-2011, 18:24
Nor will we as long as the case is under investigation.
Unless Wikileaks has something.:rolleyes:
It's an on-going investigation - but...read the soldier's e-mail responses. wink - wink ;)
Richard
UPDATE: This guy was a USMA grad and his father is a retired LTG who was the CG, 82nd Abn during GW1. The woman involved in all this must've been one hell of an accomplished 'houri' to get him to throw a career like that away. ;)
And so it goes...
Richard :munchin
O-6 Faces Bigamy, Fraud, Adultery Charges
ArmyTimes, 5 June 2012
<snip>The investigation found:
• Col. Johnson conducted an “inappropriate relationship” with an Iraqi woman —who Army Times independently identified as as Haveen Al Atar — and he misused government resources “for his frolic and detour into the Netherlands” with her.
• Eighteen of 26 travel vouchers he submitted between September 2008 and January 2011 were fraudulent. He took Al Atar on trips to Germany, France, Belgium and Jordan, the report says.
• Col. Johnson misused government resources to provide her family in the Netherlands with rides to job interviews, trips to the Middle East and a government cellphone with a bill estimated at $45,000.
• He signed travel orders that falsely indicated the woman held a secret clearance to enable her to travel with him.
In all, Col. Johnson is charged with 27 violations of the UCMJ.
According to a U.S. Army Europe spokesman, Johnson was charged with:
• Four violations of Article 92, or failure to obey orders.
• Four violations of Article 107, or making false official statements.
• One violation of Article 123, or forgery.
• Eight violations of Article 132, or fraud against the United States.
• Six violations of Article 133, or conduct unbecoming an officer.
• Four violations of Article 134, a general article, which in this case covers the alleged bigamy and adultery, according to an Army source. <snip>
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2012/06/army-colonel-james-johnson-iii-bigamy-fraud-adultery-charges-060512w/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Just goes to show that if you as a military member, and especially a commander, are going to cheat on your spouse, it is smart to do it with someone who has as much to lose as you do.
No piece of ass can be that good, I'm just sayin :D
Paragrouper
06-05-2012, 14:40
This guy was a USMA grad and his father is a retired LTG who was the CG, 82nd Abn during GW1.
Apparently he qualified expert at 'moron' as well.
UPDATE: This guy was a USMA grad and his father is a retired LTG who was the CG, 82nd Abn during GW1. The woman involved in all this must've been one hell of an accomplished 'houri' to get him to throw a career like that away. ;)
And so it goes...
Richard :munchin
O-6 Faces Bigamy, Fraud, Adultery Charges
ArmyTimes, 5 June 2012
<snip>The investigation found:
• Col. Johnson conducted an “inappropriate relationship” with an Iraqi woman —who Army Times independently identified as as Haveen Al Atar — and he misused government resources “for his frolic and detour into the Netherlands” with her.
• Eighteen of 26 travel vouchers he submitted between September 2008 and January 2011 were fraudulent. He took Al Atar on trips to Germany, France, Belgium and Jordan, the report says.
• Col. Johnson misused government resources to provide her family in the Netherlands with rides to job interviews, trips to the Middle East and a government cellphone with a bill estimated at $45,000.
• He signed travel orders that falsely indicated the woman held a secret clearance to enable her to travel with him.
In all, Col. Johnson is charged with 27 violations of the UCMJ.
According to a U.S. Army Europe spokesman, Johnson was charged with:
• Four violations of Article 92, or failure to obey orders.
• Four violations of Article 107, or making false official statements.
• One violation of Article 123, or forgery.
• Eight violations of Article 132, or fraud against the United States.
• Six violations of Article 133, or conduct unbecoming an officer.
• Four violations of Article 134, a general article, which in this case covers the alleged bigamy and adultery, according to an Army source. <snip>
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2012/06/army-colonel-james-johnson-iii-bigamy-fraud-adultery-charges-060512w/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Well, I guess good 'ol dad forgot to teach him the most improtant....cover up your tracks.....always boils down to the basics...:eek:
Or...he was an Army brat who thought he could get away with it....
hehehehehe..... (afchic said "member")....:rolleyes:
Kyobanim
06-05-2012, 16:19
LOL
AngelsSix
06-06-2012, 20:12
JimP: "hehehehehe..... (afchic said "member")...."
Kyobanim: "LOL"
If either one of you make me spit my wine on my keyboard ONE more time....SO HELP ME......:D
Has an 'entitlement' attitude that takes time to develop....I suspect he's been doing whatever he damn well pleases for years.
Must be an arrogant bastard, surprised he doesn't work for Obama or the GSA.
JimP: "hehehehehe..... (afchic said "member")...."
Kyobanim: "LOL"
If either one of you make me spit my wine on my keyboard ONE more time....SO HELP ME......:D
The QPs on this site have made me do the same on sooooo many occasions, this one included:D
Badger52
06-07-2012, 07:30
Well, I guess good 'ol dad forgot to teach him the most improtant....cover up your tracks.....always boils down to the basics...:eek:So this isn't just endemic to the USSS when OCONUS?
UPDATE:
On the first day of his court-martial in Kaiserslautern on Sunday, Johnson pleaded guilty to 15 counts, or specifications, and not guilty to six others. Six more were dismissed.
Those he pleaded guilty to included: fraud; violation of lawful regulations by misusing government vehicles, cell phones and a travel card for personal purposes; making false official statements; conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman; adultery; wrongful cohabitation; and bigamy.
http://www.stripes.com/former-army-commander-pleads-guilty-to-charges-of-bigamy-adultery-fraud-1.179986#.T9TpnwtI2fA.twitter
Swooosssshhhhhhhhh! That's the sound of a career flying out the window! ;)
And so it goes...
Richard :munchin
Dozer523
06-11-2012, 08:37
Has an 'entitlement' attitude that takes time to develop....I suspect he's been doing whatever he damn well pleases for years.
Must be an arrogant bastard, surprised he doesn't work for Obama or the GSA.
shoulda knowed that one was commin. IT OBAMA'S FAULT! :D
Those S&S comments are great. Nothin' like a good pile-on.
I especially found the comment refering to the lack of over-sight for Seperate Brigades compared to the old Division structure. This is not the first time a SEP-BDE CO had gotten himself in hot water.
greenberetTFS
06-11-2012, 09:15
shoulda knowed that one was commin. IT OBAMA'S FAULT! :D
Those S&S comments are great. Nothin' like a good pile-on.
I especially found the comment refering to the lack of over-sight for Seperate Brigades compared to the old Division structure. This is not the first time a SEP-BDE CO had gotten himself in hot water.
It's pretty clear that it is the big "O's" fault,can't you see that...........:rolleyes: :p
Big Teddy :munchin
Ok, boneheads...was refering to his arrogant/entitled attitude...like Barry Soetero
Dozer523
06-11-2012, 14:42
Ok, boneheads...was refering to his arrogant/entitled attitude...like Barry Soeterobonehead. . . nice. I knew you meant Soetero. Who coulda missed that? But, you have to admit this blame Obama seems pretty frequent.
Dang! It rainin' again!:D
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2018431955_apeugermanyuscourtmartial.html
[rant ON!]
Basically this asshat walked! I guess a bunch of O-6's couldn't bear the burden of bringing down a fellow Colonel! I had some dealing with this a while back and I can't believe he is still IN THE ARMY and will retire with full benefits IF he pays back the $$$ he STOLE from the Army and the US Taxpayers. If one of the paratroopers in his command violate the cell phone user agreement this " good" COL would have hung the offender out to dry!!!!
[rant off]
US Army Col. found guilty of fraud; fined
The former commander of the U.S. Army's 173rd Airborne Brigade was sentenced to a $300,000 fine and issued a formal reprimand Thursday after being found guilty at a court martial of multiple counts of fraud, conduct unbecoming of an officer, bigamy and other charges related to an alleged long-term extra-marital affair he had with a woman he met in Iraq when they both lived in Europe.
By DAVID RISING
The former commander of the U.S. Army's 173rd Airborne Brigade was sentenced to a $300,000 fine and issued a formal reprimand Thursday after being found guilty at a court martial of multiple counts of fraud, conduct unbecoming of an officer, bigamy and other charges related to an alleged long-term extra-marital affair he had with a woman he met in Iraq when they both lived in Europe.
As part of the sentence, Col. James Johnson III will have to serve five years in jail if the fine is unpaid, said Army spokeswoman Hilde Patton.
He had faced possible decades in prison and dismissal from the Army as a maximum sentence. The panel of five colonels who presided over the court martial in the city of Kaiserslautern did not explain their decision.
Johnson had pleaded guilty to 13 counts against him and was found guilty of two other counts by the panel of officers hearing the case. Twelve other counts were dismissed as the proceedings opened Sunday.
The West Point graduate was relieved of his command of the Vicenza, Italy-based, 173rd in March 2011 amid the investigation.
Johnson, the son of retired Lt. Gen. James H. Johnson Jr., who led the Fort Bragg, 82nd Airborne Division during the 1991 Persian Gulf War, was seen as a rising star in the Army before the charges were levied.
He was accused of having carried on an affair with an Iraqi woman he met in Iraq in 2005-06, who was the daughter of his cultural adviser, and pleaded guilty to marrying her before being divorced from his own wife in a ceremony that was carried out by proxies for both of the two in Montana in November.
The woman, identified in court documents as Haveen Alladin Muhammed Al-Atar, has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
Among the charges that Johnson admitted to was the accusation that he made numerous trips to visit the woman in the Netherlands using official vehicles and travel cards, which are government-issued credit cards.
He also acknowledged arranging official transport worth thousands of dollars for the woman and paying tens of thousands of dollars of contracts for her father for things that "were neither produced nor received." The panel also found him guilty of giving the family an Army cell phone on which they ran up more than $80,000 in charges.
"Fellowship of the Ring" - this one will be good for morale...especially amongst the NCOs who know this COL would've burned any one of them for similar misbehaviors. :mad:
Richard :munchin
WTF? :confused::mad:
If letting him stay in, not even a reduction in rank..?
It is however an interesting that his wife blew the wistle and if he would have been kicked out she would have lost out big time in the retirement arena.
As Richard said - easy peasy, just get a panel of Woo-poo's and the fix was in. They certainly couldn't send the man to prison!! My God Man - the inhumanity. The double standards; hypocrisy and selective ethics and honesty of so many of our esteemed Academy graduates is appalling.
And I thought the USAF was the only one with this problem. It is a well known fact that 99% of USAF Cololnels can't make a decision, because there is a 1% chance they could make General. So making no decisions is better than making the wrong one. The few (which turns out to be the ones who SHOULD be promoted, but won't be) are the ones who make the tough calls on a day to day basis because that is their job.
With that being said, no surprise Colonels won't hold their own to the same standard they hold their subordinates to. And people wonder why I don't currently recommend the military to my kids.