An appellate court has ruled that a federal judge lacked the authority to overturn former U.S. Army soldier Bowe Bergdahl's military conviction for deserting his post in Afghanistan prior to being abducted and held captive by Taliban-allied forces for nearly five years. A three-judge panel on the U.S.
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ordered the dismissal of Bergdahl's claims in district court on Tuesday. The panel stated that District Judge Reggie Walton in Washington lacked jurisdiction to set aside Bergdahl’s court-martial conviction and sentence in 2023. Bergdahl originally sued in 2021, contending that his Fifth Amendment due-process rights were violated.
Walton had ruled that military judge Jeffrey Nance created a potential conflict of interest by failing to disclose his application to become an immigration judge within the Justice Department. However, the appeals court concluded that only military tribunals hold the authority to vacate a court-martial judgment. "Bergdahl’s claim thus conflicts with that longstanding limitation," Circuit Judge Robert Wilkins wrote.
Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan and Circuit Judge Gregory Katsas also heard the appeal. Srinivasan and Wilkins were nominated by Democratic President Barack Obama, while Katsas was nominated by Republican President Donald Trump. Eugene Fidell, one of Bergdahl’s lawyers, said they were considering their legal options after Tuesday's decision.
"We’re certainly disappointed. It’s an important case that raises serious issues," Fidell said. "The case has lasted a long time, but we are closely examining the available alternatives." Bergdahl, then a 23-year-old soldier from Hailey, Idaho, was stationed near Afghanistan's Paktika Province in June 2009 when he walked off his post without permission to hike to headquarters and complain about what he viewed as poor leadership in his unit.
Captured by forces from the Taliban-affiliated Haqqani network, Bergdahl was repeatedly tortured before his release in 2014 as part of a prisoner exchange that was sharply criticized by Trump and others while he was running for his first term as president. Several U.S. service members were wounded during the search for Bergdahl, who was charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy after his release. He pleaded guilty to both charges in 2017 and received a dishonorable discharge.
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