awol

[stuckinarump]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Tx
Okay so i recently went awol i will turn myself in after i get dropped from my rolls.
What kind of punishment could i see best and worst?And if i have been dropped from my rolls when i turn myself in will i be sent back to my old unit?

[stuckinarump]

ok iwas thinking about turning myself in soon but do u think i should wait till my unit goes to iraq i mean they leave in july would that be best or what plz in desperate need of help.

[smr36]

is your unit active duty or reserve? you will see the inside of a jail cell. they will put a warrant out for you. the cops will be looking. they WILL eventually pick you up. you WILL be held until your unit GETS AROUND to picking you up. then from there its up to the unit. if active duty, worse case is in jail till who knows when, could be quite a while. best case, reserves, in jail till they get back. guy you could be in serious trouble going awol in time of war, it doesnt get more serious. but it will more than likely be up to your C.O. what will happen to you and as a vet my C.O. would of burned us if we did what u have done. i know your afraid. and its alright to be afraid. it is not fun over there but it is not so bad that you want to ruin the rest of your life over it. IT WILL FOLLOW YOU THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. look on the bright side it has gotten better. good luck make the best choice turn yourself in before they go, deal with it before if you wait till after it will be ALOT worse

[ERAUPIKE]

Originally Posted by stuckinarump

ok iwas thinking about turning myself in soon but do u think i should wait till my unit goes to iraq i mean they leave in july would that be best or what plz in desperate need of help.

That would not be advantageous to your future in any way. You will be labeled as a deserter after 31 days of being AWOL but you can be upgraded sooner if your command sees fit. If dropped from rolls you will undoubtedly be discharged from the Army. Your discharge will be adverse and will follow you the rest of your life. There is a distinct possibility that you may spend time in military prison before your release from active duty as well. If you are picked up by the civilian authorities before you gather the intestinal fortitude to return to your voluntary obligation your chance of seeing the inside of a military prison is much greater. You should turn yourself in before you inflict extensive damage on your professional character that will follow you the rest of your life.

[serinadb]

don't let others intimidate you. have they gone through it?


it's not that bad, but very scary.


there are free attorneys out there that take their time to help awol soldiers. amazing people. contact the peace and justice center by you, or in san jose, ca. they will help you too. the military is not for everyone. especially during these times..... any questions feel free to ask.


you will go to a dfr unit at your old base where all the other guys are going through the same thing and jumping through hoops to get discharged.

..... unless you were in training still.


the police are not looking for you either, get real, they have better things to do. i know of someone who was a deserter got pulled over, told the cops straightforward and why- they said we don't care, go on your way. not to say that will always happen, but there is THOUSANDS of awol a deserter soldiers.

[girightslawyer]

Originally Posted by smr36

is your unit active duty or reserve? you will see the inside of a jail cell. they will put a warrant out for you. the cops will be looking. they WILL eventually pick you up. you WILL be held until your unit GETS AROUND to picking you up. then from there its up to the unit. if active duty, worse case is in jail till who knows when, could be quite a while. best case, reserves, in jail till they get back. guy you could be in serious trouble going awol in time of war, it doesnt get more serious. but it will more than likely be up to your C.O. what will happen to you and as a vet my C.O. would of burned us if we did what u have done. i know your afraid. and its alright to be afraid. it is not fun over there but it is not so bad that you want to ruin the rest of your life over it. IT WILL FOLLOW YOU THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. look on the bright side it has gotten better. good luck make the best choice turn yourself in before they go, deal with it before if you wait till after it will be ALOT worse

Many of my clients who have spent time in Iraq and in jail, tell me that jail is a much better place to be. The biggie is that no one is shooting at you and no one is making you shoot at anybody else. And you can sleep soundly at night knowing that you did what you believe is right.

[girightslawyer]

Originally Posted by serinadb

don't let others intimidate you. have they gone through it?

it's not that bad, but very scary.

there are free attorneys out there that take their time to help awol soldiers. amazing people. contact the peace and justice center by you, or in san jose, ca. they will help you too. the military is not for everyone. especially during these times..... any questions feel free to ask.

you will go to a dfr unit at your old base where all the other guys are going through the same thing and jumping through hoops to get discharged.

..... unless you were in training still.

the police are not looking for you either, get real, they have better things to do. i know of someone who was a deserter got pulled over, told the cops straightforward and why- they said we don't care, go on your way. not to say that will always happen, but there is THOUSANDS of awol a deserter soldiers.

serinadb is right. Call and get help ASAP.

As for what can happen to you, it depends on if you are still in training or if you are permanent party. It sounds like from what you said about your unit, that you are likely permanent party. If that is the case, it is harder to get out than just the PCF track but still do-able (worst case scenario you do some jail time... but the good news is that nobody has received more than 18 months in this war for deserting, most receive less). But it is important to get help sooner rather than later. Likely you will want to have a lawyer or counselor negotiate with the Army before you go back.

[Raine19]

Why the HELL do you looser's sign up in the first place? you know what's going to happen! The AWOL logo will follow you for the rest of your life and you will NEVER be able to get a really good job. Not Federal, State, Local etc.
You all make me sick!
My son spent 2 tours in Iraq. You don't think he was scared to death? he knew what he signed for. Now, he has over $35,000 in the bank and a brand new car. He's taking a couple months off to have fun and regroup. Every single agency Federal, State you name it they want him.
He proved himself!

[angelydiablo6]

From experience with an awol husband, raine you really dont understand anything until you are in their shoes. Yes we all feel sorry about your daughter and her kids but him being awol is another deal. My husband was active duty when he went awol. He was NON Deployable in the National Guard then went Active Duty ONLY when he was told he was still NON DEPLOYABLE. Well that didn't happen. He was told 16 days after going active duty that he was going to Iraq. Being blind in one eye they were going to put him as a Gunner. If you dont know what that is...it is when they are on top of a military vehicle with only a limited amount of protection shooting people. Again, he is half blind. He got scared and went AWOL. He ended up with an amazing job. He got pulled over and went to jail until a MP that was close by came and got him and put him on a plane back to his Unit. He then was put in the barracks to reinprocess. He ended up having to go to Iraq for the remainder of his Units tour. He is now back, serving the rest of his contract, and he learned his lesson. Noone actively looks for AWOL or Deserters, but will get taken to jail if pulled over. You sit in Jail until your Unit comes and gets you. Then from there its a lot of threats etc. but most people get Jail time, loss of rank, loss of pay, detail etc. It all depends on your Commander. Best thing to do is contact GI RIGHTS HOTLINE. They helped us alot. You might be sent to Iraq if you turn yourself in before they get back. It is very scary over there and all but ,maybe if you go to Iraq you will not be punished (like my husband) My advice just turn yourself in because worrying about when you are going to get pulled over is really crappy. Turn yourself into any military base not the Cops cause you till just sit there until your Unit sends someone to get you. And that time in Jail DOES NOT count towards your punishment. I hope I helped. I really don't know the laws etc. but have been there and done that.

[stuckinarump]

wow so just throwing it out there nothing has happened yet i am still awol and living a normal life just sayin any hints or stuff people want to say.

[andrew anderson]

Originally Posted by Raine19

Why the HELL do you looser's sign up in the first place? you know what's going to happen! The AWOL logo will follow you for the rest of your life and you will NEVER be able to get a really good job. Not Federal, State, Local etc.
You all make me sick!
My son spent 2 tours in Iraq. You don't think he was scared to death? he knew what he signed for. Now, he has over $35,000 in the bank and a brand new car. He's taking a couple months off to have fun and regroup. Every single agency Federal, State you name it they want him.
He proved himself!

You're wrong. Resoundingly.

I'm a state licensed physician who attended a US D.O. school on partial scholarship. I was accepted at 5 institutions, 3 with partial funding, 1 md/phd program, and nobody was unsatisfied with my awol OTH. It came up in every interview, and only one admissions officer blinked twice upon explanation. I have a buddy from "awol camp" who is now a litigator and yet another who is very successful in the private sector. In educated sectors of the country, private industry simply doesn't care, by and large.

Unless you desire state funded mediocrity; IE, easy govt jobs with a reasonable pension, middle class wages, and easy, uninspiring work, an OTH will not hinder your professional life.


So, if you would be so kind, stop living vicariously through your child's service, and stop spewing barely legible nonsense to scare kids who find themselves in a situation you know nothing of.

And, for the clincher, you spelled "looser" wrong.

Originally Posted by stuckinarump

wow so just throwing it out there nothing has happened yet i am still awol and living a normal life just sayin any hints or stuff people want to say.

turn yourself in at Fort Knox. Just be straight with them. The vast majority of the time, JAG offers you the option of OTH in lieu of court martial after a few days in awol camp. Obviously, accept the offer. You're generally home within a week.

Put this behind you. Make no mistake that, short a massive accounting error, you have a federal warrant out for your arrest. It is unlikely cops are actively seeking you, but if they run your tags whilst driving, you're handcuffed, put in the county clink till the military gets around to picking you up, and you face the possibility of being charged as a deserter. If you turn yourself in, they can't reasonably charge you with desertion; if a gung hoe prosecutor tried, he'd get laughed out of court.


Turn yourself in. Get this over with soldier. You'll get a lecture or two from a miserable lifer seeking self justification, but beyond that, it's not that horrible.


Any more questions ask away.

[girightslawyer]

Just to clarify, if you were AWOL from Basic or AIT, then all you need to do is find out if you are DFR'd or not and then go to Ft. Sill or Ft. Knox PCF.

If you are AWOL from a permanent party station, it isn't quite that easy. You are best off contacting the GI Rights hotline or a civilian lawyer first. There are lot of good ones out there.

Either way though, it's best to get this over with sooner rather than later.

Good luck!