.... well .... the paper work got fucked up

whole story, start and end of story

zzz

Yet another shining example of how the Military Industrial Complex -- just like the war-on-drugs Law Enforcement Industrial Complex -- is out of control.

What happened to Chris Parks is outrageous. He deserves an official apology & financial compensation for the time he was illegally detained.

Just when I thought America was on the right track again...

Usually these deserter stories sound pretty fake to me - some knucklehead blaming the system for his own mistakes. The guy is never wrong, everyone else is screwed up, he's special, yadda yadda yadds.

This story actually rings true. It seems plausible that he could be far enough along in the induction process that paperwork just began automatically getting generated.

All's well that ends well, I guess.

Hello,

People in this situation are not all making it up.
Through my contacts at the GI Rights Hotline I have seen this kind of thing happen before. Often the recruiter has assured the person that things are taken care of when in fact the paperwork hasn't been completed and years later it catches up with the person. Sometimes the recruiter even knows the person could get screwed. Anyone concerned that they might be in a similar situation could contact the GI RightsHotline for free information at 877-447-4487.

The ARMY is so gay. I'm in it right now. Air Assault MP. SO ridiculous. I didn't even get a bonus! Im going to afghanistan in august.

Wow Chris.... Raise hell.

I am military, and I have fallen off the rolls, and just stopped being paid before, so it happens that paperwork gets utterly jacked up. However, you should be paid for the time you were detained, my guess is at E-1 Pay. Check with DFAS and the people at a military base. I would recommend seeing if you can get a number for Ft. Lewis Finance office, and they may be able to help you get paid. I even think you would be able to get Travel Expenses covered for the flight to Seattle. This all may not work, but with the Army, you have to fight people to get them to do the right thing.

I agree that this was not simply a matter of a clerical error. The real story here is a total failure to protect an innocent civilian's constitutional rights across multiple jurisdictions for a period of two weeks, which is extremely serious.

Banks got out the next day after seeing a military attorney. He should have seen an attorney the same day he was detained. If he had gotten on the phone immediately and get his family to retain an attorney immediately, he might have gotten out right away, but regardless, he should not have had to.

The government cannot arbitrarily detain citizens without cause. Banks should have been immediately informed of the reason for his detention, not told two days later. He should have appeared before a judge for arraignment within 24 or at MOST 48 hours, with an attorney present at state expense if necessary. He should have seen a judge and an attorney before being transferred into military custody, and before being shipped across state lines.

He should have seen a JAG attorney immediately upon arrival at Ft. Knox.

None of these things happened. It was not a "clerical error" that caused these travails, it was a complete breakdown of due process and constitutional rights. It was also an incredible waste of taxpayer money.

This case should be Exhibit A in why we NEED to have a fully-funded public criminal defense bar at all levels of civilian and military justice to ensure that these types of incidents don't happen.

There are far worse abuses of justice happening every day in the criminal courts across the country, especially in the Deep South and rural areas.