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12-24-06, 06:41 AM #1
AWOL soldier released from Camp Lejeune brig
AWOL soldier released from Camp Lejeune brig
December 24,2006
KELLEY CHAMBERS
DAILY NEWS STAFF
Saturday marked the end of three months behind bars and, Ricky Clousing hoped, the beginning of a new chapter in his life.
Clousing, an army paratrooper who went AWOL last year after serving in Iraq, was released early Saturday morning from the Camp Lejeune brig after serving three months for the unauthorized absence violation.
“It feels good, but it feels surreal because I don’t have to deal with the military anymore,” said Clousing, who was released 15 days early on good conduct. “I’m getting out just before Christmas, so it’s really great.”
The 24-year-old former Army sergeant from Sumner, Wash., was released from the Camp Lejeune brig after having served his time for a 14-month unauthorized military absence, or UA, charge that he said stemmed from what he saw as an interrogator working in Iraq.
After returning to his post with the 82nd Airborne at Fort Bragg last year, Clousing learned he would soon be going back to Iraq. He subsequently left Fort Bragg in June 2005, was classified as UA and turned himself in at Fort Lewis, Wash.
He pleaded guilty in October and was consequently demoted to private and given a bad conduct discharge. He also lost two-thirds of his military pay while serving his sentence.
Clousing said he was shocked at the methods used to interrogate Iraqis and expressed his concerns to his commander. But, according to what Clousint told an Associated Press reporter, unit leaders ignored his account.
After talking to a chaplain and calling a service member hotline run by a coalition of antiwar groups, Clousing began developing close relationships to several peace activists groups, including the Quaker House in Fayetteville.
Dave Taylor, a Beaufort-based member of Veterans for Peace, visited Clousing regularly at the brig and accompanied Clousing to Raleigh Saturday, where they planned to meet with other peace activists for a wreath-laying ceremony at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial before Clousing returned to Washington.
“(Clousing) said to me, “I was willing to do my duty but I’m not going back to that war because I think it’s wrong,’” said Taylor. “I can’t not back him up because of that.”
In the months he’s grown to know Clousing, Taylor grew more dedicated to spreading public awareness on the injustices of war.
“A lot of people who get upset about it are, in my opinion, pretty brainwashed; and they have to be (in order) to be professional in the military,” said Taylor. “When you start thinking for yourself, that’s when you get into trouble.”
Standing in front of the main gate at Camp Lejeune, Clousing remained firmly behind his decision to go UA, a serious crime whose maximum penalty in the U.S. is death. Clousing faced a two-year sentence.
“My decision was never personal to my command. I had to honor my own personal convictions,” Clousing said. “I’m excited to finally be finished with the military. I’ve gotten the opportunity to learn a lot about myself and the system I fell under.”
After Clousing’s return to Washington, he said he will settle in with his family and “establish his platform” against the war in Iraq.
“I respect the troops,” said Clousing, “but not the uniform because it doesn’t respect the troops more often than not.”
Contact Kelley Chambers at kchambers@freedomenc.com or 353-1171, ext. 235.
Ellie
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