Desertion in the Military: Pentagon Rarely Searches for Soldiers

With the war continuing and the military thinned-out in Afghanistan and Iraq deserters are continuing to be overlooked according to the Associated Press. As the total number rises it is still a small amount of the total number of soldiers in the military overall. In 2006 alone 3,301 soldiers were considered as deserters and only 5% (174) of those were court-martialed leaving others simply wondering for the rest of their lives if they'll be caught or eventually turning themselves in, Pentagon officials said.

A Pentagon source of data shows that of the deserters in 2006 sixty percent came from the Army, twenty-four percent from the Navy, fifteen percent in the Marines, and only .08% from the Air Force. After speaking with Major Anne Edgecombe, the Associated Press reported that when deserters turn themselves in they are sometimes put back into circulation while most of them are discharged within proceedings that are considered "non-criminal". The others still unaccounted for have nothing done more than have their names placed into the FBI national criminal database.

Maj. Edgecombe also said, "Rather than dedicate seasoned non-commissioned officers to the task of tracking down a deserter, commanders choose to spend time and resources to ensure their soldiers are properly trained and prepared to perform the missions they will be tasked with in places like Iraq and Afghanistan." According to the Pentagon source statistics there are over 17,000 soldiers since 9/11 in all who have deserted in Iraq. While the Pentagon is not actively searching for these individuals some have fled to Canada which is considered a safe haven according to a Wesh 2 report (http://www.wesh.com/news/4534806/detail.html) in 2005 which they found 150 soldiers.

Military officials say that as long as they are not pulled for whatever reason and have their names run in the criminal system, or they do not try to apply for a passport and have a background check done from an employer soldiers who desert can live in the United States without being caught. After looking at these facts it may be safe to say that as the war continues the less soldiers are believing in what they are doing.

SeattlePi.com
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/6420AP_Military_Deserters.html

Wesh.com
http://www.wesh.com/news/4534806/detail.html