On Oct. 16, a special court-martial convened at Tinker Air Force Base where Senior Airman V.K. pled guilty to one specification of wrongful use of marijuana, on divers occasions; one specification of wrongful use of Adderall; one specification of wrongful use of cocaine; and one specification of fraudulent enlistment. The maximum sentence that Senior Airman V.K. was facing was a bad conduct discharge, 12 months in confinement, forfeiture of two-thirds basic pay for 12 months, reduction in rank to the grade of E-1, and the possibility of a fine. The maximum sentence for these offenses was limited by the jurisdictional limits of a special court-martial, as opposed to a general court-martial where the maximum punishment is dictated by the maximum allowable punishment for the underlying offenses.
After hearing the evidence against Senior Airman V.K., the military judge found him guilty of all charged offenses, and he was sentenced to a BCD, 2 months confinement, which was limited to 35 days by the convening authority and a reduction in rank to the grade of E-1.
A BCD is a type of punitive discharge that applies only to enlisted personnel and may be adjudged by a general court-martial or a special court-martial. A BCD is less severe than a dishonorable discharge (available only at general courts-martial) and is designed as a punishment for bad conduct.
The prosecution of this case was handled by the office of the Staff Judge Advocate, 72nd Air Base Wing. All courts-martial at Tinker AFB are open to the public, with some restrictions. For more information about observing a court-martial, contact the military justice division at DSN 339-4430 to receive information about impending courts.