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AWOLs: The Introverted Resisters?

By Mike Wittels

On August 23, 1966, late afternoon, still hot, the sky a crisp Kentucky blue, I was thrown in the Ft. Knox stockade for having disobeyed orders to put on a uniform and report to work. I was thrown into the Box. There I was made to stand until evening, "break down," and shout out my name and serial number on command every hour. White bread and raw cabbage three times a day. A stainless steel sink attached to the back wall had one spigot, which doubled as a drinking fountain.

After four days, I was released into the general population and moved to Medium Security. Over the next week, I learned that about 95% of the inmates had been busted as AWOL, sometimes for the second or third time. Several said, "Once an AWOL, always an AWOL." Most were just kids.

A few had pressing reasons for AWOL, although the Army didn't see it that way: a sick wife, child, or parent, and the soldier didn't know how to get time off. Or had tried going through channels but failed.

The non-AWOLs were in for car theft, assault, bad checks, etc. One was in for bigamy, discovered after both wives claimed spousal benefits.

Medium Security prisoners were taken out on work details in groups of five every weekday. We were guarded by PGs (Prisoner Guards) armed with shotguns loaded with nine steel slivers, not birdshot. We had been told by the tall, eccentric confinement officer, who spoke like a revivalist preacher, that if we tried to escape from a crew, we would be shot. During my time, two prisoners were. One probably cracked up: he tried to get away by running up a hill. The other, just 18 years old, was shot dead, and he wasn't even trying to escape; it was just a misunderstanding. He had three days left on his sentence.

When I entered the stockade, it was at capacity, with about 240 prisoners, but growing. Soon, prisoners were sleeping on the floor between the bunks and even in the latrine. After a couple of months, they erected huge tents in the exercise yard to house the overflow. New prisoners were coming by the busload almost daily. By February 1967, the population was 600. The reason was the growing unpopularity of the Vietnam War. Many GIs had taken off because they didn't like being in the Army, being bossed around, or being away from home, their wives, or their girlfriends.

Word was you could get a general discharge under honorable conditions as unfit or unsuitable by going AWOL three times. The first time you'd get a six-month sentence, suspended after about six weeks. Then back to duty. Another AWOL, another 6 months, but suspended and back to duty after two or three months. Third try: discharged after a couple of months. Sometimes, though, depending on several factors, including length of absence, you might get a Bad Conduct Discharge, under conditions Other Than Honorable.

A few had received orders for Nam but didn't comply. When apprehended, they were charged with missing troop movement, avoiding hazardous duty, or desertion. Still, those charges were usually reduced to simple AWOL, especially if they stated a willingness to go. In fact, all someone had to do to get out of the stockade immediately was to volunteer for Nam. He'd be taken there under armed guard.

Prisoners were not kept for more than six months at a stretch. Most were sent to the parolee barracks within a couple of months of being locked up. There they were not under guard, so could just walk away, and many did. Those sentenced to longer than six months (through a GCM) went to Maximum Security, then were shipped to Leavenworth.

Few prisoners said out loud that the Vietnam War was the reason they had gone AWOL or even a factor. But it was. I think of them as introverted resisters. They didn't articulate the real reason they were trying to get out, perhaps out of fear of being called cowards.

Or the real fear of getting more serious punishment, although I did hear some say they didn't see any point in "getting my ass shot off for nothing."

But it wasn't just the prisoners. One day during my six-week stay in solitary (for refusing a "promotion" to minimum security status, because it was touted as a step back to duty), an MP officer I hadn't seen before stopped by my cell. I expected the usual derogatory comments, but he said he was on temporary assignment to the stockade and, "This war in Vietnam is a bunch of bullshit. Fighting for democracy, hah! What democracy? We don't even have it in this country." He added that the MPs, to which he was now assigned, were the worst of them all—brutal and sadistic. "Why, the way they treat these guys in here is just going to make them run away, and I don't blame them."

About two-thirds of the AWOLs had joined, but rarely out of patriotism. Mainly they had been trying to get away from something they didn't like: job, no job, marriage, home, or other situation. Many had wives, as in their communities, a man was expected to get married by 18. A good percentage had been raised in foster homes, shuffled from place to place. A few had enlisted in exchange for having criminal charges dropped, although this practice had officially been discontinued. Some had been high-pressured or conned by recruiters.

Company commanders were required to report absences after discovering them at morning roll call. Base headquarters then alerted the MPs, who contacted the police in the AWOL's hometown. If cops stopped a truant for a traffic or other violation, they checked their list and turned him over if his name was on it.

After 30 days, the GI was administratively listed as a deserter. This meant his company commander could request a replacement, and the FBI would be notified.

If he was gone only a day or two, an AWOL might try to alibi his way out, but that rarely worked. A short first offense would bring an Article 15 punishment, say, extra duty or a fine.

Several I talked with or overheard had been turned in by wives or girlfriends, usually after an argument, or by a relative who wanted the kid to "man up." Some were reported by civilians seeking to collect a perhaps mythical $25 reward.

If arrested off base for offenses covered by civilian law, the GI was usually tried by the appropriate court but could be handed over to the MPs.

Just to refresh your memory, AWOL, or Unauthorized Absence (UA) in the Navy, is defined in Article 86 UCMJ as the status of "Any member of the armed forces who, without authority (1) fails to go to his appointed place of duty at the time prescribed; (2) goes from that place; or (3) absents himself or remains absent from his unit, organization, or place of duty at which he is required to be at the time prescribed." After 30 days, he/she is dropped from company rolls and, for administrative purposes, declared a deserter.

That rarely leads to a conviction for desertion (UCMJ Article 85). For the charge to stick, the prosecution normally must show intent to stay away forever: deliberately destroying one's uniform or ID card, or changing one's name or SSN. Or making written or oral remarks of intent to remain absent, or failure to turn oneself in when given the chance, or moving to a foreign country and remaining absent for many years.

Desertion also includes quitting one's unit, organization, or place of duty "with intent to avoid hazardous duty or to shirk important service." In time of war, a deserter can be sentenced to death. For legal purposes, "time of war" is not simply when US forces are engaged in battle, as they have been continuously since 2001. For desertion cases, it is probably only when Congress has officially declared war: WWII (December 8, 1941, to September 2, 1945), but not since.

The DoD lists 503,926 deserters between July 1, 1966, and December 31, 1973. And at least 1.5 million shorter-term AWOLs. The rate grew from 3,177 cases (1.6 percent of the military) in FY 1965 to 79,027 (7.4 percent) in FY71.

The DoD Special Discharge Review Program defined the Vietnam era as August 4, 1964 (Tonkin Gulf Resolution), through March 28, 1973 (when the last American ground troops were withdrawn). The official termination date is May 7, 1975, when US forces completed their withdrawal. During this period, there were over 507,000 incidents of desertion. The program reported, "There were about 444,000 individual deserters. The Army had at least 367,000 incidents and 322,000 individuals."

In any case, despite the potential penalties, a whole lot of troops said NO in the most personal way they could.

Mike Wittels, CCCO's national coordinator of military counseling 1966-73, is an artist and writer living in Northern California. He can be reached at book@mikewittels.com.

Mike Wittels in Basic, Ft Knox, Sept. 1963, when he was on ACDUTRA as a reservist.