HoustonChronicle.com - More in the ranks seeking ways to get out of military

HoustonChronicle.com - More in the ranks seeking ways to get out of military

More in the ranks seeking ways to get out of military
Some sue over extended tours and others apply for objector status
By MARTHA MENDOZA
Associated Press

Jeremy Hinzman is raising his baby boy in Toronto, awaiting a court date when he hopes the Canadian government will grant him political asylum.


His is among increasing numbers of men and women in uniform seeking to get out.

Some are seeking honorable discharges as conscientious objectors. Others are suing the military, claiming their obligation has been wrongfully extended. Many have simply deserted, refusing to appear for duty.

"You sign a contract and you're required to serve for whatever time period you've agreed to," said a Pentagon spokeswoman, Lt. Col. Ellen Krenke. "There are certain standards the enlistment contracts oblige soldiers to, and they are required to fulfill them."

But Pentagon policies do have exceptions, and soldiers are increasingly challenging their mandatory service.

Requests for conscientious objector status, which can qualify someone for an honorable discharge, have steadily increased since 2000 � about 110 soldiers filed the complex paperwork in 2004, about four times the number in 2000. Of those, about half were approved.

Army paratrooper Hinzman, who fled from Fort Bragg, N.C., in January 2004, weeks before his 82nd Airborne Division was due to go to Iraq, is awaiting a February hearing in Toronto.

"Perhaps I made a mistake by enlisting in the Army, but the U.S. is putting the lives of its soldiers in jeopardy in order to line the pockets of big money," he said.

Hinzman said he vowed to his wife that he wouldn't go to Iraq, and then had to decide whether he would face a court-martial or flee.

Hinzman's attorney said as many as 200 American war resisters are hiding in Canada, waiting to see how Hinzman's case plays out.

"We simply want to be granted some sort of status here and then sink into a life of obscurity where we can be decent, hard-working, tax-paying citizens," Hinzman said.

About a dozen reservists have filed "stop loss" lawsuits, arguing that it is illegal to make them stay in the military once their required term of service is complete.

The Bush administration has argued with success so far that under federal law the Pentagon can involuntarily extend the deployment of any reservist who's on active duty.