Military prosecutors have reached into a section of military law seldom used since World War II in the politically fraught case against Army Sgt Bowe Bergdahl, the soldier held prisoner for years by the Taliban after leaving his post in Afghanistan.
Earlier this year Bergdahl was charged with desertion after the deal brokered by the United States to bring him home. And now he has also been charged with misbehavior before the enemy, a much rarer offense that carries a stiffer potential penalty in this case.
'I've never seen it charged,' Walter Huffman, a retired major general who served as the Army's top lawyer, said of the misbehavior charge. 'It's not something you find in common everyday practice in the military.'
Bergdahl could face a life sentence if convicted of the charge, which accuses him of endangering fellow soldiers when he 'left without authority; and wrongfully caused search and recovery operations'.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
