Article 32
June 3rd, 2007 by Jaclyn Sharratt
Plane tickets are scheduled, hotels are booked. We are t-minus nine days until the start of Justin’s Article 32, set to begin on Monday, June 11th. With this being the second time we have had dates for the trial it is hard to truly believe it will happen until my parents arrive at Camp Pendleton. I am still up in the air if I can attend due to work obligations (I will not even get into that ordeal). In all honesty, I do not know how I am expected to sit back and wait to hear daily updates from my family and continue to go on like one of the most pertinent events of my life is not occurring in another world on the west coast. Some parts of life just do not make sense…. a lesson learned since March 2006, when we first heard of this scenario, not believing anything would ever pan out.
Another ironic twist is the feelings we all have about his Article 32. It has been a time we have anxiously awaited since this situation charged full force into our lives. It also involves more time waiting, more time holding our breath. Basically, at an Article 32 a military judge will hear each attorney’s side of the case… witnesses, evidence, etc. It will last from 5 to 9 days. After the judge hears both sides he will construct a report to give to General Mattis regarding his opinion on whether the case merits a hearing. If he thinks there is enough evidence my brother will be sent to a Court Martial hearing, where our attorneys will be defending my brother from spending his life in prison. One person, this judge, will determine the fate of my brother, our family, our lives.
I haven’t seen Justin since February. I have no idea if he is still smiling. Words and phone conversations only reveal so much. It is difficult not to worry every day. Matt and I took a few days over Memorial Day weekend to visit Moms and Dad in Pennsylvania. Trying to avoid the topic of my brother was like trying to put toothpaste back in the tube. Overall we all did have a great time, and nothing feels better than being home. I am hoping we will all be together in July for Moms birthday. Hopefully Justin will be able to make the trip home. Hopefully we will know the verdict of the Article 32. And maybe, just maybe, we will be celebrating him being exonerated, and getting out of the Marine Corps as scheduled on July 28, 2007, leaving all this behind us forever.