Military Police contains information about military police functions in maneuver and mobility support, area security, law and order, internment/resettlement, and police intelligence operations.
Issue link: https://militarypolice.epubxp.com/i/484012
MILITARY POLICE . 19-15-1 21 • About 60 Soldiers may have claimed asylum in foreign countries. Through criminal intelligence and interagency cooperation, these individuals have been tracked to a foreign country, where they may have been given a political affliation. However, this does not nec- essarily qualify them as defectors in that country. They must apply for citizenship in the new country in order to be considered defectors. • About 350 foreign-born Sol- diers who retained their foreign passports upon entry into the Army may have left the country. 5 Soldiers who have foreign passports with no numbers can exit and reenter the country without detection. The tracking of these Soldiers requires extensive coordination with na- tional and international agencies. • About 250 Soldiers deserted during initial-entry training. • This category includes about 800 Soldiers who have been absent from the Army for more than 1 year and who do not have any additional charges pending. Most of these Soldiers are not hiding from au- thorities; however, there has been little reason to pursue them. About 200 Soldiers are added to the deserter population each year. Those with the most egregious offenses may dis- place deserters currently listed in the Top 75 or Top 200 Most Wanted. An additional classifcation—special-category absen- tees—has recently surfaced as an emergent priority that is accompanied by additional law enforcement requirements. A Soldier is classifed as a special-category absentee if he or she is assigned to a "special mission" unit or has "had ac- cess to top secret, sensitive compartmented information, or special-access program information during the 12 months preceding the absence." 6 The commander is required by Army regulations to immediately declare the Soldier a deserter, regardless of the duration of the absence. An electronic alert is also issued through the National Law Enforcement Tele- communications System. In addition to other measures, an investigative task force composed of representatives from the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command (commonly known as CID), the supporting counterintelligence offce, the local Federal Bureau of Investigation offce, and other law enforcement agencies is established. Procedures are expedited, which concern about protecting informa- tion that the Soldier may possess. The priority of a special- category absentee may supersede other preexisting priority targets. For the past 2 years, OPMG has collaborated with the U.S. Marshals Service in the targeting, tracking, and ap- prehension of deserters. The U.S. Marshals Service, which specializes in tracking fugitives, is composed of a highly de- veloped network of feld offces and has formed well-estab- lished relationships with local law enforcement agencies. As of May 2014, this interagency collaboration had resulted in 18 arrests of Top 75 Most Wanted criminals. 7 Deserters may return to the Army voluntarily or through apprehension. A Soldier who is apprehended by civilian law enforcement personnel is detained until Army rep- resentatives can be dispatched to secure the Soldier for transportation. Compliant deserters who surrender to law enforcement offcials may be transported on their own recog- nizance. Regardless of the length of absence, returning desert- ers are placed with their last unit of assignment for adju- dication. The chain of command determines the severity of the offenses and the disposition of the Soldier. The Soldier might receive nonjudicial punishment and an administra- tive discharge or face trial by court-martial. In November 2012, the Department of Defense (DOD) issued Department of Defense Instruction (DODI) 1325.02, Desertion and Unauthorized Absence (UA), which updates policy, responsibilities, and procedures with the intent to "reduce desertion, UA, or designation as absent without leave (AWOL) of military personnel." 8 Of particular note is the offcial distinction of "desertion under aggravated cir- cumstances," which applies when the de- serter is a commissioned offcer and the offense is specifed in Title 10, U.S. Code, Subtitle A, Part II, Chapter 47, Code of Military Justice. 9 This designation qualifes the deserter for direct entry into the Federal Bureau of Investigation Na- tional Crime Information Center database, thereby facilitat- ing the designee's warrant for arrest. There are two Army regulations (ARs) that deal with Sol- diers who desert: • AR 630-10, Absence Without Leave, Desertion, and Ad- of Personnel Involved in Civilian Court Pro- ceedings. This regulation addresses personnel absences at the administrative level. It covers the reporting of unauthorized absentees and deserters, the administra- tion of AWOL and deserter personnel, the surrender of military personnel to civilian law enforcement authori- ties, and the return of absentees and deserters to military control. 10 • AR 190-9, Absentee Deserter Apprehension Surrender of Military Personnel to Civilian Law Enforce- . This regulation addresses personnel ab- sences at the law enforcement level. It establishes policy and provides procedures for the reporting of absentees and deserters, political defectors, and special-category absentees; the apprehension and processing of absentees and deserters; and the surrender of military personnel to civilian law enforcement authorities. 11 "A Soldier is classifed as a special-category absentee if he or she is assigned to a 'special mission' unit or has 'had access to top secret, sensitive compartmented informa- tion, or special-access program information during the 12 months preceding the absence.' "