Guilty Until Proven Innocent: US Submarine Captain Relieved of Duty for DWI Charge

[Bill]

https://www.military.com/daily-news/...influence.html

USS Georgia Submarine Commander Arrested in Georgia and Relieved of Duty Due to 'Loss of Confidence'


Military.com | By Konstantin Toropin
Published January 16, 2024 at 6:31pm ET

The Navy fired the commander of one of its guided-missile submarines Friday, the service announced in a statement Monday.

The commanding officer of the USS Georgia sub's blue crew -- Capt. Geoffry Patterson -- was relieved by Rear Adm. Thomas Buchanan, the commander of Submarine Group 10, "due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command," the Navy said.

Patterson appears to be the first Navy commander to be removed from command this year.


The Navy's statement did not offer any more information about why Patterson was removed from leadership, outside of the usual remark that the service expects its commanders "to uphold the highest standards of responsibility, reliability and leadership, and the Navy holds them accountable when they fall short of those standards."

When asked for more details, a Navy spokesperson said he was not able to offer anything that wasn't in the official statement.

The USS Georgia is homeported at King's Bay, Georgia. According to data from the Camden County Sheriff's Office, where King's Bay is located, Patterson was arrested in the early hours of Jan. 9 on charges including driving under the influence and improper lane change.

According to the sheriff's website, Patterson was released on bond after a payment of more than $1,800.

Patterson took command of the submarine's blue crew in May 2022.

The Ohio-class guided-missile submarine USS Georgia's last deployment appears to have wrapped up shortly after that, in September 2022. The submarine had been forward-deployed for more than two years -- 790 days.

The Navy currently has four guided-missile submarines that were converted from Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines. Instead of nuclear missiles, the four boats instead carry up to 154 Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles and train to deliver special operations forces on covert missions.

Each Navy ballistic and guided-missile submarine has two sets of crews, blue and gold. They take turns manning the submarines and taking them on patrol.

According to the Navy, "this maximizes the [submarine]'s strategic availability, reduces the number of submarines required to meet strategic requirements, and allows for proper crew training, readiness, and morale."

The Navy said that Capt. Christopher Osborn, the commanding officer of USS Georgia gold crew, is now in charge of the boat and noted that "there is no impact to operations."

[99 pewtercoupe]

Not that unusual when someone in a command position is charged with a criminal event.

The article does not give details of the arrest but I am somewhat familiar with that jurisdiction. If he is acquitted he should be reinstated

[Aerovette]

Patterson appears to be the first Navy commander to be removed from command this year.

Ummmmm, it's January. Being the first "anything" is pretty easy.

Wonder what number they are projecting?

[ZipZap]

Originally Posted by 99 pewtercoupe

Not that unusual when someone in a command position is charged with a criminal event.

The article does not give details of the arrest but I am somewhat familiar with that jurisdiction. If he is acquitted he should be reinstated

Not necessarily. If they recorded his BAC and it was over minimum, he's done independently of this arrest and adjudication. As an O-6, especially in the sub fleet, they will shred him.

[Mike Mercury]

Guilty Until Proven Innocent

Patterson was arrested in the early hours of Jan. 9 on charges including driving under the influence and improper lane change.

in the 21st century, you are not charged with DUI/DWI unless you fail a BAC test. You can get arrested before the blood test (for failing a field sobriety test), but the charges aren't officially filed until you get the blood test.

[slewfoot]

Well, since he is an O6, he's probably at or near 20 yrs. Probably throw him behind a desk or just retire and disappear.. Either way, his career is over. The only way it can get worse is if he's married and his wife wants a divorce and takes 1/2 his retirement.

Then he'll show up running a Pot Shop outside some Podunk area like Brunswick NAS.

[Craig]

Captain is a rank, and/or a title in the Navy, he might be an O-5. My last C.O. on the Michigan came to us as an O-5, but made O-6 shortly thereafter. Either way…he was on track to make Flag. The Georgia is a Trident, the only sub that’s deep draft. To make Admiral you’ve got to C.O. a deep draft ship. Those assignments are scarce in the sub fleet. He’ll ride a desk for a year and retire knowing he ruined the career he’d worked his whole life for.

[ZipZap]

Originally Posted by Craig

Captain is a rank, and/or a title in the Navy, he might be an O-5. My last C.O. on the Michigan came to us as an O-5, but made O-6 shortly thereafter. Either way…he was on track to make Flag. The Georgia is a Trident, the only sub that’s deep draft. To make Admiral you’ve got to C.O. a deep draft ship. Those assignments are scarce in the sub fleet. He’ll ride a desk for a year and retire knowing he ruined the career he’d worked his whole life for.

Read it again. The Captain was the commander of the boat (one one shift).

[DJ_Critterus]

Originally Posted by 99 pewtercoupe

Not that unusual when someone in a command position is charged with a criminal event.

The article does not give details of the arrest but I am somewhat familiar with that jurisdiction. If he is acquitted he should be reinstated

that won't happen. The arrest alone is cause enough to relieve him of command. Remember, UCMJ is not the same as civilian law.

[Onebadcad]

If he is proven to be a drunkard I have no issues.

https://www.navytimes.com/news/your-...rged-with-dui/

An inmate log at the Camden County Sheriff’s Office in Georgia, the same county in which the Georgia is stationed at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay, shows that Patterson, 53, was booked that day on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol, improper lane change/failure to maintain lane and no insurance.

Patterson was booked just after midnight on the misdemeanor charges and was released on bond about seven hours later, according to jail records.

[Steve_R]

Originally Posted by DJ_Critterus

that won't happen. The arrest alone is cause enough to relieve him of command. Remember, UCMJ is not the same as civilian law.

This. UCMJ is a tiny bit harsher than civilian law.

[ColeTrickle]

https://youtu.be/DEKyx_eTxBQ?si=DbH0oRofZ0H9qsww

[Vette40th]

Tridents SSBNs are usually post Commanders and are O6s.
NJP has nothing to do with innocent till proven guilty. He popped for a DUI,DWI, Bye bye

[Bill]

The guy may be guilty, certainly a big lapse in judgement, but if he is, it's probably nothing most people here haven't done a few times in their lives. And then again, the guy may be innocent, a victim of overzealous officers who want to pad their DWI arrest stats to get promoted, accolades, etc., like this stone cold sober guy who got pulled over and arrested in Colorado.

https://reason.com/2023/12/15/colora...00-settlement/

Colorado Cops Falsely Arrested Him for a DUI. Now He's Getting a $400,000 Settlement.
In 2020, Harris Elias was arrested for driving drunk even though tests showed he was completely sober. After filing a lawsuit, he's getting a hefty settlement payout.

Emma Camp | 12.15.2023 3:00 PM

If the sub captain is innocent, like this guy was, I can't see how it could possibly be fair to boot him. I mean, what's to prevent someone in line to being a sub captain from having his friends on the local police force lie in wait to arrest the captain for DWI. I mean, hey, so the captain eventually beats the charges, but he's now booted from the Navy and the number 2 guy can step in.

[Steve_R]

First, the “number 2 guy” didn’t step in. Those boats have two full crews with two COs. The CO of the other crew has been appointed to assume command of both crews, which is temporary. If he blew above the limit on a breathalyzer it’s hard to claim innocence or that he was somehow set up. The UCMJ isn’t civilian law. Not even close.

[Bill]

Originally Posted by Steve_R

First, the “number 2 guy” didn’t step in. Those boats have two full crews with two COs. The CO of the other crew has been appointed to assume command of both crews, which is temporary. If he blew above the limit on a breathalyzer it’s hard to claim innocence or that he was somehow set up. The UCMJ isn’t civilian law. Not even close.

I have no problem if the Navy wants to punish this guy if he was actually guilty. No issues there. A sub captain certainly is going to know the rules and the heightened scrutiny they are under.

I have a big issue if the guy is actually innocent. Actual innocence should trump any UCMJ policy or diktat.

https://jalopnik.com/colorado-police...sts-1850416100

Multiple People Are Suing a Colorado Police Officer Over False DUI Arrests
Five people are alleging they were falsely arrested over DUI suspicions that didn't hold up.

Lawrence Hodge
PublishedMay 8, 2023

Fort Collins, Colorado is about to face the fallout of a police officers poor actions. The Coloradoan reports that both the city of Fort Collins and one of its police officers are being sued over accusations of false DUI arrests.

Five people who were arrested over DUIs between June 2021 and April 2022 accuse Fort Collins police officer Jason Haferman of falsifying the arrests. Court documents show a timeline of possible false arrests going back to November of 2020.

The people claim Haferman did everything improperly when he accused and later arrested them over DUIs, from muting or turning off his body camera to improperly administering a field ​​sobriety test. The suits claim that even though blood testing showed there was no alcohol detected in their systems, they were still arrested.

Haferman initially came under scrutiny after one of the five individuals in the suit, Derrick Groves, publicly announced his intention to sue Haferman over his arrest in the summer of 2022. Groves accused Haferman of pulling him over after observing his Tesla overcorrecting while on Autopilot. Haferman mistook that overcorrection for being drunk and arrested Groves.

Things get worse when looking at the other arrests. One individual claims Haferman purposely closed the door of his patrol car on his leg so he would have to go to the hospital for a blood test after the breathalyzer came back negative. Another accused Haferman of forcing him to take a blood test and lying about aspects of the arrest in his report, aspects which his body cam footage contradicts. Still another arrest includes an elderly man who Haferman pulled over for going under the speed limit and mistaking his slow body movements for being under the influence. The man had a dramatic brain injury which explained his body movements. In every arrest where blood tests were given, no alcohol was found in the anyone’s systems.

While Fort Collins police launched an investigation into Haferman’s conduct, which resulted in him resigning from the force in December 2022, one of the men arrested — Harris Elias — says his conduct is part of a bigger problem that needs to be addressed. Elias was falsely arrested twice over DUIs, the other time by an officer from a nearby community.

“For it to happen twice was truly shocking. It’s illustrative of a major problem of the way drunk driving is being enforced in this community,” he told The Coloradoan.

[Steve_R]

Originally Posted by bill_daniels

I have a big issue if the guy is actually innocent. Actual innocence should trump any UCMJ policy or diktat.

“UCMJ policy or diktat?” Bad judgment isn’t a crime in the civilian world, but it can result in a demotion or end a career in the military.

The Navy may - or may not - wait and see how it plays out in court, but they can’t leave him in command of a nuclear submarine during the wait.

[VatorMan]

Originally Posted by bill_daniels

I have no problem if the Navy wants to punish this guy if he was actually guilty. No issues there. A sub captain certainly is going to know the rules and the heightened scrutiny they are under.

I have a big issue if the guy is actually innocent. Actual innocence should trump any UCMJ policy or diktat.

https://jalopnik.com/colorado-police...sts-1850416100

There’s always the old Article 134-Conduct unbecoming yadda yadda. Just having your name associated with a DUI innocent or not, you are now at the bottom of the barrel for promotions.

[Nox]

Originally Posted by bill_daniels

I have no problem if the Navy wants to punish this guy if he was actually guilty. No issues there. A sub captain certainly is going to know the rules and the heightened scrutiny they are under.

I have a big issue if the guy is actually innocent. Actual innocence should trump any UCMJ policy or diktat.

https://jalopnik.com/colorado-police...sts-1850416100

Factual innocence is way easier to invoke if it’s a case of mistaken identity, such as someone else driving your car and you have a rock solid alibi. However, if you are the sole occupant in a vehicle pulled over by the po-po and you blow into the machine and you are above the legal limit, even if you get off on some technicality, you can pretty much kiss your career goodbye.

[Vette40th]

Kings Bay GA, Saint Marys, Kinglsand. He is not innocent. I know the area ery well. You are warned to not think.of even drinking and driving in that area. He got a DWI.
His career is done.