How the U.S. Army Punishes Soldiers Without Sending Them to Prison

Every year, the U.S. Army punishes soldiers more than 20,000 times without a judge, a jury, or a trial. It's called an Article 15, and in 2022 it outnumbered courts-martial by more than 30 to 1. In this film: a Vermont National Guard staff sergeant who lost a stripe over one Gore-Tex jacket, the 1963 law that kept tens of thousands of young soldiers out of criminal court, what a commander can take at each level, why a sailor at sea can't refuse but a soldier can, the one-page letter that can end a career, and why almost every soldier signs. If you ever stood in front of that desk, tell us in the comments what it was for. Chapters: 0:00 Vermont, April 3, 2005 1:59 The bottom of the ladder 3:01 The year the rules changed 4:04 DA Form 2627 and block three 5:01 Three levels of Article 15 6:23 Why a sailor can't say no 7:07 Where the paper goes 7:53 The one-page letter 9:08 Why almost everyone signs 10:27 Back to Vermont 12:09 What the Army can't take