Court-martial of Terry Lakin

The court-martial of Terry Lakin took place over December 14–16, 2010. Doctor Terry Lakin, a lieutenant colonel in the United States Army, announced that he would refuse deployment, and subsequently refused to deploy to Afghanistan because of his concerns over President Obama's constitutional eligibility to be president. It was Lakin's hope that he could request a copy of Obama's birth certificate as part of a court-martial, a goal that had eluded previous military defendants. Lakin had the support of three retired American generals, two of which were Fox News analysts.

Before Lakin went to court-martial, it was found by the judge that President Obama's eligibility (and hence his birth certificate) had no bearing on the case. Lakin pleaded guilty to two charges while pleading not-guilty to one other. Despite recanting his original concerns and asking the jury for leniency, Lakin was found guilty of all charges and sentenced to dismissal from the Army and a prison term of six months. Lakin was released from the United States Disciplinary Barracks after serving five of his six months. He was later denied a medical license in Kansas as a result of his dereliction of duty.

Biography
Terrence Lee Lakin is a native of Greeley, Colorado. He has a doctorate in osteopathic medicine and a master's degree in public health.

Lakin deployed with the US Army six times prior to his dismissal from the service, and is a recipient of the Bronze Star Medal. In 2005, while assigned as a flight surgeon to the 4th Cavalry Regiment, then-Major Lakin was named as the Army Medical Department's Flight Surgeon of the Year for 2004.

Deployment refusal
Then-Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Lakin had orders to report to Fort Campbell, Kentucky on April 12, 2010, for his second deployment to Afghanistan. On March 30, 2010, American Patriot Foundation, Inc. (APF) posted a video to YouTube of Lakin explaining his intent to disobey what he believed to be "illegal orders". Lakin explained that "all orders have their origin with the Commander-in-Chief", and because President Obama had not satisfactorily proven his constitutional eligibility for his station, those orders could not be followed. Lakin invited his court-martial to bring the presidential legitimacy subject to light, but also asked the president to prove his eligibility by producing his original 1961 birth certificate to prove his "birth on American soil" and natural born-status. Margaret Hemenway, speaking for the APF to Salon magazine, repeatedly claimed that President Obama hadn't even released the same birth certificate Lakin had to give the military. The AFP also raised funds to assist in Lakin's defense.

Prior to April 12, Army officials admitted they were aware of Lakin's intent to "violate articles 87 and 92 of [the] Uniform Code of Military Justice", but until he did so they had nothing further upon which to comment. Instead of complying with his deployment orders, Lakin reported to the Pentagon. After being Mirandized and informed by his commanding officer&mdash;Colonel Gordon Ray Roberts&mdash;that he would face court-martial, Lakin's Pentagon access badge and governmental laptop were confiscated. Pending his court-martial, Lakin was assigned to duty at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C..

Analysis
Salon contributor Alex Koppelman noted that LTC Lakin was not the first US miliary member to "become a Birther cause celebre", indicating the cases of Major Stefan F. Cook (Cook v. Good) and Captain Connie Rhodes (Rhodes v. MacDonald). Koppelman explained that neither of these lawsuits succeeded in a ruling on Barack Obama's eligibility to be president, even though due to the chain of command, members had standing to file. In contrast, since a court case (in this case, a court-martial) is the inevitable and unavoidable conclusion to Lakin's actions, he could potentially seek Barack Obama's birth certificate be released for use in his defense.

Support
Prior to officially violating his order to deploy, Lakin was supported by former United States Senator Robert C. Smith who said: "...my personal belief is that when an officer has a constitutional question I don't have a problem with that being answered, that's his legal right to have that answered, but I'm not involved in it."

Three retired United States generals have also publicly expressed support for Lakin. The first was retired Army Major General Paul E. Vallely, a senior military analyst for Fox News. In an interview, Vallely stated "I think many in the military – and many out of the military – question the natural-birth status of Barack Obama." Following Vallely's announcement, retired Army Major General Jerry Curry and retired Air Force Lieutenant General (and Fox News analyst) Thomas McInerney also expressed public support for Lakin.

Trial
In September 2010, Lakin's military judge, Colonel Denise Lind, ruled that whether President Obama is constitutionally qualified for office had no legal bearing on Lakin's case. As such, Lakin could not make any demands for the president's birth certificate as part of his trial.

On December 14, 2010, the first day of Lakin's court-martial at Fort George G. Meade, jurors were asked about their awareness of the "birther movement". Lakin pleaded guilty to violating article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) (failing to meet with a superior officer and failing to report to duty at Fort Campbell), and pleaded not guilty to violating article 87 of the UCMJ (missing a flight on which he was required); court-martial continued on the second charge.

Facing up to 3.5 years in military prison and dismissal from the Army, on December 15 Lakin changed tact and stated that he was wrong to question the president's qualifications through his military service. He requested of the jury that they allow him to continue his career in the military ("I don't want it to end this way, I want to continue to serve."), and that he would now undertake his deployment if he could, even with his concerns about the president unaddressed. The defense brought witnesses before the court to testify on Lakin's behalf, describing the accused as a "compassionate physician" who always volunteered to help when needed. The prosecution introduced the officer that was deployed in Lakin's stead, who testified alongside his wife about how the last-minute deployment affected their lives.

Lakin was found guilty of all charges on December 16. After five hours of deliberation, the jury sentenced him to six months in a military prison and dismissal from the Army, though the sentence still had to be approved by Major General Karl Horst. If approved, Lakin would begin his sentence immediately, though an automatic appeal would go before the Army Court of Criminal Appeals.

Confinement and beyond
Lakin served five months in the United States Disciplinary Barracks at Fort Leavenworth, being released a month early on May 13, 2011.

Speaking on the subject of his outstanding appeals in June 2011, Lakin foresaw no complications in continuing to practice medicine. On 21 October 2011, the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts denied Dr. Lakin a license to practice medicine in Kansas saying he "…potentially jeopardized the health, safety and welfare of the military troops for with applicant was employed to provide medical care."

Lakin later co-authored a book on his experiences, Officer's Oath: Why My Vow to Defend the Constitution Demanded that I Sacrifice My Career.