Legal Question in Military Law in Maine

Wife @ AIT Proving Grounds MD Is and had Bi-Polar prior to joining military

She lied about herself being bipolar to enable herself to getting accepted into the guard. Now with the freedom to drink @ AIT in Maryland she has been having many episodes of cheating,lying and stopped sending money home for our child. So who should I call or contact she has attempted suicide in the past was on abilify and lamictal for her Bi-Polar but when she became pregnant was taken off due to known side effects to unborn child. She has been threatning me a whole new person she loved me now hates me and then loves me but lies and cheats and makes threats. She even got a tattoo of ''KILL'' above her vagina. She has been getting rooms and cars every weekend but can care less about the support of her child. She just wants to get drunk and laid those are her main concerns. She used to be about her family and future but I think with the stress its caused her disorder to erupt and make unwise decisions. Before she left for basic she never wanted to go to war now she wants to she continues to say KILL KILL KILL all the time when she has a family she is a grenade waiting to explode. I am very concerned for other military personel she is too much of a risk I have her civilian medical records stating her bipolar


Asked on 7/17/09, 8:03 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
James Matthew Branum James M. Branum, Attorney at Law

Re: Wife @ AIT Proving Grounds MD Is and had Bi-Polar prior to joining military

The problem I see is that if your wife is not in a good mental place, it may be difficult to persuade her to get the help she needs. And lawyers like myself can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped.

IF (and only if you can persuade your wife that she needs help), I would suggest starting with the command. She should talk to them about what she is feeling (preferably on a good day, when she is thinking better) You also could talk to the command yourself, and let them know the severity of the issues she has and the things she has said to you. They will likely put her on suicide watch (which unfortunately could subject her to command harassment), but I don't see that there is any other choice.

Another possibility is doing a congressional inquiry. Contact your US Representative and/or one of your US Senators. They normally have staffers that work on military/veteran issues. They may be able to help.

Lastly, if your wife is considering going AWOL, she should know that it is against the law to do that. The consequences of going AWOL though are serious, but not nearly as serious now as they will be after she graduates from AIT. You can read more info on the consequences of going AWOL at:

http://www.nlgmltf.org/onWatch/Onwatch_xx-3_Jan_Feb_2009.pdf

And one more thing... if you wife is able to leave post, you should strongly encourage her to see a civilian psychologist or counselor. This is important both for her safety but also to document the severity of her problems, which is essential if she wants to get discharged.

Good luck to you both. I hope she gets the help she needs.

James

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Answered on 7/17/09, 8:57 pm


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